As a freelancer, portfolios are significant. A portfolio is an exhibition of documents or images to show an individual’s expertise in his/her respective field. It gives a detailed description of an individual’s capabilities even when absent.
As a freelancer, having an outstanding portfolio is vital for the following reasons.
1. It is your best selling point
As a freelancer, clients are more concerned about what you can do for them. There’s no better way to prove your expertise than showing them sample(s) of what you do. This is why your portfolio has to be very convincing and attractive. It is a great way to ‘show’ and not just ‘tell’ about your skills.
2. Helps you to stand out
According to Forbes, freelancers are likely to find themselves in more demand in the future; and 47% of hiring managers are more likely to employ independent professionals.
In every field, there are always a vast number of professional freelancers. Your portfolio tells the client ‘why’ you should be hired and not somebody else.
3. Presents you as a professional
An outstanding portfolio gives you a hedge whether you’re a beginner or pro in your skilled field. It portrays you as professional and offers you credence over other freelancers without a portfolio.
4. Help you land desired gigs
Most importantly, having a vast portfolio helps you to secure the best gig.
How To Create An Outstanding Freelance Portfolio
1. Build your freelance portfolio
Whether you’re a writer, programmer, graphics designer, or web developer, creating your portfolio is the best move you can make to enhance your freelance career.
If you’re a writer, you can have a blog or website, to showcase your articles. If you’re a graphics designer, you can create samples of your work and showcase your work samples on Behance, Designhill, etc.
2. Choose your best work
Your portfolio shouldn’t be the collection of all your previous projects. Even though you have lots of samples to upload on your portfolio, choose the best samples for your portfolio.
In your choice sample, endure that you’re very detailed and concise in describing it. Your sample should tell the client how you can should their problems, it shouldn’t be all about what you offer. If you’re a copywriter, rather than saying you can write the best copy, you can say you write copy that will triple sales.
Explain all you do in detail to make it easier for the clients to see why they should hire you.
3. Add self-created projects
If you’re starting your career as a freelancer and you don’t have any samples of your skill, you can create your projects and add them to your portfolio. When doing this, ensure you put your best in it. Go out of the ordinary to show what you do and add the projects to your portfolio.
You can also opt for volunteer works if you can’t create your projects. Doing this will help you get samples to include in your portfolio.
4. Include commendations
Got a five-star review from a previous client? Or a great compliment from another client?, You can spice up your portfolio with tributes from other clients. Doing this may seem awkward, but it works! Adding testimonials from a client will make other clients who you haven’t worked with, feel convinced that you’re on top of your game.
If you don’t have reviews yet, you can opt for any testimonials you’ve gotten from anyone.
5. Update your profile continually
As you get better in your skilled field, keep updating your portfolio with new works, and remove old projects that aren’t befitting the newly acquired skill sets. You have to keep your portfolio updated so that your clients can see what you’re capable of per time.
