By : Maricon Almonte

Portfolios, whether electronic or paper are more than scrapbook. They are not merely journals to be displayed but documents that create impression. They are compilations of the best work that are selective, reflective and collaborative. Portfolios involve a variety of design, style and idiosyncrasy.

Portfolios provide for more than a snapshot. In fact, they act as a series of snapshots over time to provide an authentic, dynamic, reflective and one-of-a-kind experience and interaction for the portfolio developer. Assessment of portfolio is diverse from the rest because it allows selection of multiple sources and gathers authentic settings.
More and more graduates are swarming in design studios and graphic arts firms to look for jobs. But nowadays, credentials are not sufficient. You have to grab your prospect’s attention and rise beyond his expectations. You may not know this but most of the people who invaded the dot.coms with authority have no credentials but they are able to pass through it and succeed eventually. Talent, if not used, honed, exposed and exhibited will turn out to be futile.

There are also cases when talents who have researched and found the selection of prospective employers can use the ‘hit and run strategy’. They get the name of the person, mail them a series of custom post cards that you have created just for that prospect. By your third card, you are supposed to receive a call. You can print them out on post card stock or color laser prints and attach them to the postcard blanks.

To add a dash of presentation you can send something unique or exquisite. Send a video, diskette, CD-rom. These things can fascinate and in turn catch your prospect’s attention. You are still obliged to print and submit resume but you already grabbed an edge compared to your co-aspirants. Something extra-ordinary seem much more exciting to the recipient. It is quite awkward to resist a video or CD in your mailbox, isn’t it? Oh, by the way, never forget to create a cool and catchy cover…

Getting noticed is the key factor to getting discovered – the fancy disk jacket, the awesome design on its face and the interesting content – they all make sense! If you can’t take no for an answer, be sure to present a remarkable thing in a catchy manner. Forget about the usual. Why bother, when you can do something beyond it? That alone is amazing to discover…