Create a compelling personal portfolio website to enhance professional competitiveness!
Core points:
(This article was revised and updated in 2017)
For developers, designers or writers, freelancing is a good way to make a living. But what if you need to find a new job or client? Today’s market is fierce and you need to stand out.
Having a professional LinkedIn profile is a good start, but if you really want to get people’s attention, you need to market yourself through your portfolio website. This is basically your personal LinkedIn page, just with more space to showcase your skills.
Developers, designers, and writers each have different skills and work to be displayed, but they all have one thing in common: they need to market themselves to potential clients.
In this article, I will show you some useful tips for creating portfolio websites, as well as some excellent cases.
Why do you need a portfolio website?
Having a professional LinkedIn profile is one thing, but you can use your portfolio website to really show your skills. Why? free! You can do whatever you want and leave a lasting impression. You can even win awards for it.
You want potential customers to visit your website and immediately think: "I want that too!" This is your virtual showroom where potential customers can even show it to others when they need to convince others.
Even the most professional LinkedIn profile looks the same as other profiles on the service, but your website is how you express “I am me, that’s what I can do for you”.
Need more persuasion? Well, this is the LinkedIn profile for people who have the best portfolio sites I've ever seen.
It's all about selling yourself
It sounds like a cliché, but you are your best salesman. This means you have to sell yourself without losing your personality.
As you will see in the example below, there are many ways to show yourself. You can choose to be a cartoon character, use a large number of photos, show off your technical abilities, or impress with your writing skills.
It is important that you feel comfortable on your website. If you're a little shy, make your own cartoon so you don't have to use your photos online. If this describes you best, make your website wild and luxurious. Make your website your online equivalent. Give it personality while maintaining a professional style in terms of wording.
Make sure your portfolio contains relevant works. Only list team work if you have made a significant contribution that can be identified to your work. Never steal other people's works. Specify what you did and how it benefits the entire process. If possible, make a screenshot to show your section.
If you only show your favorite works to craft your portfolio, that's OK. We all need to make a living, and sometimes we take on the jobs we would rather avoid to make some money. Use your portfolio to locate the type of work you prefer to do.
Let potential customers know what it feels like to work with you. When working on the spot, please include a letter of recommendation from a previous client or colleague. When working offsite only, let people know what to expect when it comes to communicating, managing deadlines, or your working hours.
Think of your portfolio website as the equivalent of submitting a job application, convince potential clients why they should hire you. Try to make the best first impression possible and the added benefit is that when it's excellent, potential customers will come back to visit your website for fun.
Oh, don't use the word "we" when you're alone...
What are the contents?
Each portfolio website must contain some basic content:
Sounds easy, right? Let's look at some examples and see how a little (or in some cases very large) creativity can make this list come alive.
Developer portfolio example
This is Keith Clark's website, a CSS master of some type. Here is an example of his work using HTML and CSS3. This is exactly what is used for "recent works".
Meet Jean Helfenstein, a highly creative and experienced front-end developer, as his portfolio website shows.
This award-winning portfolio demonstrates Tim's development skills while also providing a fun interface full of personality and humor. (There is a Don't press this!
link to see what happens when you try to highlight Tim's name with the cursor!)
This creative portfolio website, produced by Kenji Saito in Tokyo, cleverly presents examples of his amazing CodePen work.
Example of designer portfolio
I have mentioned Robby’s website above because it is indeed the best portfolio site I’ve ever seen. The design part is beautiful, but his interactive resume is simply a work of art. Robby is both a design expert and a coding expert, and his website won’t let anyone question his skills.
Haraldur works for a design agency that works closely with Google. While his homepage may not seem that impressive, his project description is certainly impressive. Here he shows the details of the project and more importantly his role in the project.
Adham, both a designer and a programmer, found a perfect way to present his work directly on the homepage. He also found a great way to use one of his interests (the Jedi) to evaluate his skills. He also produced a very good overview of recent works.
Example of writer's portfolio
Although Kristi's website may not be as dazzling as those of those above, it is the perfect site for her writer. She shows exactly what you can hire her to do, and her website makes you feel like she is a trusted writer who knows how to deliver high-quality works.
It’s great to see how writers express themselves in words, because that’s exactly why you hire them. Instead of placing pictures everywhere, Sally makes sure everything she does is properly described. And she uses two magical little words that make you feel the quality immediately: award-winning.
Aubre is a versatile writer with a very personalized website. She made it clear what she liked to write and had an active social media account to support her claim.
Carolyn Wood’s Pixelingo portfolio of writing and editing is primarily text-based, which makes sense if you try to market writing and editing skills. Her website clearly, concisely, and directly explains the services she provides and why potential clients may want to work with her. The website also conveys a strong personality and uniqueness.
Sometimes, especially if you have a strong portfolio, you have to let the work itself speak. That’s what Joy Castiglione did, showing her meticulous artistic skills in illustrations, 3D and photography. Joy uses large thumbnails in a grid that spans the entire screen to maximize visibility of the work, with little to imagine. As for the UI, Joy provides simple navigation on a simple black background, and although I noticed she is using the stylish .design domain, it's really cool!
Conclusion
Different skill types allow you to present your work in different ways, which is certainly true. I hope these examples inspire you to make the most of your own portfolio website. The sky is the limit (yes, let's add another cliché). The competition is intense, but the portfolio website is a great project you can work on in your spare time. Just make sure to create amazing factors (the last cliché, I promise) and you're successful.
Want to learn more about online work and freelancing? Please check the following link:
View SitePoint Premium for more books, courses and free screen recordings.
Frequently Asked Questions about Creating a Portfolio Website
Web developers' portfolio websites should contain some key elements to make them stand out. First, it should have a clear and concise introduction to who you are, what you do, and your area of expertise. Second, it should showcase your best work. This can be a screenshot, a link to an active website, or a case study detailing the project and your role in the project. Third, it should contain a list of technical skills you have. Finally, don't forget to include contact information so that potential employers can easily contact you.
To make your portfolio website more attractive, consider adding interactive elements such as animation or hover effects. You can also include a blog where you share your thoughts on industry trends or explain the process behind the project. Including a letter of recommendation from a previous client or employer can also add credibility to your website.
You can use multiple platforms to create your portfolio website. Adobe Portfolio and Wix are popular choices because they have a user-friendly interface and customizable templates. If you have coding skills, you may prefer to build your website from scratch to showcase your abilities.
To optimize your portfolio website to suit search engines, make sure to include relevant keywords in your content and meta tags. Also, make sure your website is mobile-friendly, as this is a factor that search engines consider when ranking websites.
It is recommended to update your portfolio website regularly, ideally when you complete a new project. This shows potential employers that you are active in your field and constantly improve your skills.
While it may be tempting to include all items, it is best to focus on quality rather than quantity. Choose the project that best demonstrates your skills and abilities and explain each project in detail.
To make your portfolio website stand out, focus on creating unique and memorable designs. Also, make sure your content is well written and engaging. Including video introductions or behind-the-scenes workflows can also make your website more fun.
Including a resume on your portfolio website may be helpful as it provides a comprehensive overview of your experience and skills for potential employers. However, make sure it is up to date and matches the information on your website.
Yes, using templates can save you time and ensure your website has a professional look. However, make sure to customize it to reflect your personal brand and style.
If you're just starting out and don't have any projects to show, consider creating some personal projects or providing your skills to nonprofits. You can also include any relevant courses or certifications that you have completed.
The above is the detailed content of How to Create a Portfolio Site That Will Get You Hired. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!
The difference between indexof and includes
The difference between flutter and uniapp
Solution to Connection reset
What is the use of bitlocker
Introduction to screenshot shortcut keys in win10
How to find the greatest common divisor in C language
What software is Twitter?
rgb to hexadecimal conversion
![[Web front-end] Node.js quick start](https://img.php.cn/upload/course/000/000/067/662b5d34ba7c0227.png)
