How to Use Archinect to Get a Job; Part 1: Optimizing your Profile

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. COMPLETE YOUR PROFILE!
2. SHOW OFF YOUR BEST WORK
3. SHARE WHAT YOU'RE CURRENTLY WORKING ON
4. PRESENT YOUR PRINT PORTFOLIO WITH Issuu
5. YOUR INTRODUCTION
6. ARE YOU LOOKING FOR WORK?
7. SHARE YOUR OTHER LINKS
8. YOUR MUGSHOT
9. YOUR WORK & EDUCATION EXPERIENCE
10. YOUR TALENTS
11. CREATE YOUR OWN SHORTENED CUSTOM ARCHINECT URL
12. PRIVACY SETTING
13. SHARE YOUR PROFILE WITH YOUR OTHER NETWORKS

Firms have sent us really positive feedback about our Talent Finder section, the subscription-only area of Archinect that allows employers connect with job seekers. One of the most appreciated aspects is that employers are able to quickly browse job seekers, in a consistent format, to allow the skills, work and biographic information be presented clearly without the hassle of navigating different presentation formats. Unfortunately, many job seekers haven't devoted the time to complete their profile, and some simply provide a link to their own website, or a different website. When an employer is browsing hundreds or thousands of potential employee's CV's on Archinect, these incomplete profiles often get passed by due to the time required to get more information.

Consider your Archinect profile as the place to keep all your information that employers look for when recruiting.

Simply put, if you want a job, spend a few minutes to a couple hours to complete your Archinect profile. We'll go over how to optimize each component of your profile below...

There are a few different ways to present your design work on your Archinect profile. The first that we'll discuss is the Projects section, also known as the Portfolio section. This section allows you to upload multiple projects, with multiple images per project. This presentation format is very specific - the images must be JPG, GIF, or PNG format, and the resolution of the images is limited to typical screen resolutions. That said, we recommend that you use this section for images that don't require a high level of fine detail. Images that work best are photographs, renderings, close up details of drawings. Images that don't work well here are large, complex drawings, or images originally intended for large scale presentation boards. For complex imagery we suggest you use the Issuu section to present your PDF portfolio, as described in more detail below, allowing viewers to zoom in and see the work full screen, with scalable graphics.

• Use strong bold imagery that looks good at screen resolution
• Don't show everything… use this opportunity to select the best work, so your full portfolio can be shared in person
• Line drawings, or highly detailed drawings, don't translate well on most screen sizes and resolutions, so it's better to show photos, renderings, and details
• Make sure to place the best image as the first image, so it appears on your profile cover page
• Order the projects carefully
• Format and size the images properly
• Indicate your role and credit others appropriately

The "Work Updates" section offers an opportunity to show off what you're currently working on. Watch out for upcoming sharing, liking and commenting features.

• Uploaded images will appear at a maximum of 460 pixels wide
• This is a great opportunity to show a detail of a design or building-in-progress
• Don't use this area to post complete projects. Post those to your Projects Portfolio section
• Avoid flooding the public Work Updates stream with lots of updates

As mentioned above, Issuu is a great way to show off your entire print portfolio, in scalable, full-screen PDF format. This is the best way to show highly complex and detailed imagery on your Archinect profile.

Click here for more information about adding your Issuu portfolio to your Archinect profile.

• A great way to show off your print portfolio
• You must get an Issuu account, upload your portfolio to Issuu, then embed the document into your Archinect profile
• Zooming features allow viewers to see details and line drawings more clearly

The About section is a brief introduction about yourself, written in the first person. Consider this your virtual handshake.

• Clearly indicate your unique experiences and abilities
• Keep it short and to the point
• Don't use this space to copy/paste your resume from another file - it will look sloppy and lazy
• Use the text formatting tools to create a visually appealing and clean appearance
• Spell check! Incorrect spelling and/or grammar is often the first thing to turn away a potential employer

This is really important if you're looking for work – it's what puts you into the Talent Finder section, so employers can find you.

• If you're looking for a job, make sure to indicate this by selecting what you're looking for: Full-time, Part-time, and/or Freelance
• By selecting one or more of these options, you will be automatically listed in Archinect's Talent Finder directory, a service that firms pay to use to find new hires
• Your employment-seeking status will not appear on your public profile. It will only appear in the Talent Finder section, available only to subscribing employers.

While we don't recommend that you require employers to click-through to your other links, having the option to get more information, beyond a complete Archinect profile, can be what separates you from the competition. Remember to keep the external links work safe. If you don't want a future employer to see your party side, you might want to not include your Facebook or Flickr links.

• Use this section to let employers learn more about you
• Most employers using Archinect prefer not to be required to visit other websites, so make sure to put the most important professional job seeking content on Archinect, while offering the option to learn more via other websites if the employer wishes to take the extra time
• Be careful what you share!

The profile photo is often the most carelessly considered part of the portfolio. It's amazing how many decent profiles have stock computer background images as profile images.

Consider this a design exercise! Show off your creativity with an image that captures your unique personality and visual skills. Many of the most visited profiles on Archinect get the attention they do from a great profile image.

• Spend time to select, or create, an image that represents you as accurately as possible
• For photographs, use typical rules of photography for lighting, focus, balance, etc.
• Be creative. It's an opportunity to express your style
• If you use a photo of yourself, present yourself as someone a firm would like to work with. Don't look sad or mean!

This is the traditional CV portion of your profile.

• Make sure to properly indicate the name of the employer/school, location and date span
• Use the additional information text area to elaborate on what you focused on, learned or excelled at
• Keep this updated as you graduate, change jobs, or begin a new academic program

The Archinect profiles offer three locations to brag: Awards, Skills and Areas of Specialization. Don't be modest!

• Employers often browse job seekers in the Talent Finder section by searching for Skills and Areas of Specialization, so make sure to properly select those that apply to you so you can get discovered

Brand yourself with your own shortened Archinect address. For more information about this feature read this.

• Make your profile appear more professional, while making it short and easier to remember
• Format it using your name. For example: archinect.com/mike-brady

Worried that your current employer will see that you're looking for a new job? Or are you just shy? No problem, you can hide your profile from the public in your account settings page.

Note: if your profile is set to "public" then you make it hidden later, it will take a while for search engines, such as Google, to stop indexing it.

Once your profile is complete, it's time to start linking to it from your other social networks. A simple tweet or link from your LinkedIn profile can capture the attention of your future employer.

We hope this summary has helped some of you better understand the value and potential of a thoughtfully composed Archinect profile. If you have any questions, or advice, about how the profiles can be improved, feel free to contact us or post to the comments below.

Don't have an Archinect profile yet? Click here to get started.

Good luck!