Creating a digital journalism portfolio on Wakelet couldn’t be easier, and it could help you impress future employers as Hull Live’s Digital Sports Writer, Jonty Colman, explains
Having recently finished my university studies, I believe that, from the minute you become a writer, journalist, blogger, content creator or influencer, having a Wakelet account set-up is crucial. During my studies, I often found that I was freelancing for a number of publications and typically I had between six and 10 pieces published per week. It quickly became difficult to store all of my work in one place. Once I’d discovered Wakelet and set-up my account, it was easy to create a digital journalism portfolio and store all my work in one place. It also allowed me to have a public profile for friends and family, and more importantly, fellow journalists and potential employers.
I recently secured my first full-time job as a Digital Sports Writer for Hull Live and my portfolio was a large part of the reason why I was hired. Using Wakelet allowed me to publicly display my portfolio and find specific pieces of work quickly and easily. I have the link to my Wakelet profile at the top of my CV and I believe that it really has helped me secure a job six weeks before completing my university studies.
And it couldn’t be easier to update! I like to have a Wakelet collection for each publication that has published my work, but one of the best things about Wakelet is that it gives you the freedom to display your work however you like. Now, whenever a piece of my work is published, I use Wakelet’s browser extension to save it straight into the relevant collection, so it takes just a few seconds to update my portfolio.
It’s not just articles or blogs that can be saved to your Wakelet profile, you can also add videos, podcasts, and tweets – all you need is the URL! Having created a number of videos and podcasts, as well as appearing as a podcast guest, Wakelet allows me to publicize all my work and showcase my full potential to employers and fellow journalists.
When showing my Wakelet profile to employers and other journalists, I’ve found it helpful to be able to show specific collections. For example, when applying for my current job, I shared the work I’d had published during my work experience with Reach’s various outlets, including football.london, the Nottingham Post, Derby Telegraph and the Leicester Mercury, as well as from my week at The Guardian, as it was the type of content they were particularly interested in. It’s also been useful in networking, and the strength of my portfolio led to me winning Wakelet’s student journalist competition, allowing me to become a media executive for 2018‘s Under-17s European Championships.
Jonty Colman is a Digital Sports Writer for Hull Live. You can follow him on Wakelet @JontyColman
