Is it better to have a portfolio as a PDF or a website?
What you recommend?
Replies49
- @Hadrien Chatelet thanks
- @Matt Percival Perfect! I will definitely make use of all the advices, Thank you very much
- @Michael Gnadenou of course! The best place I've come across is https://studiocotton.co.uk/blog/ They are a small marketing agency in Bristol and their blog is a goldmine of SEO information. They present it in a human and relatable way, which makes quite a dry subject way more interesting and easy to understand. You could also follow them on Instagram as they put a lot of extra content on there regularly. Hope it helps you as much as it has helped me.
- @ɐɹoᗡ ɐuu∀ ˥ thank you that makes allot of sense
- @Harriet Anstruther thanks Allot
- @Laura Hurst thanks, I came across the word SEO just a couple of time, not really sure what it is, and where to go to educate myself to improve the Website SEO. If you could give me a few words to direct me in the right direction that would be lovely.
- @Fiona Abrahams thank you
- @Natasha Chetiyawardana thank you
- Hi Michael, they are both useful, the website is perfect for making it look beautiful and will create SEO - the pdf is where you can tell a bit more in details, your experience, what you are best at, potentialy your prices and contact form (it really useful for company to share your proflie to team memeber)
- Hi @Michael Gnadenou Definitely both, as everyone says – PDF to go with a written job application and to attach to job forums, but you need the website to show that you understand how to present your work well online, and you can connect your site to whatever you're doing socially so you're more visible. If you organise your assets and copy so they're consistent for both, I highly recommend loading it all up to Behance, from which you can create and Adobe Portfolio site, free and very easy.Always remember, quality, not quantity. No more than 6 projects, make sure they're all accessible from your home page, make sure you give a very brief description of the brief, problem solved and how they achieved a successful outcome (just a minimum, pictures alone are not enough) – no one has more time to look at more.
- Hi Michael,They are not the same thing so just not comparable. Most of recruitment agemcies like you to have a pdf portfolio and you can't enter on their door without. So on a junior / midweight level it does make sense to have one, however it also means recruitment agencies can decide which pieces they show from your work and so gives you less power in the situation.A website is more like an evergreen think, where you can show deeper aspect of your work, can be more wordy. Compared to most of pdf portfolios viewed under a minute just to give an idea. The only very positive about is that you can put in very specific project references to win a job.
- Why not both. Splitting area of your work into PDFs means interested parties can actually keep something offline rather than clicking online. Always make yourself accessible
- Definitely both! A website is crucial, as it's an easy way for new clients to find you and see a general overview of your work and who you are. Put time into SEO and you will reap the benefits. It works for you in the background once it's up.Having a PDF version gives you more flexibility - you can tailor it to whoever your sending it to and can be personalised to the client, to make them feel more taken care of.Good luck!
- Definitely have both. Pdf's can be tailored to specific opportunities and your website is perfect for showcasing your diversity and specialisations through the projects you have worked on and experience gained in different roles.
- I think that a website is a must-have now for credibility. I would use both channels strategically; website for generally understanding your work, a PDF that you can update and tailor specfically to whomever you're speaking to
- @Yeliz Yildiz thanks
- Both would be ideal to have online and offline accessibility to your work, but having a website certainly proves you take your work serious, especially when you have your own domain. It shows that you take your work serious enough to be willing to spend time and money on things like the design, domain, hosting and personalised emails etc.!
- @Ruby Latka thanks I will have a look
- Adobe Creative Cloud offer a free website portfolio builder its awesome!!
- @Zoe Moncaster thanks you
- @Michael Gnadenou Mine's about 20 but don't let that put you off (also thinking of it now, it might be a bit long). It's about quality not quantity. Include the work you prefer most - if there's one you don't like, don't put it in! Give a short description about each (for example if several ppl worked on in, say what you did).I'd also recommend using mock-up template to display them. So for example I've got a magazine design and took some pages, mocked them up in a real-life looking magazine. Same for social media platform (some). Have a simple theme for your PDF - You want to show the work looking it's best, but if you have a similar layout on each page, that'll help the reader. Put your best one first.(There are loads of free resources online for free mockups - just google)
- @Zoe Moncaster gotcha! Thanks and there should be a minimum number of pages for the pdf?
- I second what Quinn said - You need a PDF that clients can look at offline and print if they want to, but it's also important to have an online presence so you can be found just through Google. It's a lot of work, I know, but it's worth it!
- @Quinn Watterson thanks allot
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