Show Yourself Off: A Guide to Building a Portfolio Website
By Nivita Sriram
Having a portfolio website is important for many, many reasons. Building a portfolio website gives you the opportunity to stand out to potential employers while sharing your story with others. When applying for jobs, most people have resumes, and while there is nothing wrong with just a resume, creating a portfolio website that is tailored specifically to you allows potential employers to see various sides of you. Your website showcases your experience and expertise in your industry as well as a little bit of your personality, values, life goals and interests, giving potential employers a better idea of who you really are.
So how do you get started?
Start by browsing through website builders
There are many platforms that make it easy to build a website such as Wix, Wordpress, Weebly, Squarespace, etc. Look through their various templates and figure out what works best with your brand. There are endless templates that best match your personality, professional endeavors, and industry you are pursuing a career in. Clean and simple websites are best for any professional, but it never hurts to add a little pop of color or flare to show off your personality and creativity.
Brainstorm exactly what you want to showcase.
If you’re going for a portfolio, filter through your work and select your best projects to showcase. If you have any personal projects that you weren’t able to discuss on your resume, this is your chance to share them. Include detailed descriptions, inspirations and the process of thought you went through from beginning to end. From these descriptions, potential employers or clients can see the level of thought, detail, analysis and conceptualization you put into all of your work.
Don’t worry if you don’t have a lot of work to show. A portfolio website is not meant to show everything you’ve ever done. Just pick out the work that speaks to your skills and passion.
Talk yourself up!
This is your chance to leave a memorable impression for those looking at your website or portfolio. Share your goals, inspirations, hobbies and side passions that you don’t always have the chance to discuss on a resume. You never know how they might help you in getting work or connecting with people with similar interests.
Also include background information about yourself to share your journey including bits and pieces of your highs and lows. But also remember to keep it short! Tell your story enough for visitors to get a feel for who you are. The more your story sounds like you, the better. Authenticity always shines through.
Increase your reach
Be sure to link your website or portfolio on any job applications, social media platforms and networking sites to increase your chances of networking with individuals in your field. Also link your social media on your website so that you’re easily reachable. Always include contact information that you are comfortable with like your email or phone number.
Review, edit, and improve
Lastly, always be sure to have a second, third or fourth set of eyes taking a look at your portfolio or website before publishing. We don’t always catch little mistakes we make and different perspectives always bring in new ideas and a fresh lens that we may not have thought of previously.
Publish your site or portfolio once it’s ready. As you continue to finish projects, be sure to update your portfolio and website. They should always be representative of your current status and should grow as you do too.
Header photo by Christina Morillo
This article was originally published on Parachute Media
