A strong portfolio can do wonders when marketing your work since the digital shift has made the internet a platform for people to connect regardless of distance. Hence, brands and creative professionals are now adapting to new ways to share their products and work with potential clients. As a result, today, you may see many portfolios as you browse the internet. But unfortunately, many of them could be better designed, driving the clients away.
In this article, we will share 5 easy-to-follow tips to upgrade the quality of your web design portfolio to ensure client conversion. Let’s get started!
1. Tell a Story
Websites are a form of communication; thus, clients expect to see meaningful work. So, whatever you decide to put in your portfolio, it ought to convey a message, whether it is through visuals or words. For instance, add context to how you worked on that piece or fulfilled the client’s requirements while presenting your successful projects. Looking up other well-known portfolio websites might help you write about your projects.
Give website visitors the option of clicking through to learn extra detail about each piece. It’s always better to present your projects through case studies. You’ll increase your chances of engaging your visitors by doing that.
Tell them about the requirements of each client, the challenges they attempted to address, and the effectiveness of the solutions you offered. Telling a brief tale with a beginning and an end can keep visitors’ attention. Be sure to emphasize how you played the role of a problem-solver. It will build credibility, which will make serious prospects connect with you.
2. Stress on quality over quantity
The best way to present a graphic design portfolio is to use the “less is more” principle while choosing the projects. So, only the most pertinent projects should be listed, only some of the projects you have done to date. You must emphasize quality over quantity to grasp the audience’s attention, as you cannot assume people to browse “your entire gallery of over 40 projects.” So, consider how to portray the projects while adding more value to them.
Remember that your portfolio should present your prior work and the tasks you want to perform more often in the future. Additionally, you should periodically edit and eliminate particular jobs that no longer reflect your most excellent work to keep it up to date. Finally, each time you take on a new assignment, always keep in mind that you are developing a new item for your portfolio, not just doing work for a customer so give your best.
3. Your personality must reflect in the design
When designing a web design portfolio, your main objective should be to produce something that appears professional and intensely personal simultaneously. Visitors should feel something when seeing your portfolio. You have a lot of options for achieving this objective.
For instance, you can look up Google Slides Templates to persuade your audience by including impressive illustrations. Choose the one that appeals to you and alter it as per your preference to make it your vibe. These prebuilt frameworks make the designing process much smoother, as along with captivating illustrations, they entail placeholders where you can add context to your designs. By doing this, you will be able to recognize another talent that contributed to your work and offer credit where it is due.
Visitors to your website are interested in learning more about you. Consider including an excellent photo of yourself to give them a sense of your persona. It’s a fact that originality is key to creativity, yet sometimes individuals find impersonal, corporate websites repulsive, so watch out. You must learn how to present a web design portfolio, or you’ll lose prospects.
4. Easy Navigation
A web design portfolio can sometimes be confusing, so please ensure that your portfolio is simple for visitors to navigate. A one-page layout is preferable because visitors can quickly scroll to read the content. On the other hand, the design must be consistent throughout, even if you think of dividing your material into two or more pages. This guarantees all of your website’s pages work together as a unit.
Regarding the text, state your name and area of expertise at the top of the landing page. So that visitors instantly recognize you and what you do. However, some people might want to read more about you, so be sure they know exactly where to look. For example, you can create sections for Contacts or a page like “About Me.”
Remember, the website’s design would compel someone to scroll down for additional details. So ensure that your website displays beautifully on all devices, particularly mobile and desktop.
5. A written copy is necessary
Your portfolio should include text alongside your visuals, but please do just what is necessary. Create the written content for your portfolio with the skill to emphasize your point while keeping your writing style consistent with the overall tone of your website. Make sure your website is polished and appealing by double-checking for typos and spelling errors.
Put a title and a brief text description explaining the inspiration behind your layout and place it in context on every page of your project. Keep the same tone of voice across your website’s content for your “About” page to effectively express necessary details about you.
For example, you can add your area of expertise, educational background, exhibition participation, notable clients, etc. You can also immediately post your design CV to the page on your website.
Conclusion
An online portfolio is the most powerful tool to find and persuade prospective clients to work with you. But you must know that thousands of portfolio websites are available to potential employers.
To stand out, you need to be unique because not everyone will spend hours reading every detail you’ve written. So, consider the above-discussed tips to craft a captivating online portfolio website.