Creating a freelance writing portfolio is so important if you are looking to get clients online.
You need to let the readers know who you are and as to why they can approach you when required.
It is freelance work that can give you huge recognition and visibility on the online platform when done correctly.
Now, if you are new to this field and looking for guidance in the matter, then the discussion here can be quite helpful.
What Is A Writing Portfolio?
Before you plunge in to build up your portfolio online, you must know what a freelance writing portfolio is all about.
It is nothing but the compilation of various materials which can be in the form of education, qualifications, training, experiences or any other field of interest of an individual.
The writing can also focus on the work ethic and personality of the person building it up.
The writing pattern and tone of portfolios are always professional, reflecting the depth and breadth of a person.
In writing portfolios, one can boast about his or her achievements and skills, but at the same time does not sound arrogant in any manner.
You can even choose any random topic that is trending in the market and start your writing portfolio.
It is an excellent way in which one can create a huge market for his or her business idea online.
How To Write Portfolio?
Building a writing portfolio might sound quite simple, but there are specific rules that you need to follow so that maximum people turn around to read through your writings.
There is no need to beat around the bush when you plan to write on a certain topic.
You can build the background a little bit but be very specific and clear from the beginning.
You can use casual or friendly tones in your writing but try keeping it professional as much as possible.
The design of your writing portfolio must be clean and simply devoid of many distractions.
This helps the readers to focus on what you want to deliver to them.
You can add some clippings or PDF files in between your writings to show the samples of your work to the prospective customers.
This makes the writing more logical and also grabs the attention of the readers much more.
Most importantly, you need to write your portfolio being an entrepreneur and not as an employee of any concern.
How Do You Make A Writing Portfolio?
The most important thing to decide on before you start writing your freelance portfolio is the reason for which you are aiming to create such contents.
Normally, there are three main reasons for which such portfolios get created online by writers:
1.To Get The Desired Job
You might send your portfolio writing to various employers online.
You might aim at impressing them by showcasing your skills in their specific fields of work.
2. To Sell
Another objective of creating portfolios is to grab customers for selling your services or products online.
3. To Become More Visible
Some people aim at becoming more noticeable at the online platform being writers.
This helps in promoting your brand at the social network.
Your objective might be different as compared to the points stated above, but whatever it might be, you must be clear about the goal that you want to achieve through this writing.
This can help you in building a remarkable portfolio writing online by choosing specific topics.
Another vital point to remember is that your portfolio must represent the thing that you want, along with the personal brand that you represent.
For instance, if you want to portray yourself as a writer in finance, then go ahead to explain complicated topics to the people in an engaging and fun manner.
Try to be unique in whatever you are trying to solve and always remain straightforward and to the point.
You may include the links of your best work in the portfolio which you have recently worked on.
The most competent portfolios are those who remain focused, lean and represent you as an exceptional writer in a specific field.
What To Include In A Writing Portfolio?
When you want to take up the role of freelance writer, you need to understand that your writing is the only work that speaks of you.
So, there are certain vital things that you need to include in your writings, so that maximum number of people get interested in reading it.
1. Blog Posts Created Personally
In case you are a beginner in the field, make sure you have a blog of your own at least.
The clients whom you wish to approach would want to go through multiple topics that you may have written about.
They want to know your writing tone, your capability of talking about the products and your technique of engaging with the readers.
So, start blogging if you want to build yourself as a freelance writer.
When the clients become happy with your work and following, they get tempted to launch you on board.
2. Volunteer Writing
This is great to include in your writing portfolio to get the desired amount of exposure that you require as a new writer.
You can take up topics related to organizations that are non-profit seeking.
If you are interested in pets, include writings about their shelter and rescue.
3. Links Of Social Media
You must incorporate various social media links that you have like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Tumblr, etc.
Sharing your brand in the writings attracts potential clients even more.
4. Experience
There is no harm in writing about what you have been doing so far in your life before you started with freelance content creation.
You may illustrate your career graph a little and bundle up all those vital experiences that you gathered in those long years.
Try to relate those experiences with what you plan to do right now.
This can make your write-up even more relevant.
5. News Recaps
The sites which are into the aggregation of news are huge players at the online platforms.
They prefer such writers who can synthesize news cycles on a 24-hour basis.
So, you can include such samples of writings in your portfolios to reflect how well you can summarize and allocate vital data to make interesting stories out of them.
You can take up specific categories of news that are trending and create such writings to attract potential clients.
6. Pen Name
This is another vital thing that you can never miss out to include in your portfolio writing.
The readers are going to recall you with this name that you use in your professional write-ups online.
How To Create A Freelance Writing Portfolio With Zero Experience?
The professional writers who are into full-fledged content creation these days must have also started with their journey at some point in time.
Every person needs to be a beginner at some task that he or she wants to become a professional into in the upcoming days.
So, there is nothing to worry if you have no experience in freelance writing but still planning to start.
You need to follow the below-stated actionable guide to kick start your freelance writing skills even if you don’t have any experience.
1. Learning The Lingo
There are certain industry terms that you must be conversant with when you plan to take up the writing profession online.
For instance, the writing samples of the freelances get called as clips.
When you know these specific terms and their meanings, you can easily relate or communicate with the other professionals of the industry.
2. Create Three Different Types Of Spec Clips
Writers often create content pieces without any pay which get called as ‘on spec’.
You can also create such write-ups when you are starting your portfolio for the first time.
Remember you need to label these writings as Spec Pieces.
Imagine you have hypothetical clients and write those points which would have written if they turned out to be your real clients.
3. Pitch Publications And Blogs
Think about what you excel in.
Everyone in this world specializes in some or the other thing.
It can be almost anything starting from baby care, pet rescue to tax laws.
The key is to talk about something that you love to do. So, take a few minutes and list down the things about which you have a lot of knowledge.
After you have the list prepared, search for such websites that deal with similar services or products or your interest.
They might require contributors who can write for them.
Several websites even have platforms for guest posts.
You can make a list of such websites and start pitching your contents there.
This stepping stone can take you a long way in building your portfolio in the future.
Another most important thing that new writers in the industry need to remember is that rejections are quite obvious at the beginning of any phase.
You do not need to get demotivated with such rejections.
Instead, take up the challenge of proving yourself as a creative writer, and you can get future offers from those who reject you now.
Writing Portfolio Example/ Freelance Writing Portfolio Examples
There is no shortage of examples of writing portfolios that you can check online to get some inspiration as to how to start with the work.
Several exceptional writers have produced great works on the internet, which get appreciated a lot.
Here are some of the best examples of portfolio writing patterns.
1. The Portfolio Of A Visual Writer
This type of portfolio presentation is excellent for understanding and visually analyzing what the writer wants to deliver to his or her readers.
One can easily go through the best features in your portfolio at once when you present the whole thing in the form of colorful charts and diagrams.
The font sizes, words, and multiple rectangular designs to create this portfolio can attract several clients and customers.
2. Funny Writing Portfolio
If you are interested in writing humorous content, then this is the type of portfolio that you must aim at creating.
See that your entire write-up is funny, likable, approachable and also professional.
You can also include several graphics to make the page appear more spectacular.
Such portfolio pages reflect dynamic stories which instantly grab the attention of many out there.
3. Freelance Action-Oriented Portfolio
The tonal quality of these portfolio pages initiates action on the part of the readers.
You want to invite people to take an interest in your business and contact you for further details.
Thus, you of such action-oriented words are a must in such write-ups.
Almost every professional page of this category has a call-to-action to deliver the actual message to the customers.
If you are into software, tech, etc. then this type of portfolio creation can be quite helpful for you.
4. Built-In Portfolios
This type of portfolio get prepared a lot of confident businesswomen who never shy away to showcase their personality online.
They are always clear and precise about their clients and know you are the right people that are going to get attracted after reading their piece.
5. The Portfolio Having Everything
This type of writing portfolio has almost every information related to the author.
There are testimonial, links, statistics, product copy and blog posts for the readers to refer to while they go through the pages.
6. Sales Page Portfolio
These types of pages have lots of FAQ sections which answers several prospective queries of the clients and customers.
The pages also have testimonials and credentials of the writer that can be easily referred to.
It is quite a unique approach to reach out to several customers all over the globe.
You can choose any of the above types of samples and start your writing journey on the internet.
Online Portfolio For Writers
Now that you have an accurate idea about how you can start with freelance writing, it is also essential for you to the various platforms that you can choose to write.
You need to create your online reputation in such a manner that the clients appreciate your professionalism, work, and style of presenting the write-ups.
Thus, you require competent sites that can promote your portfolio for freelance.
Here are some of the most popular platforms that are great for highlighting the works of beginners in the field.
Journo Portfolio
This writing portfolio website helps creators in designing no-fuss and modern online platforms for themselves.
The website has several cool features that enable the writers to share various materials with the readers.
For instance, you can upload multimedia, images, video clippings and even include PDF files in between your write-ups.
Clippings.me
This platform motivates explicitly all those freelance journalists out there.
It is a great medium via which you can quickly share your clippings, multimedia pieces, and even podcasts.
The user can upload almost 16 articles for free at the website.
Pressfolios
This website is quite a user-friendly one for which it is great for the beginners.
The site also allows back-up of your work so that you do not need to panic about the work getting deleted in case there is an issue at the main website.
WordPress
This is the daddy of all the others mentioned above, and there is hardly anyone who has not heard this name.
Not just portfolios, this platform allows almost every type of content management and thus has gained huge popularity.
So, you feel that you want to launch yourself both as a photographer and freelance writer; this is the platform which can work best for your goals.
Muck Rack
This platform connects freelance writers who are marketing professionals.
It supports PDF uploads, online articles, profile customization, linking contact panel and social media, and also helps in tracking the likes and shares that your write-ups receive each day.
Contently
This platform got founded in the year 2010, which is a huge hub for dynamic and creative freelancers today.
This platform also enables freelancers to get connected with their desired clients who become interested in the kind of write-ups that they present.
The site has some of the most amazing features like URL upload, unlimited upload of articles, portfolio customization, and much more.
Points To Consider To Make Your Portfolio Stand Out
- Make it visually compelling by adding colors, graphics, and icons.
- Include as much writing samples as you can on your freelance portfolio.
- You must be clear about the type of audience to approach.
- Be professional but not sterile. You need to make your personality shine over the others.
- You can even hire a professional website designer to give that extra boost to your page.
Always remember that being a writer, you need to update the portfolio quite frequently.
Once you start from scratch, you might again have to start from that point itself to add new touches to your old write-ups.
Thus, the process is continuous and never-ending.