BUSINESS - WEB SERVICES - 09.12.2019

Your business portfolio online

Instagram Business

Integrating a portfolio into your existing website is not that difficult in itself, although it requires a little technical knowledge. If this is not something for you, or if you simply don’t have a website of your own, you could consider using a dedicated platform for presenting your products or projects. Tip. Don’t forget that Instagram ( http://www.instagram.com ) is the social network channel par excellence for visual presentations. In addition to your private profile, it lets you create a free business profile ( http://business.instagram.com ). Before posting your photos, you can edit them using the built-in tools and filters.

Note. If you use this service, your portfolio will obviously only be visible to Instagram users, who are typically under 35 years of age. So if you are looking for a wider audience, you may want to consider a dedicated portfolio service which gathers your products or projects on a web address that is accessible to everyone. There is a wide range of such tools on offer - a comprehensive list can be found at pFind ( http://bit.ly/2QA2Ptv ). We put some of them to the test for you.

22Slides

At 22Slides ( https://www.22slides.com ), your portfolio is given its own URL in the form of https://yourbusiness.22slides.com . After clicking Create a New Page, you can compose a “standard image gallery”. The photos you upload can be accompanied with a title and a description. 22Slides does not offer ready-made templates, but you can choose from different layouts (grid, carousel, tiles, etc.). Via the Design tab, you can change the background and upload your company logo. You can upload up to 1,000 photos and arrange them over different galleries. 22Slides clearly opts for simplicity. In its pricing policy there is only one formula, at $10 or £7.75 per month, with a 30-day free trial.

Carbonmade

At Carbonmade ( https://www.carbonmade.com ), you can get started by clicking the Start Free Trial button. The web service focuses on the graphical professions but is suitable for all businesses. Your personal web address looks like https://yourbusiness.carbonmade.com . You can post your photos in multiple galleries (“projects”) and accompany them with extra information. The galleries consist of different blocks that you can edit and move around. In Page Settings and Design, you will find extra options. Unfortunately, the free formula is too limited for professional use. Carbonmade charges $8 or £6.20 per month for an unlimited number of photos in up to eight projects. At https://carbonmade.com/pricing you can find the other plans with extra options.

PortfolioLounge

For $12 or £9.30 per month, PortfolioLounge ( https://www.portfoliolounge.com ) - after ten days of free testing - lets you upload 1,000 photos and arrange them into 100 different projects. There is also a more expensive plan (see https://portfoliolounge.com/products-and-pricing ). Annoyingly, you are asked to enter your credit card details at the beginning of the trial period.

To get started, click Your Projects . After uploading your photos (including a description), Customise lets you choose from seven templates, about 30 fonts and two colour themes (“bright” or “black”). Your portfolio is given its own URL: https://yourbusiness.portfoliolounge.com .