Looking to develop a digital portfolio? This presentation will provide you with some guidelines on how to put together your portfolio from scratch - from organizing your content to building to site with Weebly, Wix, or Wordpress.

1. Digital Portfolios
Your Digital Narrative

2. What is a Digital Portfolio?
 An electronic version of your work, accomplishments
and thoughts
 Can be in the form of PowerPoints, Adobe Acrobat,
Website… each having its own advantages and
disadvantages
 Senior Seminar: Website digital portfolio

3. Ultimate Goal of a Digital Portfolio?
 Provide entry into the real world
 Structure the educational experience
 Demonstrate your knowledge and skills listed on
your resume

4. Why should you care?
 Internships
 Job Interviews
 Promotional tool

5. Why should I hire you?
 The question employers ask when they view your
portfolios
 Align yourself with the career/industry you would like
to pursue
 Structure your content to highlight your skills/knowledge

6. Create a list of potential skills you
would need for your desired career.

7. Graphic Designer
POSITION SUMMARY:
The Graphic Designer will report to the Creative Services Manager. Together,
with assistance from student workers, interns, freelancers, university vendors
and other members of the Marketing Services team, the university's creative
needs will be fulfilled. The team's primary focus will be enhancing student
recruitment efforts, and enriching external-facing communications for the
university's four colleges and high profile/revenue-generating departments
including the President's, Institutional Advancement and Alumni and Family
Relations Offices. Other departments on campus will also be assisted as
needed.
This position requires superb graphic design and customer service skills and a
keen sense of creativity. Print and digital projects will include marketing
collateral, direct mail pieces and e-communications, publications and
newsletters, advertisements, logos and infographics, web and social media
graphics, event materials, stationery design, campus signage and more.
Photography and videography projects will range from multi-day shoots for
larger-scale marketing projects to quick snapshots or informal video clips to
increase engagement on social media or the website.

8. Graphic Designer (cont.)
ESSENTIAL DUTIES:
 Assist Creative Services Manager to produce collateral, photos and videos
that effectively showcase the brand "experience," working to achieve a
consistent design approach across all mediums.
 Be passionate about typography and information hierarchy.
 Be a brand warrior, ensuring that uniform branding is applied to all brand
communications.
 Possess the confidence to constructively discuss or deny projects that are
unnecessary, ineffective, or do not fall within brand parameters.
 Provide flawless press-ready final files to printers & approve printer proofs
 Assist the Creative Services Manager with print bids
 Assist with the scheduling of video productions and photo shoots. The ability
to touch up photos for optimal printing and display, as well as light video
editing skills, are necessary.

9. Graphic Designer (cont.)
ESSENTIAL DUTIES:
 Assist skills using Adobe Creative Suite/Creative Cloud (InDesign,
Photoshop, Illustrator), as well as a working knowledge of Microsoft products
(Publisher, PowerPoint, Word and Excel).
 Outstanding communication skills, with the ability to work positively and
collaboratively with different types of people.
 Strong organizational and time management skills, with the ability to work
under pressure, juggle multiple priorities and stick to deadlines.
 Knowledge of print and production processes.
 Flexibility in learning new skills.
 A good eye for taking or getting creative/compelling photography and
videography.
 A strong portfolio that reflects appropriate experience and skill level is
required.
 The willingness to be a team player

10. Next Step: Find & Organize Materials

11. Find & Organize Materials
 Collect your materials
 Back-up and save your work! TWICE!
 Document the purpose of each piece, important concepts
and reflect on it (personal assessment)
 Explain your role
 Do not be afraid to make connections!(linking)
 Conceptualize your thoughts
 Once you know the content/materials for your
website; then you can determine your direction

12. Example: ReadySET
 Enhance student recruitment
 Print & collateral
 Direct mailings
 Newsletters
 Publications
 Advertisements
 Logo
 Stationary
 Typography
 Information Hierarchy
 Branding
 Print Process
 Collaboration

13. Questions to Answer
 What is the piece of work?
 What did you use to create it? (Software/Hardware)
 Group project/Production: What was your role?
 How is it relevant to the career you are pursuing?
 Goal: 3-4 sentences
 Remember: You are not there to explain your
pieces of work, so you have to communicate it in
your portfolio.

14. Think about your best piece of work
and write a quick description.

15. Your Digital Narrative

16. What do you mean by ‘digital narrative’?
 The portfolio should tell the story of you
 Creating and maintaining a dynamic resume of your
experiences
 Life
 Work
 Study

17. Information Architecture
 The combination of:
 organization,
 labeling, and
 navigational schemes
 Categorize your sections to best organize your
information and gives an overview of what you do

18. My Website
Original Redesign
 About
 Speaking
 Syracuse U.
 Slippery Rock U.
 Duquesne U.
 Portfolio
 Vita
 Contact
 About
 Bio
 Vita
 Speaking
 Publications
 Teaching
 Slippery Rock University
 Syracuse University
 Portfolio
 Contact
Navigation
Rule of 7, +/-2

19. Who am I?
 Professional Profile
 Graphic Designer
 Web designer/developer
 Social media enthusiast
 Instructor/educator
 Education
 Both of these areas are highlighted in my about,
courses, & portfolio sections

20. Doug Strahler
 Academic/Teaching Experience
 Syracuse University
 Web design
 Multimedia
 Graphic Design
 Onondaga Community College
 Web design
 Graphic Design
 Slippery Rock University
 Web design
 Social Media

21. Doug Strahler
 Professional Experience
 ThreeOneFive Design
 Freelance
 VLN Partners
 Make sure to get approval from the client to post the
work to your portfolio website!

22. Doug Strahler
 Presentations (Speaking)
 Conferences
 Blog postings about experiences and discussions
 National Press Foundation
 Designed the flash presentation for the Excellence in Online
Journalism Award & attended the awards dinner
 Rotary International
 Discussed Social Media & how they can benefit from using it

23. Begin creating info architecture and
categorizing your content.

24. Developing Your Portfolio

25. Portfolio Website Options

26. Marketing your Portfolio

27. What else should you do?
 Begin to manage your digital identity
 Resume
 YouTube
 Blog
 LinkedIn
 Twitter
 Be familiar with what is going on in your field!
 Tailor your portfolio for the job you want

28. Drive Traffic to Your Portfolio
Digital Portfolio
Business Card
Email Signature

29. Digital Portfolio Review Checklist
 Did the candidate highlight his or her best work?
 Are the work samples relevant?
 Is the digital portfolio up-to-date?
 Is it intuitive?
 Is it aesthetically pleasing?
 Is the digital portfolio free of errors?
 Is meaningful context provided?
Digital Portfolio Review Checklist, The Creative Group