I’m working on building a professional website, and plan to include an About, Portfolio and Contact page. Is there any other information that, in your experience, an editor would want to find on a freelancer’s site?
On a basic level, these categories are fine. But I do think you can offer a bit more than that these days. When I redesign my website one of these days, I’ll make sure that I have links to my Twitter feed, Facebook page, Linked In profile and other marketing options right up there on the top. I’d make it a lot more savvy, with a Twitter feed and an FB profile and perhaps even a design that shows off my work in a more modern, easier-to-access style. I would defintiely make sure that the look of my front page and that of my blog is the same.
Speaking of blogs, you have one, don’t you? I’m a big believer that freelance journalists need to have a blog and those that don’t are missing out. Most editors I know will not hire someone for a blogging job (a regular blog, not a guest post) unless they’ve demonstrated knowledge of blogging platforms and of course, a commitment to their own. And those jobs are increasingly where the money is these days. I think a blog is also a way to keep your website current, move up the Google rankings and well, demonstrate a certain level of understanding of trends in the industry. When everyone and their grandma has a blog, how can a freelance journalist, a businessperson in every sense of the word, not? Do you trust businesses with static websites? I don’t. Not anymore.
Some freelancers who do various kinds of work will have pages dedicated to that kind of work. For example, if you do editing on the side or write copy or press releases, those could go in an entirely different section than that of your magazine work. And if you’ve written one or more books, definitely have a “Books” page with a page dedicated to each book.
That’s all I can think of. Am I missing anything? What do you think? Is there anything else this reader should be adding to her website?