Design portfolios are a chance to show off your skills, quality of work, work style and personality… i.e. your BRAND! How do you stand out amongst the noise?
When building your design portfolio, there are 6 important points to consider:
Ask yourself;
What do all of these people have in common?
What message are you portraying? Language? Tone of voice? Selection of images?
Integrate your personality into language, your tone of voice and your selection of work and images.
What are your strengths? What are you known for? If you specialise in illustration, then showcase your style and versatility. Are you a photographer who has been working as a freelancer? Link this back to your business & communication skills! Looking for a role in videography or editing? Then put together your own hype reel.
If you note you have great attention to detail, then ensure your application doesn’t contain any spelling mistakes or typos!
Ask yourself, what new role would be appealing to you? Emphasise your competency and demonstrate your readiness to step-up and embrace a new challenge.
Most of all - adapt your message to your audience!
Include a CV. Make it short, sharp and snappy. You’re a designer, so have it designed well, but don’t over-design!
Avoid clichés.
Your digital footprint is the trail of data you leave behind when you use the internet.
As a graphic designer, it is almost expected that you will have your own website, or in the very least, a digital portfolio that a prospective employer can take a look at. Utilising a web platform, in addition to updating your bio on your social channels and LinkedIn stating you are looking for work, are really easy ways to let your network know you are searching for a role.
Conversely, a comment you make on social media can be left behind, searched and found by prospective employers’ months and years after it has been originally posted, so be conscious that what you post in a public forum can be referenced for years to come.
If you’re looking for a job, one of the first tasks on your to-do list should be crafting an ideal "elevator pitch." It’s the 30-second speech that summarises who you are, what you do and why you’d be a perfect candidate for the role.
You should be able to reel off your elevator pitch at any time, from a job interview to a casual conversation with someone who might be able to help you land a position. It is important to have your speech memorised and practiced so it sounds natural, and is clear, concise and easy to understand.
In job-hunting situation, an interviewer may ask "Why should I (or any employer) hire you?" This is the perfect opportunity to use your elevator pitch!
Remember, tailor the pitch to them, not you. It’s important to remember that the people listening to your speech will be thinking in the back of their mind WIFM (What’s in It For Me?) So be sure to focus your message on their needs.
Subscribe to our blog for more tips & resources for budding graphic design & marketing professionals!