Polishing Your Portfolio

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POLISHING YOUR PORTFOLIO Questions To Ask About Your Book

IS MY BOOK WELL-ROUNDED? Do I have copy? Long copy? Visual solutions? Headlines? Outdoor? Ambient media? Digital? Mobile? Is all of my stuff funny? Is any of it funny? Do I have emotional pieces? Do I have anything not targeted toward people like myself? How many different voices are on display? How many different design styles? Do I have a variety of product categories? Technology? Food? Cars? Destinations? Events? Packaged goods? Services?

What is my strongest campaign? Why? What is my weakest campaign? Again, could I drop it? What is my favorite campaign? Which campaign best represents the kind of work I’m capable of doing?

WRITERS: Do I show that I can write? Long copy? Headlines? Different voices? ART DIRECTORS: Do I show that I can design? Type? Simple visuals? Different styles?

What is the weakness of every single piece in my book? Can I eliminate any of those weaknesses?

Do I have more than 30 pieces? If so, what can I lose?

Am I including any non-ad work? Photography, design, books, side projects? (Writers, no short stories or poetry, por favor.) If so, what about it will a creative director find relevant? What does it show that my ad work doesn’t?

Do I have studenty products? Condoms? Hot sauce? Sex shops? Bug spray? Powerbar? Do I have a One Show Student competition campaign in my book? If so, did it at least merit? Do I have unnecessary descriptions/strategies/explanations? On the pieces that do require explanation, is the story clear and concise? Do I have anything that’s just a media idea? [MEDIA ≠ IDEA] If so, how can I make it a great concept too? Do I have any one shots? If so, are they the best things in my book? If not, how can I build them into a campaign (or lose them)? Is the overall design clean? Does it keep the focus on the work? ON ORDER: Do I start and end strong? Are there campaigns with similar voices next to each other? How’s the pacing? Do I split up copy-heavy campaigns with visual campaigns?

If I removed any particular campaign, would my book’s batting average go up or down? If so, what justifies its inclusion? Does it show a different style/skill/voice?

If someone asks me to talk about a piece, do I have something intelligent to say? Can I sum it up in a sentence or two? Can I articulate the strategy? The target? If someone doesn’t want me to talk while they look through my book, does the book stand on its own? Do I have my portfolio online? Is it easy to navigate? Is it easy to read the copy? Is it easy to share? If I link to my blog/twitter/facebook page, do I have material that portrays me in a good light? Would I hire someone with my book? Why? Would I want to work at an agency doing the kind of work that’s in my book? Does my book feel like me? For more thoughts, visit makinads.com.


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