How to Build a Portfolio 101

It’s essential to have a portfolio if you work as a writer, designer, or marketer. Among several reasons to have one:

  • Record-keeping - So much work gets deleted or refreshed over time that you can easily lose access to your best pieces of work.

  • Job searching - Yes, many companies do want to see samples of your work.

  • Volunteer or freelance opportunities - Your portfolio helps legitimize your expertise.

Here’s how to build a portfolio:

How to Get Started 

  • Create a Google doc. Pick your favorite pieces. 

  • For each piece, include things like: 

    • A basic background of the piece, the results of the piece, your favorite sound bite, your role on the project (if applicable), a link to the piece, a PDF of the piece, and any graphics or images if available. 

    • IMPORTANT!!! Take a PDF or screenshot of your work, even if your portfolio links to the live page. It's very, very common for work to get deleted or refreshed, or for websites to change platforms — which messes up the formatting. There are a few ways to take a full-page screenshot:

      • Download a Chrome extension called GoFullPage. When you click on it, it'll take a picture of the full page article. 

      • Right click and then click print, this will allow you to save as a PDF. 

Here’s an example of how a writer could build out their notes:

Article: "How Students Spent Their Gap Year During COVID-19"

Background: In mid-2020, I wrote a piece about students considering taking a college gap year due to COVID-19. With the one-year anniversary of the pandemic coming up, I pitched the idea of a follow-up with students who decided to take the break. 

Results: 

  • I interviewed eight students who had been accepted from everywhere from Stanford University to the University of Florida before taking their gap year. Some had started their own organizations, worked on the Biden presidential campaign, and worked to help the humanitarian crisis at the border. 

  • The article was shared by the founder of Students on the Move. 

  • The students I interviewed turned into a student network I could later ask for quotes about additional stories. 

Sound bite: "When Jane Smith chose to take a gap year, it felt more like a leap of faith than a calculated decision."

Link: [URL]

PDF: [upload to Google Drive]

Assets: [*Only if the piece had a header image or custom graphics. This also applies if your portfolio example is a video, image, or ad. Take a screenshot or download the asset.] 

Pick a portfolio-building website

Quick note: Some portfolio sites won't display things like PDFs or allow for paragraphs where you explain the context and results of your work. Make sure you have that information saved somewhere anyway.

Optional: Buy a domain name with your name in it. 

Optional: Personal Brand Board

  • You might want to build a personal brand board on a site like Pinterest for inspiration. This will help you figure out how you want your portfolio to look and feel. Pin things that interest you and look for patterns. For instance, maybe you have a minimalistic style, gravitate toward the color green, and prefer a polished look. Use that information to build out your portfolio design. 

Extra: Business cards

  • If you create your own business cards, make sure they match your portfolio colors/font/aesthetic. This is your personal brand. 

Jennifer Cuellar