Before every freelancer starting work onvast expanses of the Internet, the question arises what is a portfolio? After all, almost all employers demand it, threatening otherwise simply not to satisfy the application.
Everything is explained quite easily.The concept of "portfolio" is applied to people of creative professions, and, speaking directly about remote work, then, in fact, it is a collection of those works of the freelancer, in which his best qualities are most clearly represented. And the customer needs it to make a definite impression of the candidate.
How to make out and where to spread
If you describe what a portfolio is for different areas of freelancing, then each direction has its own specificity.
For copywriting - these are examples of the best texts;for layout and web design - this is a good example of sites, rendered or decorated; for photography - this is the best works and so on for all kinds of activities that are currently engaged in remote workers.
Usually the portfolio is in the author's profile andis made in accordance with the requirements of the resource. Naturally, it is desirable to submit those works that have already been published on popular sites. On some exchanges, screenshots of these works are practiced, on others - links to already posted materials, on third - just text works. There are also combinations. And the location of materials may be different. Recently, more often it happens that such a portfolio of highly experienced professionals have their own blogs.
It is clear that the most difficult is for beginnersfreelancers, who generally do not represent how to design a portfolio, and who do not have any experience behind them. In such cases, almost all start equally: they offer their masterpieces on the freelance exchanges for a small fee or in general for free. The main thing for them is to get feedback and a link to the posted material. But before that, we must also decide on the topic.
How to choose a theme
Optimal choice, for example, for a text portfolio looks like this:
- First, on one of the freelance exchanges, the most popular directions of the sold articles are selected;
- Then from all categories are selected the industry in which you feel most confident;
- Several specific topics are selected;
- Well, finally, the presence of similar articles from their colleagues is seen, and they are deleted from their list.
So gradually and complete the list.It is clear that you can choose a popular topic, create a work and put it immediately in the profile. Many people do that. However, without checking a third-party specialist, such an action can end badly.
What else would you need?
It should be borne in mind that such a portfolio is necessaryProvide a summary, which usually contains basic information about yourself. It is also advisable to attach a short explanatory note, which briefly outlines your abilities and capabilities.
As a tip, let's say that it is compulsorypay attention to the ratio of resource managers to the availability of direct contacts in the information. Most often, communication and payment takes place through the website of the exchange. Direct contacts entail a minimum decline in the rating, maximum - an exception to the membership of the participants. Therefore, before you make a portfolio for a particular presentation, you must first inquire about the procedures in place there.
One more remark.It is known from practice that for many experienced customers the portfolio serves as a guide only, which helps to determine the approximate level of competency of the performer. Therefore, you should always be ready for the test task. This method is used very often and works almost unerringly.
