01
Step one: choose the person each template serves
Start with situations rather than styles. Instead of labeling templates Modern or Bold, name the reader: recent graduate, career changer, project-based freelancer, senior manager. Worked example: a former teacher moving into learning design needs to show transferable skills more than job titles. Their template places a skills summary at the top, a short timeline below it and two project highlights beside it. Write one sentence per template stating who it helps and what it emphasizes. A visitor who sees their own circumstance described will keep reading, while a visitor facing vague style names must guess and may leave without trying anything.
02
Step two: structure the gallery for quick comparison
Show every template at the same size, with the same sample content, so differences come from layout and not from the dummy text. Add three visible attributes under each preview: number of pages, how much room is given to skills versus experience, and whether the design reads clearly in black and white. In the teacher example, the learner would compare two or three previews side by side and notice immediately which one gives projects more space. Offer simple filters by situation and by length. Keep the filter list short, because a gallery with ten controls feels like work before the visitor has even begun.
03
Step three: write cards, then test readability and follow-up
Each card needs a title, the one-sentence audience line, a preview and a clear action such as use this layout. Then check each design against practical limits: can the text be selected, does it survive being exported as a document, and is the contrast acceptable when printed. Applicant systems may read plain text more reliably than ornate layouts, so say that honestly and offer a simplified version alongside the graphic one. For the teacher, that means two files from one entry. Finally, add a short note explaining how to update the template later, which encourages return visits.