10 Top Tips For Creating Your Freelance Writer Online Portfolio
Photo by Peasap
How to Create a Top-Notch Freelance Writer Online Portfolio
One of the first pieces of advice I received from other work at home Moms when I told them about my venture into freelance writing was to put up an online portfolio.
I knew it made sense. Who isn’t on the web nowadays? And what better way to showcase one’s work, attract possible clients, and generate assignments than an effective website?
Although I was sold on the idea, it took me at least a week before I finally sat down and began creating my freelance writer online portfolio. I was clueless about how to begin. However, I knew that it had to be done, so I began by registering a domain. That was easy because I decided to use my own name instead of a business name (which I would have had to register with the government first).
Actually writing the content of my website took another few days. I read Internet articles about the topic. I looked at other freelance writers’ online portfolios. After a few days, I started writing the pages for my website. I scanned samples of my work and uploaded them. I signed up for a free contact form to give my readers a way to contact me without splattering my email address on the Internet.
Since then, I have revised my website almost a dozen times! Every day, I learn something new about marketing my services and I use it to tweak my website. My first draft was stiff, plain and a bit lifeless. I felt embarrassed about selling myself and worried that the copy was too hard-sell. I still make changes every day so it’s a work in progress.
If you’re planning to put up your own online portfolio, here in no particular order are some of the best advice I’ve gathered these past few weeks (of course, whether I’ve applied all of them to my own portfolio is another matter):
1. Pay for web hosting.
Resist the temptation to get a free or dirt-cheap online portfolio. The lay-outs are usually terrible and you have limited control over the content. Besides, having your own website shows that you are a professional who is serious about this freelancing business. Isn’t www.yourname.com more impessive than www.freewebsite.com/yourname?
2. Know whom you are targeting.
Identify your niche and focus on it. Something I’ve learned from Shelancers is that those who specialize can charge more than generalists can. Decide on the type of client you want to work for, or the specific assignments you want to do, and build your website around those. Your niche will also help determine which samples you will post.
3. Enable the reader to contact you from every page of the website.
The action you want from your reader is for them to hire you. To do that, the first step is for them to contact you with details of their requirements or expressing a desire to explore the possibility of working with you. Make sure you have a contact page and a link to it on every page of your website. Some freelancers include a telephone number. Think about whether you’re comfortable with this.
4. Showcase your most effective work.
Sure, one of your articles may have been a literary masterpiece, but what impact did it have for your client? What goal did you help them achieve? Was it effective aside from being a good read? Therefore, it is necessary to…
5. Explain your work.
Include a brief background about each work sample: What were its objectives? What results did it generate? Why are you proud of it? How did it help your client?
6. Follow basic principles of sound design.
Although you’re not a designer your website should still be uncluttered, easy to read, with plenty of white space, and easy to navigate. If you’re clueless about setting up your own website, then consider paying for the services of a web designer and web master.
7. Consider how you will get potential clients to your website.
Will it be a “passive” website that people find out about because you gave them the link? Or will it be the type of website that will rank high on search engines allowing potential clients to find you? The latter is better in terms of generating job leads, but will require SEO work. Ultimately, the answer is really up to you.
8. Be clear and assertive about promoting your strengths.
Your website should market your services, so don’t be shy about it! Clearly state how your clients could benefit from your services.
9. Don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through.
In all likelihood, you will never meet your prospective client face to face, so let them know you as a flesh-and-blood person. Post a flattering photograph of yourself (I’m guilty of not doing this; I don’t have a nice enough picture yet). Place a link to your personal blog.
10. Make sure your portfolio shows you in the best light
I almost didn’t include this because it’s common sense. Make sure your website doesn’t have typos, grammatical errors, distorted graphics, non-working links, and other elements that will portray you as unprofessional and careless.
Your online portfolio is more than your business card on the web. It is your Internet persona, your head hunter, your link to prospective clients. Make sure it works hard for you.
Related links:
Build a Killer Online Portfolio in 9 Easy Steps.
How to Create an Online Writing Portfolio in 2 Days
How to Build a Portfolio That Gets You The Job
If you found this article useful, please click on one – or more – of the links below. Thank you!
Filed under Home business ideas, Productivity, Resources | Tags: freelance writer, home business, online portfolio, professional advice, stay at home mom, work at home mom | Comments (4)
Stumble It!The Cost of Starting a Freelance Writing Career
Photo by [177]
Freelancing writing is an easy and inexpensive home business for a stay at home Mom to set up. According to an article in Yahoo!, it can also be one of the most lucrative. However, many newbies may not be aware that there are start-up costs involved in putting up a freelance writing business.
If you’re thinking of launching a career as freelance writer, here’s a list of 10 items to budget for:
1. Computer, printer, home office supplies – These are basic home office equipment which you probably already have anyway. You’ll also need paper, printer ink, folders and other basic home office supplies.
2. Business name registration - If you want to use a business name other than your own, you may have to pay to have it registered. Consult your local business bureau on the procedure and costs involved.
3. Internet connection - Broadband, please. You’ll need the Internet to market yourself, find clients, do research for your articles, do research on your competitors, network with potential clients … the list is endless.
4. Website hosting and domain registration – Every freelancer needs an online portfolio to help attract clients and show off sample work (here’s mine). Don’t use a free blogging service. It doesn’t look professional and you don’t have enough control. You could also easily lose your website. I use Bluehost and so far I’ve been happy with its reasonable prices, unlimited domains, and ease of use. Caroline Middlebrook has a free E-book on setting up a WordPress site. That’s how I learned. Or you could try Yaro Starak’s video guides. If you’re absolutely clueless about putting up your own website, it might be better to hire somebody to do it for you.
5. Various insurance plans – Depending on what your government and your spouse’s employer provide, you should consider buying: life insurance; basic or extended health insurance; and, disability insurance.
6. Professional services - You’ll need the services of an accountant so you can do your taxes properly. Unless you plan to set up a corporation, you probably won’t need a lawyer. Depending on your capabilities, consider also hiring a web designer and graphic artist.
7. Marketing tools – Aside from your website, you’ll need business cards and a letterhead at the very least. Again, if you have no artistic abilities, hire a professional graphic designer to create these for you and have them printed professionally. Don’t print them at home!
8. Freelancing networks - Consider joining networks and job boards for freelancers, such as Elance. Actually, you can bid for up to 3 jobs a month for free in Elance but to enjoy the full features, you’ll need to pay a monthly fee of $9. Not bad. I’ve just joined Shelancers, a network of female freelancers. Aside from a directory listing, Shelancers also provides various resources for its members. Although I haven’t gotten a job through Shelancers yet (I’ve only been a member for a couple of days), I have already learned so much. I especially like meeting other stay at home Moms who are trying to balance family and earning an income at home. The best thing is meeting Moms who have succeeded! Besides, I’m tired of getting advice (from men, no doubt) like, “do only one thing at a time.” Don’t they know that multi-tasking is the only way Moms get everything done?
9. Training - No matter how good you already are, you need to keep learning. There are so many ways to make money at home as a freelance writer and you will have to pay to get good advice, guidance and mentoring. Also have a good dictionary, thesaurus and other reference materials.
10. Babysitting – The day will come when working during naps and after bedtime will no longer cut it. And that’s a good thing! Invest in your sanity and productivity by hiring a babysitter, even if for just a couple of hours every day. The more work you get done, the more income you’ll make.
If you’re thinking of starting a career as a freelance writer, remember to include these items in your budget. Other types of freelancing will have similar costs. It isn’t that daunting, and having all these things covered will give you peace of mind.
Related articles:
How to prepare financially for your home business
Home office productivity for Moms of young children
Countdown to being a work at home Mom
If you found this article useful, please click on one of the buttons below. I would really appreciate it!
Filed under Home business ideas, Resources | Tags: freelance writer, freelance writing, Home business ideas, home business start up costs, stay at home Moms | Comments (5)Scary home business stuff
Photo by Bob Jagendorf
I have resumed reading The Girl’s Guide to Starting Your Own Business: Candid Advice, Frank Talk, and True Stories for the Successful Entrepreneur
I’ve been thinking of registering my freelance editorial business, mainly for the tax benefits. Even if I did it as a sole proprietorship there are still many business-like things to consider. For instance, I’ve just been reading the section about insurance and now know that I need to get at least three types of insurance: expanded health insurance (to supplement the provincial health insurance provided by Ontario); disability insurance (to help replace my income should I become too ill to work); and, home-business insurance (to cover the cost of my laptop and other home office equipment should they get damaged or lost). Whew!
And now that I’m about to get my certification in childbirth education, I’m considering registering that business as well. Then I would need even more insurance, such as general liability insurance – to protect me should, for example (and God forbid!) a client slip on the floor during a class, break her ankle and decide to sue me.
No wonder authors Caitlin Friedman and Kimberly Yorio called this chapter “The scary stuff: legalities, licenses, permits, financials, and funding”.
Now I have to buckle down and figure out a budget to cover “the scary stuff”, including fees for a lawyer, an accountant, and an insurance broker. I have to admit, this business of setting up a home business is not that easy.
At least I have this book. I’m the type of person who needs step-by-step instructions for the simplest things. And setting up a home business is far from simple.
If you found this article useful, I would appreciate it if you would click on one or more of the buttons below.
Filed under Resources | Tags: business insurance, caitlin friedman, home business, kimberly yorio, make money from home, stay at home, work at home | Comment (0)Update on my work at home project: The Thirty Day Challenge!
I’m on Day 10 of my work at home project, the Thirty Day Challenge. I have identified one niche for internet marketing and am now writing three articles for it. I need another niche and fast! With our move to Canada one week away, just keeping up with the challenge is proving to be a challenge in itself. However, I have managed to join a team so I’m trudging along. Perhaps, as for others, it will be more like the Sixty Day Challenge for me.
So far, I have learned how to do market research on possible niche topics using Freewordtracker, Google and Google Trends. The techniques that Ed Dale and his colleagues teach are so simple but unintuitive that they’re so cool! And then Mike Stenhouse and Mike Mindel put these together in an amazing tool — Wordtracker GTrends.
The “golden nuggets” technique is used to “mine” for the ideal niche — one that has a lot of demand but little competition. You’ll have to go through the challenge yourself to fully appreciate what I’m talking about.
I got a bit sidetracked because I had misunderstood the bit about measuring the amount competition for a particular niche. Fortunately, I found some clarification in the Thirty Day Challenge forums, so I think I’m back on track to finding one more niche.
Just got an E-mail today from Ed saying that the Thirty Day Challenge has just produced another millionaire. Now that’s encouraging!
Watch out for my next article: How to avoid work at home scams, part 3. In case you missed the earlier installments, here are the links:
How to avoid work at home scams, Part 1: Do your research
How to avoid work at home scams, Part 2: Use only legitimate job leads
Filed under Motivation, Resources | Tags: career, home business, internet marketing, personal development, thirty day challenge, work at home | Comment (1)How to avoid work at home scams, Part 2: Use only legitimate job leads
Photo by Panda0405
I’ve spent hours online looking for legitimate sources of work at home job leads. You know what? I was disappointed. Thousands of websites promise work at home jobs and home business ideas, but most of them make me suspicious. They make promises but show no accountability. Some sites didn’t even have an “About” page! Or it was buried too deep under all the advertisements!
I looked for websites that checked out job leads before posting them. Sites that charge a fee to access the job listings did not even make this claim. Unless they said so, I assumed that they did not screen the job leads.
So after days or research, I only came up with three websites that I feel confident enough to share with other aspiring work at home individuals: Continue reading »
Filed under Home business ideas, Resources | Tags: career, home business, legitimate job leads, personal development, scams, work at home | Comments (5)
