Over the 10th Nairobi Design Week, Ogilvy launched the Herfolio programme, which is meant to uplift female creatives. Traditionally, women are underrepresented in creative projects and don’t get the same number of opportunities as men. To address this gender gap, Ogilvy Africa Network launched Herfolio to enable brands and agencies to find female talent more easily.
Why this database is a great win for brands and female creatives
By making this program collaborative, it creates a community for women where they can learn and grow with each other. Connecting with other creatives helps build support networks and also makes it easier to discover more opportunities. Collaborative projects such as Herfolio also help women find support outside of their careers, potentially creating lifelong connections and even friendships.
By directly calling for creatives to share their work, regardless of their speciality, Herfolio provides a one-stop directory for agencies or brands looking for talent. This expands career possibilities for participating women and also gives them an opportunity for job growth.
For many creatives, one of the biggest challenges is finding consistent clients. By using a service like Herfolio, creatives can now avoid the struggle of looking for potential clients. The service also allows users to see each other’s profiles and that way women can find others who they can collaborate with in future.
Herfolio will also allow brands and agencies to find creatives who already align with their vision. Lacking common ground when venturing into projects can lead to stalling or falling out which leads to the waste of funds or resources. By having direct access to creatives’ portfolios, brands can tell firsthand whether the creative they choose to work with will be perfect for their goals.
In addition, having direct access to creatives’ portfolios in a one-stop-shop database, allows brands to shop around for the best talent available. This way they can easily create collaborative teams. They can also find creatives who communicate clearly as seen from their bios and project descriptions. Instead of relying on open calls where there has to be a lengthy exchange before finally settling on a creative, this helps brands instantly select their best fit.
It also makes it easier for brands that want to be dynamic and inclusive by looking for multiple female perspectives. This will reduce the dominance of male perspectives in creative projects. Additionally, it will enable women to pursue their passions since they have a more straightforward way where brands can find their work.
Everything you need to know about Herfolio
Herfolio is a website where creative women can upload their work. Users sign up and create an account where they can submit their work. After joining the database, creatives can then wait until they receive a call from a potential client who will work with them. On the Herfolio website, you can then upload your photo, contact details, bio and upload your work.
Users’ projects are uploaded as videos or photos with an added description. Each photo can only be a maximum of 10MB while videos have a maximum of 20MB. Creatives can upload projects in:
- Product design
- Art & Painting
- Print & Outdoor
- UI design
- Advertising
- Film
- Music
- Photography
- Design
- Tech
Herfolio is available for African women and doesn’t accept any AI-generated projects. It’s free to sign up. All users of the platform have to be over 18 and professionals in their fields with projects to show their expertise. To join Herfolio, you can sign up here.
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