What’s on the iPod: Soul & Skin by The Clarks
Yesterday was fun. Yes, fun. I had a little work to clear up (and I swear I’ll clear it up soon), and then I got on the phone with Lisa Gates, coach extraordinaire and west coast soul mate, to chat each other up and hash out some business ideas. Some exciting stuff is coming, and I can’t wait to tell you all about it. But for now, we plan.
I was over at Dr. Freelance, Jake Poinier’s blog where he answers a reader’s question about casting a wider net in terms of finding work. While he was talking about how this person could get the word out about their newly added services, it got me wondering about how the existing marketing materials looked in terms of the work already being promoted.
And for me, it begged the question – how to build an online portfolio (or any marketing material) that lists a myriad of projects you’re capable of handling without it looking schizophrenic? Here’s how I’ve managed it:
A separate page for each expertise. Because I write and edit, I have three pages – Writing, Editing, and Corporate Communications. I could easily break these down into Business Writing, Copy editing, Proofreading, etc. I could even break it down by specialty – insurance, risk management, healthcare, finance. I chose not to. I’d rather keep it simple. Also, I chose not to add ghostwriting books to my list of skills. I love it, but I’ve had a few rough situations that make me want to avoid it for a while.
An online resume. Call it a portfolio, bio, synopsis, whatever. The idea is you’re showing your clients what you’ve done and for whom you’ve done it. At the very least you should have a short bio and a page of …
Samples. A separate page for samples is best. If you have many areas in which you work, you may want to consider grouping the samples under separate headers. Stick with chronological where you can – most clients will click on the first few links. Better that they see the newest stuff.
Contact information. I’m not a fan of the “fill in the box” form. I want people to know how to reach me, even if it means the spam I get is going to increase. I don’t go as far as putting my street address on the site, but I give a phone number. Sometimes people just want to call and connect. Also, some clients want someone local. Having even a region on the website allows me to connect with local clients and weed out those who need a writer closer to them.
As you add skills and new areas to your repertoire, you should remember to amend your website and marketing copy to include – even highlight – these new areas. They can’t know you do it if you don’t tell them.
So what’s on your website or brochure?
I will soon have a new logo. 🙂 I'm doing that for branding purposes.
On my home page, I have Featured Samples of Work that I change periodically. I use it to show a variety with a sample of each-like an article, white paper, case study, newsletter & ad.
MY tabs have Writing Services where I break it down to Ghostwriting, White Papers and Business Communication, next I have my Portfolio, Free Stuff (which I need to work on) and last is my Policies (comment, privacy & disclosure).
My contact info.is on every page and throughout the content on various pages.
I've played around with it and probably will again, but so far, so good.
I have to update both website and brochure. I don't put samples up on my website, because they've been poached before. I went into a meeting once with a potential client, we were talking, and he said, "that sounds familiar" and handed me samples someone else had sent him — which had been copied from my website, verbatim, with the bidder's information added and a badly spelled pitch paragraph also added. But the actual sample was from my site. We pulled up my site on the computer, and there it was. He called my previous client, who confirmed that I had done the project, not this person none of us had ever heard of.
If someone wants samples, they can ask, or I include relevant samples with my pitch. They're not on the website.
I have to get a local PO box here and get that all sorted, so I can re-do my brochure, join the local chamber of commerce, and start local pitching while still retaining my international client base.
My website is in some need of updating, but I need a new Web guru. My former one (whose design I loved but not her flakiness) has pretty much disappeared. Anyone know of a good, reasonably priced one. And I'm with you on the ghostwriting projects, Lori. I've had quite a few problems with clients in that realm as well.
Cathy, congrats on the new logo! I was so excited when I first had one designed.
Funny story. (To me, anyway.) Several months ago, my graphic-designer sister offered to design a website for me. She was taking yet another web design class to get experience working with yet another system, program, whatever it's called.
So I gave her tons of info, and links to a couple of other writers' sites I like. A week or so later, she sent me a bare bones link to her class project. Convoluted to find, and she had my home address and phone number on it – that was the only big change I had: No direct personal contact info, just my e-mail address.
Weeks passed. No word. Months passed. I figured she dropped the class (early on she complained a lot about the clunky program).
Fast forward to the two of us Christmas shopping. She mentioned something, and I said, "That would be good to add to my website – if I had one. Hint, hint." She said, "You DO have one." Apparently, she finished it and never told me. I'm still waiting for her to let me actually see it. (I haven't pushed, since I still need to research hosts and domains and all the techie talk makes my brain hurt, and my sister and I haven't had free time at the same time to discuss my next step.)
So in theory, anyway, my site should be divided by specialties and will include links to recently published articles, an archive of my column and a blog about creativity.
Kathy-thanks. I'm excited about the logo, too. I think it captures my business writing theme well.
As I mentioned, I decided to go local (for networking purposes) and I found the designers to be very responsive and very affordable. I have no direct experience with their web design services, but here is their website with samples of their work. http://www.thrivewebdesigns.com/our_work.php
Good luck and let us know when you have a new design.
I've got a broken record spinning in my head that my Boomvang portfolio needs updating. In fact, my designer just called me yesterday to find out what's up with it. (Um…errr…nothing?) In the next iteration, I am going to use fewer samples but include a small description. Right now, it's just unexplained links, boring — it's the "placeholder" that never left!
And thank you kindly, LW, for the hat tip 🙂
Way to go, Cathy! I love your featured work idea, too. I'm stealing it! 🙂
Devon, that's wretched! Thank God you found out, and thank God the client realized you were the victim in it all. I'd hate to be that other writer – what a louse!
That's also why I use just URLs to published work. If they want to steal, they have to answer to some company with a bevy of lawyers waiting to pounce.
I know of one, Kathy. Let me send you his name.
Paula, push her! I want to see it!
You're quite welcome, Jake. Love your blog. 🙂
Great ideas here, Lori! I'm toying with the notion of a logo (after all these years!)
I also stopped by to let you know your last comment on my blog was inadvertently deleted by persons who wish to remain anonymous. Nothing negative was intended!
LOL! Georganna, I know that type of anonymous person. She lives here, too. 🙂 Not to worry – I'm sure my scandalous comment about cats or something was uber-important and will resurface at another time. 🙂