You don’t need millions of followers to make money. You need the right eyes on the right content.
If you’re just starting out to wonder how the heck to build a portfolio, you’re not alone. In fact, this is one of the most asked questions in our Facebook group.
A portfolio is how you show brands what kind of content you can create; it highlights your vibe, style, and storytelling skills through videos, photos & brand reviews. A media kit, on the other hand, tells brands who you can reach; it focuses on your stats, audience demographics, engagement rates, and past brand results.
Think of your portfolio as proof of your talent, and your media kit as proof of your influence.
Honestly? I don’t use a Media Kit unless brands or an application requires it, so I only update it when necessary. If you ever need a Media Kit, Canva has some great templates. These days, I send them screenshots of my dashboards because they want proof of story clicks, reach, follower demographics, profile & external link clicks, etc. That’s what gets their attention, because those are the stats that convert into sales.
What I do use every single time I pitch or get an inbound request is my portfolio. When I include it, I get more deals, because it shows I’m an experienced creator, and my prices will make more sense to them.
5 Tips for Creating an Irresistible Portfolio
Start with what you already have - Use products you already love at home to create short videos. Think: product demos, testimonials, or a “day in the life” featuring something you actually use. Don’t wait for a brand deal.
Build it on Canva - Canva is perfect for a clean, website-style portfolio. No coding or domain required to publish your portfolio as a website. Browse their templates or use our free portfolio template, which is included in the free 7-Week Monetization Roadmap.
Lead with your strongest video - Your first video is your first impression. Show your face, talk to the camera (the sooner the better), and let your vibe shine through.Turn off autoplay on all of your videos, so they don’t play all at once when someone clicks to see your portfolio.
Try beginner-friendly platforms or gifted campaigns if you still need brand reviews or content for your portfolio - You can land quick small deals and collect real brand reviews to feature in your portfolio in Joinbrands. Don’t forget to ask for a review after every collab. You never know who will give you an authentic review to add in your portfolio. You should update your portfolio as you create better content or get better reviews.
Make it user friendly - Make it easy for brands to know who you are and how to contact you. Add your name, email, location, social media icons and a quick few lines about what makes you stand out. One scroll and they should know what type of content creator you are, how to contact you, and able to click to go straight to your social media, email, etc.
If you want more tips on how to build your portfolio, learn how to pitch, use templates, price your content, and actually get paid for your work, our full guide teaches you how to do all of this, and work with brands, step-by-step.
If you are someone who likes examples like I do, see my portfolio here.
