If you are a freelancer, finding an organized way to pull together your work history and talents is important in promoting your services. Building a portfolio website creates the primary tool in showcasing your skills and accomplishments. Step away from freebie sites or the habit of linking potential clients to a resume posted on a job board or free or paid freelance portfolio site.

A portfolio website is a way to share both your resume and samples of your work. After choosing a domain and a method of hosting (free or paid), consider adding the following pages to your portfolio website.

Profile

A profile is a twist on the traditional chronological resume. Like a functional resume, you group similar skills to list your talents by function. A writer's profile may group abilities by writing, ghost writing, editing, proofing etc. A designer or virtual admin may group abilities another way.

Client Feedback

A page sharing client feedback is useful in showing you are a talented business professional. Ask clients for recommendations you can publish on your site. Identifying the client is not necessary. You can list a project descriptor showing what skill the comment is referencing.

Projects or Samples

List relevant projects you’ve worked on or link to online samples. Writers can link to published articles or list general info of clients worked for grouped by categories (diet, business, entertainment etc.). Designers can display thumbnails linked to images or sites.

Employment History

If you haven’t free-lanced for the whole of your professional career, list your professional employment in chronological resume fashion.

Services

List your services with or without pricing. Many professionals prefer to not to share price points without getting more information on the needs of the client per project. Link this page to your contact page, inviting them to submit more info for a quote.

Contact page

Your contact page can be a form or link on ways to contact you. It might be the perfect place for a short bio and a likely place to list your social networks. It is best not to publish personal information if you work from home though. Use Kontactr or a similar service to keep your email address private.

Tips

If designing a portfolio from scratch is not your forte, search for portfolio website themes (WordPress or other). You can easily plug the necessary information in each area and it is published on your site wherever the theme designates. Designers can find themes perfect for highlighting images or publishing slide shows. Find one that allows you to easily advertise your social networks as well.

If using a free site, use one that allows you to use your own domain name. Choosing your own URL allows you to brand your business. If you change from a free hosting site to paid hosting later down the road, you can easily move your domain to a new registrar and redirect it to your hosting company.

When using Blogger as a free host, find a blog template that has a visible navigation bar to link to important posts serving as page content on your Blogger blog.

Share free information. Show your clients what you know and why others hire you. Post articles relevant to the services they are interested in.

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