Making professional connections and establishing business relations have been made much easier because of LinkedIn. There have been plenty of revamps to the website’s features and design. Many additions have been made to cater even more to all professionals, entrepreneurs, and job seekers.
A significant change of recent that happened is introducing online portfolios on LinkedIn profiles that can feature photos, PDF files, websites, and even presentations.
Why Include Your Portfolio on Your LinkedIn?
Because sometimes, résumés are not enough, and portfolios add a little spice and improvement to your profile’s overall impact on whoever visits. Through this, you can show potential partners, connections, and employers your capabilities and skills. Instead of simply telling everyone what you’re able to do, you can directly showcase it through samples of your work and previous experience.
From images to audio samples, videos, and even documents – everything you can think of can possibly be added. You can even choose to import content from webpages and websites and choose from a wide variety of content platforms like YouTube, SlideShare, and even Twitter. There is little to no limit to what you can do with this, and here we’ll share with you the basics and the how-tos of adding your portfolio to LinkedIn.
Setting it Up Your Portfolio on LinkedIn
Of course, the first step to take is to sign in to your LinkedIn account. ( New to LinkedIn and don’t have an account yet? Check out this service to get aged LinkedIn accounts to kick-start your business on this social media platform.)
If you already are, proceed to your profile and click on the Edit Profile option. At any of these three sections – Summary, Experience, or Education – you can add samples of your work.
For the Experience section, as you have listed down the specifics of your previous jobs and experiences, you can also add work samples done under their respective positions.
For the Education section, under the attended schools you’ve specified, you can also add some work you have produced according to the respective year or attended school.
Here’s what you do next:
- To add, click the icon that looks like a square with a plus sign. That is the add media option, which is between the edit button and the arrows for reordering.
- After this, you have the option to insert a link or URL, or you can choose to upload a file from your computer.
With adding a link, copy the URL of your chosen content and paste it on the specified blank space, though you have to make sure that you look at the Supported Providers link situated under the URL field. You can look at the list of approved content hosts and supported content types.
- Then continue with uploading a file as you would typically do with other websites. The inputted media will be automatically displayed in the section you desire through a link or an uploaded file.
- All that’s left now is for you to name your work! Something eye-catching is preferred. And don’t forget to provide a brief yet exciting description. This could be the project or the sample’s details, or it could be the software and tools that you’ve used to make it.
The title you give your sample will show up as the caption of the work. When someone chooses to click on a particular sample, LinkedIn will show the description you provided. These previews will surely be able to add a little spice to your profile.
- Last but not least, to keep every change you’ve made, click save, and LinkedIn will do its magic.
How to Move and Reorder Your Portfolio on LinkedIn
If you think that your portfolio on LinkedIn may be looking a little lopsided or it isn’t in the order you prefer, this can easily be fixed! Whether you want your best work at the front lines or you simply just want to put it in a preferred sequence, this can be solved just by simply dragging and dropping your uploaded samples.
There are some employers and professionals who prefer to see work listed in chronological order, then there are some that don’t really care how you arrange it. No matter which audience you wish to cater to, the dragging and dropping method is a simple and easy way to rearrange your portfolio and its sections.
If by any chance you’ve made a mistake, not to worry! Moving your portfolio into your desired, correct section is very simple.
Here’s how to fix it.
- While As you are in your profile’s editing mode, on the lower-right corner of your sample, you will see a pencil icon that you need to click.
- There will be a drop-down menu that appears, and from there, you can choose to put that particular work in the section you wish for it to appear.
How To Remove Samples of your work on LinkedIn Profile
- When deleting a sample, again, you have to return to the trusty old pencil icon found at the lower-right corner of your sample.
- On the drop-down, you will be able to see an option that says Remove This Media. After you click on that, you will then be prompted with a confirmation of the deletion.
- From there, you can choose to “Yes, remove it” to delete the sample work you added to your portfolio. There is a possibility that you might consider doing this if your work is not that up-to-date or if it’s no longer relevant – or maybe you think it doesn’t fit the visual aesthetic of your portfolio. That’s fine!
As you continue to explore and grow further in the industry you’re working in, old samples will inevitably become old and irrelevant. You will learn to improve, and sooner or later, you will be replacing the originally posted samples with some of your newer, much-updated works.
Sometimes, it does look better to put out your best works – even if they are only a few. Quality will always trump quality, so best not to clutter up your profile’s space with all your work and consider only showcasing the ones you think are the best and those of the highest quality.
Related Post: How To Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile
How Does This Benefit Your LinkedIn Profile
When looking for better opportunities in your chosen industry, sometimes, a list of your experiences, skills, and education might not be enough. No matter how good you might be with words, there will be people who want to see the output. That is why when you use a professional portfolio on LinkedIn, you will be able to share and show your experience based on the work you produce and as what you’ve stated on your résumé.
An uploaded portfolio can make a world of a difference. Especially if you are in the media industry or if you’re working towards becoming a Graphic Designer, it would be great if you talked about that on your résumé. However, a mere list of your skills, the software you have mastered, and any education you’ve had related to your expertise might not be able to prove the validity of your skills.
Most employers want to see the content and output. They want to see what you’ve done before. That’s why it is a good idea to find the best time to publish content on LinkedIn.
Without the presence of a portfolio and samples on your profile, your targeted audience might not gravitate towards you as a potential connection or employee.
Through online portfolios, your profile’s visitors can see the quality of your work and your capabilities.
As you upload the collection of work you’ve previously done, your résumé will be able to speak for itself. Not only does it add credibility to your talents, your portfolio will add presentation, spice, and proof that what you say about yourself is right.
P.S. Want to know if your social media marketing strategies is effective on LinkedIn? Check out this post on how to measure your LinkedIn success
Questions About Adding a Portfolio to Your LinkedIn Profile
Here are some frequently asked questions about adding a portfolio to your LinkedIn profile.
Can LinkedIn Profiles Become Actual Portfolios?
Not necessarily. You have the option to input and add a portfolio to your profile. However, this does not mean that you can use it as a general portfolio for everything. Instead, it is a supplementary tool for your future professional adventures and endeavors, almost like a starting point that can help you move forward in your journey.
Can you choose to insert a link to an external portfolio instead?
Absolutely! Like the ease and accessibility of making a portfolio on your LinkedIn profile itself, you can just as easily add a link to an external portfolio outside of LinkedIn to your profile. All you will have to do is:
- Proceed to the Me icon at the very top of the homepage and click to view your profile.
- Click on your introduction card’s contact info, and as a pop-up window will appear, you should choose the Edit option.
- Next, you will need to click on add website, and the rest will follow! Of course, you will have to copy the URL of your portfolio and then paste it on the URL field.
One thing to keep in mind is that if you choose to share content you’ve created in the past, make sure that this bears no copyrighted content and can reflect your professionalism as a person. And take note! Your portfolio will very much likely only be visible to the people you have already made connections with. However, you will still need to catch their eye and grab their attention.
