A few years ago, when I was a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed new Community Manager (CM), I saw a job posting for a role at one of my 'end game' studios. Feeling I was too new at the discipline, the thought of applying was discouraging as I still felt I had a lot to learn where I was. Chatting it over with my friend and colleague, he suggested that I build a portfolio to showcase my work and apply anyway. The worst they could say is no, right?
Unfortunately, by the time I had loaded my site with all my previous experience, the job post had been taken down - but that's okay! I ended up with a shiny new portfolio and was more prepared should another end-goal opportunity surface. As a bonus, I was given a nice reminder of all the value and skills I was able to bring to the table! Having a portfolio is a great, visual way to represent what you know, what you've learned, and where you plan to go.
I am by no means someone that knows everything about portfolio building, as I'm still pretty new to this myself. However, having this at my disposal has made a large impact on callbacks from recruiters and on visibility from other industry professionals.
What is a Portfolio and why would a CM need one?
A portfolio can appear in many ways depending on the discipline of the professional it represents. Game Designers will include GDDs (Game Design Documentation) and games they've worked on or made in the past. Artists use visual portfolios to showcase their proficiency in different styles and mediums.
So why would a Community Manager need one? I mean, let's be real here, you don't need one per se, but there are a few reasons why it would be beneficial to add one to your arsenal.
Application Process
Resumes are great and all, but they are meant to be kept short and to the point. On the other side of things, when you're hiring someone to join your team, loads of resumes come through (which ends up being a lot of text and reading). A portfolio gives recruiters and hiring managers a more in-depth avenue to get to know you, and what you bring to the table.
A visual representation of how you add value
The number of times a Community Manager has told me they feel undervalued is staggering. With the majority of a Community Manager's success being measured in qualitative data, it can be difficult for others (and sometimes the CMs themselves) to see ways they add value to their studio and game.
A timeline of progress
Gym selfies aren't the only way to feel good about the progress you've made and how far you've come. Documenting where you started in your career vs where you are now is a nice reminder of how much you've learned and the skills you've acquired over time.
Where to host your portfolio
Not versed in code and don't have the funds to hire a Website Designer? No problem! There is a multitude of websites you can host your portfolio on. Although I'll be sharing the ones I personally have experience with, don't be afraid to look around to see what works best for you!
WordPress
WordPress is not only user-friendly, it's also incredibly cost-efficient! With prices as low as $5USD/month ($60USD for the year!), not only do you get yourself a personalized domain, but you also have access to themes that give you a base to work from. This was the website builder I used when putting together my first portfolio and it really helped me find my footing without breaking the bank.
Wix
Although on the pricier side ($44USD/month), Wix offers loads of designs and drag-and-drop assets to take your portfolio to the next level. You can even go as far as creating a personalized email domain or adding a forum to your website.
Something I really love about Wix is the comprehensive analytics, insights, and suggestions on ways to get the most out of your portfolio (and because it's interesting to get an idea of who's looking 👀).
So we now know where to put your portfolio, but let's dive into -
What to include in your portfolio
Every time I share updates to my portfolio or urge other Community Managers to create their own to stand out in a job search, I've been met with the same question that I had - "I want to build one, but what do I even add?".
Ultimately, you want your portfolio to represent you, but knowing where to start is half the battle. Below I'll share my process for making mine, but keep in mind that no two Community Managers are the same, so what works for me might not work for you! Feel free to play around with it until you feel confident with how you're representing yourself and what you're capable of.
Landing Page
The landing page is the very first area that recruiters (or anyone else who views it) will end up at. Make it flashy! Use this space to give a brief rundown of yourself outside of your professional ventures. Game industry Community Managers are, for the majority, a bunch of geeks. Much like the communities we manage, most of us have fancy setups, nerdy collections, and/or custom PCs. Demonstrate the ways you can connect with the communities you manage.
At first glance, you might be thinking "but Sam, what does any of this have to do with being a Community Manager?". A lot actually! While, yes, this info gives insight about who I am in my personal life, it also demonstrates soft skills that would be beneficial in a Community Manager role.
Giving a brief rundown on community-related experience on the landing page gives recruiters and visitors a sneak peek of what to expect when perusing your portfolio.
Professional Experience
Much like a resume, you want to include separate sections for each professional venture that you took part in. Community Management is loaded with transferable skills so there's almost always a way to connect past work experience to how you would bring value to the role. Worked in retail or at a restaurant? Customer service experience and GREAT at multitasking in high-stress situations. Delivered mail? Capable of delivering communication on a deadline. Seriously. So many ways.
Structuring professional or non-professional experience in a way that will pique interest is a whole other ballgame. Start off with what your role responsibilities were (or are!) and outline everything that you took ownership of. The following sections on the page would be a great place to highlight key initiatives that you drove or took part in. I like to structure these in the following way (for simplicity's sake, I'm using the Community Manager role as an example):
Title of the initiative | Self-explanatory! What was the initiative called? (ex. Anniversary Facebook Contest) |
Brief summary | What exactly is this initiative? (ex. As [game] was approaching its 3rd anniversary, I thought it would be a great opportunity to hold a contest for our players) |
What were the KPIs (goals!) | What were you planning to achieve, and how would this help the Community and/or the game? (ex. I wanted to boost our Facebook Pages engagement and follower count, and thought that proposing the contest in this way would achieve that:) |
Tasks involved in carrying out the initiative |
(ex. In order to announce the contest to our players, asked the Art team to put together a promotional image (or I built it myself!) showing what the players would win and how to enter. It was important that we outlined the terms and conditions so that players knew what to expect and what the limitations of the contest were and I conveyed this in my external copy like this:) |
Key learnings and takeaways |
(ex. While we managed to boost engagement, the follower count did not achieve the growth that was expected. Here are some potential reasons for it, and ways I will adjust the initiative for next time:) |
Key initiatives aren't the only areas to highlight! You can also talk about:
Managing social media channels
Ways you've made an impact at your studio/workplace
Promotional assets you've put together
Challenges you've faced and how you overcame them
Non-Professional Experience
Going back to when I said Community Management has an absolute sea of transferable skills, a lot of your hobbies and side ventures have the ability to demonstrate ways you can be an incredible fit for a Community Manager role.
Here are some ways you can elaborate on side projects and ventures in your portfolio:
Side Project | Demonstrated Transferable Skills |
Content Creation (YouTube, Twitch, TikTok) |
|
Creating and maintaining a written blog |
|
Moderating and/or ownership of a Discord Community |
|
Moderating and/or ownership of a social media channel |
|
About Me
Who doesn't love writing about themselves?? (nervous laughter) If you're anything like me, you can write for days about topics you're passionate about, but you end up forgetting everything about who you are when you fill in those dreaded 'About Me' sections.
Source: Anya Forger from SpyXFamily
Believe it or not, you've been talking about yourself and your accomplishments this entire time! Use the 'About Me' space to summarize the sections you've added to your portfolio.
Based on some of my most recent website analytics, the 'About Me' section tends to be the first place that visitors look at after the landing page, so make sure you hyperlink your pages in the text so they know where to check out next.
Lastly, include a list of games that you're passionate about and keep in mind the genres they fall into. If you want to work on JRPGs, share your favourite ones! Vibe more with FPS games? Put your latest obsessions here! In every game industry interview that I've taken part in, 'what are your favourite games' is always asked, so get a head start and list them here!
Closing Notes
This guide is a brief rundown of how I built my portfolio, but how you choose to display your experience and accomplishments is up to you! Think of your portfolio as an extension of your resume - your resume outlines what you've done but a portfolio outlines how you did it.
If you have any portfolio building tips that I missed, leave them below!
Thanks for reading!
✨Sam Gee
((Edited by the talented and badass Jake Bradley! You can find them over on Twitter 👀 ))