Your portfolio website is crucial to the success of your freelancing business.

It’s your #1 marketing tool. 

It’s not just the face of your business and your key way to attract clients. 

It’s also where you prove to them that you know what you’re doing as a designer or developer.  

When a potential client visits your website, they need to be able to see within the first 15 seconds:

A. You understand and can solve their problem

B. You know what goes into designing or developing a great website. 

A lot of sites look good, but they’re not effective. 

Usually because they’re focusing on the wrong things, or overcomplicating it.

This is a big topic, which I cover in more detail here and here.

But I’m going to break it down to the most crucial things you need to get right, so you can make some major improvements fast and start seeing better results.  First…

Generalist vs Niche Portfolio Site

This may be the most important shift you can make to improve your site (and your mindset). 

Especially as a beginner, you might be drawn to the generalist approach to throw a wider net for clients. 

My problem with this: it presents you as a commodity.  

You’re a pro at Javascript? Great. So are the other 39 people applying for the project.

It’s easy to overlook or replace you if you do what everybody else is doing.

If you’re serious about building a successful freelancing business, you have to set yourself apart. And the only way to do that is to specialize in a niche.

This will get you better clients faster, because it positions you as an expert who can solve their specific problem.

This should also be the no.1 purpose of your portfolio site. 

So let’s get into how to do that. 

(If you’re still not convinced about all this niching down business, read this article for a more in-depth discussion).

What to include in a niche portfolio site

As you think about your site, the most important advice I can give you is:

💡Think like a Client

• How would I be convinced if I needed to hire a web designer/developer?

• What do I want to see when I visit their website?

• What questions would I have for them?

Your portfolio site should have several parts that work together to position you as an expert and sell your services.Here are the key things your site should include:

1) Header with your Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

Your hero section needs to clearly communicate:

1. A specific client’s problem

2. How you can solve it

3. The outcome

This is your Unique Selling Proposition - the one thing you can do better than any other competitor. 

The client needs to understand within 5 seconds of landing on your site how you can make their life better.  

Good examples of a USP:

“I create stylish e-commerce websites for fashion brands.”

“I create affordable 1-page websites for small businesses in 1 day.”

“I help dentists get more patients - guaranteed.”

These USPs are excellent because they clearly state your ideal clients, your promise, and what sets you apart from other developers.

Beneath the main header is also a relevant place to list your skills, like SEO, Wix Studio, etc., as long as you can showcase HOW it will benefit the business.

2) What You’ve Done (Experience)

You need to show what you have done. Not what you ‘can’ do. 

This is CRUCIAL.

If you can’t show what you’ve done, build example websites.

Don’t showcase “JavaScript calculators” or anything irrelevant like that. Show full webapps or websites.

Bonus points for providing a case-study on your client projects.

3) Testimonials (Social Proof)

When you buy something on Amazon, you wouldn’t buy it if the ratings were 1 / 5 right?

But if it were 5 / 5 = add to cart.Same thing with client testimonials. You need social proof. 

It could be testimonials, positive reviews, case studies, or anything that shows a third-party recommending you and your services.

If you haven’t done any client work, then do work for free to get 2-3 testimonials.

4) Pricing

Showing your pricing allows you to avoid time-wasters and essentially qualifies your leads before they reach out to you.

There are many ways to present your pricing:

• From $5,000

• $2,000 for a basic website, $5,000 for a bigger website, $20,000 for an e-commerce website

• $1,000 /mo for 12 months (includes SEO + Social Media Management)

• Contact us for a quote

It’s worth testing to see which pricing model works better. You could get 100 visits to Pricing Model A, then change to Pricing Model B, get 100 visits, and compare which option results in better quality leads and more clients.If you want to know more about pricing web projects, read this.

5) Call To Action

If your website doesn’t guide the prospective client to perform a desired action, you’ve missed the point.

We want them to either:

• Contact us

• Get a quote

• Get a free website analysis report

• Schedule a free call

• Hire us

Keep it simple.

6) Clear Contact Method

I’ve seen way too many portfolio websites where there’s no way of actually contacting the person, or it’s super difficult to find the details. Don’t be one of these people.

Make sure you have a CLEAR contact form or at least visible contact information.

7) Blog

This is optional, but I highly recommend it. It shows off your expertise, sets you apart from your competitors, and draws visitors in to spend more time on your site. 

It’s also a great way to generate leads through SEO.

If doing a regular blog seems overwhelming, just start with 2-3 high value articles. 

Example topics: 

• How [insert niche] Can Get More Clients With SEO

• Why [insert niche] Needs A Website

• Web Design for Startups in [insert city]

Not a fan of writing? Consider outsourcing it. But I’d highly recommend writing the first 2 or 3 yourself as it will give you confidence selling your services. 

8) About Me

Once you’ve gotten potential clients curious about what you do, they will want to know more about you. A photo and quick bio are good to include here.

Don’t go overboard with details. Nobody wants to read your life story, but include just enough to make you seem more relatable and likable. 

If they like you, they’re more likely to work with you.

9) Footer

Lastly, the footer is a good place to add links to places where clients can learn more about you. You can link out to your About Me page, social media accounts, GitHub account, and more.

Hope this overview helps simplify things for you. 

If you’d like me to review your portfolio website (for free), join Freelance Fam.

Until next time, that’s it from me this week. 

Cheers!