Creating a proper website for a portfolio is a big deal for anyone who works online. While a polished portfolio might raise your credibility and help you gain recognition in professional circles, a sloppy one can cost you an offer.

What is a Portfolio?

A rich portfolio can be used interchangeably with a CV and a business card. It is a showcase of you as a professional.

It can be a collection of your past works, for example, illustrations, a Linktree to sites you built, a story about events you organized. The format of a portfolio is mostly determined by its substance.

If you are a programmer, a designer, a copywriter, an event manager, or an SMM specialist, you need a neatly made portfolio page to present to your potential employers.

There’s a reason why even successful creative producers have their own websites. Having a webpage dedicated to you makes it easier to find you online. By publishing your portfolio, you basically invest in your future employment.

Where to Publish Your Portfolio

You should choose a reliable platform that won’t suddenly go on maintenance when you need to share it.

Pro-tip: always save the backups. It might also be a good idea to have your portfolio saved on your local device.

Google Docs

It may seem funny, but actually Google Docs is a good starting point. It’s better to have a portfolio in some shape or form than nothing at all. With creativity, you can make even a simple Google Doc shine.
Unfortunately, this option has obvious limitations and won’t work long-term when you have more projects, more pictures, and more info to share.

Pros

• It’s free

• It’s simple and accessible to everyone

• Will work as a business card if needed

Cons

• Won’t look impressive

• Has almost no customization available

• You can’t upload media files there

A Portfolio Platform

There are specialized platforms to publish your portfolio and look for a job at the same time. Examples include Behance and ArtStation. They already have a much more compelling design than Google Docs, but their page structure is always the same and doesn’t have much room for personalization. Besides, ArtStation is made specifically for artists and graphic designers, and Behance is mostly used for job hunting. Professionals often have links to their actual portfolios on their Behance page.

Pros

• It’s free

• It’s user-friendly

• Doesn’t require making a webpage yourself

• It’s easy to build connections and network there

Cons

• Doesn’t have customization

• Functions more like social media than a portfolio website

• Won’t look as professional as your own webpage

A PDF File

If you don’t want to think about hosting a website, you can just make your portfolio into a pretty single document and upload it to a cloud of your choice. Or you can share it directly through a USB flash drive. It’s a bold choice. A viable one, although not the most convenient.

Pros

• It’s free

• You can design your file as you like

Cons

• Not searchable online

• The file itself might be too heavy to share comfortably

• The file might get corrupted and lost

CMS

You can make your own website from scratch with Content Management Systems like WordPress or Joomla. It’s certainly one of the better options, but a tricky one. To use CMS to its fullest, you need to have at least basic coding skills. Not to mention that they may be hard to navigate for a beginner.

Pros

• It’s free

• Customizable

• Demonstrates your skills in a good light

Cons

• Difficult to manage

• You’ll need to maintain the whole website on your own

• You’ll have to pay for some plugins separately

Website Builders

A website builder presents the best of both worlds. It offers a lot of room for customization with templates and ready-to-use blocks while being easy to use and intuitive. There are both free and paid plan options.

Pros

• Very customizable

• Reliable and stable

• Allows you to choose your own domain

Cons

• Can be expensive

• If your needs are very specific, a website builder may not be able to meet them

There are, however, options that are both easy to use and affordable. Site.pro is a website builder with 200 templates, lots of plugins, and an AI website generator function. Its minimal plan starts at only $1.3 a year.

How to Make Your Website on Site.pro

With Site.pro you can build a website in less than 10 minutes with no prior knowledge.

Follow these steps:

1. Register on Site.pro

2. Select your chosen plan

3. You will be automatically taken to the ‘My Websites’ page. Click on the ‘Edit Website’ button.

4. Choose a template

5. Customize it and fill it with content

6. Click on the ‘Publish’ button

7. Now you can rename your website

Your website is ready to go!

Organize Your Portfolio

Structure is always the key. Nothing sells a portfolio like compelling storytelling. Split your website into sections.
You can use this plan as an example.

Main Page

Here should be all the navigation to other sections. At a single glance at your homepage, a user should get a general idea of who you are, what you do, and what you can offer. That’s also why naming is so important. Both your domain and the text on your main page should include your name.

About Me

It’s a place to introduce yourself. Your portfolio has to complement your CV and give the most positive first impression. There shouldn’t be too much text, just enough to get to know you in a nutshell. Your actual work will speak for you.

My Projects

There’s a simple rule: if you’re only starting out, you should include every project you worked on. But if you have more than a couple of projects under your belt, you should only choose the ones that showcase your abilities best. Keep in mind, no one is going to browse through your entire working history.

Place your works chronologically and give them a little context: what you did, when, what the results were.
If you use someone else’s material, remember to give proper credit.

Contact Me

Leave links where people can find and contact you: your email address, your social media. Make sure that your email address is active and all the links are properly named and actually lead where they say they do.

Make it Look Good

The draft of your portfolio is ready. What now? You should make it both good-looking and convenient.

Here are 4 tips for that:

• Make it desktop and mobile friendly. Your website must be easily accessible, convenient to navigate both from desktop and mobile.
  Site.pro website builder adapts to mobile by default.

• Find references. It is always a good idea to look at portfolios made by professionals. Search for them, analyze what they do and how. Then you will get a feel for how to design your own page even if you aren’t a designer.

• Use only high-quality images and screenshots. There are resources online that will help you make HD screenshots.

• Optimize SEO. Use appropriate keywords—they can be found through Google Trends. Even a little tweaking of your texts will show great results in ranking your portfolio higher by search engines.

Publish & Share

Don’t hesitate to put the link to your portfolio on your professional and personal social media, share it when applying to a new job, and be proud of your work at all times.

And be sure to ask for feedback from people you trust. It can be other professionals, your colleagues, or friends.

Update it When Necessary

Your portfolio has to keep up with your professional journey. Remember to update it with new projects and change links in case you lose access to your email address or social media accounts.

Conclusion

Making a portfolio is not an easy task, but with the right tools, references, and attitude, everything is possible. Everyone can build a website and make their portfolio truly shine. Prove it, try it yourself!