Quick note from me
Before we dive in, a small end-of-year note from me. This is the last newsletter before Christmas, so I just want to say thank you for being here and reading along this year.
As a little holiday gift, I’m sharing 20% off all my portfolio products with the code CHRISTMAS2025, valid until the end of 2025. If you want to work on your portfolio calmly in January, or whenever it fits your life, this is there for you. No pressure.
Wishing you a slow, cozy end of the year ❤️
Story outline
Level 01: Design for how your portfolio is reviewed
Level 02: What your online portfolio is for
Level 03: What your case study presentation is for
Level 04: Think about the context you’re walking into
Level 05: Visuals play a different role depending on the format
Level 06: A simple rule that clears everything up
Level 01
Design for how your portfolio is reviewed
Before you decide what to show, decide how it will be consumed and by whom.
Online portfolio:
Asynchronous
Reviewed alone, without you present
Audience is unpredictable:
Recruiter or HR, non-designer
Design hiring manager
PM, CEO or founder
No follow-up questions
Often scanned, not read
Case study presentation:
Real time
Live audience
Audience is known and usually senior:
Design hiring manager
Senior or lead designer
PM or engineer
Follow-up questions guaranteed
Conversation, not just content
This one difference changes everything. If your online portfolio needs you to explain it, it’s not ready. And if your case study presentation doesn’t leave room for discussion, it’s not well prepared.
Think about a glanceable and interlude reading style for your online portfolio
Level 02
What your online portfolio is for
Your online portfolio is your shop window. It’s a landing page that sells your designer profile. Its job is not to explain everything, but to be clear without you being there.
Just like with any product, the goal isn’t to convince everyone. It’s to clearly communicate what this is, who it’s for, and why it’s valuable. Your portfolio isn’t about pushing or persuading. It’s about helping the right recruiters quickly understand your skills, trust your decisions, and feel confident inviting you to an interview.
Because this experience is asynchronous, your portfolio must stand on its own. If a recruiter has to guess what you meant or needs extra explanation, you’ve already lost them.
Optimise for:
Speed
Clarity
Scannability
First impression
What works best online:
Clear project snapshots
Polished, readable visuals
1 core problem per story
1-3 key design decisions
Outcomes
What usually hurts online portfolios:
Full research reports
Every version of a screen
Sticky notes and raw workshops
Long explanations
Check this template for an example of a clear online portfolio structure
Level 03
What your case study presentation is for
Your case study presentation is a different experience. It’s a live, linear story told through a case study deck. It’s not a scannable website. The goal isn’t speed, but shared understanding, trust, and buy-in. Your story goes deeper than your online portfolio and you guide the audience through one focused narrative.
This is where you add:
Deeper reasoning behind decisions and trade-offs
Alternatives you explored and why you didn’t choose them
Constraints that shaped the work, time, tech, scope, people
Collaboration dynamics, pushback, and alignment moments
How you think, explain, and adapt in real time through questions
This is also where you can talk about unhappy moments:
A decision that didn’t land at first
A conflict with stakeholders
A constraint that forced a compromise
A moment where you had to push back or realign
How you handled these moments says a lot about how you’ll work with a team.
Optimise for:
Depth over coverage
Decision moments over full process
Trade-offs over perfection
Relevance to this organisation
Most importantly, treat this as a conversation, not a lecture. Connect your stories to their roles, read the room, and be human.
Slide from one of my case study presentation examples
Level 04
Think about the context you’re walking into
Your online portfolio, as well as case study presentation should reflect where you’re interviewing, not just what you built. The same project can be framed very differently depending on the environment.
Large product organisations:
Alignment across teams
Dependencies and long-term impact
Decision-making in complex systems
Startups:
Speed and prioritisation
Ownership and trade-offs
Making progress with limited resources
Agencies:
Client communication
Framing and storytelling
Managing feedback and expectations
Choose examples, constraints and collaboration moments that match this reality. This shows you understand not just design, but the environment you’ll be working in.
Example of an agency designer’s portfolio
Level 05
Visuals play a different role depending on the format
Online portfolio visuals:
Large and readable
Carefully selected
Annotated and self-explanatory
Optimised for scanning
They must make sense without you there.
Case study presentation visuals:
Support your speaking
Can be rougher or more in-progress
Can show progression and alternatives
Can rely on your narration and context
In real time, visuals support your story because you’re there to explain, clarify, and adapt. Online, visuals carry the story on their own. They need to communicate intent, decisions, and meaning without your voice or presence.
Visual from an online portfolio with annotation notes
Level 06
A simple rule that clears everything up
Ask yourself 2 questions:
Would this still make sense if I wasn’t there to explain it?
Yes → online portfolio
No → case study presentation
Does this need context, discussion, or follow up questions?
Yes → case study presentation
No → online portfolio
Final thought
Your online portfolio is a lean, scannable highlight reel that has to work without you. Your case study presentation is a deep, interactive story that works because you’re in the room.
When you mix them, you usually end up with too much online and too little impact live. Design them separately and on purpose.
If you want, hit reply and tell me which one feels harder right now, or where you’re unsure what to put. I use this input to shape future newsletter issues and materials.
🫶 Together with Framer
Launch your portfolio fast with Framer templates
Framer makes it easy to design and publish a clean, modern portfolio site without code. You can:
Explore layout ideas on a flexible canvas
Design and build in one place
Add interactions and motion
Publish instantly with responsive breakpoints
If you want a ready-made starting point, Framer templates help you move even faster. My Storyline template includes an editable homepage, case studies, and example content you can customise in minutes.
➡️ Get Storyline template at uxportfolio.co
➡️ Explore more templates at framer.com
Which portfolio problem are you trying to fix right now?
Want help with your UX portfolio? 🎁
Build your UX Portfolio with this course
Book a portfolio strategy call with me
Questions? Reply directly.
Keep designing ✨
Aneta
