12 Tips for Creating a Grea

7/31/2019 12 Tips for Creating a Grea..

1/16

SPONSORS

Submit News

The TOP 7 Premium

POPULAR ARTICLES

TypeKeywordsAndHitEnter...TypeKeywordsAndHitEnter...TypeKeywordsAndHitEnter...TypeKeywordsAndHitEnter...

AJAX CSS DESIGN PHOTOSHOP TUTORIAL WORDPRESS more

Posted in DESIGN 62 comments

12 Tips for Creating a Great PortfolioSite

If youre a designer, artist, or photographer, chances are you need to display your work

online. And while there are sites out there that will host your portfolio for you, their solutions

are often not quite what you were looking for.

Below are twelve tips for creating a better portfolio site. These suggestions apply to all kinds

of portfolios, no matter what your particular artistic field. Also included are examples and a

gallery of excellent portfolio sites, with what theyre doing right and what could use some

improvement.

1. A portfolio site should put the

emphasis on your work.

This is one of the most important rules for designing a portfolio site: make sure the emphasis

is on the work on display, not the design of the site. While you can certainly have a site thats

visually interesting and aesthetically appealing, it needs to complement your work and help

push it to the forefront of your potential clients minds. If it doesnt do that, then its not helping

your business or your art.

Ads by Google Resume Portfolios Textile Jobs Designer Designing

ips for Creating a Great Portfolio Site Noupe http://www.noupe.com/design/12-tips-for-creating-

16 22/Sep/2009


2/16

FREE

in WORDPRESS / 638

The TOP 6 PremiumWordPress Themes ForFREE

in WORDPRESS / 460

50 Most Beautiful Icon SetsCreated in 2008

in ICONS / 238

Ten Simple Rules forChoosing the Perfect CMS +Excellent Options

in PHP / 224

Mastering Your WordPressTheme Hacks andTechniques

in WORDPRESS / 184

40+ Extremely Beautiful Icon

Sets Hand-picked fromdeviantART

in FREEBIE / 183

Discussing PHPFrameworks: What, When,Why and Which?

in PHP / 178

50+ Amazing JqueryExamples- Part1

in JQUERY / 164

40+ Absolutely Stylish &Creative Hand-pickedWallpapers

in WALLPAPER / 163

How to Deal with Client Dissatisfaction

22nd Sep - by: Taiyab Raja

Photoshop Layout Design Tutorials Best Of

22nd Sep - by: Cristian Agafitei

Sixpack status free icon pack

22nd Sep - by: Janko

30+ Free Photoshop Website Templates with

PSD Files

22nd Sep - by: mer Uzun

25 3D Typography Tutorials

22nd Sep - by: mer Uzun

5 Wordpress Tips and Tricks You Must Know

Part 2

22nd Sep - by: mad

20 Professional Web Admin Templates on

ThemeForest

22nd Sep - by: Web Appers

How To Write Effective And Engaging Design

DESIGN NEWS

News Link Feed

The work takes center stage, as it should.

2. A portfolio site should be easy

to navigate.

Navigation needs to be straightforward on any site that aims to sell to the public. And thats

just what a portfolio site is supposed to do; it sells you and your abilities to potential clients.

Make sure the basics of getting to your work, your contact information, and other important

parts of your site are simply and easy to use. Potential clients shouldnt have to think too

much to get from point A to point B. If they do, theyll likely just move on to your competitors.

Uses a traditional top navigation bar is intuitive to most visitors.

3. Make sure its easy forpotential clients to contact you.

I dont know how many portfolios Ive seen where finding the persons contact information

was nearly impossible. At the bare minimum, include an email address or a contact form. And

better still, include a business phone number where you can be reached.


16 22/Sep/2009


3/16

Includes two ways to get in touch: a traditional contact page and a request a quote page.

4. A portfolio site should offers

some information about you and

express some of yourpersonalitybut not too much.

Your portfolio site is there to sell you. There needs to be something on the site other than

your work that sets you apart from your competition. Exactly how you do this will depend on

who your prospective clients are. You need to take into account how conservative theyre

likely to be or how laid-back their businesses are before deciding how to approach your own

sites design.

A great about page, with plenty of information about the designer.

5. A portfolio site should make

your potential clients


16 22/Sep/2009


4/16

comfortable.

This has already been touched on a bit, but you need to make sure your site isnt going to put

off your prospective customers. If your clients are primarily involved in the arts or other

creative fields, you should go a bit more creative wi th your own site. However, if youre

targeting mostly investment banks or law offices, you may want to go a bit more conservative

or risk scaring your prospects off or seeming unprofessional.

The welcome message on the home page helps make visitors feel comfortable on the site.

6. A portfolio site should be easy

to update.

Use a CMS for your site, or at least an XML file to feed new content. You want to be able to

easily add your best work to your site without taking half a day to do so. There are plenty of

CMSs with plugins available for creating a great image gallery.


16 22/Sep/2009


5/16

This portfolio is built on WordPress.

7. A portfolio site should only

showcase your best content.

You dont need to show every photo youve ever taken or every website youve ever

designed. Most people wont bother looking through all of it anyway. Put up a dozen or so

outstanding examples in each major category in which you work. Leave the rest out.

This site uses a hybrid approach, with a showcase of their best work but links available to

pretty much all of their work.

8. A portfolio site should include

testimonials or references from

happy clients.

This is something a lot of designers and artists overlook, but testimonials can go a long way

toward making prospects feel more comfortable with you. Not only do they want to know that

youre competent in your field, they also want to know that you can meet deadlines and arent

a bear to work with.


16 22/Sep/2009


6/16

An entire page devoted to testimonials.

9. Include your social networking

profiles, but only if theyre

professional.

Including links to your LinkedIn profile, Twitter feed, or Facebook page area great idea and

can make you seem more like a real person to prospective clients (especially those you may

never meet in person). Remember, though, if you link to these sites and make them a part of

your professional online persona, you need to keep the information you post professional.

Otherwise, clients may be put off by your views, language, or any number of other things you

might post. A good rule of thumb: if you wouldnt say it in a business meeting, dont say it

anywhere youre advertising yourself.

Incorporates a Twitter feed right on the home page.

10. Provide a downloadable

resume.

Sometimes the person gathering information about prospective contractors isnt necessarily

the one making the final decision. If you provide a downloadable resume, it makes it easier

for that person to sell you to the decision-makers. Make sure the resume is professional and

complete, but dont be afraid to make it personal and creative, too.


16 22/Sep/2009


7/16

The resume is included under the work, alongside the other main navigation links.

11. Categorize and tag your

work, especially if theres a lot of

it.

Tags and categories make it eas ier for prospective clients to see your experience on the

specific types of projects they need help with. If you work with multiple media formats (print,

web, interactive, etc.), include a category for each. If you work in only one medium but in

multiple industries (healthcare, government, retail, etc.), then include a category for each of

those. And use tags to give additional information about your work and make it possible to

find examples based on even more specific criteria.

Uses categories based on the type of work (websites, identity, digital art).

12. A portfolio site needs to set

you and your work apart from

your competitors.

Your portfolio site should set you apart from your competition. Look at what others in your

field are doing, and then do something different. That doesnt mean you have to do something


16 22/Sep/2009


8/16

completely unique that no one has ever done before, but it does mean you need to make sure

your portfolio isnt going to be confused with your biggest competitors. And whatever you do,

dont copy the portfolio of another designer in your field. It only makes you look less

professional. Youll never be better than the person at number one if all you do is copy them.

This is a very unique website, showcasing the artists work both in the design itself and in the

portfolio pages.

Great Portfolio Sites

Below are some excellent portfolio si tes for inspiration. For more portfolio designs, check out

the Folio Focus gallery.

The good:

Work is showcased on the home page as well as on a separate portfolio page

The site design is clean and simple, putting the emphasis on the work

Includes social networking links

Includes a downloadable resume

His work is categorized

The bad:

Theres no obvious way to contact him outside of his social networking profiles.


16 22/Sep/2009


9/16

The good:

Includes links to Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr

Puts a taste of his work right on the homepage

Site has personality

Work is tagged by type

Easy to navigate

The bad:

The sites design is very busy

No categories for the work

The good:

Simple and clean design that emphasizes the work

Easy to contact

Basic categories for work

Very professional

The bad:

Not much personality or about informationWork could be further categorized, especially the design work


16 22/Sep/2009


10/16

The good:

Work is categorized

Homepage gives information about the artist

Homepage offers examples of work

Navigation is s traightforward

Contact information is included prominently

The bad:

Theres a relatively small body of work displayed by default

No way to display all work at one time

The good:

Emphasis is squarely on the work

Navigation is a little on the unintuitive side

Contact is easy

The bad:

The only contact method is email

Theres virtually no about information


f 16 22/Sep/2009


11/16

The good:

Puts the emphasis on the work

Simple design

Easy to contact

Includes social networking profile links

The bad:

No categories or tags on work

No back button functionality in portfolio navigation

The good:

Simple navigationsingle page design

Easy to contact

Includes a featured work section at the top of the page

The bad:

No categories or tags on work


f 16 22/Sep/2009


12/16

The good:

Emphasis is on the work

Contact information is displayed prominently in the sidebar

Photos are categorized

Simple design

The bad:No social networking links

Sidebar doesnt scroll, cutting off links on smaller widescreen monitors

The good:

Site has personality while still retaining focus on the workContact information is prominently displayed

Navigation is s traight-forward

The bad:

Not much work included on the site


f 16 22/Sep/2009


13/16

The good:

Site has tons of personality while still showcasing the work effectively

Featured work is included on the home page

Work is somewhat ca tegorized

Contact information is prominent

The bad:

Social networking links are buried in the footer

The good:

Work is prominently displayed

Simple design

Contact information is easy to find

The bad:

Only contact method is an email address

Work isnt categorized or tagged (and theres a lot of work displayed)


f 16 22/Sep/2009


14/16

The good:

Slideshow on the home page prominently displays work

Simple design puts the emphasis on the work

Contact information is prominently displayedIncludes social networking links

The bad:

No categorization of work

The good:

Featured work is included on the home page

Theres plenty of work included on the site

Contact information is displayed prominently

Social networking links are included

The bad:

No categories or tags for work


f 16 22/Sep/2009


15/16

The good:

Plenty of personality on the site

Featured work displayed on the home page

Navigation is straight forward

Contact information is displayed prominently

Single page design stands out

The bad:

No social networking links are included

The good:

Featured work section on the home page

Includes basic about information on the home page

Navigation is straight forward

Includes testimonials

Contact information is easy to find

Includes links to social networking sites

The bad:


f 16 22/Sep/2009


16/16

Advertise Here

50+ Fresh and Unique Personal Portfolio

Websites

The 10 Most Common Mistakes Web

Designers Make

7 Rich & Creative User Interfaces and How to

Create Your Own

The Ugly Truth Behind Starting a Web Design

Blog

Animating Design Elements: 7 Unique &

Creative Practices

Related Posts

No downloadable resume

Work isnt categorized

Author: Cameron Chapman

Cameron Chapman is a writer, blogger, copyeditor, and social media addict. Shes

been designing for more than six years and writing her whole life. If youd like to

connect with her, you can follow her on Twitteror at herPersonal Website.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 15th, 2009 at 4:18 pm and is filed under DESIGN. You can follow any

responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, ortrackback from your own site.


Documents

12 Tips for Creating a Grea