If you’re applying for a creative role in an organization or NGO, the chances are they’re going to want to see some examples of your work. They may require you to show a full portfolio, something that you should have been compiling throughout your career so far, or to share some relevant design work you think sums up your skills. This article suggests ways in which you can really show off your capabilities and design history. With the tips provided below, you’ll be able to approach creative roles with confidence, bowling employers over with your talent and abilities.
Show Your Design Method
Many companies are not so interested in what you produce; they’re interested in how you respond to briefs and what your practical working methodology consists of. How better to show off your design method than by designing a flow chart, complete with the initial brief, what you take out of it, and where your creative energies flow from that point to the point of finalizing your design. Share this document on a website or in print to help inspire those that you’re aiming to work for.
Present Your Tools
Many organizations that are hiring for creative talents, such as graphic designers, aren’t very well clued up as to how you go about your work. They may not know which programs you use, which tools you employ, to anything about the business at all. To present the plethora of tools you’re used to working with, and an explanation of how they can be used will only impress them. From the logo generator you use to develop brands to the animation programs you make videos with the help of, showing these off is an essential step in your self-promotion.
Portfolio Management
If you’ve been in the graphic design game for longer than half a decade, you’ll have constantly been adjusting your portfolio, booting out those pieces of work you’re no longer proud of in favor of your more impressive recent ventures. Your portfolio is your best chance to exhibit all your skills in one significant blow, but it’s also something that you should tweak given the job specifications of each role you apply for. Don’t include videos you’ve made if you’re applying for a magazine design role, for instance. It’s irrelevant to your employer. Managing your portfolio in this way is how you’ll dazzle employers most efficiently.
Play Around With Their Current Designs
If you’ve got enough time on your hands, and you’re excited at the opportunity to work with a specific employer, you should consider looking up their current visual media and offering your own twists on them as part of your application. If you have seen something in their brand that you think there’s room for improvement with – tell them! Being assertive and confident in your own creative vision communicates experience and self-assuredness, which are precisely the kind of qualities that employers are looking for from their designers. Use the above tips to show off your skills and previous work in the best possible light to the employers you’d love to have the opportunity to work for.