What recommendations can you make for putting together UX Portfolios?! Do you want us to review your UX Design portfolio? Share your thoughts and portfolios in the comments below! . Want to get started in UX Design? Check out this AMAZING guide, also with Amr, here: ua-cam.com/video/t0aCoqXKFOU/v-deo.html
AJ&Smart love the insight and all your media. JR UX Designer looking to get some feedback and review on my Portfolio. uxclif37.myportfolio.com/body-fashion-image-consultant-mobile-app-capstone thanks for the helpful information 🤙🏽🤙🏽
Had a question. You said that the junior designers portfolio lacked user testing. How would one do user testing with a fake client. Would you just ask a few friends to take a look and ask them some questions?
Hi, I am Sun Young Cho who asked you to review my portfolio. Actually, your channel has tons of subscribers, so I didn't expect you guys picked mine among many submissions. I really appreciate all your feedback which is very valid and valuable. I wanted to get that kind of feedback. You helped me a lot. I wrote down all your feedback. I will update my portfolio soon. Thank you so much. Once again, I really really appreciate your time. I have become a big fan of AJ&Smart.
Hey Sun! Thank you so much! Was very kind and brave of you to share your work with us, we LOVED your portfolio here! We couldn't find your account on Linkedin when we shared it, so apologies for that! Great to hear, thank you!
@@Omnitrix8 Thank you. Principle and Photoshop. I used the 'Principle' Prototype tool to animate all screens and export it in a mov or mp4 file (Sorry, I don't remember the file type) and place it into the device mockup image using Photoshop. Then, export as a gif file again for the showcase. I think you can use any prototype tool to create interaction like that except for InVision. I hope it helps.
I'm right there with you lol. I've taken a great deal of coursera coursework and all the concepts are so amazing and really pique my interest, but the portfolio aspect is def intimidating. The few junior ones presented in the vid gave me hope, but still...
It definitely is intimidating. I have a mentor that works as a Sr ux designer and she assured me that everyone finds making their portfolio overwhelming. She told me to practice writing and being concise in text but to know its ok to feel overwhelmed but not to let that feeling drive you away.
I think it actually is great that he was able to knock them portfolio into concise points. Knowing that the main focus of a portfolio is storytelling and being able to walk recruiters through your thought process really helps alleviate the pressure to make it look aesthetically amazing. Simple and easy with detailed and structured design processes. It makes it feel more manageable to me.
It can be intimidating, but as a professional looking to hire I'm really looking for the basics done well. Research target users and similar tools, identify main jobs to be done (really important), think in flows and touch points, test prototype with users to fix issues (also really important), finalise the screens (less important). Do the basics well and you will already stand out!
This is the best portfolio review I've come across. Thank you for doing this..and kudos to the brave UX designers for sharing your work. No doubt you are doing great! :)
Good tip on PDF file! It is hard to keep all links from portfolios together and all resume aside. If the hiring manager has your resume with your printed short case study, you have more chances to be memorized. Thank you for the video!
It's always good to prepare a PDF version, you can really craft a great story for the reader, and showcase your best skills and interests! No problem! More to come!
I second that. While my portfolio needs an intense amount of work in general; it showcases examples from other disciplines I have worked in like front-end design. I was thinking I will have to be really careful to make a clear connection to the right content for those looking for a UX designer. The best bet might be to separate the work examples out in a pdf of some sort and have them skip the website as a first blush.
Please make this a series AJ&S team! Hopefully this can be a topic you revisit once a month with three different portfolios each time. From my knowledge there aren’t too many channels posting this type of content, so this may help draw in more viewers and cement your standing as a knowledgable source for UI/UX content.
Great job, Amr! Extremely insightful. One suggestion: I think it's better to say a portfolio lacks focus or doesn't tell a story, rather than say it's "too long". "Too long" is vague, routine feedback that is easily dismissed. Would a shortened portfolio that fails to tell a story be preferable to a "too long" one that does? If you use an inverted pyramid presentation style, the reader will stop when they have seen enough regardless of the length. One observation: Based on both the portfolios and your reviews, I can't say if any of these designers have any real interaction design skills. Beyond their appearance, are the screens and flows presented good or crap? It's impossible to say…which I think says alot about our current UX hiring practices. Too often visual designers are hired to do interaction design, and they don’t know how to do it. It’s a different skill set. I will challenge one claim: most companies don’t know how to do a good sign in experience, rather they copy the same horrible UX everyone else uses-without giving it a second thought. So many sites where their worst UX is the signin. People love metrics, so a good metric would be the number of password resets. The Verizon Wireless site is a good example here. For years I had to do a password reset to enter their site…every time...using my freakin Verizon wireless phone. That said, absolutely skip the signin design unless you ID and fix the problems. PS: In my opinion, every "UX" portfolio shown was actually a UI portfolio, being that it was all centered on screen design and flows. (Unless you define "UX design" to mean really good UI design, which many people do.) Would be great for you to review a portfolio that was really about UX design (that is, designing the experience without the screens).
You blew my mind with your analysis on those portfolio and you opened my eyes to somethings I need to includes in my portfolio that I'm yet to build. I'm currently taking the Google certificate program and once I'm done with the whole program and build up more portfolio I will definitely like you to help me analyze it with same honest critique u used on these portfolio u went through in this video. In conclusion, I will say, that u are completely an expert in what u do and your channel deserves more subscribers 👏
This channel always provide valuable information. I’m new to UX/UI and in a process to create portfolio. This video provides lot of important info on that. Thanks for sharing 😊
I'm currently transitioning from IT into UX design (as a junior of course) and my struggle is conveying my knowledge in such short succinct case studies. I wonder what the best way of showcasing knowledge and skill is, without being wordy...
and I thought my portfolio was good xD oh how I was terribly wrong. These are amazing, sure they need some tweaking but wow that is a lot of work put in.
The product still exists in the form of a clickable prototype. So you can have a user test it and give feedback. When you think about it, all projects are fictitious until they are physically coded by a developer so its normal to take a 'concept' to user testing. Hope that makes sense?
Thank you so much for making and sharing this video (amongst many others) it was really helpful to get these insights as a newly qualified UX designer :) thank you!
This was great I really enjoyed this video! I'd be curious to see a critique of a project that AJ&Smart has done in the past. I think it would be cool to see what you all would improve on from work done in the past, if it can be discussed.
This is a cool idea! The vast majority of our client work is under NDAs but we could revisit some pro-bono work from yeas ago, we'll see what we can dig up!
This, dear Amr and AJS team, is a great video. It gives us the opportunity to learn what to do and what to avoid in a very natural way. This level is almost impossible with an abstract "UX portfolio principles" lecture. Keep rockin' guys..
I have a question and a comment. Do you think there is a difference between who reviews a portfolio? A designer will judge a portfolio differently than say a CEO or project manager of a small start-up. I know this video is two years old, but startups to midsize companies don't want someone who does just UX. They want UX, UI, Research, and sometimes code.
On the point - A clear, informative and very helpful video. Thank you, Amr and AJ&S!!! And please keep on giving insights as well as thoughts from senior professionals. It is highly appriciated.
interesting examples, thanks a lot! indeed they are so different and the 3rd for sure stood out for me, as a beginner was way easier to understand. although those portfolios are way too long! great idea also about pdf portfolio
btw about guidelines, they helping keep brand consistent but ALSO closing brand into this boring box, so is good sometimes to think and do things with design outside of box. rip creativity in corporation
I am a freelancer, and all relevant Projects I do are NDA. User flows, customer journeys and personas are sensitive business documents. How am I supposed to make such a portfolio without violating the NDA and contract?
I've been following AJ&Smart for few weeks now and I have to say, your contents are always on point and simple to digest. Thank you for your amazing work. QUICK QUESTION: Would you recommend having an online PDF for your portfolio that links the viewer when they click on it? Thanks in advance!
Thanks James! Generally we'd recommend having both! The PDF version lets you really guide the user through the story of your work and design solutions, but they may also want more tangible digital examples. PDF is still strongly recommended! Thanks for the kind feedback too! What would you like to see on our channel?!
AJ&Smart Thanks for your input! This gave me an idea to have an online case study and have an option for the viewer to download a pdf version to get the best of both worlds :) I know that presenting (speaking) your designs and ideas clearly is essential as a UX/Product designer. I do find myself struggling in this area. Not sure if you have covered this topic in the past, but, I’d love to see a video on “What to do/what not to do when presenting your design case study” Please let me know if there is anything else you would like my input on. I’m just a junior designer but I love to share fresh ideas! :)
Great vídeo, I learn so much and maybe I'll put my portfolio on the trash 😂. Could you guys show some examples of really good portfolios? I'll love to see that.
Hey Andrigo! Thanks, that would be a really cool topic to cover off on actually! If you want some amazing examples in the first instance, check out some of the portfolios on Semplice, it's a great platform (though not strictly just UX / UI): www.semplice.com/showcase As for your portfolio! PLEASE don't do that! Just iterate and answer the specifics we mentioned!
I need to make user bios for a practice activity for a bill estimation app for travel agents. Should my ideal users for the app only travel agents or can I include anyone who loves to travel or work in related fields? Thanks for any reply.
Hey there! If the app's target audience is travel agents, focus on that group. You can most likely divide this audience into smaller segments such as: large agents, small agents, B2B agents etc.
Great video! Thanks a lot! A lot of useful tips, clear explanation why you should do it like this and great idea with PDF. I was always thinking that since we are sending already CV and motivation letter, it would be too many documents and I was afraid to overload the hr or recruiter, but I will definitely try with PDF Format of portfolio. Thanks again for the video and all the provided information 😊🙂
Hey Maryna, sure we understand, and thanks for the feedback! Absolutely, it's generally advisable to just provide the structure or files a recruiter specifically asks for in the application, but if it's open, PDFs are a great way to storytell your view of a project, and if the recruiter isn't interested in the PDFs they wont look. No harm in it! Thanks again!
This is a really cool idea, thanks for this! We could look at perhaps opening up our interview process and application criteria for designers, would make a nice video! Thanks for the idea!
If I don't have actual UX experience but I create hypothetical challenges/ problems to solve them and show my design thinking process, how do I validate a product that is just a concept?
You can test with friends and colleagues! But explaining your process in your portfolio is the best way to show off your skills if this is what you are after!
Thanks Amr and AJ&Smart team for this wonderful video on portfolio review it made my day ,it means a lot for me as i was looking for what actually the industry wants. I was just designing screens and i was getting feedback that everyone can do this stuff what's the big deal and now got some positive vibe and i will work on this guidelines. THANKS FOR GIVING BACK TO COMMUNITY.🙏👌👍
This video was very useful, but let me ask you a question: For a person who worked some where or had this opportunity to work on some cases it's good to learn these tips but what about a junior one? You know a junior UX designer that learnt many different things and now he/she has the knowledge but still doesn't work on any real project to have real userswhat about this case? How can ha/she make a portfolio or use these tips?!
I'm currently working at a company, but I don't know what can I show on my portfolio? Do I have to put work I did in the company or should I make my own?
Hello guys, I am a UX/UI student and I am about to finish school next week. I am working on showcasing my capstone for my portfolio. I am confused because I keep hearing different opinions about showcasing your casestudies. Some people recommend to almost story-tell your process, others say they see this as a waste of time "I don't need the whole story, I just want the highlights," and recommend short text, only couple lines. help, please?
Great vid, thanks so much for the portfolio guidelines, Amr! And for doing this new portfolio critique format. 🥳🥳 By the way guys, what do you use to record your screen? Is it Loom?
Hey, Thanks for this amazing video. I have a question thou, you mentioned many times that the case-study shouldn't be long so my question is that how can one cover all the major stuff of the project? I am building a case-study of one of my freelance project and in that I have done a customer portal with mobile app, Vendor portal and a complete responsive website. And customer portal itself is huge. So how can I reduce the size of case-study while communicating process involved in all the different modules/features?
Hey, great question Muhammad! You could break up the portfolio / project into multiple parts, focusing on the challenges / solutions for specific parts, such as onboarding, retention, engagement etc etc. Growth.Design is a great resource for honing in on these specifics: growth.design/case-studies/ Your story telling doesn't need to be as visual or as flashy, but look how they guide the reader through an engaging and detailed case-study, with just a few screens, in a nice, visual way!
Hey guys, I wanted to ask, if you are designing an app for a company without them knowing, how do you frame the challenge in a way that doesn't just parrot your research?e.g. The company hasn't come with a brief, you have just decided the experience isn't good and to redesign the app
This was a great video and help me a lot. But I do have some questions. I am a motion graphic artist and want to learn UX. Let say I am preparing my first portfolio which I don't have any experience working in any UX company. May I know how to collect the performance data or feedback just like the tip for improvement in 7:15?
Hey thanks a lot for the feedback! This comes up a lot, for sure, a great way to do it is to make prototypes for your design solutions, and record a testing session, this can be with friends / family, or peers and colleagues. For the purposes of these tests, all you want to do is showcase the fact you actually tested the design piece, highlight the kinds of questions, the responses and insights from your 'testers' and how you then implemented the feedback and iterated. A simple video call, where you walk the users through a prototype or other design solution, and record key insights on post-its, or a digital notepad / whiteboard would be great! It's much more important for hiring managers to see you understand this process, and can implement feedback from real users, than it is to have dozens of detailed screens and fancy ui visuals etc. Documenting the tests, recording the feedback, and implementing this as design iterations, will go a long, long way, and it's something we see lacking in a lot of portfolios that get submitted. it can be with just a few test users, max 5 say! Does this help?
I have about 5 years of experience as an art director, designer, and marketer, but want to migrate to a UX role. Does this previous experience mean I can apply for more of a mid-level job after I complete a portfolio?
For my class we're doing our portfolio on our own domain. So it's kinda weird seeing examples from Behance where it just looks like a social media profile with links to case studies
You mention that the same trend you see in the portfolios is that they are all too long. Can you make a video showing examples of how you would shorten these portfolios? Especially the third one that you same was really well put together, it was just too long.
Great Video! New Subscriber! I’m transitioning from print to UX Design, with no experience. Are there any sites that offer briefs/case studies so I can start gathering work for my portfolio. Also, you mention user testing, what’s the best way to do this?
Hey Sonia, feel free to link it here, or if you'd prefer a more private channel you can DM us or email it to 'support@ajsmart.com'. There's no set guarantee we can feature it sadly, but we'll certainly add it to our pool, and take a look!
Any advice about how to create these portfolios in the first place? Your How to Get Started Video and Figma Tutorial were super interesting. Don't know how I'd bring all the designs I create in Figma along with a good write up into a curated document. Can you make portfolios in Figma? If not, how does one curate a document for a portfolio?
Firstly I want to thank you for everything. You guys are awesome. Thanks a lot. I have started learning how to be UX/UI designer since 2 weeks ago and i am still very beginner.. May I ask if you have any great courses that help me a lot. Thanks in advance.
hi right now im studying industrial design in germany. I want to focus on user experience design in the future but what i understand from this video is that its only web design or app design related. I have watched another video of this channel explanining what ux design is and what you guys explained there was kinda my dream job because what i really want to do is designing products etc. and researching and finding ways to make it more user friendly. so What can you guys advise me ?
Thanks for the video, great advice! Regarding process - how would you show/discuss that when your client is not happy for their process to be shared? All of the clients I work with are large well known names so it is difficult to showcase work... would an agency understand this?
Hey, great question! If you can't provide 'real world' examples, you can swap out your specific client, with a fictitious project, making sure to change any branding or logos of course, and detail the challenge / solution with this new, shiny, strictly hypothetical company!
Really interesting - Ive looked at some of the most talented UX Designers out there and they are definitely focusing on the Process - HOWEVER - I also saw multiple Videos now (from ex Google Designers or others Designers from top start-ups) that recommended and outlined how UI/Visual Design is also quite important especially in the Portfolio. Also I've witnessed colleagues from my University who we're quite good in their thinking but not in their visuals - being rejected BECAUSE the recruiters weren't convinced by there competency Just because the Portfolio wasn't visually appealing. All these experiences now led me to give people applying for a job the advice "UI gets you the Interview UX gets you the Job". If you create a Portfolio you should definitely Show the Process however Keep the Text skimmable (I've witnessed our Design Lead skim through Portfolios - and he took 4/5 mins max. for each one) But definitely don't sacrifice looks - and if you are afraid of creating good UI - the good News about that is that visual skills are skills like all others - you can definitely learn them and get an expert simply through praciticing! Do a "one Screen per day Challenge" or something like that - it will definitely get you going 😉
Hey Ezzeldeen, depends on the role you're applying for, in this video we were focusing on how Amr evaluated the way the designers communicated and presented their work, challenges and solutions in the context of UX design. We were less focused on the visual. If you were applying for a UX / Product Design role that require strong visual design or UI skills, it would certainly be beneficial to provide specific examples of that in the portfolio pieces you send in. Does this help?
What recommendations can you make for putting together UX Portfolios?! Do you want us to review your UX Design portfolio? Share your thoughts and portfolios in the comments below!
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Want to get started in UX Design? Check out this AMAZING guide, also with Amr, here: ua-cam.com/video/t0aCoqXKFOU/v-deo.html
AJ&Smart love the insight and all your media. JR UX Designer looking to get some feedback and review on my Portfolio. uxclif37.myportfolio.com/body-fashion-image-consultant-mobile-app-capstone thanks for the helpful information 🤙🏽🤙🏽
Sure..will submit my portfolio..,while its work in progress. Thank you .
Had a question. You said that the junior designers portfolio lacked user testing. How would one do user testing with a fake client. Would you just ask a few friends to take a look and ask them some questions?
Not sure if anyone cares at all, but yesterday I woke up with a terrible hangover only to discover that someone had shit in my pants.
@@terrellsim 六六六
Hi, I am Sun Young Cho who asked you to review my portfolio. Actually, your channel has tons of subscribers, so I didn't expect you guys picked mine among many submissions. I really appreciate all your feedback which is very valid and valuable. I wanted to get that kind of feedback. You helped me a lot. I wrote down all your feedback. I will update my portfolio soon. Thank you so much. Once again, I really really appreciate your time. I have become a big fan of AJ&Smart.
Hey Sun! Thank you so much! Was very kind and brave of you to share your work with us, we LOVED your portfolio here! We couldn't find your account on Linkedin when we shared it, so apologies for that! Great to hear, thank you!
Hi Sun. Great portfolio! Please what platform did you use to create your interactive portfolio?
@@Omnitrix8 Thank you. Principle and Photoshop. I used the 'Principle' Prototype tool to animate all screens and export it in a mov or mp4 file (Sorry, I don't remember the file type) and place it into the device mockup image using Photoshop. Then, export as a gif file again for the showcase. I think you can use any prototype tool to create interaction like that except for InVision. I hope it helps.
This made me rethink everything, kind of scared to enter the UX industry now. I don't have a portfolio yet but all of this is overwhelming.
I'm right there with you lol. I've taken a great deal of coursera coursework and all the concepts are so amazing and really pique my interest, but the portfolio aspect is def intimidating. The few junior ones presented in the vid gave me hope, but still...
Give it a spin with a different mindset: marketing. Start offering less value for less price.
It definitely is intimidating. I have a mentor that works as a Sr ux designer and she assured me that everyone finds making their portfolio overwhelming. She told me to practice writing and being concise in text but to know its ok to feel overwhelmed but not to let that feeling drive you away.
I think it actually is great that he was able to knock them portfolio into concise points. Knowing that the main focus of a portfolio is storytelling and being able to walk recruiters through your thought process really helps alleviate the pressure to make it look aesthetically amazing. Simple and easy with detailed and structured design processes. It makes it feel more manageable to me.
It can be intimidating, but as a professional looking to hire I'm really looking for the basics done well. Research target users and similar tools, identify main jobs to be done (really important), think in flows and touch points, test prototype with users to fix issues (also really important), finalise the screens (less important).
Do the basics well and you will already stand out!
I love when your guys' videos make me feel like I have tons more to learn because I do! lol
Thanks Anthony! That's the aim here! Glad to hear you're learning from it all! What would you like to see from us going forward?
This is the best portfolio review I've come across. Thank you for doing this..and kudos to the brave UX designers for sharing your work. No doubt you are doing great! :)
Good tip on PDF file! It is hard to keep all links from portfolios together and all resume aside. If the hiring manager has your resume with your printed short case study, you have more chances to be memorized. Thank you for the video!
It's always good to prepare a PDF version, you can really craft a great story for the reader, and showcase your best skills and interests! No problem! More to come!
I second that. While my portfolio needs an intense amount of work in general; it showcases examples from other disciplines I have worked in like front-end design. I was thinking I will have to be really careful to make a clear connection to the right content for those looking for a UX designer. The best bet might be to separate the work examples out in a pdf of some sort and have them skip the website as a first blush.
Please make this a series AJ&S team! Hopefully this can be a topic you revisit once a month with three different portfolios each time. From my knowledge there aren’t too many channels posting this type of content, so this may help draw in more viewers and cement your standing as a knowledgable source for UI/UX content.
As you guys said in some other video, everyone can make a good design, it’s the process that makes the difference. Thanks a lot for this! 🥳🥳
Exactly Andrés! Thanks!
Hi, can you show us a good example of UX Portfolios? and a good structure to create one. Thanks!
How it’s going
@@larsson8689 still waiting -_-
Great job, Amr! Extremely insightful.
One suggestion: I think it's better to say a portfolio lacks focus or doesn't tell a story, rather than say it's "too long". "Too long" is vague, routine feedback that is easily dismissed. Would a shortened portfolio that fails to tell a story be preferable to a "too long" one that does? If you use an inverted pyramid presentation style, the reader will stop when they have seen enough regardless of the length.
One observation: Based on both the portfolios and your reviews, I can't say if any of these designers have any real interaction design skills. Beyond their appearance, are the screens and flows presented good or crap? It's impossible to say…which I think says alot about our current UX hiring practices. Too often visual designers are hired to do interaction design, and they don’t know how to do it. It’s a different skill set.
I will challenge one claim: most companies don’t know how to do a good sign in experience, rather they copy the same horrible UX everyone else uses-without giving it a second thought. So many sites where their worst UX is the signin. People love metrics, so a good metric would be the number of password resets. The Verizon Wireless site is a good example here. For years I had to do a password reset to enter their site…every time...using my freakin Verizon wireless phone. That said, absolutely skip the signin design unless you ID and fix the problems.
PS: In my opinion, every "UX" portfolio shown was actually a UI portfolio, being that it was all centered on screen design and flows. (Unless you define "UX design" to mean really good UI design, which many people do.) Would be great for you to review a portfolio that was really about UX design (that is, designing the experience without the screens).
You blew my mind with your analysis on those portfolio and you opened my eyes to somethings I need to includes in my portfolio that I'm yet to build. I'm currently taking the Google certificate program and once I'm done with the whole program and build up more portfolio I will definitely like you to help me analyze it with same honest critique u used on these portfolio u went through in this video.
In conclusion, I will say, that u are completely an expert in what u do and your channel deserves more subscribers 👏
Hey! I just started taking the Google certificate program last week! I am wondering, how is your progress going? :)
@@Theresia5 Hello! I just started mine lol did you complete yours and go into the field?
This channel always provide valuable information. I’m new to UX/UI and in a process to create portfolio. This video provides lot of important info on that. Thanks for sharing 😊
I'm currently transitioning from IT into UX design (as a junior of course) and my struggle is conveying my knowledge in such short succinct case studies. I wonder what the best way of showcasing knowledge and skill is, without being wordy...
Hey I am also coming from IT to UX and are facing the exact same challenge right now. Especially after that video right? Do you want to connect?
@@heyhelmar yeah I'd love to. Email me charliedowd.here@gmail.com 👍🏻😁
Hey, I’m currently in the same boat, any updates of the steps you took?
love this review .as a junior ux designer ,your critique is so strict and detailed
Thanks Kuni! What else would you like to see on our channel that could help you?!
@@AJSmart More videos on reviewing portfolios, it is actually great video. Thank you so much.
this totally changed my approach to how I present my work online for the better. thank you for this video it was more helpful to me than you know.
This is excellent information. I will pass it on to my digital design proteges. Keep up the great work.
This was super helpful! I'm looking to start soon, so thanks for your review :)
and I thought my portfolio was good xD oh how I was terribly wrong. These are amazing, sure they need some tweaking but wow that is a lot of work put in.
This is useful,I graduated in June and still looking for design job now
good luck!
These are some solid tips. Actions speak louder than words. .
Thank you for highlighting the importance of PDF portfolios!! This video was very detailed, thank you for that 😊
Thanks Anusha! The PDF lives! It never went away! Appreciate your kind feedback too, thanks a lot!
Thank you so much for this channel best for all UI/UX designers.
How does one get user testing on a fictitious project? Is the testing fictitious as well, as in does one make it up?
The product still exists in the form of a clickable prototype. So you can have a user test it and give feedback. When you think about it, all projects are fictitious until they are physically coded by a developer so its normal to take a 'concept' to user testing. Hope that makes sense?
Thank you so much for making and sharing this video (amongst many others) it was really helpful to get these insights as a newly qualified UX designer :) thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Loved this! please do more videos like this. Very helpful and insightful. Thank you!
This was great I really enjoyed this video!
I'd be curious to see a critique of a project that AJ&Smart has done in the past. I think it would be cool to see what you all would improve on from work done in the past, if it can be discussed.
This is a cool idea! The vast majority of our client work is under NDAs but we could revisit some pro-bono work from yeas ago, we'll see what we can dig up!
@@AJSmart Cool!!!
Guys, Thanks, i am just learning about UX UI. Thanks.
Awesome critiques, thank you so much for the insight! Portfolio constantly under iteration 🤓
My pleasure!
I’m taking a leap and attending a boot camp!!! I’m aiming for UX health care since I have a medical background! Great vid!!!! 🍀🌻🦋🌺🤙😎
how did the bootcamp go? did you learn anything that will help you in a professional setting?
Well explained video! Thank you 🙏
This, dear Amr and AJS team, is a great video. It gives us the opportunity to learn what to do and what to avoid in a very natural way. This level is almost impossible with an abstract "UX portfolio principles" lecture. Keep rockin' guys..
Thanks Abdurrahman! We're really glad you liked this style! More to come like this!
Thanks for the tips and reviews. I got a lot of nuggets from this video and time to implement them to my own portfolio. Thanks AJ&Smart Team.
Great video! Please make more
Thank you so much for this video. Many things to be corrected in my portfolio..
I have a question and a comment. Do you think there is a difference between who reviews a portfolio? A designer will judge a portfolio differently than say a CEO or project manager of a small start-up. I know this video is two years old, but startups to midsize companies don't want someone who does just UX. They want UX, UI, Research, and sometimes code.
Thank you so so so much! Love your Video! Amr.
Woww!! This video is so helpful and educating. thanks man!!
On the point - A clear, informative and very helpful video. Thank you, Amr and AJ&S!!!
And please keep on giving insights as well as thoughts from senior professionals. It is highly appriciated.
interesting examples, thanks a lot! indeed they are so different and the 3rd for sure stood out for me, as a beginner was way easier to understand. although those portfolios are way too long! great idea also about pdf portfolio
Glad you enjoyed it!
btw about guidelines, they helping keep brand consistent but ALSO closing brand into this boring box, so is good sometimes to think and do things with design outside of box. rip creativity in corporation
I am a freelancer, and all relevant Projects I do are NDA. User flows, customer journeys and personas are sensitive business documents. How am I supposed to make such a portfolio without violating the NDA and contract?
Create fictitious projects.
I've been following AJ&Smart for few weeks now and I have to say, your contents are always on point and simple to digest. Thank you for your amazing work.
QUICK QUESTION: Would you recommend having an online PDF for your portfolio that links the viewer when they click on it? Thanks in advance!
Thanks James! Generally we'd recommend having both! The PDF version lets you really guide the user through the story of your work and design solutions, but they may also want more tangible digital examples. PDF is still strongly recommended! Thanks for the kind feedback too! What would you like to see on our channel?!
AJ&Smart Thanks for your input! This gave me an idea to have an online case study and have an option for the viewer to download a pdf version to get the best of both worlds :)
I know that presenting (speaking) your designs and ideas clearly is essential as a UX/Product designer. I do find myself struggling in this area. Not sure if you have covered this topic in the past, but, I’d love to see a video on “What to do/what not to do when presenting your design case study”
Please let me know if there is anything else you would like my input on. I’m just a junior designer but I love to share fresh ideas! :)
Thank you so much for this video, I got what I need ✅
Very helpful! Thank you!
I will definitely send you at least one of my portfolios, once I published my iOS Apps on App Store.
Great stuff and very helpful. Thanks for the video.
Very helpful. Thank you 👍
Great vídeo, I learn so much and maybe I'll put my portfolio on the trash 😂. Could you guys show some examples of really good portfolios? I'll love to see that.
Hey Andrigo! Thanks, that would be a really cool topic to cover off on actually! If you want some amazing examples in the first instance, check out some of the portfolios on Semplice, it's a great platform (though not strictly just UX / UI): www.semplice.com/showcase
As for your portfolio! PLEASE don't do that! Just iterate and answer the specifics we mentioned!
This was excellent, thank you!
I need to make user bios for a practice activity for a bill estimation app for travel agents. Should my ideal users for the app only travel agents or can I include anyone who loves to travel or work in related fields? Thanks for any reply.
Hey there! If the app's target audience is travel agents, focus on that group. You can most likely divide this audience into smaller segments such as: large agents, small agents, B2B agents etc.
Its was really helpful... full of knowledge
This was incredibly helpful. Thanks 🙏
Great video! Everyone needs to know this!
This video is very helpful want to see more like this maybe ill also add my portfolio for review after following these guidelines 👍
Thanks a lot! More like this on the way! We have hundreds of Portfolios to work through now :P
Great video! Thanks a lot!
A lot of useful tips, clear explanation why you should do it like this and great idea with PDF. I was always thinking that since we are sending already CV and motivation letter, it would be too many documents and I was afraid to overload the hr or recruiter, but I will definitely try with PDF Format of portfolio.
Thanks again for the video and all the provided information 😊🙂
Hey Maryna, sure we understand, and thanks for the feedback! Absolutely, it's generally advisable to just provide the structure or files a recruiter specifically asks for in the application, but if it's open, PDFs are a great way to storytell your view of a project, and if the recruiter isn't interested in the PDFs they wont look. No harm in it!
Thanks again!
is it possible you can make a style guide or bullet points on what you yourseld AJ would like to see in a profilio ?
This is a really cool idea, thanks for this! We could look at perhaps opening up our interview process and application criteria for designers, would make a nice video! Thanks for the idea!
Currently im working on sql which doesn't excite me, want to learn UI UX but jobs availability and everything is so uncertain.. Im confused what to do
Wow all this free knowledge is amazing and highly motivating, thank you guys so much for helping us newbies it's really appreciated.
New to UI. What platform do you create your portfolio on and attach links? Is it webflow? Wix?
Do it in behance.
If I don't have actual UX experience but I create hypothetical challenges/ problems to solve them and show my design thinking process, how do I validate a product that is just a concept?
You can test with friends and colleagues! But explaining your process in your portfolio is the best way to show off your skills if this is what you are after!
Thanks Amr and AJ&Smart team for this wonderful video on portfolio review it made my day ,it means a lot for me as i was looking for what actually the industry wants. I was just designing screens and i was getting feedback that everyone can do this stuff what's the big deal and now got some positive vibe and i will work on this guidelines. THANKS FOR GIVING BACK TO COMMUNITY.🙏👌👍
What´s the best platform to upload my portfolio. I´m begineer at UX design and i don´t even have a portfolio... please help
AJ Do I need to code my portfolio to be considered for UX design?
This video was very useful, but let me ask you a question:
For a person who worked some where or had this opportunity to work on some cases it's good to learn these tips but what about a junior one? You know a junior UX designer that learnt many different things and now he/she has the knowledge but still doesn't work on any real project to have real userswhat about this case? How can ha/she make a portfolio or use these tips?!
Thank you for this video!))
Thanks for the vid helped alot
I'm currently working at a company, but I don't know what can I show on my portfolio? Do I have to put work I did in the company or should I make my own?
Hello guys,
I am a UX/UI student and I am about to finish school next week. I am working on showcasing my capstone for my portfolio. I am confused because I keep hearing different opinions about showcasing your casestudies.
Some people recommend to almost story-tell your process, others say they see this as a waste of time "I don't need the whole story, I just want the highlights," and recommend short text, only couple lines. help, please?
I haven´t watched it but here´s your like. Great video, you never let me down Thaaaanks!!!!
Thanks Mariana! Glad we've reached that stage! Hope it helps!
Great vid, thanks so much for the portfolio guidelines, Amr! And for doing this new portfolio critique format. 🥳🥳 By the way guys, what do you use to record your screen? Is it Loom?
Thanks for this video. Very helpful!
Hey, Thanks for this amazing video. I have a question thou, you mentioned many times that the case-study shouldn't be long so my question is that how can one cover all the major stuff of the project?
I am building a case-study of one of my freelance project and in that I have done a customer portal with mobile app, Vendor portal and a complete responsive website. And customer portal itself is huge. So how can I reduce the size of case-study while communicating process involved in all the different modules/features?
Hey, great question Muhammad! You could break up the portfolio / project into multiple parts, focusing on the challenges / solutions for specific parts, such as onboarding, retention, engagement etc etc. Growth.Design is a great resource for honing in on these specifics: growth.design/case-studies/
Your story telling doesn't need to be as visual or as flashy, but look how they guide the reader through an engaging and detailed case-study, with just a few screens, in a nice, visual way!
Can you please suggest a beginner UX project to build a portfolio. I already made a travel app. Need to add another
Hey guys,
I wanted to ask, if you are designing an app for a company without them knowing, how do you frame the challenge in a way that doesn't just parrot your research?e.g. The company hasn't come with a brief, you have just decided the experience isn't good and to redesign the app
I want to see Amr's portfolio!
This was a great video and help me a lot.
But I do have some questions. I am a motion graphic artist and want to learn UX.
Let say I am preparing my first portfolio which I don't have any experience working in any UX company. May I know how to collect the performance data or feedback just like the tip for improvement in 7:15?
Hey thanks a lot for the feedback!
This comes up a lot, for sure, a great way to do it is to make prototypes for your design solutions, and record a testing session, this can be with friends / family, or peers and colleagues.
For the purposes of these tests, all you want to do is showcase the fact you actually tested the design piece, highlight the kinds of questions, the responses and insights from your 'testers' and how you then implemented the feedback and iterated. A simple video call, where you walk the users through a prototype or other design solution, and record key insights on post-its, or a digital notepad / whiteboard would be great!
It's much more important for hiring managers to see you understand this process, and can implement feedback from real users, than it is to have dozens of detailed screens and fancy ui visuals etc. Documenting the tests, recording the feedback, and implementing this as design iterations, will go a long, long way, and it's something we see lacking in a lot of portfolios that get submitted.
it can be with just a few test users, max 5 say!
Does this help?
I have about 5 years of experience as an art director, designer, and marketer, but want to migrate to a UX role. Does this previous experience mean I can apply for more of a mid-level job after I complete a portfolio?
Very likely yes! Give it a go!
@@AJSmart Thanks for the help!
Very helpful
thanks💝💝
For my class we're doing our portfolio on our own domain. So it's kinda weird seeing examples from Behance where it just looks like a social media profile with links to case studies
Please do some videos on UX writing / microcopy introduction and portfolios.
So how many pages should a case study be? and how many pages should your own concept be?
I love all of your stuff
You mention that the same trend you see in the portfolios is that they are all too long. Can you make a video showing examples of how you would shorten these portfolios? Especially the third one that you same was really well put together, it was just too long.
Great Video! New Subscriber! I’m transitioning from print to UX Design, with no experience. Are there any sites that offer briefs/case studies so I can start gathering work for my portfolio. Also, you mention user testing, what’s the best way to do this?
I too am transitioning from 10 years in print. Did you stick with the transition and how is it going??
How do we get portfolio reviews done? Can we submit a draft version for a review coz anyhow we would be updating it after feedback? Thanks in advance
Hey Sonia, feel free to link it here, or if you'd prefer a more private channel you can DM us or email it to 'support@ajsmart.com'. There's no set guarantee we can feature it sadly, but we'll certainly add it to our pool, and take a look!
Any advice about how to create these portfolios in the first place? Your How to Get Started Video and Figma Tutorial were super interesting. Don't know how I'd bring all the designs I create in Figma along with a good write up into a curated document. Can you make portfolios in Figma? If not, how does one curate a document for a portfolio?
Firstly I want to thank you for everything. You guys are awesome. Thanks a lot.
I have started learning how to be UX/UI designer since 2 weeks ago and i am still very beginner.. May I ask if you have any great courses that help me a lot.
Thanks in advance.
This video is reminding me of what I did in my degree. I guess thats a good thing huh.
hi right now im studying industrial design in germany. I want to focus on user experience design in the future but what i understand from this video is that its only web design or app design related. I have watched another video of this channel explanining what ux design is and what you guys explained there was kinda my dream job because what i really want to do is designing products etc. and researching and finding ways to make it more user friendly. so What can you guys advise me ?
product design!!
The first portfolio belonged to a Bangladeshi made me more Interested 🥺
This video was so helpful, thank you! It would be great to see another portfolio review in the future. 🙂
Thanks for the video, great advice! Regarding process - how would you show/discuss that when your client is not happy for their process to be shared? All of the clients I work with are large well known names so it is difficult to showcase work... would an agency understand this?
Hey, great question! If you can't provide 'real world' examples, you can swap out your specific client, with a fictitious project, making sure to change any branding or logos of course, and detail the challenge / solution with this new, shiny, strictly hypothetical company!
Where can I send my portfolio? Is there a website?
Really interesting - Ive looked at some of the most talented UX Designers out there and they are definitely focusing on the Process - HOWEVER - I also saw multiple Videos now (from ex Google Designers or others Designers from top start-ups) that recommended and outlined how UI/Visual Design is also quite important especially in the Portfolio. Also I've witnessed colleagues from my University who we're quite good in their thinking but not in their visuals - being rejected BECAUSE the recruiters weren't convinced by there competency Just because the Portfolio wasn't visually appealing. All these experiences now led me to give people applying for a job the advice "UI gets you the Interview UX gets you the Job". If you create a Portfolio you should definitely Show the Process however Keep the Text skimmable (I've witnessed our Design Lead skim through Portfolios - and he took 4/5 mins max. for each one) But definitely don't sacrifice looks - and if you are afraid of creating good UI - the good News about that is that visual skills are skills like all others - you can definitely learn them and get an expert simply through praciticing! Do a "one Screen per day Challenge" or something like that - it will definitely get you going 😉
I am confused, should I learn UX or UI or both ? Also, should I learn HTML and CSS? Thanks
So, in their own website, they just put one project in the portfolio??
How to join Aj&Smart.. You guys are awesome
I am from India and really want to join you guys
When you say UX designer (portfolio), do you mean UI designer also? Is UI is included or just UX🤔?
Hey Ezzeldeen, depends on the role you're applying for, in this video we were focusing on how Amr evaluated the way the designers communicated and presented their work, challenges and solutions in the context of UX design. We were less focused on the visual.
If you were applying for a UX / Product Design role that require strong visual design or UI skills, it would certainly be beneficial to provide specific examples of that in the portfolio pieces you send in. Does this help?
@@AJSmart Great I got it 👍
@@ezzeldeenahmed7827 at least say thanks
Thank you so much.
Pleasure!
I recently reviewed a portfolio that was 13460 words long... I didn't bother reading beyond the introduction...