Are you looking for a place where you can display your work online and tell the story of where you have accumulated clips so that prospective clients can get to know you and your work? Every writer has a unique voice and you can apply for gigs, make cold calls and visit clients face to face, but the only way that someone can decide whether you are a good fit for the project they are currently hiring for is to read a sample of your writing. Show, don’t tell, a client what you can do – post your best work in one of the online portfolio platforms for freelance writers.
Online Portfolios Make Sense for New Writers and Veterans Alike
Whether you are just starting out or have a lot of clips to your credit, it makes sense to organize the samples you would like to share with people who are in a position to hire you in an online portfolio. If you are just starting out and have not (yet) developed your own clientele, the portfolio acts are your online calling card that is available on a 24/7 basis. It may even draw in some clients on its own.
It’s impossible to keep track of all of your clips after you have been writing for some time. There will be far too many of them. Your portfolio will help you choose what you consider your best work to show clients.
Here’s a case in point: I came across an article when I was conducting research for a piece one day. I didn’t notice the byline but read through it. I liked the points the writer made, thought it was well-written and very well presented. When I went back up to the top to check the byline to make note of it, the name was very familiar: it was my own. I did not recall writing the article or working on this topic, nor did I recognize my own “voice” when I read it. The assignment was finished and I had moved on to something else.
Online Portfolio Platforms for Freelance Writers
1. Journo Portfolio
Specifically designed for bloggers, writers and journalists, Journo Portfolio gives you a clean looking website that you can customize from a number of available themes. Upload links, PDF files or images, create multiple pages and arrange them in whatever order you wish. You can add your resume and links to your social media accounts. The site gives you a free journoportfolio.com domain or you can pay a monthly fee to use your own domain.
2. Writerfolio
Try Writerfolio with a demo account for free (demo accounts are automatically deleted after two days) or sign up and pay $4.00 per month. You can cancel at any time. Making changes to your portfolio is quick and easy, and you can sort your samples into categories, add a footer (with a copyright notice) and link to your Google Analytics ID. There are several themes to choose from and your portfolio will appear in a searchable directory available to potential clients.
3. Pressfolios.com
Pressfolios is geared toward journalists and offers two main benefits. It allows you to organize and display your clips in a neat and organized manner. The second major benefit is that each time you upload a new clip, it is automatically backed up in a PDF file and saved in the cloud. You don’t need to worry about losing your work, even if the original publication ceases to exist. Try the basic version for free.
4. Clippings.me
If you like the look of a very clean online portfolio, then clippings.me may be the right one for you. No filler here – this site lets you get right to the point. You can customize it by choosing a background picture or adding one of your own. The site will allow you to upload PDFs or add links to online articles. Try it for free to upload up to 16 clippings or pay $4.99 per month to upload unlimited clippings, get your own custom domain, spam-protected e-mail, a password protected portfolio, resume hosting, and more. For $3.00 more per month, you can have access to page analysis to track the number of visits your profile is getting and how often your work is shared.
5. Contently
If your body of work includes writing for publications (even if you only have a few clips), consider setting up a profile at Contently. This company is in the business of connecting companies who need content with journalists. Its portfolio platform is free and easy to use; you simply list the publications you have written for and Contently will crawl the web and catalogue them. If any errors occur, you can go in and fix them manually.
No matter which of the available online portfolio platforms you choose, keep in mind that you will want to be adding new content to it or updating your portfolio at least every couple of months. Potential clients want to know that you are still actively writing and you’ll want to keep the site active for SEO purposes as well.
Image Credit: istockphoto.com
Image Credit: istockphoto.com
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