On the hunt for a UX writer job? Stand out from the crowd with a UX writing portfolio
How to gain a clear advantage in the first step of candidate selection
Since you have read the title and the intro you already might have more than a hunch where this is going. The inspiration for this article existed as a mere spark during my own job search. It surely was growing while so many people were reaching out to me for guidance, asking questions like:
- “How do I make it in the UX writing field after being already successful before, but in another discipline?”
- “Where can I get certified as a UX writer to show my expertise?”
- “How can I show that I am suited for the job I am applying for?”
Then I saw a LinkedIn post by the UX Writers Collective last week and decided to write this mini-series about how to set up a portfolio online. But before I get into more detail about that, let me quickly elaborate on this post I mentioned:
Replying to this, amongst other aspects, I wrote:
"Look for mentors that lift you up, communities that empower you, and strengthen your authentic connections to learn from those who know more about certain aspects than you do. Practice your skill daily."
And the other thing you should do is assemble your work into a writer’s portfolio.
Your portfolio is showing up for you
If you already have one, go over it once in a while and — in true UX fashion — iterate it. Look where you can go back and tweak your chosen case studies. Or exchange old ones for new ones, because you are more experienced today than you were at that time.
Funnily enough, every designer (UX or else) has a portfolio, bursting with their coolest work and sharpest success stories. Even an unsolicited re-design might be in it.
But writers seem to shy away from the concept of a portfolio a lot. I wonder why. In marketing, social media or other copywriting jobs, showing your work is rather normal. But in UX writing, not so much. Could be also due to the fact that many job ads do not ask for it, while for UX design roles it is a must. In 2015, this was as much true as now in 2021:
“And for UX, the quality of the work far outweighs any more mundane requirements. As Pixar’s Andrew Gordon says, “any art-based job is more about your portfolio and less about credentials.” — Smashing Magazine
Laying out what you are passionate about and where you can show your personality or track record can only work in your favour.
I always ask candidates for a portfolio, not just the UX writers
But I am not sure every HR person will go through the extra step of asking for your previous work. Better be ready and one step ahead and hand it in with your application. As for formats, there seems to be a regional difference, where organisations want you to hand in a PDF or see an online portfolio.
In Europe, specifically in Germany, it seems to be a security issue to click on hyperlinks if you are at a computer within your company’s network. Not sure how much this has been changing with working from home during the pandemic, but still, a PDF goes a long way. The structure is basically the same.
Where a PDF is static, the website is dynamic
An online presence needs a little bit more caution for flow and how you are going to direct your audience, of course. In the US an online portfolio is standard practice. See the ones UX Writing Hub’s Yuval Keshtcher has picked:
Portfolio essentials — online or offline — for your UX writing portfolio
Unpopular opinion: To me, your portfolio is not your CV. Others might encourage you to share a personal angle, and this can strongly differ from job to job, levels of seniority or regional differences. But as far as I am concerned, this personal touch can be delivered in the ‘What I learnt from this project’ part, for instance.
For a direct job applications — not for a prominent online presence — the UX writing portfolio should be short and sweet. Like great microcopy.
For the intro of your portfolio, rather just put a simple overview and then leading your audience to 3 to 5 top cases you want to show off. We get to those in a second.
Which cases to select?
In an ideal world, the cases are varying in their format, goals, KPIs or employer. But a rather monochrome approach does not have to be a deal-breaker.
You can always add a pinch of excitement to your portfolio by mentioning passion projects, your community work or presenting pro bono cases.
If you do not have a lot of variety, show the depth of your work by really laying out how you achieved an improved user flow, a higher conversion for a button copy or that users commented on the great microcopy in user interviews.
Most importantly, you need to show how you work rather than what you did. Show the raw ideas and the thought process.
Close with your contact details — where to find you, also maybe a talk you gave, a podcast you were on, anything that adds to show the personality behind the words.
Storytelling: The 4 elements of each case
- The brief or problem statement
- Approach, obstacles and workarounds
- The actual before and after
- Learnings, insights, room for iteration
As for every UX portfolio, never forget the context for the brief: What was your role’s title, with whom did you interact with and report to, who reported to you and how are these connections important for the success of this case?
Your portfolio tells a story. Your story and only yours, so you cannot go wrong with being authentic. You just can get lost if you aren’t keeping your eyes on the prize: the people reading your portfolio. This is your audience.
Audience: The personas of your UX writing portfolio
- The recruiter or HR person
- The hiring manager
- Your potential future teamsters
People from these three groups will be checking out your portfolio as well as your resume. Each group has different needs and looks for different things in your writer portfolio.
Be mindful that you address them all. That is why it comes in handy to cut right to the chase and let your work speak for itself and keep the whole career journey to the resume.
Show consistency and steady development to the HR person. Demonstrate skills, empathy and abilities to the hiring manager who could be the person you will be reporting to once you’re hired. Enact how you work and how you think so they can envision you on the team they manage.
Make your potential shine by pulling future colleagues into the spotlight
And last but not at all least, show your potential team that you are a great fit for them. Maybe your research showed they work in agile frameworks such as Scrum or Kanban. Then make that a feature of your portfolio so that they can imagine working with you right away.
In order to get started with your portfolio right away, I published a mini-series, about how to get your online and offline portfolio up and running — featuring Notion, carbon.made, uxfol.io and the presentation tool of your choice (e.g. Google Slides). This series also touches upon my personal recommendations on the exact approach depending on which offer you choose.
These are the four parts of the series:
Designing my online UX writing portfolio, no-budget, no-nonsense UX — Notion
Designing my online UX writing portfolio without a line of code — uxfolio
Designing my online UX writing portfolio without using WordPress — carbon.made
Designing the PDF version of my UX writing portfolio that landed me my current job — with Google Slides
—I hope this is helpful, let me know what you think!
If you keep ruminating about whether you are experienced enough for that interesting, shiny UX writer job, read this opinion piece of mine:
At Sapera, in German’s capital, Berlin, I am their Senior UX writer. I work fully remote from the South of the country, 400 miles away. Sapera is transforming the way B2B clients find and book their agency partners and how projects are managed in a transparent way. I use my generalist background of SEO, copywriting, German language teaching and my Master’s degree in German and English literature to inform the ways I’m designing with words. Contact me on LinkedIn, come to our German UX writing meetup “UX Writing, auf Deutsch” or work with me at Sapera.
If you want to read a bit about how UX writing is part of general content strategy, check out this article: