A professional portfolio is, in many ways, a showcase of your skills and talents. It therefore deserves your full attention—and only a few minutes are enough to do it properly. Unlike a resume or a LinkedIn profile, which present your background in chronological order, a portfolio allows you to demonstrate the full range of your concrete skills through projects and published work.
Be Strategic: The First Pieces Matter Most
There is no requirement for exhaustiveness when it comes to your portfolio. Select your most impactful work. Keep in mind that only the first 6 to 8 items are likely to be carefully viewed. There is no need to overwhelm visitors with an overly long list of projects.
For archiving purposes—which is also very useful—Ginkio allows you to keep many pieces marked as “hidden.” From your dashboard, you can easily change the status of your work according to your current professional priorities. In the same way, you can quickly reorder your projects using drag and drop, so that the most important ones appear at the top of your portfolio.
Be Explicit: Descriptions Are There to Serve You
When you add articles, videos, or audio content published by a media outlet, some information will be filled in automatically about the topic. Do not forget that this is your portfolio: you need to provide details about your own work. Is it an investigation or a report? A long-term project or coverage produced during a breaking news event? For collaborative productions, clearly describe your role (direction, research, reporting, etc.).
Be Meticulous About Editing
All thumbnails should be written with care, from titles to descriptions. Choose an informative or more engaging tone, depending on your preference. Of course, spelling and grammar must be flawless.
Finally, use relevant tags. They are essential for search engines and also improve navigation for Ginkio visitors, who can click on a tag to discover all journalists using it. Make sure to use keywords that are closely linked to your areas of expertise.