Lambo Flame Portfolio

Key Features of a Web Design Portfolio

Has Examples from a Variety of Niches

The majority of companies, from cleaning companies to hair salons and gyms, use their website as the foundation for their business's growth and success. That said, a trusted web design company should be able to display works from a variety of niches in its web design portfolio. Diverse niches display different web design skills.

Also, no two websites are alike. If a web design company can demonstrate its expertise in a wide range of fields, it means that they are versatile. In other words, their web design portfolio should be able to showcase that they can address your needs regardless of which industry you belong to.

Accessible and Easy to Navigate

Just like the websites they create; a web design company’s web design portfolio must be accessible and simple to navigate. After all, a good web design company does not make the common error of trying to be overly "unique" with their web design portfolio format to the point that they make it difficult for viewers or hiring firms to browse through their work.

A trusted web design company also does not expect viewers to stumble upon their web design portfolio. Just like on the websites they create; they should be able to lead you to their web design portfolio without much work and thinking on your part.

And in terms of accessibility on the works showcased, a trusted web design company shows its entire body of work rather than just a 400px snapshot. Unlike some web design companies or web designers who try to display only minor portions of their work, which perhaps might be deceptive, a trusted web design company includes both macro and close-up photos of their finished work on their web design portfolio. After all, only web design companies who are certain of their work can display the entire project.

Near-Perfect Presentation

No matter where their web design portfolio is posted – on their website or a third-party platform, it must be nearly flawless. No matter how absurd, we'd say the first guideline for assessing a web design portfolio is to never completely reject a web design company for an obvious design error. But although the occasional typo won't automatically disqualify them as your prospect, others might be deal breakers. That said, stay away from web design companies with simple errors on their web design portfolio like confusing splash screens, tiny writing, inconsistent and/or confusing navigation, missing contact information, overused stock photos, cringeworthy prose, and websites without site validation, word checking, or browser testing. Also, stay away from web design companies who put up barriers on their web design portfolio like Flash intros or heavy animations as these make it harder to access their actual work. Also avoid a web design company that only provides small thumbnails, images with bad compression artifacts, or does overly arty cropping for their thumbnails as often they appear meaningless, and overzealous image optimization can make them appear indistinct.

Prioritizes their Best Work

When looking through a web design portfolio, note that the websites they’ve created probably won't all be of the same caliber. It's nothing to regard as a red flag or click-away because different results are a reality that almost every web design professional must deal with.

However, the best web design companies use their web design portfolio to present themselves in the best possible light. Thus, it's possible that they won't present any examples that they think won’t please potential clients or companies. Still, the likelihood that some samples in their web design portfolio may shine more brightly than others is very high.

The best web design companies choose their top-tier samples and show them at the top part of their web design portfolio. In this way, even if you only briefly browse their web design portfolio, you’ll still be able to appreciate their entire potential. The best web design companies also make an effort to mix up the specializations as well. By doing this, they can convey to you the message that regardless of your demands, they can consistently and diligently use their expertise to fulfill them.

Level-Up of Skills

A web design portfolio tells a story. That said, you could use it to tell whether a web design company is constantly learning and improving its skills as every professional should. As a potential client, they should help you be aware of these accomplishments they have as a web design company. That said, their web design portfolio should include tough samples as well as samples of any new abilities they have learned. So, when you generally view their web design portfolio, you’ll be able to see progress.

Responsive Web Design

If your prospective web design company is promoting responsive design skills, pay attention to how their web design portfolio functions on mobile sites and in various resolutions. Pull out your smartphone or tablet or start resizing their browser windows to see what happens. If they’ve optimized their web design portfolio to be responsive on various devices, you can be assured that they’re honest with their capabilities. Meanwhile, if not, then that’s a red flag. A web design company that can’t even create a responsive page for themselves won’t be able to do the same thing for you.

Includes Contact Information

One of the most crucial parts of every web design portfolio website is the Contact Us section. Without it, you have no means to figure out how to contact them. There’s no excuse for a web design company that does not have a Contact Us section as it is the simplest to create. In essence, it's simply like a landing page – straightforward. 

It only contains a simple contact form and at times, social icons bar where you can contact them on their busiest social media platforms. A web design company that has no Contact Us section on their web design portfolio is a red flag as it means that they’re not particular about fulfilling a client’s request or making a client’s life easier.