Yapppppppppy

Chameleon

Tokeil

Afterlife

New Vector

BIG CITY

Looking For Something

Between three worlds

Giraffe

Unfortunately, a well-designed portfolio is practically useless if it does not place well in search engines. Optimizing for one of the most important users that visit your portfolio, search engine robots, is absolutely essential these days.

There are several simple ways to optimize your portfolio site for search engines, although the most important piece of advice for those embarking on a SEO (Search Engine Optimization) journey is to always remember to design for the users first, not the search engines. Many people get caught up in making their sites search engine friendly and forget about the most important user group, the site’s actual visitors.

If your portfolio contains well-written, useful content, and is user-friendly, other sites will naturally link to the site to promote the quality found therein and your site will grow in link popularity, high rankings in search engines will naturally follow this.

In addition to providing quality content to your users, there are several steps you can take to cater to search engines:

• Choose a Descriptive Relevant Page Title
• Make Effective Use of Headers
• Proper Meta Tag Use
• Create W3C Valid Websites

Choose a Descriptive, Relevant Page Title

The page title is one of the most important aspects of any webpage. It should provided a short, yet detailed, summary of the page’s content. Including keywords and careful wording to increase the relevancy of the title to the page’s actual content can boost that page’s ranking exponentially. After all, when a user searches for something, the page title is what Google displays first when linking to the site.

Make Effective Use of Headers

Headers are like the titles of your page content, and are weighted more heavily than other parts of a site’s content. Using headers semantically and ensuring they accurately reflecting the site’s content are great ways to improve rank.

Proper Meta Tag Use

Meta tags have historically been misunderstood and misused. These days, it is best to utilize Meta “Content Type” and “Meta Description” at a bare minimum. Both are important and can provide significant rank increases if used properly. Due to spammers, many search engines have stopped using the keyword meta tag to determine rankings; however, you may still use this tag and garner benefit from search engines that utilize it.

Create W3C Valid Websites

While creating websites that validate to the W3C spec may not instantly garner a ranking bonus, as most search engines these days to not factor in valid code in their algorithms, validity should still be an important part of any SEO undertaking. Down the road, search engines will doubtless factor this in; plus, there are many other non-SEO benefits to creating valid websites available today, for example, adding “Alt” tags on images is not only a part of creating a valid site, it allows search engines to better index your content and can boost your ranking.

Just remember, always steer clear from illegal, Black-Hat SEO techniques. While you may not be caught right away, any temporary benefits garnered from these uncouth methods will be undone if the site is caught and banned from search engines. Search Engines Optimization is not nearly as complicated or difficult as some people make it out do be, just use common sense and follow guildlines like the onese presented here by PSD Nation and you will see a difference in your placement on SERPS (Search Engine Results Pages).

Have a favorite SEO technique? Let us know about it in the comments below…

To celebrate, PSD Nation has compiled a rather list of  21 really superb Photoshop tutorials from good old 2008. Enjoy…

Create a PDA Smartphone from Scratch

Design a realistic smartphone by following this great tutorial.

Spray Paint Text

Everybody loves splatters and paint, pair that up with text and you have yourself a winner.

Suspended Text Tutorial

Text that was hung out to dry? Sounds good to me…

Create a T-Shirt From Scratch

There need to be more tutorials like this on how to create nice-looking t-shirts and other assorted items of clothing.

Adding Light Streaks to a Photo

Make that special photo even better by spiffing it up with some light streaks.

Design a Colorful Coldplay/Apple Style Advertisement

Learn how to create that famous Coldplay/Apple style.

Adding a Dreamy Quality to Photos

Take a normal photo and turn it into something that just oozes with quality.

Creating a Vector Composite from a Photo

This vector effect is just too cool to ignore.

Working With Displacement Effects

Often overused or overlooked, displacement filters can achieve amazing results with the right technique.

Adding Reflections to Sunglasses

Simple and easy, add some reflections to those sunglasses.

Crack and Peel Tutorial

This crack and peel effect looks great in any portfolio, plus it just drips with awesomeness.

Color Hair Locks

Quickly and easily make modifications to peoples hair color.

Applying Realistic Tattoos

Try before you buy, simple technique on how to digitally add tattoos.

Creating a Robot Frog

Robot + Frog = excellence in the highest degree. This is one tutorial you don’t want to skip over.

Creating a Realistic Glass Ball

This really easy effect can make photos more interesting.

Setting a Plane on Fire

An absolutely fantastic tutorial, use the techniques taught in here to unleash your pyromania on virtually any object, with picture-perfect results!

Creating a Peeled-Back Sticker Effect

This peeling technique is well worth knowing.

Creating Text in Stitches

Add a unique look to your artwork with this text effect.

The Peel Effect

An interesting effect to say the least, peel away a lightbulb to reveal it’s inner workings.

Snowboard Design Tutorial

Design the snowboard you’ve always wanted.

Luminescent Lines

This style of art seems to be fairly popular these days, create some luminescent line art.

and that concludes our list. There are plenty more excellent tutorials out there, think we missed something? Let us know about your favorite Photoshop tutorials in the comments below. Hope you all had a great 2008 and have a happy New Year!

Regular Updates and Improvements
Ever since its humble beginnings as a simple image editor in 1988, Photoshop has been updated continually. With a total of 10 major versions, the latest being CS3, Photoshop has shown that it has no intention of dying and will be a powerful, reliable tool for years to come.

Designers need to update and improve as well. Whether it is staying on top of the latest trends and technologies or learning a new marketable skill, regular self-improvement is incredibly beneficial to any designer.

Accessibility
Photoshop strives to be as user friendly as possible. Throughout many updates, the program’s creators made vast improvements to the user interface.

Likewise, designers should also be assessable. The more user friendly you are, the better the chance of turning a first time client into a repeat client.

Setting a Fair Price
While its price is sometimes the cause for complaint, Photoshop is an application that does not under-value itself. The makers of Photoshop know the program’s value and set a price that reflects it.
Similarly, designers should set and charge fair prices for their services and talents. Under-valuing your services not only hurts yourself, but can hurt the design community at large, devaluing designers everywhere.

Creating a sense of community is vital to the success of many freelance
graphic designers, especially those that obtain the majority of their business
from local entities. Community, or the simple act of having common
characteristics, enables designers to be more personable, which in turn leads to
a greater designer-client relationship.

You can go about creating a sense of community a variety of different ways
and no one is unable to accomplish this, humans all have something in common
with each other which is the first step to developing community… establishing
a connection.

When you are out and about at the grocery store, local festival, or meeting,
be friendly. Everyone enjoys meeting new people on some level and first
impressions are incredibly important. Establish “community” by asking a few
questions about the other person, take a genuine interest in them and endeavor
to remember their answers to the best of your ability. People will most likely
remember you better when their first encounter with you was a pleasant
experience.

Another method of encouraging a sense of community is choosing to use more
personable language on your website. You can establish a connection with a
potential client by breaking the barrier created by faceless corporate language.

The next step in creating a sense of community is maintaining the connection.
Follow-through is vital in showing not only that you are a designer of your
word, but will greatly strengthen the relationship between you and the potential
or current client.

Exchange contact information with as many people as possible, there is no way
of maintaining a connection if you don’t have a way of getting in touch with
somebody. Hand out your business card liberally, invite people to add you as a
friend on Facebook or MySpace, start an email newsletter, or give them a call.

Even if you don’t start out talking about what you do for a living,
employment is bound to come up in conversation sometime and is a perfect
opportunity to give your “elevator speech.” Even if the person your are
conversing with isn’t in need of your services, almost everybody knows somebody
who could use a little help in that area.

The potential for increasing your client base is enormous, all because you
established a connection and maintained it. This is by no means a comprehensive
look at steps to creating a community, there are many, varied methods in
addition to the ones I mentioned. Feel free to let us know about your favorite
methods in the comments below… Stay tuned for Part 3!

About the Author

Mike is a freelance web and graphic designer who runs Digital Revolutions. Feel free to add him on Facebook or send him an email.

In each installment, I’ll discuss effective methods and techniques for succeeding in a given area of the graphic design field. In this installment I’ll be covering exposure and some very effective ways to procure it. By the end of the series, you will have what amounts to a comprehensive overview of what it takes to succeed as a graphic designer. So, without further ado, I am proud to present:

How to Succeed as a Graphic Designer – Part 1: Exposure

In today’s world, the market is saturated with graphic designers. Almost everyone knows someone who claims to be a Photoshop guru, making it tough for you, as a graphic designer, to stand out from the crowd. While a great skill set will get you a long way, there is one key element that will allow you to exponentially increase the number of client you do business with: exposure.

Exposure is so powerful, it can enable sub-par graphic designers to land more jobs than those with amazing skill and talent who neglected to obtain the proper exposure. After all, if people do not know who you are, who can them contact you about a project?

If you are in a situation where you would like to increase your exposure, have no fear, there are plenty of ways to effiectively increase your exposure. Some take more time and effort than others, but in the end, all of them can aid increasing the number of jobs you land.

Tip 1: Utilize a Well-Designed, Professional Website to Showcase Your Work and Provide a Means of Contact

Having a website might seem like a no-brainer, but there is a big difference between having a website and having a good website. An organized, professional website should do three things: display your work, breifly tell about your skills and experience, and allow those who are interested an accesable way to get in touch with you.

Depending on your goals, you may want to more than just increase exposure with your website, in another part of this series, I’ll discuss methods of creating a community, which is another great way to establish yourself as an industry professional and land more jobs.

Tip 2: Do Chairity Work in Your Community

One of the best ways to break onto the design scene is by doing some free design work in your community. Design a flier for a local church, advertisement for the school band, or help with a promotional poster for a local event; the local newspaper will most likely take notice of your work as well and increase your exposure even further by mentioning your name or business in the paper. Local businesses will doubtless notice and your odds of being their go-to person when they need something designed increase exponentially.

Sometimes you have to give some to get some, working for free isn’t always fun but it can yield some very impressive results.

Tip 3: Spread the Word / Self Promotion

Many of my clients have been people I meet on the street. When you meet someone it is easy to figure out certain things about their: their name, what they do, etc… it is just a part of normal conversation. If you talk about what you do when the situation permits and hand out your card liberally, you will definitely see an increase in business.

You may also want to consider advertising on your personal vehicle. If you display your business information on the rear window, almost everyone who follows your car is bound to be aware of your business.

While this gets a little into the next segment of the series, building a community, becoming a frequent poster on forums or commenter on blogs related to your industry serves a double purpose. Not only will it allow you to increase your sites traffic and the number of links pointing to your website, but also establishes you as somebody who knows what they are talking about.

All of these tips can be utilized with little cost to yourself, if you are interested in further exposure at a higher cost, consider buying some ads. Local newspaper, yellowbook, or even an internet adsense campaign are all viable, ways to increase your exposure.

About the Author

Mike is a freelance web and graphic designer who runs Digital Revolutions. Feel free to add him on Facebook or send him an email.

Keep it Simple

When potential employers visit view your online portfolio the last thing they want to be is confused. Display your artwork in a logical, organized fashion. Focus on your strengths and really shine in those areas. Usually, it is best to avoid trying to be a “jack of all trades” (unless that is what you are) and show off your skills in a particular area. Demonstrate your skill in the area you want to be hired in. When potential clients see that you have the ability to create what they are looking for your chances of closing the deal go up exponentially.

Provides a Means of Contact

Ok, so say that your potential client is very impressed with the artwork you are displaying and wants to get in touch. A common mistake among freelance artists is forgoing the “Contact Me” or “Hire Me” page. If you are looking for work, it is essential that you do more than just display you work; provide a method of getting in touch.

Create an Informative “About Me” Page

Not only is a great way of becoming more personable with your clients, they will naturally feel more comfortable with someone once they know a little about them, it is a great chance to talk about your past experience and what are your qualifications. This is your shot at telling potential clients why they should choose “you” over some other artist. You portfolio may speak for itself, but it is imperative that you present a likable image of a person that clients can trust and enjoy working with.

Optimize for Search Engines

Let’s face it, the world runs on search engines so it pays to SEO friendly. Potential clients will be searching for your services online and you want them to be able to find you portfolio. There are many techniques that vary in efficacy, but the important thing to remember is include the word or phase you wish to achieve/maintain good SERP (Search-Engine-Rank-Position) as often as possible in your portfolio without going over the line of keyword stuffing. Search engines can’t see images and rank your site based on text; this is why strictly FLASH portfolios often have trouble ranking well in search engines. If you aren’t sure how to optimize for search engines,  it can be a wise investment to hire a Web/SEO specialist.

Have something to add? Let us know how you create that stellar portfolio in the comments below -