Getting seen in the crowded design field can be challenging, but your odds of getting noticed greatly improve if your graphic design portfolio is kept up to date. When you neglect to update your portfolio, you could miss getting your best and most recent work in front of the eyes of a prospective client. An opportunity might pass you by if you are unable to respond by showing someone examples of your strongest work. Follow these best practices to make sure your portfolio is ready to go any time you want to apply to an open position or freelance gig.
How often do you need to update your portfolio?
Aim to perform a website refresh at least once every year. For example, when you’ve completed a new project that you’re excited about, that’s a perfect opportunity to update your portfolio. It gives you a chance to replace your least favorite or the oldest of your featured pieces.
To make room for newer projects, look to remove projects that are older than five years. If you are growing and improving as a designer as you experience different projects and work for bigger clients, then the logic is your most recent pieces are more impressive than something you produced earlier in your career. It’s also more likely to be a more accurate representation of your current skills and style.
How to update your portfolio without new work to add
There are ways to refresh your portfolio website, even when you don’t have an exciting new piece to add.
For example, you could totally overhaul your portfolio site by replacing your current website template with a new template. Like everything else, trends in web design move quickly, and website builders like Squarespace are always developing new website templates that match the look and feel of the modern internet. Keep pace with these ever-changing trends by picking a new portfolio template that showcases your work in a fresh light.
In addition to a more modern look, new templates might also include new interactive elements such as an animation, a call-to-action button, or video player that can make your portfolio more engaging. Images can also be manipulated with cropped shapes, effects, and filters.
If you like your current template, then there are still ways to tweak the look to make it feel fresh. Within your template, you might be able to adjust the color palette or the typography to spruce it up. You might also consider a new or updated logo. A new custom logo might more accurately reflect your current style and the type of work you are doing.
There are other effective updates you can make to a portfolio. You could update your site by adding a non-client project such as side work or a school project. You could also add a work in progress if it’s something you think reflects a side of you as a designer that the other works in your portfolio do not. This type of addition lets you show your most recent work and your current skills and style.
Optimize your portfolio for search engines
Not all worthwhile changes are front-facing. There are ways you can make your portfolio more visible online by increasing its ranking in search results. One of the most powerful ways to become more visible to search algorithms is with search engine optimization (SEO). Squarespace has built-in SEO tools that can help you tweak items like site titles and descriptions, page titles and descriptions, and alt text for images.
By paying attention to SEO, you might get your work in front of prospective clients without even having to take the first step of seeking them out: They might find you before you find them.