Although a creative and perfectly written résumé can help you stand out from the crowd, employers look for more than just experience listed on a piece of paper when screening candidates. They want to see physical evidence of your work, and feedback from others that you’re good at what you do.
Cue the online portfolio — where you can demonstrate all of that, and much more.
In this guide, we’ll explore everything you need to know about online portfolios, including what they are and why they’re useful, as well as how to develop your own.
Let’s dig right in!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What is an online portfolio?
An online portfolio is a digital version of a portfolio — an electronic “folder” showcasing your best work samples. Also known as a digital portfolio or e-portfolio, it’s meant to provide “tangible” evidence of your skills to potential clients and employers.
It typically comes in the form of a website, but you can also compile your samples on social media through a tasteful feed, cloud storage, or as a PDF file.
Who can create an online portfolio?
Anyone who wants to showcase their work, skills and achievements can create an online portfolio, but it’s especially useful for creative professionals like designers, photographers, writers, artists, videographers, actors and filmmakers.
It’s also a valuable tool for freelancers across all industries, as a portfolio can help them build credibility in their field and attract clients. Meanwhile, jobseekers in competitive fields (like marketing and software development) should consider building an online portfolio, as should academics, researchers and consultants.
Why do you need an online portfolio?
Creating an online offers several benefits, including:
Showcases your work professionally
One of the main things that an online portfolio can help you with is present your skills, achievements and projects in a visually appealing and organized way. It essentially acts as a professional and modern representation of your expertise and technical know-how.
Increases visibility and accessibility
Being online makes your portfolio accessible 24/7 from anywhere in the world. This ultimately increases your visibility to potential clients, employers and collaborators who can quickly and easily find your work.
Attracts new opportunities
Whether you’re looking for a new job, freelancing, or building your personal brand, an online portfolio can attract clients and employers, thereby creating new opportunities and opening doors for you left, right and center.
Helps you stand out in competitive fields
One of the great things about portfolios, whether online or offline, is that they highlight your unique style, skill set and approach — and, as such, makes you more memorable and sets you apart from the crowd, which is particularly useful in competitive fields.
Enhances your credibility
An online portfolio provides concrete evidence of your capabilities, especially when it features testimonials, certifications, awards and case studies that can speak to those capabilities and demonstrate your unique value.
Tips for creating an online portfolio
With these top tips, you’re bound to grab their attention and secure that all-important interview!
1. Be clear about your end goal
It’s important to have a goal in sight as to why you’re building your online portfolio. Is it because you’re looking for a new job, going into freelancing, or moving into a new field?
Whatever the reason, think about how you want to portray your personal brand and your related experience. “Crafting an online brand is the first step in landing a new job when you don’t have a degree or previous work experience in that area,” says personal branding expert Joyce Akiko. “Making sure it aligns with your end goals is key — do your research up front.”
2. Keep it simple
Whether you’re building your own website or using a portfolio website template, it’s important to have a simple site with easy navigation.
Hiring managers don’t have time to spend digging around for your samples, so make sure they’re easy to locate and that your content is well-organized into subcategories.
For example, a writer can categorize their work by type of content produced: eBooks, blogs, articles, and ad copy. They shouldn’t be lumped together as one category; they should be easy to find through a navigation bar or a pull-down menu.
3. Tell your personal story
When visitors are looking at your site, they want to know who you are, as well as what you can offer.
As such, inject a bit of personality wherever possible. This could be through a caption or a personal blog that you’re writing. Meanwhile, be sure to include a headshot so visitors can add a face to the name.
If you have other creative talents, don’t be shy to show them on your portfolio. Even if you’re a content writer and passionate about photography, you can add a few examples; just make sure they are categorized correctly as we mentioned above.
4. Be selective
We can be extremely biased when it comes to our own work and are proud of every sample and design that we put our blood, sweat and tears into. But you must be super selective when deciding what to add to your site.
Take a step back and pretend it isn’t your work, and see if you have any criticisms — if you do, scrap that piece! You can also select examples that received good feedback, as you know they were impressive.
A few numbers to follow are no less than 10 examples and no more than 30. It’s all about quality, not quantity when it comes to showing off your masterpieces.
5. Digitize with care
Don’t scrap any print designs; just make sure you digitize appropriately for an online display. If you aren’t handy with high-quality scanners or cameras, hire a professional photographer to capture the images for you to upload to your site.
It will be worth it in the long run when you can show your proudest pieces to potential clients and managers.
6. Use eye-catching images and share the backstory
When you’re preparing your online portfolio, you need to think about the design of each project. The images need to captivate and catch the attention of the viewer.
Matias Corea, Chief Designer at Behance says:
“The first image should be engaging enough to make people want to look at the entire project.”
7. Have a contact feature
As with your résumé, your online portfolio must also have some contact information; this can include your email and a link to your online social media accounts (if they’re professional).
A step further would be to create a contact form where potential clients and hiring managers can communicate with you through your online profile. This is a surefire way to increase commissions.
8. Add credibility
You can add credibility to your work by including references — but be sure to ask first if it’s okay to include a link to a quote.
You can include a testimonial next to the client’s project if they’ve given you excellent feedback. It’s so much better for other people to express their happiness with you, rather than you blowing your own trumpet.
9. Keep it fresh
Although your online portfolio has an amazing design, it’s no good if it’s not updated with any recent work.
Mexico-based designer and illustrator Christopher Mooij agrees:
“Regular updates are crucial — and not just those showing finished work… Let people know what you’re working on, or what you’ve done over the past few weeks…Obviously, those posts shouldn’t be filled with your personal diary: make it smart.”
You should essentially be updating your online profile once or twice a month.
Best portfolio website makers
Some professionals who are familiar with coding and digital marketing may choose to build their own website. But this isn’t necessary — there are a number of portfolio building sites that are easy to use with templates that will match your career and personality.
Here are six top tools to build an outstanding professional portfolio online:
- me is one of the largest writing portfolio websites that allows the creation of writing-specific portfolios with custom URLs. It’s free for up to a certain number of clippings. For additional features like Google Analytics integration and portfolio privacy, there is a fee from $5.99/month.
- Wix is the code-free way to customize a website to your needs. It has an extremely user-friendly drag-and-drop editor, as well as many apps that can be added throughout your website to build a better experience for visitors. They offer a free version with additional subscription packages.
- Weebly allows professionals of all levels to create a mobile-friendly portfolio. Start by selecting a pre-designed theme from their database; their free or paid features can be customized to suit you.
- WordPress is the renowned blog publishing application and content management system. The platform has a wide range of free features, with the option to pay and receive more benefits.
- Dunked allows you to build your personal website with your own domain name easily. With fast and reliable hosting, search engine optimization and analytics, Dunked is a favorable choice amongst young professionals. It backs up all your work to the cloud so you don’t have to worry about losing any of your projects.
- Crevado is a free and easy-to-use solution for people in the creative industries wanting to showcase their work. It’s easy to use with drag-and-drop capabilities and smart privacy controls to protect sensitive work.
Final thoughts
And there you have it: everything you need to know about creating an online portfolio that shines and that showcases your amazing talent through samples of work.
When it comes to finding work, though, make sure that your portfolio complements your job application. In other words, it shouldn’t replace your résumé or cover letter.
Got a question, or want to share your own tips for creating a stand-out online portfolio? Let us know in the comments section below.
This article is a partial update of an earlier version originally published in 2017.