I can't possibly be starting yet another blog with Covid related observations....and yet...here I am! For so many reasons 2020 has been a bizarre year, not least because as we saw the recruitment market pick up from June onwards, we at PMP have also seen a higher than average number of creative roles out on the market. Now, at PMP, we cover the whole marketing spectrum - everything from client services and project management through to SEO, paid social, data analytics and creative. However, creative always seems to be the quietest sector but I'm not sure if that's because I have a natural inclination to lean to client services (as that's my own personal background) or if it's industry led. Regardless of that, this year I've seen more creative roles relative to client services and it has reminded me of the very real differences in recruiting different disciplines into the same clients and agencies.
Now. Apologies to all those Creative Candidates out there but I'm going to say it straight out. Your Creative Portfolio is your route to employment. And the quality of portfolios out there is not consistently great. It should be! For everyone else in the marketing and advertising world, the CV is the most important thing to get right and yes, it's also important for Creatives BUT whilst your future employer will scan the CV to see where you've worked and for how long.....it's your portfolio that they are interested in and where they will spend most time.
When I first started out in recruitment, Creatives would trail around agency interviews with a huge portfolio folder. Presentation was still important but at least you'd get in front of a client through your CV and then have the chance to show your work. Fast forward to 2020 and those days are gone. If you haven't got a dazzling website or interactive PDF showing off your work, then you're not going to get an interview. In the last few months, I've seen good creative candidates with excellent CVs not get an interview because they just haven't put any effort into a portfolio. It actually doesn't matter if you've spent 5 years at an award winning agency, if you have just scrappily sent over a couple of examples of work then it isn't going to cut it. Remember that in the most part, it's another Creative who is going to be assessing your work....and they will assess it creatively so what you show them in your portfolio needs to be absolutely your best work and presented professionally.
Some Creative candidates do use their CV as their portfolio and this can work as a 2 in 1 - just as long as the work is presented well. My preference is a simple website as it's easiest to send links to potential employers and it also can represent you as a brand. You can get yourself across to the employer and engage them directly with your work.
As long as I have recruited Creatives, there has always been the age old question from employers as to what is actually the candidate's work and what is not. In a small regional market this is actually quite important because an employer can see the same piece of creative work in a number of different portfolios! Clearly most creative departments do work collaboratively and it's typical that a Copywriter, Art Director and Designer will all be able to boast the same projects but it is also important not to overstate what you have contributed to a project. Be honest is my best advice! The Northern Creative scene is a very small world.
For Designers, it's important that your portfolio shows breadth of what you can do. Yes, show examples that demonstrate all the channels you have worked on but do take time to demonstrate that you understand core design and branding principles. Yes, different agencies will look for different things in your portfolio but any Creative Director will always want to see that the core principles are there. Also, do try to be objective about what is in the portfolio - what you think is 'best' may not be what a commercially oriented Creative Director will think is best. Keep it as concise as you can....don't put everything you have ever done in there but if you have a website, you can also have a page which is tongue in cheek - old but good, or similar!
For Copywriters....I'm afraid this is where I've seen the least effort going into portfolios. Creative Directors will analyse your CV and the detail more than most BUT they do want to see your work - long copy, short copy, straplines, increasingly they'll expect to see digital content, social and even influencer work. You can absolutely transform your interview conversion rate with a strong portfolio and for all Creatives, a good portfolio, a well presented portfolio is an investment in your future. You need to give examples of projects worked on and a precis of what the objective was and whether the results were achieved.
If you are an 'all-rounder' - and in the North there are a lot of them! Art Director, Designer and Artworker in one...your portfolio needs to reflect your strengths. Again, in the old days, there were very clear lines in agencies but over the last few years we see far fewer Art Director roles and instead we are asked for 'Conceptual Designers'. Equally Creative Teams are not as common as they used to be, however, they are still out there and if you are a team that wants to move together, you need to have an absolutely sterling joint portfolio.
Yes, Creative work is absolutely subjective and your success at interview does rely in some part to whether your work appeals to that particular Creative Director in that particular agency who do a very particular sort of work but if you've got a professional looking and crafted portfolio that represents your very best work then you've given yourself the best possible chance of winning the job. Rejection, if it comes, is likely because the work isn't quite right for what that agency does. Try not to take it too personally!
I'm very happy to critique portfolios and offer advice so feel free to send me a link and I'll offer up my opinion!