At this point, I’m sure most of you have your own portfolio site and/or blog up and running, but that is just the beginning when it comes to sharing your design skills with the world.  Here’s 5 (free) things you can do to help spread your portfolio across the web.

FACEBOOK PAGE – OK, this one’s a no-brainer, as most of you already have a personal FB account. Creating a page for yourself is quick and snappy, so I’ll skip the details.  Once the page is built, create a few photo albums (i.e. print, logos, web, etc.) and add your work.  The big advantage of using a social network like Facebook, is you can tap into your existing personal network to promote your work.  This is especially helpful to those of you who are just starting out and are looking for word of mouth recommendations.  Now that your fb page portfolio is up and running, just keep in mind that updating work consistently is important, but even more importantly, make sure you  share that work with your network any chance you get. Take a step further….you can link your Facebook page to a twitter account, so everytime you update your fb portfolio, your twitter status will reflect it.  Neat, eh?

GOOGLE IT - Let’s face it….Google is taking over the world.  No need to fight, just give in and exploit it for your personal gain.  There are a few ways to utilize google, beyond the basic search engine.  In my opinion the most effective is the Google Local Business Center.  Here you can add the basics about yourself or business such as location, contact info, website, etc.  But beyond the basics, you can also add up to 10 images, so pick your 10 best examples, and add them to your listing.  Now, when people search your area for a designer, not only will they get your basics, but they’ll be able to see a few examples of your work right in your listing. Here’s my listing.

FLICKR ACCOUNT – Create a Flickr photoset for your portfolio (or better yet, create one for each section of your portfolio).  Besides being a great place to share photos, Flickr has a ton a great groups that allow you to share your work with all kinds of people. Remember, it’s not enough to just add you upload your work to Flickr – You need to stay active in the Flickr groups….You never know who’s floating around the Logo Design Pool.

DESIGN SHOWCASE SITES - There are a bunch of great Graphic & Web showcase sites out there.  (Sites like Logopond, LogoMoose and Web2.0) Do a quick google  search and before you know it, you’ll be exposing your portfolio to a whole new section of the web.

ALTERNATE ONLINE PORTFOLIOS - It’s great to have your own website and/or blog, but why not utilize other design portfolios that are already established and have a steady built in traffic flow.  Crowd Sourcing and Community design sites have begun popping up all over the place and most of them allow you to host a showcase page.  StyleApple, CrowdSpring and Blur Designs are just a few of these sites, with new ones launching all the time.