Should web designers protect their resumes?

Web designers are a different kind of professional.  They are different in the way that they showcase their skills, their work and even the way that they network for career opportunities.

This got me thinking about something that I see a lot when I visit a web designer’s portfolio.  Their resume.  Now I understand that web designers use their portfolios and sites as a way to showcase what they can do, who they are, where they are in the world and what they know.

What surprises me is how easy it is to get a hold of a copy of a web designer’s resume.  A resume is a powerful tool in the right hands but should it be readily available to anyone with internet access or should it?

Show them some “leg” but not the whole leg

Some web designers currently prevent this issue by listing web design projects they’ve been working on with the skill sets and tools that they used to complete certain projects.  The good things about this is that it shows your skills specific to a project you worked on and makes you look like a rock star and it protects your identity a little bit more. Have a look at a few examples of this in action can be seen below…

But how can you have your resume online and collect information about the people downloading it?

Why not squeeze a name out of it?

In marketing, specifically web marketing there is a term called “Name Squeeze”. Perhaps you’ve heard of it? The idea behind a Name Squeeze is that you offer something in return, from a document or report in return for your potential customer’s name (and other details about them). The benefit is that you have the information about parties who are interested in what you are offering and have the ability to email market back to them. It’s the “happy medium” in terms of offering your resume for people to download.

Because your portfolio acts as a lead generator this is a technique that serves a propose while providing interested potential clients vital information about yourself, your skills and talents and past work experience. This is something that not a lot of web designers take advantage of but should consider when they design a portfolio of their web design work.

If someone is interested in your skills send them a copy of your resume

One option that is always available is for people to request your resume when they are interested in your web design skills.  This way you keep your information safe and sound and can stop unwanted people from contacting you about projects or jobs that you may not be interested in or have the skill set for.

Keeping your resume publically available as a web designer while it seems like a smart idea really depends on you, how you’ve designed your site or portfolio and what you are looking for in terms of employment or how you want to develop your business. Giving too much information to the general public comes with some risks that you should weigh when you think about adding your resume to your portfolio.