LO1: understand the purpose and use of a personal media profile.

 What is the purpose of a media profile?  

A media profile is a lot like having a CV, it is something you show to an employer and/or university. It lets you summaries what skills you have, your educational history, your work history, such as where you have worked before and the skills you have developed during the process.  

When creating your media profile, it is good to include skills because it then allows you to show the person you are presenting it to a lot more about yourself, it also shows what you are best at. For example, if you are a good graphics designer then you can add this onto the profile for one of your main skills is graphic design. Other examples of skills include determination, positivity, time management, accountability, and innovation. This allows the employer to see what how you might fit within their organization/ business.  

Some workplaces and educational institutions need to see what your work history is like – this could include charity, volunteering, or project work. By including this onto your media profile potential employers can review what work you have done the quality it is. This gives them an example of your work and skills you have detailed. Furthermore, it also provides the employer/ university with a referrer of whom they can contact to confirm the media profile you have compiled. 

Hobbies are another thing you need to add onto your media profile because this gives the employer a better understanding on who you are and what you do outside of work. This is also a good chance to show yourself as someone who is talented. Some employers look for charitable work such as helping others or sports which can be seen as developing skills such as time management and dedication. 

Another important thing to add onto your media profile is contact details, this is very important because your employer needs a way of contacting you if they decide to go forward with your application. Moreover, only basic details should be included such as name, email, and address. A media profile/ CV should not include date of birth, race, gender, or nationality as this could hinder the application process.  

An introduction about yourself will need to be added to a media profile this is useful because it gives you a chance to tell the employer who you are as a person. Educational history is important because a lot of jobs and universities require certain qualifications, especially GCSE qualifications. When thinking about who would benefit from your media profile this would include, employers because they need to know what you are qualified in, who you are as a person and what skills you have. Another thing you would benefit from if you had a media profile/ CV would be freelance opportunities this would be because if you were a freelancer then you would have to show your client what skills and qualifications you have in a particular media sector. Also, interviewers use this to base most of their questions on when they are interviewing you for a post. This will allow you to explain more in-depth other aspects of your media profile. 

Media profiles/ CV's can be shown in two different formats this being physical or digital. Physical media profiles/ CVs are basically paper copies which you can bring to interviews or showcases. These apply to those in the photography industry or textiles which could present physical mood boards along with photos and additional assets. However, a digital CV is basically what it says, it's a media profile/ CV on a pc, mobile or tablet where you can upload it to the website of the place you are applying for or you can upload it to a crowdsourcing site such as Indeed which actually allows you to create a digital CV on their website and/or app. A lot of places require CVs for example jobs, some universities, and apprenticeships. For a job, you would need to tailor the media profile/ CV to match the position you are applying for, or you can upload it to a crowdsourcing site such as Indeed which allows you to create a digital CV on their website and/or app. A lot of places require CVs, for example jobs, some universities, and apprenticeships. For a job, you would need to tailor the media profile/ CV to match the position you are applying for, an example would be if you were applying to be a teacher you would need to put on the CV that you have a teaching degree or something similar. If you were using a CV to get onto a university course then you would need to tailor it to match the course you are applying for, this would mean adding you are A levels onto the CV and your GCSE grades, this goes the same for apprenticeships.  

Overall, media profiles and CVs are extremely important in applying for jobs or further education as it allows the recipient to display their work and attributes. Going forward in this unit I will ensure I understand what a media profile is and how to create one that is successful. 

Julian Langham is a videographer who was repurposed his media profile into a website where he has a showreel showing in the background, this a way of him showcasing what he has 

worked on and the quality of his services.

After clicking the tap at the top of his page labelled "Portfolio", I can see that he has categorised his work which shows off different aspects of what can create which include streaming video production, school promotional videos and business video production.

Benefits of having a a digital media profile is that you can have it with you wherever you go this could include on your mobile, laptop or tablet. Also having your media profile as a website is a good chance to meet others in the industry you are working in, this means that it helps with getting jobs via people mentioning your name and that they have seen your website. The next benefit of having an online media profile is that the website is available to people from around the world this in turn then gives you opportunity's to work on a global scale. Another part of the benefits is that you are able to section it off and categorise it by media sector, for example you can have a photography section, then as a videography section and then also whatever else you may offer to employers. It is also interactive which means that people are able to view things that  you have created previously and others can comment things about it.

Weaknesses of having a digital media profile is that it can be rather time consuming to create a website especially if you're just starting out as a freelancer, it can also be rather hard to get people to notice your website and also market your social media profiles. With it being time consuming it can also be rather expensive to someone who hasn't started their media business due to creating a domain can cost money.