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What designers getting interviews do differently
Published 13 days ago • 2 min read
This summer, I’ve been working with designers at every stage of the job search. Some have been looking for months. Some are just starting out. A few are starting to break through. And it's not because the market suddenly got easier. It's because they stopped doing more of what wasn’t working and started doing something different. Here’s what I’m seeing work right now.
They’re treating their portfolio like a product
One of the most useful shifts I’ve seen is designers applying product thinking to their own portfolios. Google Analytics can show you how people find your site and which pages they visit. Microsoft Clarity can show you how visitors move through it: where they scroll, where they pause, and where they leave. When designers look at that data, they often find something uncomfortable. Visitors are landing on the homepage, spending thirty seconds there and leaving before they reach a case study. Or they’re opening one case study and dropping off halfway through. That usually means it's a product problem. And like any product problem, it can be diagnosed and improved. If you haven’t looked at your portfolio analytics recently that’s a good place to start this week.
They’re counting experience most designers ignore
Something I’ve been pushing with every designer I work with: Stop discounting your past. Companies look for designers who can work independently, own problems, and influence across functions. Designers often pass on those roles because they don’t think they’re senior enough. But after mapping out everything they’ve done; freelance work, contract roles, earlier careers, and work outside of UX the picture usually looks different. A designer who worked in marketing before moving into UX may bring stakeholder management, business context, and communication skills. A designer who worked in architecture may bring systems thinking, client management, and experience navigating constraints. The designers getting traction are looking at their full experience strategically – not just the roles with “UX” or “product designer” in the title. Your experience is probably broader and more relevant than you're showing.
They’re activating their network early
There where three successful searches I’ve seen this summer where a real person helped create momentum somewhere in the process. A former colleague passed along a name. A past manager shared an opening. A conversation led to an introduction.
A warm introduction can help you stand out in a crowded market. The specific exercise I work on with designers is a connections list: a simple document with every manager, colleague, client, collaborator they’ve worked with and anyone they know who works at a company which hires designers.
Then we look for opportunities to reconnect, ask for insight, learn about openings, or request an introduction. Most designers have more connections than they realize. They just haven’t organized them or activated them intentionally. One designer I worked with reached out to twelve people on her list, and two of those conversations led directly to interviews. The network is a strategy most designers aren’t using consistently.
The common thread
It’s all about working differently.
Treat your portfolio like a product that can be improved.
Count the experience you’ve been discounting.
Build your network before you’re desperate for it. The designers getting traction are more strategic about how they present themselves, where they put their energy, and who they involve in the process. If you want to work through your specific job search strategy; your portfolio data, your experience positioning, your network activation plan that's exactly the kind of conversation I have in a 1:1 strategy session. We spend 50 minutes on your specific situation and you leave with a clear plan for what to do next.
P.S. If your portfolio is the more immediate problem (and the analytics are telling you something isn't working) a portfolio review is the fastest way to get expert eyes on what to fix. 20-minute video audit. $95.
A weekly email on portfolios, job search strategy, confidence, and career growth. From a designer with 25+ years in the industry helping 500+ designers level up. Free. Every Tuesday. Unsubscribe anytime.
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