Instagram is one of the most prevalent social media sites for influencer marketing, with 68% of brands regarding it as their preferred platform for their campaigns. As such, the social media giant is constantly looking for new ways to support its most popular creators. Netinfluencer will delve into all of the details about Instagram’s latest Creator Portfolio feature. 

What Is the Creator Portfolio Feature?

In October 2022, Instagram finally released its much-awaited Creator Portfolio. This tool aims to help influencers to build their own media kit all within the confines of the Instagram app. This feature allows users to present their most successful brand partnerships, posts, as well as any other key details about their work. 

This feature works in a similar fashion to the Creator Marketplace, instead, influencers will be able to show off their individual traits without being tied to a wider collective. Users will also be able to share their portfolios with brands directly through the in-app messaging system.

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Why Has Instagram Launched It?

Despite being one of the most recognized social media platforms on the market, Instagram still struggles to keep up with the trend of creator satisfaction. Platforms such as YouTube and TikTok have already built successful reward systems for their creators, whilst Instagram still trails behind.

Many have also speculated that this feature was launched to encourage more influencers to share their success on Instagram, rather than on other platforms. By highlighting their most prosperous partnerships within their Creator Portfolio, influencers can indicate the user-friendly nature of the app and inspire others to join. 

How To Set up a Creator Portfolio on Instagram

1. Open the latest version of the Instagram app.
2. From the Professional Dashboard page, select ‘Your Tools’. Then, choose ‘Branded Content’.
3. Tap the ‘Creator Portfolio’ button.
4. Upload a cover image. This will be the first thing a brand sees when they open your portfolio.
5. Fill in the appropriate sections with text, images, and links to your work.
6. When finished, tap ‘Save’.
7. Press the ‘Change Visibility’ option to make your portfolio available for public view. 

It should be noted that in order to produce a Creator Portfolio, users must first join the Creator Marketplace. 

Best Practices for Building a Creator Portfolio

1. Use High-Quality Images

It is vital that you show off your best work in a clear and attractive way, especially on a photo-sharing app such as Instagram. When designing your Creator Portfolio, only choose images that present you in a professional light and can be seen clearly on a range of devices. For example, if you have a collection of headshots or branded photoshoots, place them evenly throughout your portfolio. 

2. Only Show Your Best Work

If you are an influencer with a lot of experience, it can be tempting to want to showcase all of the work you have completed throughout your career. However, it is beneficial to only show your most successful pieces as it can help to emphasize your skills in a more expansive way. You can do this by providing links to the advertisement or by adding a short description of what you were able to achieve in that particular campaign. Ensure that this work is related to your niche and does not harm your reputation as a thought leader.

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3. Allow Access to Analytics

This tool also allows users to present their key Instagram Insights, including their engagement rate and their follower count. This is a great way to exemplify your success and can offer brands some quantitative evidence of your hard work. It is a good idea to include this information, even if you are a micro-influencer, as it gives more detail into how your audience is reacting to your posts as well as how they communicate with you. 

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4. Produce Engaging Text Descriptions

A short text description can give more context to your work and can help brands understand your creative intentions within a campaign. These descriptions do not have to be very long but it is good practice to optimize your descriptions by using keywords and phrases. This can help draw brands to your portfolio, especially if they are searching for relevant terms.

Benefits of Building a Creator Portfolio

Instagram’s Creator Portfolio feature allows content creators to highlight their professional assets in a more structured and attractive fashion. In turn, this is a useful tool for influencers who use Instagram as their main platform as they can accentuate their best work as a way to attract more profitable brand partnerships. Therefore, influencers can utilize this feature in a similar fashion to a resume, signifying their strengths to a wide variety of iconic brands. 

A traditional media kit or portfolio is often presented on a website, which can take a lot of time, effort, and money to set up. With a Creator Portfolio, influencers can make good use of the resources they already have, such as images, insights, and templates. Thus, creators can set up a media kit very easily, enabling them to secure partnerships as quickly as possible.

This tool also provides a lot of creative freedom, helping influencers to build a portfolio that helps them to stand out from their competitors. Users can reorganize and delete certain sections to make their portfolio more aligned with the context of their work. Moreover, this tool allows users to share the profiles of brands they have worked with in the past. As a result, the Creator Portfolio is able to validate an influencer’s success, much like the networking element of LinkedIn. 

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Instagram’s new Creator Portfolio feature highlights the growing success of influencer marketing and how platforms are working to support this prosperity. This feature also helps influencers to exemplify their best work in a comprehensive and creative way, further showing off their strengths.