Crafting an Impactful Product Design Portfolio

nurgulaksoynl
Mar 24, 2024
4 min read

After reviewing so many portfolios as a design mentor at the ADPList platform, I've decided to share some tips to help product designers. In this article, my goal is to break down the essentials of creating a standout product design portfolio.

1. Choose Your Best Work

The first step to an impressive portfolio is careful selection. Your portfolio should represent your best work that reflects your problem-solving process, creative vision, and your design skills. While you might feel tempted to include every project you've ever done, remember it's not about quantity. Consider all your projects and ask yourself these questions:

What are my core strengths?
On which projects did I bring the most value?
Which projects provided the most valuable learning experience?
What interesting stories can I tell about the work that I did?

When looking for a job, focus on prioritizing projects that align with the specific job responsibilities you're interested in.

Try to show diverse projects and different platforms (web, mobile, desktop) to demonstrate flexibility. Clients are looking for designers who can "design almost anything.

2. Tell a Story

Each piece within your portfolio should tell a story. It's essential for providing context, engaging the audience emotionally, and demonstrating your strong problem-solving skills. Each project should include the following information:

Context of solved problems and your role:

Problem statement: A brief about the project, the problem you had to solve, or the hypothesis you came up with for solving it.
Role: Explain your role in the project (product design, UX design, mobile design, UX research, design system, etc.). Indicate whether you design the product from scratch or improve the existing solution or join the ongoing project.
Team: Explain whether you work on a design team or you were a solo designer, specify how you collaborated with others.
Platform: List the ones you've designed for in the context of this project (mobile app, responsive site, etc.).
Timeline: Describe the product roadmap.
Constraints: Noteworthy limitations that you overcame.

Design process:

User: Provide clear information about your users
User research and analysis: Describe what research method and tool you use and how you analyze them to understand users' needs, expectations, and behavior. Be sure that you show the outcome of your research clearly.
Design: Make sure your design components and design visuals represent your design decisions and user needs and fit the context. Also, show how you manage your iterative design process and integrate user feedback.

Outcomes:

Achieved impact: Use success metrics and outcomes your designs induced. You can also include personal impacts, such as new realizations and approaches you acquired.

3. Streamline Your Portfolio Presentation

Organize your portfolio to be user-friendly and intuitive. Some tips for structuring your portfolio:

Clear sections: Storytelling keeps the users engaged, and in your case, the user is the recruiter. Take a second look at your sections, titles and subtitles and think of the story they are telling. Divide your portfolio into clearly labeled sections, such as "Projects", "Research findings", "Problem statement" etc.
Easy navigation: Hiring managers generally don't read portfolios; they scan them. That is why you should use a consistent navigation menu across your portfolio to help users move seamlessly between pages. Make sure it is easily accessible and visible on every page.
Highlight key details: Avoid getting bogged down in excessive detail when describing each project. Keep your portfolio simple by highlighting important information and trying to be concise.
Visual hierarchy: Choose typography, color scheme, writing style carefully and create a clear hierarchy of information. Your portfolio is an extension of your brand. It should speak to who you are as a designer and individual.
Quality images: It is important to provide clear, high-quality images to showcase your designs effectively. Small or blurry images prevent the viewer from seeing the details of your designs, reducing the impact and effectiveness of your case studies.
Optimum narrative: People are mostly visual. Stay focused on communicating the essential points, and leave the flowery storytelling and details for live conversations.

4. Know Your Strengths

Your portfolio is your opportunity to show off your talents, so make sure you showcase the type of work you want. If you are good at visual design/UI design work, present your work as mostly that. By focusing on your strengths, you authentically present yourself and attract opportunities matching your skills and passions.

5. Get Feedback and Iterate

Once you create your portfolio, get feedback from others. They can catch spelling or grammar errors, confusion about content, and the overall usability of your format. After taking feedback from others or after an interview, make note of what resonates with them and what is unclear. Then iterate on your portfolio.

6. Keep It Updated

You should be sure that you reflect your current level in your portfolio. As you grow as a designer, your portfolio should grow with you.

The design profession is dynamic. It is important to reflect that you follow the latest design trends and new best practices. Don't include old and outdated work that doesn't reflect your current design skills.

Final Thoughts

A design portfolio is your showcase to everyone and is essential to get the next job. It often conveys more about your abilities than just certificates, diplomas, or resumes. It serves as a strong asset for designers and provides a distinct advantage. Building an impressive portfolio is not an effortless task; It requires meticulous effort and preparation. Therefore, it is advisable to approach portfolio development iteratively, allowing for continuous refinement over time.

All the points above are my humble recommendations, I hope it helps you when working on your product design portfolio. I wish you the best of luck with building a good product design portfolio! 🤗

If you want to have another set of eyes on your portfolio, you can book a mentoring call with me on the ADPList platform.