I looked at your site earlier today, but I did not have a chance to review at the time. It looks like you’ve already made some changes.
Okay, you’re asking for a brutal critique, so I’m not going to pull any punches. A disclaimer ahead of time: all of my comments are genuine and aimed at helping you get a better site.
Starting at the top:
I think the Clay logo is somewhat dated looking. Based on your work samples, I think you can do better. If I didn’t I wouldn’t say anything.
There is still an errant character, it looks like a hyphen, above Arkansas.
The messaging on your site needs work. “Graphic designer based out of Northwest Arkansas” … so what? I’m not sure you could come up with a blander headline than that. Figure out what the goal of the website is and spend some time crafting a message around that goal. I think the copy on the about page needs work, too. Again, what is your goal? Do you want the website to get you freelance clients? Do you want the website to attract potential employers? Figure that out and work on crafting content that will achieve the goal.
Still with me?
I understand you’re using the Adobe Portfolio platform, and I have no idea how much customization and design is allowed their. So maybe this is a limitation of the platform, but I find the overall site design to be very unengaging. There is nothing there to grab my interest. Part of it is the headline set in a field of gray with nothing of visual interest to support the headline. The other thing is the portfolio presentation with the big, heavy boxes.
Between the messaging issues and the boring site, I think you need to redo this. The good news is that I think you have the ability to do better. This just feels like it was thrown together with little planning and no design thinking. If I am a potential employer, I have to wonder if this is what you’d bring to the table. Step it up, and don’t rush it. Take your time to really develop something that is going to grab my attention and make me want to look at your work. This is not it.
Your work is okay. I don’t feel like you’re a senior lever AD or CD, but we’ve definitely seen worse around here. I’d suppose that’s a compliment. I think you could improve the presentation, though. I’m not particularly crazy about the dark gray background.
Okay, I’m probably going to step on some toes with this comment, and not just yours as I’ve seen other people do it. What is the point of listing the hex codes? I get the feeling that people do this to bolster content and try to make their presentations more impressive. Want to impress me? Tell me why you picked the color. What is the significance? How does it resonate with the target market? How does color psychology play into the decision?
Bottom line, you have some okay work, but the site itself needs to be completely reworked. Think about your target market. Think about the message you want to communicate. Now take your time and craft a site that will make them respond.