Having a portfolio website is a must today. Especially for professionals in creative fields like design, writing, photography, etc. It is very helpful to impress potential employers and get a new job. It’s always better to know how to create a portfolio website.
In this article, I will show you how to create a Portfolio website using WordPress and what you need to consider while designing.
What Is A Portfolio Website and Why Do You Need One in 2023
A Portfolio website is a unique and creative way to present your work and introduce yourself to others. It’s like an evergreen platform for your projects, works, and information about you. It’s also one of the best methods to convey your personality, background, and skills.
You need a Portfolio website to showcase your work and draw new clients. Potential clients can easily see a summary of your qualifications and expertise. They will also have a deeper understanding of the samples of your best work on a properly-designed portfolio website.
If you’re a freelancer or looking for a settled job, a professionally designed web portfolio can be a good advertisement for you. It demonstrates to an employer that you have the qualifications for your work or for the position your company needs.
How To Create A Portfolio Website Using WordPress
A website can be built using many methods. Here, I’m showing you how to build a website with WordPress because it’s relatively easy and anyone can regularly change and update a WordPress website without being a coder.
1. Get a Domain Name
The domain name is the name of your website or the address that you enter in the address bar of the browser when you go to any website. To create a website, you always need a domain name.
You can buy a domain from many registrars, like Namecheap, Bluehost, GoDaddy, etc. Just go to one of them and search for your chosen domain name. You can buy a domain name if it is available and not registered as a website address already.
Find an available and suitable domain name, and buy that.
2. Choose A Hosting Platform And Connect It To the Domain
Now you need a hosting platform to make your website online and accessible to everyone.
Most domain registrars have hosting facilities also. You can buy a hosting plan from your domain registrar and connect it easily to the domain. But if your domain registrar charges extra for hosting, you can buy it from other companies too. It’s not required to get your domain and hosting from the same company.
After buying a hosting plan, connect it to the domain. Follow your domain and hosting provider’s instructions for it. You will also find many video guides on the connection process on YouTube.
3. Install WordPress
When you have successfully connected your domain and hosting go to your hosting’s cPanel, and install WordPress from the app installer section. I have sniped this image from Namecheap.
Your hosting provider cPanel may have a different look. That may include a one-click option like this or you have to use the Softaculous Apps Installer to install WordPress:
Provide the required information, set username, and password, and finish the installation process.
Then log in to the admin panel by providing a valid username and password.
4. Choose A Suitable Theme, Template and Customize it
After logging in to your WordPress dashboard, choose a theme suitable for building a portfolio website.
I suggest you the theme named Astra. Its free version is ideal for creating an excellent portfolio website. It has many excellent templates for portfolios.
To build your portfolio website with the Astra theme, go to wpastra.com and click on ‘Download Now’ button
On the next page, scroll down and download the free Astra theme
Go back to the WordPress dashboard, click on a theme, upload the Astra theme, and install it
Then click on Plugin and Add new
Install a plugin named Starter Templates and activate it
Go to the ‘Plugins’ tab, find the ‘Starter Template’, and click on ‘See library’
On the next page click on ‘Build your Website Now’
Select Elementor as a page builder.
Choose a suitable template for your portfolio website.
Upload your logo and choose the theme color.
Next page you will get a form, give required information and click on ’Submit & Build My Website.’
After the installation process is done, you can view your website!
Edit and customize every page and section with Elementor and make it your own.
And your portfolio website is ready!
There are other ways relating to how to create a portfolio website using WordPress. I have shown here the simplest process.
7 Things You Need To Consider While Designing A Portfolio Website
1. Set A Goal And Plan accordingly
Portfolios are made for different purposes. Some highlight particular expertise and want to target possible clients in that industry. Some want to highlight their skills in several different fields and want to remain available to a diverse range of clients.
Determine the purpose and audience of your portfolio website and plan its design based on that.
2. Showcase Your Best Work
Don’t overload your portfolio website by including all of your work. Choose carefully and pick pieces that reflect your best qualities and demonstrate a range of experiences.
If you have many skills and experience working in multiple fields, focus on the kind of work you want to do more in the future. Thus, the clients can understand how you can help them.
Keep your portfolio up-to-date. Continuously share your most recent works and achievements. This will show that you are working actively and available for jobs.
3. Include The Appropriate Features And Information
Keep in mind the purpose of your portfolio website and add all necessary information. Present yourself as smartly as possible, try to impress potential clients, and encourage them to connect with you.
Here are some examples of the important pages of your portfolio website:
Homepage: You should decorate your home page with attractive graphics, images, some samples of your best work, and a CTA (Call To Action) button that will motivate visitors to connect with you.
Portfolio: Add your best works to this page regularly. This page should show what you have done recently and what are you doing.
About: This page should include your short bio. Write about your upbringing, education, and experience. You can also write here about your personality, ideals, habits, hobbies, etc.
Contact: It should contain all the contact information you want to convey to your clients and employers. Mention your email, phone numbers, and links to your social networks.
You should also add a contact form at the end of this page. People can contact you and they can quickly leave any message there.
4. Make Your Portfolio Responsive
Nowadays, the majority of Internet users access the Internet from a mobile device. So, it is important to make sure that your website looks good on mobile as they do on desktop.
While building a website, select themes, plugins, and media that are optimized for all devices.
Don’t just depend on it, have a look at your website from mobile and change as necessary.
5. Make your Portfolio User-friendly
Focus on making your portfolio user-friendly. Don’t make the font so small that it’s difficult to read. Make them medium-sized and easily readable. Several popular sites with excellent design use font sizes of up to 18 px.
Don’t use annoying pop-ups. Visitors generally don’t feel comfortable with pop-up-type instructions or ads.
6. Make Your Portfolio Optimized for Search Engine
Work on the SEO of your portfolio website to move it up in the Google search results so that customers can easily find you when they search for related services.
SEO is a continuous process that involves several aspects of your website. You can do while building:
- Find out high-SV keywords about your service and place them on your website
- Add SEO-friendly alt-text to your website’s images
- Make a blog page to publish some unique and valuable content about topics related to your industry.
7. Promote Your Portfolio Website
Don’t forget to share your online portfolio on all of your social media platforms when you’ve published it. It will increase your client reach.
Try to get shared on social media by others as well. Write unique engaging blogs and include social media sharing buttons on them to make social media sharing easy.
FAQ(s) On How to Create A Portfolio Website
What should be included in a portfolio website?
A portfolio website would include a logo, tagline, your best work, your short bio, and contact information.
Why create a portfolio website?
A portfolio website is a smart way to showcase your work and attract new clients. On a properly designed portfolio website, potential clients can easily see a summary of your qualifications and expertise, as well as samples of your best work.
Should your portfolio website be your name?
Using your own name is fine as long as your main purpose is purely personal branding and you have no intention to sell it. But if your goal is to develop a business that you may eventually sell, you should choose a unique name.
Final Thoughts
Creating a portfolio website is a smart move on your way to attracting clients and getting jobs. So, you should definitely create a portfolio website if you don’t already have one.
Now, we believe you have a basic idea of how to create a portfolio website. You can build an amazing one by following the above methods.
Faruk Ferdows is a creative writer with a passion for WordPress and the tech industry. In addition to his writing, he is also an online activist and a teacher. He brings a unique perspective and enthusiasm to his work, making him a valuable asset to any blog or website.
Thank you for this informative post! It has shed light on a topic I was struggling to understand. Your writing style is engaging and the information is presented clearly. Great job!