We live in a digital age where it would be shameful if your design talent stayed within the four walls of your room orEverywhy every graphic designer must have an online portfolio to showcase their creative work.
There are many different platforms you can choose from, and in this article, we will discuss the three best options you got there.
But first, let me give you some tips on creating a portfolio that attracts new clients or excites your future boss.
What Is a Portfolio Platform?
A portfolio platform is an online site that will help you showcase your designs to the rest of the world and help you inquire about new clients. The better and the more organized your portfolio is, the chances of you getting hired increase.
How Do You Create a Perfect Portfolio?
Most graphics designers should already have a clear understanding of how to create a portfolio, and it should involve the best works you’ve done in your career.
Organizing them will give you an edge against your competition. Here are some essential tips for creating a portfolio that will grab people’s attention and potentially get new clients.
1. Think About What You Will Include
This is one of the most important things to keep in mind when you’re creating your portfolio. A portfolio is not your work history; it is more like a highlight reel of the best designs you’ve done until now.
Remember, people surfing online have a short attention span, so you need to grab their attention in the few moments they devote to you. That’s why you should organize it so that your proudest creations are presented at the beginning of your portfolio, which will tempt the viewer to keep browsing between your works.
If you’re a beginner graphic designer with only a few design projects, I recommend you include them in your design portfolio, but as I said before, arrange it in a way that starts with your best creations.
As time passes and your work collection expands, change the designs that are not your best masterpieces with the ones they are.
2. Show Your Best Work
We touched on this topic briefly in the previous section, but remember always to show your best designs, especially if you’re a more experienced designer.
The first impression is the most crucial, and if you won’t hand-pick your designs, your portfolio will come off as mediocre.
Think about a shop that lures you to enter. How do they achieve that? By merely keeping only their best products on display, which excites you to the degree where you might buy the product or at least check them out up-closely.
The same rules apply to your portfolio; your works are displayed products, which thrills the ones checking them out.
3. Showcase Your Creativity
People often relate to or symbolize the word design with creativity; if you mention that you are a designer, people will automatically think of you as a highly creative individual.
I have to agree that we designers are very creative individuals, and our most valuable asset is not how skilled we are at using Photoshop or other graphic design-related software. Still, our primary weapon is how well we express our creativity.
Think of a future employer or client going through your works and sees a logo designed creatively; I bet it would excite their taste buds and might give you a project or job on the spot.
On the other hand, if you take the identical logotype concept, design it in a way that lacks creativity and looks like everyone could come up with the same idea, you’ll be automatically eliminated from their list.
If you are a beginner graphic designer, you probably don’t have many design projects. If you want to show how excellent your creative skills are and expand your portfolio, I suggest you make some redesigns of famous brands.
It could be a logo, packaging, or website done in a more creative, sophisticated way so that clients or employers would go: “this should be done like this in the first place!”
4. How Many Are Too Many?
This is a question you should ask yourself before you get down to your portfolio creation. How many designs do you want to include in your artwork, five, ten, or fifteen?
Ask yourself, “What are some of my best works? Which designs show my skills in the best way? Do the chosen projects highlight my creativity?
5. Do You Need a Physical Portfolio?
Though the popularity of physical portfolios is declining and the online ones are increasing, I would say “old” physical portfolios might give you a head start regarding who will be chosen for the specific project.
To elaborate further on why the printed portfolio is better than an online one, imagine a scenario where you’re buying a car. You can go online and check the one you’re interested in.
The online site might convince you to visit the car dealership and check the vehicle in real life. Still, I bet you wouldn’t be as thrilled to enter the dealership as if you were handed a printed brochure with an embossed brand emblem, some special printing effects on the pages, and with actual color samples inside.
Now, if we get back to our graphic design portfolio example, if you give someone a physical portfolio in a HUGE format with high-quality print images, I bet you will get their eyes popping. They would most definitely be eager to check it out.
Don’t get me wrong. It’s nothing wrong if you give them ONLY a link to your online portfolio, which is A MUST. Many designers do that. But you will impress the client or the future boss if you hand them a physical copy of your work.
It is not something most designers usually do and will give you a slight edge against them.
Because we live in a digital age, and you can’t hand out a physical portfolio until you meet your client or new employer, it is CRUCIAL to have an online presence where everyone can find you and check out your best works.
In the following section, you will find the three best platforms where you can create your graphic design portfolio and show your skills in the best way possible.
If you’re ready, let us dive right in.
1. Wix
Wix is one of the best websites to create your online portfolio; you should try it out. With Wix, you can build a portfolio website without prior coding knowledge.
If you want to find out how to create a portfolio with Wix and impress your future clients or boss, be sure to read my article on How to create a portfolio with Wix here.
2. Carbonmade
Carbonmade is another excellent portfolio-creating website where you can showcase your designs and share them with the rest of the world. Carbonmade is really easy to use and is available in two versions; the first option is free, and the second is payable.
The free option is a perfect choice for a beginner graphics designer. You’ll be able to upload five projects and 35 images for free.
But if you want to show more than five projects, you should look for other options on this list.
3. Behance
It is one of the most known portfolio sites where graphic designers, illustrators, product designers, and other creative souls showcase their works. Even if you already have a portfolio website, I suggest you upload your designs on this innovative platform.
The nice feature of having your portfolio on Behance is connecting with other designers who can also comment and give likes on your projects.
Even if you already have a portfolio website, I suggest you upload your designs on this innovative platform. The nice feature of having your portfolio on Behance is connecting with other designers who can also comment and give likes on your projects.
We all know the things lie these days. The more likes and comments you have on your portfolio, the more skillful you look into a client/employer’s eyes.
Final Words on The Best Platform For Graphic Design Portfolio
Having an online portfolio where you can show your graphic design skills is a must if you want to succeed in this industry. So, if you don’t have it yet, you should consider building one with one of the choices listed above. Portfolio platforms on this list are easy to use and will help you find new clientele or a new job.
