Behance is one of the most popular networking platforms for creatives to showcase their online portfolios for free without any coding or stress. The site is a great way to network with creatives, seek job opportunities, receive recognition for work and view other professionals’ projects.
Creating a Behance portfolio is easy. Simply register your account using an existing email address or a social media platform like Facebook, Google or LinkedIn. Signing up with a social media account will enhance your portfolio’s exposure as it is will be shared on a larger scale.
After you have registered for an account start customizing your profile. Behance uses a step-by-step process for users to fill in content to make the process stress-free. Start out by writing a brief and relevant summary, listing work experience and professional skills and linking to social media accounts, a personal website URL or other contact information. Designers can also join specific networks through Behance to learn about events, gain exposure and networking by following other users and gaining followers. Once you have customized your profile, start uploading your work. Select a cover image that will be displayed to users before they click on your work that is complimentary to the overall project.
When uploading images of you work, upload various high-quality images if possible. The more images you have to showcase your work, the better.
In the creative field box type keywords relevant to your project (essentially, Behance’s version of hashtags) like: typography, photography, graphic design, etc. This will place your project in Behance’s search engine for users to view.
Project tags are additional words that can be used to describe the project that does not come up within the creative field section.
Writing an effective project description is crucial. Explain what the project was for, what inspired you and if desired, your process by linking to moodboards or any additional brainstorming pieces.
Extra information is a section to add what brand or company the project was for, if the project is copyrighted and who is credited for the project. There is also a tools used section so the designer can list what hardware/software was used to create the project.
Once you are satisfied with your project, publish it. Once it is published you can choose to promote your project. This will send notifications of your project to the social media networks connected to your Behance profile. Users on Behance are able to view and appreciate (similar to liking on Facebook) published projects. The amount of likes and appreciations you generate per project are displayed on your online portfolio. When it comes to adding projects, you can add as many as you desire. However, designers should only publish relevant, high-quality work.
Behance is a wonderful tool for designers and creatives alike to get connected, inspired and recognized.
