Remember in like, 2005, when having your own website was super awesome and ahead of the times? Today, almost everyone who wants to stay relevant has a website or online portfolio.

Searching for a job is never easy, and it gets even harder if you’re planning on applying for one in another state or even another country! Logistically, you can’t really schedule meetings and interviews, which is why having the best application and information available to your potential employer helps a lot. This means having a great online portfolio (because everyone goes online!) for them to look at.

Don’t Have Your Own Online Portfolio Yet? Here Are 7 Reasons Why You Should

1. You Get Visibility

When you’re considering buying something from a new company, you do some research online, right? You check out their website, read reviews, and ultimately make a decision. Especially when an employer can’t see you in person (i.e. they’re not local) they’ll want to research you, so make it easy for them.

You want to make yourself as visible as possible so that companies can find you easily. You want them to remember you and keep you in mind for future job openings. When a company is based far away from you, it’s a lot harder to get their attention. Remember that you’re marketing yourself and your skills, so you need to have something you can show them.

2. It’s Basically One Big Database of You™

Another reason to consider an online portfolio is to have everything in one place. Your portfolio can be one awesome organized place to house your specialized resumes, your personal information, your work samples, and anything else you may need for a job app. It’s like one big database of all your professional information.

This saves tons of time when filling out applications (which, at this point, are almost always online) and will also ensure that the people who are interested in you will receive all the information they need in a timely manner and without mistakes. If you don’t have a lot of time (and who does in today’s world?) an online portfolio is a huge help for you and your potential employer.

3. You Can Offer More

Just filling out a job application leaves a lot of information out. You want your potential employer to have as much sense of your skills and experience as possible (especially when you can’t meet face-to-face!) and this can only happen if you have some sort of portfolio to attach. In these situations, less is not more. Seemingly small pieces of information can make the difference for a job offer.

You can include samples of your work in your portfolio that you couldn’t do on an application. In situations where you are applying for a job abroad and you don’t have the opportunity to go to an interview, this option will ensure that your personality and what you can offer is taken into consideration.

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4. You Make The First Impression

When an employer sees that you took the time to put together an online portfolio that is organized and highly professional, they will get a much better impression of you. You also get to control what exactly that impression is.

This part is super important: make sure your portfolio is quality! You want it to be sleek, tasteful, understated, and above all well-organized. An online portfolio gives you an edge, especially for jobs abroad.

5. You Have Flexibility

With an online portfolio, you can change the content easily and without wasting time. This means that you can update your experience, skills, and much more with just a few clicks. This kind of flexibility makes it easy to always have your resume and other information up to date.

When you can just go into your personal-digitized-database and find the exact information you need, you’re saving a ton of time and labor for yourself.

6. You Control Your Personal Brand Identity

An online portfolio guarantees that your employer sees you as you want to brand yourself. This is always a good thing. Most employers will search online for information about an applicant, and with a portfolio, you can monitor the kind of information they will find. We’re not saying you have anything to hide, but there are always things you’d rather them see more than others.

It’s honestly amazing how much of a difference this can make. Since websites now are so easy to customize (you don’t need to know HTML code!) you can give off the exact look and feel that you want.

7. It’s Easy to Share

Another great thing about online portfolios is that they’re super easy to share. Unlike emailing attachments, which can take time and be problematic, sending a link to an online portfolio guarantees that all of the information will reach the recipient intact. Make it easy on yourself and put together an online portfolio that you can share with just a few clicks.

Like it’s literally a link. You could call your website yourname.com or yourname.wordpress.com. and share it with anyone in the whole wide world! This also helps with personal branding if you have a cool nickname you want to use.

Honestly, today’s internet is so user-friendly, easy, and almost effortless. It would be kind of stupid not to have a personal website. You don’t even need to be applying for a job abroad. Local companies will be looking you up too, and if you want something to supplement your LinkedIn, an online portfolio is the way to go.