In this guide, we’ll go over everything you need to know about compiling an impactful copywriting portfolio – from What to Why, to How. We’ll walk you through the individual elements you need to create and combine. You’ll also find outstanding inspirational examples along with valuable tips and tricks to maximize your chances to impress your potential clients and employers.
Are you looking for new full-time employment as a copywriter or making a fresh start in a freelance copywriting career? Either way, this is an exciting yet intimidating experience. Given the intense competition and the ever-growing requirements, it’s not always easy to get your foot in the door.
One thing’s for sure – we live in a time of employment fluidity and dynamics. The past three years have seen a considerable increase in the number of people quitting and changing jobs. The Great Resignation and the Great Reshuffle doubled the quit rate between 2020 and 2021, with a staggering 4.5 million U.S. workers leaving their current employment in November 2021.
On the other hand, freelance has been on the rise for years. However, it was the pandemic that gave a particular impetus to this trend. Reportedly, 36% of the entire U.S. workforce, or 59 million Americans, were freelancing on a temporary or long-term basis. What’s more, the increasing tendency is expected to prevail, exceeding 90 million by 2028.
Also, it’s established that freelance writing, content services, and journalism form the third most dominant freelance sector accounting for 17% of all freelancers globally.
So, your success as a freelancer largely depends on how well you’ll manage to convince potential clients that you’re the rockstar copywriter they need. This is where an effective and persuasive copywriting portfolio comes into play.
In fact, many employers will require you to supply a copywriting portfolio before they even look at any other part of your job application. This can mean having to go back through all of your writing samples and pick out just the best ones to include. It’s important that you do this carefully so that your work is represented well in the very first impression it creates!
So, take a large coffee, seat yourself comfortably, and let’s dive into the exciting topic of showing the best of you to the world.
What Is a Copywriting Portfolio?
Think of your copywriting portfolio as the strongest card in your hand that has to win your battle. This is an organized collection of pieces that demonstrate your prowess as a writer and show off the skills you have developed over time.
A good copywriting portfolio should feature a variety of different types of writing projects arranged in an easy-to-navigate manner. From blog posts to email newsletters, landing pages, to social media content, your portfolio should include everything you’ve done in the past year or so. It can be in the form of writings, photos, illustrations, and other materials that demonstrate your skills and experience.
This marketing tool helps you promote yourself to potential clients as an expert in the field. Its purpose is to showcase your best writing while providing social proof of your quality content services and clear contact details.
Laurence Blume’s copywriting portfolio is a great example of how you can introduce yourself and your work, emphasizing what makes you unique among the whole lot of copywriters. In Laurance’s case, this is his extensive writing experience and the ability to precisely tailor the tone and voice of his copy to the needs of his clients, irrespective of the size of their business.
A short video lets Laurence’s prospects get a more vivid idea of who’s the person behind the description and what his approach is. This section ends with a call to action and contact details – making sure that your potential clients will be able to find you easily is essential.
What follows the brief and convincing introduction is a testimonial section serving as social proof.
The collection of samples grouped in an exhaustive list of categories helps potential clients get a clear and detailed picture of the expertise and experience of the copywriter.
Now that you have a more concrete idea of what your portfolio should look like and serve for, let’s answer the next critical question.
Why Do You Need a Copywriting Portfolio?
A copywriter’s portfolio is an essential tool for landing high-paying writing jobs. It’s a showcase for the work you’ve done, and it serves as proof that you can deliver on a client’s project.
A well-crafted copywriting portfolio helps you:
Get More Exposure
Your portfolio offers great potential to increase your visibility and attract new prospects, particularly when you make sure to implement search engine optimization (SEO) best practices. Using the right keywords in your main header and throughout your portfolio will make your work easily seen by potential clients running a specific search in search engines. Another beneficial strategy that can enhance your SEO is naturally linking relevant high-ranking pages and sources in your portfolio.
So, if you target a particular niche like SaaS or marketing, opt for using “SaaS copywriter” or “marketing copywriter” instead of “freelance copywriter”. What’s more, being more specific will help the right clients recognize you as the experienced professional they’re looking for, which means that “direct response copywriter” is an effective way to indicate your field of expertise more precisely. If you’re wondering which keywords will best work for you, don’t hesitate to use keyword research tools – they can save ages of trial and error.
Reach a Variety of Audiences and Potential Clients
A copywriting portfolio is your go-to if you’re just starting a freelance career or looking to change your current copywriting job. Its potential uses, however, go beyond that.
Here’s the deal. You’re planning to help other writers improve their skills by setting up courses in copywriting. Whatever the specific subject matter of your course, your portfolio can go a long way in proving your expertise to your prospects and encouraging them to enroll.
In addition, a copywriting portfolio put and promoted on the web can be your best advertisement, enabling you to save from paid ads.
Bring To Light Your Best Work
A good copywriter will have written hundreds or even thousands of different pieces of content in their career. Some are great and some are terrible, but very few people want to see all of them. When a potential client visits your website, they’ll want to see examples of your work.
A good copywriter portfolio organizes and highlights all of your best works into one place so visitors can easily find them. It’s your chance to show potential clients your greatest skills and make them see how you can help their business grow. This will give the client confidence in your abilities and make them more likely to hire you again in the future.
Prove Your Experience
You may be an amazing writer who can turn any topic into gold, or you might have written for newspapers in the past or worked as an editor for a magazine. Whatever your case is, a good copywriter portfolio shows the full range of your experience as a writer and proves that you have enough experience under your belt. It also shows that you have written a lot of content and you know how to write for different mediums and formats.
Your copywriting portfolio gives potential clients an idea of how much experience you have in their field, which can help them decide if they should hire you or not.
Highlight Your Writing Style
What style do you use? Are you funny or serious, conversational or formal? This is one of the important factors that potential clients take into consideration. Why? They’ll want to see if you can match your style with their brand voice. Unless you have samples of your work available, it can be difficult for potential clients or employers to tell whether your writing fits their needs.
So, a good copywriting portfolio will showcase your ability to write in different styles and tones. This helps potential clients see how versatile you are as a writer, which eventually increases your chances of getting hired.
Reveal Your Writing Process
How do you go about creating effective copywriting? What steps do you take? How long does the process take – from the start to the last revision? A good copywriting portfolio will highlight your writing process so potential clients can see how well-organized, thorough, and detail-oriented you are as a writer. It also highlights how much research goes into each project and what kind of information you gather. So, showing examples of different stages of the process can bring transparency and build trust.
Provide a Way to Contact or Reach Out to You
A strong copywriting portfolio provides your name, email address, phone number, and website. It’s an opportunity for clients to contact you directly. If they like your work, they can reach out to you and ask for your rates, availability, or other details.
So, without knowing what kind of quality they’ll receive, clients may feel like they’re taking a gamble by hiring you. With a well-crafted copywriting portfolio, you’ll be able to overcome their reservations.
What To Include in Your Copywriting Portfolio?
To publish your portfolio online, you need to set up a personal writer website. While your portfolio samples and the way they’re arranged may vary depending on what you do (and what type of clients you want to attract), there are several key components you can’t omit:
Home Page
The first thing that should catch the eye of a potential client is your home page, so it’s a great opportunity to make an immediate impression. This is the place where you will introduce yourself and give them an overview of your services and how you can help them solve their problems.
The images that you use on your home page should be high-quality and high-resolution, without impairing page loading speed or causing any other technical issues for visitors.
Also, it’s important that this page is easy to read and navigate, with no unnecessary distractions. Clients don’t have time to search through multiple pages just to find out what kind of copy you have written. Use categories and tags so that they can easily find what they’re looking for.
About Page
This page should explain who you are, how you work with clients, what makes you different from other copywriters, and why they should hire you. An about page can also be used to tell potential clients about your qualifications, achievements, and awards you’ve received unless you’ve decided to include them in a separate Awards page, which we’ll discuss below.
So, how do you create a good “About Me” page?
Make sure to offer concise and relevant information – don’t just ramble on about how much you love writing. Instead, include:
- How long you’ve been working in the industry
- What qualifications you have
- Your strengths
- Bullet points to highlight your skills and experience
- CTAs
- Anything else that might be relevant
Another strategy is to use this page to reinforce your concern and understanding of customer journey, which will help them recognize themselves as your clients while establishing you as an industry expert (like Kayla Hollatz’s excellent About page we’ll discuss in a while – just stay tuned).
The impact of your About page depends on how well you’ve designed it and how wisely you’ve picked the information it provides to visitors.
Contact Page
The purpose of the contact page for your copywriting portfolio is to offer potential clients reliable ways to get in touch with you. Make sure to include all relevant contact details, such as:
- Your name
- Phone number
- A professional email address
- Skype ID (if applicable)
- Social media profiles so that potential clients can connect with you on any channel they prefer
Also, consider including your postal address and a map showing your office location and providing directions.
However, if you don’t want to include personal details on your website, there are plenty of free contact forms that will allow potential clients to get in touch with you.
Make your contact page simple and easy to understand. The more complicated it is, the more likely it is to confuse visitors.
Services and Rates
It’s time to show clients the services you offer, including the types of projects you specialize in. This is especially important if you’re a freelance copywriter who charges per word or by the hour. If you prefer to price by the project instead, include a list of typical projects, such as blog posts, websites, email campaigns, etc., with prices next to them so that potential customers can see how much they’d be paying.
Also, highlight all of the popular services and make sure that readers are familiar with them. You might include links or buttons directing readers to additional information like blog posts about copywriting or relevant case studies.
You can include a brief description of what makes each service unique. This can offer details like how many years of experience you have doing this type of work and testimonials from happy clients.
Awards and Accolades
Have you won any awards for your copywriting skills? They are one of the ways to prove how good your work is compared to your competitors. Also, do you have any certifications or qualifications related to this type of work?
Include any available proof of your professional skills showing that you’ve been recognized for your writing. This boosts your credibility as an expert in your field letting your potential clients know they’re getting top-quality services.
Projects for Reference (Or Your Copywriting Portfolio Internal Page)
The goal here is to show off your work, your personality, creativity, and most importantly ability to adapt to a variety of styles, tones, industries, and projects. Your copywriting portfolio should contain a versatile selection of your best writing samples.
And another critical point. Being a good copywriter, you know how much effort you’ve put into every single piece you’ve written, and you love all of them. Tempting as it may be to show all the copy you’ve done, it’s better to sort out your best work so as not to overwhelm visitors.
Make sure that each project is clearly identified and described, including who the client is, what the product is, what kind of copy you did, and how long it took. If possible, include a link to your published copy or screenshots of the final product so that clients can see what they’ll be getting if they hire you.
Case Studies
A case study is a detailed description of how you helped your client solve a problem and achieve their goal. It explains how they came to you with a problem and what solution you provided.
Look at writing a case study as a great additional opportunity to demonstrate your copywriting and storytelling skills and show off your ability to create powerful, persuasive content. But how do you write an effective case study? Here are the main top tips:
1. Identify the problem
2. Outline the solution
3. Explain how you did it
4. Show how it worked out
Let your prospects peek into your working process. For example, did you use specific techniques or formats that helped increase conversions? Did you write compelling headlines that caused people to take action? Showing these will help potential clients understand what makes your copywriting so effective, and will tip the scales in your favor.
Make sure to include examples of work where your copy made a significant impact on the final result. Be specific by citing any figures and numbers, such as 15,000 new subscribers, a 30% expansion of the client’s email list, or 87% leads generated by the website SEO. Numbers are an undefeatable and irresistible argument that works for you.
Testimonials
Testimonials for your copywriting portfolio can be a positive review on your website or a video interview with the customer discussing what they like about your service.
Testimonials are an important element of every copywriter’s portfolio. They can help convince clients that you’re the right copywriter for the job. Testimonials can also:
- Add credibility to your work
- Help you build trust with your potential clients
- Make you look more professional
- Help you attract more clients
Testimonials are a great way to show off previous work by highlighting specific projects that were completed successfully. This helps potential clients see for themselves how valuable your services can be for helping them achieve their goals.
So, how do you take advantage of testimonials? Start by choosing them carefully. Testimonials should be specific, mentioning the service, the results obtained, and any other relevant details about the project. The best way to do this is by getting recommendations from satisfied customers and clients. You can also ask for feedback on your work after completing a project.
Next, get permission before adding testimonials to your website. Some clients may not want their names or companies to appear on your website, so make sure that they agree to publish their endorsement first. Otherwise, you risk being sued for defamation.
Finally, decide which testimonial will work best for your business needs. Focus on the strengths that set you apart from other agencies or freelancers. For example, if you’re great at creating landing pages that convert well, ask a happy client to describe the impact of the piece you created for them.
5 Great Copywriting Portfolio Examples for Your Reference and Inspiration
Now that you’re aware of what your portfolio should offer to your prospects, let’s look at copywriters that have done a great job and managed to stand out and draw our attention.
Joe Coleman
This is one of our top favorites. Joe’s home page is unique in terms of both copy and design. It’s interactive and allows visitors to slide the marker along the Less Hard Sell – More Hard Sell axis showing the copy building in action. This serves a twofold purpose: to spark interest and amuse and to demonstrate the capacity of the copywriter to adapt his tone and voice in line with the client’s needs.
Note that the funny element seamlessly blends with a clear call to action and a telephone number, indicating the desired steps the visitor has to take.
The Portfolio tab is located at the top of the drop-down menu so that visitors can instantly spot it. The samples are presented with high-quality images creating a sense of professionalism and attention to detail.
In addition, visitors can see all awards that Joe has received and his CV as extra proof of his outstanding skills and experience.
Except for a phone number and email address, the Contact section features direct links to Joe’s social media (Twitter and LinkedIn), so potential clients can take a peek into his personality, posts, interests, and values.
Creating a full-blooded image enhances trust and can assure brands that you’re on the same page and share the same values.
Dayarne Smith
Dayarne Smith provides another good example of a portfolio that is easy to locate on her website.
The portfolio is presented through computer screen illustrations, which creates a sense of authenticity. In addition to the precise identification of the particular copy Dayarne has written, she provides links to the corresponding websites where potential clients can see the full version of her copy.
This is a great strategy to showcase your work and the way it looks “in action.” If you opt for such a strategy, make sure to regularly check that the links are functional as broken links can significantly impair your credibility.
Stephen Marsh
Here’s an excellent illustration of building a consistent website copy centered around bringing value to the client. Stephen is making it easier for visitors to look at his portfolio by providing an option to open or download it as a PDF on his home page and every internal page.
Under the Work tab, Stephen has created a great headline encouraging prospective clients to go through the samples he’s chosen to showcase. Also, visitors can look into more pieces and projects in the Recent Projects section on the What I Do page.
Note that offering the option to download and print the portfolio is particularly effective for bigger brands with larger senior teams – it’s more convenient to provide them with the opportunity to discuss their employment decision over the paperform of your portfolio looking at its best.
In addition, including extra samples of your work under a Recent Projects or Featured Projects section can contribute to creating a more detailed picture of your copywriting capacities.
Jennifer Cheek (The Copy Canary)
This example illustrates personalizing a copywriter’s home page by adding a personal touch when creating a portfolio from a template. The effect is achieved through the unique logo and the color scheme that make the portfolio recognizable and memorable.
Your main purpose when creating a copywriting portfolio is to stand out and impress. So, showing bits of your personality can help you grab the attention of your potential clients and establish a distinct and catchy presence.
Kayla Hollatz
Kayla’s website stands out with its consistent, stylish design that makes her portfolio easily identifiable and accessible. The home page starts by offering visitors to take a quiz – an interactive element designed to boost engagement.
A very concise section introduces the copywriter, after which the focus is placed on the potential client and the way Kayla can help make their website more converting and their business more successful.
The unique selling proposition is clear: Selling with Soul (through a personalized brand voice and story). The social proof provided in the Client Results section aims to create trust and desire.
Also, take a look at the example of Kayla’s About page of her portfolio and the way she focuses on her potential client first.
It’s essential to show potential clients that your goal is achieving their goal and that your focus is their success. Center your Home page, About page, and Portfolio around your prospect – it’s not just a great copywriter but an ally they’re looking for.
How To Host Your Copywriting Portfolio?
If you want to build a copywriting portfolio, it can be a bit tricky to know where to start. The good news is that there are numerous options available. Here are some different places where you can upload your portfolio:
WordPress
WordPress is a free website platform that makes it easy for anyone to create their own website without having any coding experience. It’s a great option if you want an easy way to start building a portfolio without going through the hassle of setting up an entire website from scratch.
All you have to do is choose a domain name and customize your site with the right plugins and themes to showcase your work in an attractive way. Then add your content and you’re ready to impress your potential clients!
Squarespace
Squarespace is another popular option for creating websites. It has a number of available ready-to-use templates. You can easily add images, text, videos, or even interactive elements to each page of your site, allowing you to showcase your best work in a visually appealing way.
If you don’t have any existing sites with Squarespace already set up, there are plenty of tutorials online which will help you get started.
Squarespace pricing plan starts at $23 per month for a personal website with a free domain if you opt for paying monthly. If you’re still unsure about this platform, they offer a free trial.
Carbonmade
Carbonmade is a great option if you want to show off your work in a professional manner. It’s easy to use, offers a lot of customization options, and simplifies sharing your work with potential clients.
Instead of following a set format, Carbonmade lets you choose from dozens of blocks to design your website and rearrange them however you like.
To see whether this platform is a good fit for your needs, you can opt for a free trial. Paid plans start at $9 per month for up to 8 projects and unlimited videos and images.
Journo Portfolio
Journo Portfolio is an online writing portfolio website. This is such an attractive option for copywriters due to its easy setup and use. There are no technical skills required – you only need to create an account and start uploading your work.
Journo Portfolio’s dashboard lets you customize your site’s look in a matter of minutes. You can choose from six distinct themes and organize clips into any number of content blocks or pages. The platform also allows you to share documents in a variety of ways. You can link directly to clips (by typing their URL) or upload almost any kind of multimedia including PDFs, videos, and images.
What’s more, Journo Portfolio’s analytics will help you keep track of your most important metrics such as how many visitors have come to your site, how long they’ve stayed, and which pages they’ve visited most.
The best part? Journo Portfolio has a free version that allows you to create only a home page and upload up to 10 articles.
Pressfolios
Pressfolios is a platform that allows you to upload your copywriting portfolio and share it with the world. It’s an excellent way to display your best work and land more clients. The site has a simple format that allows you to upload your picture and your bio so you can create your copywriting portfolio in just a few seconds.
Every piece of copy that you upload is saved as a PDF and automatically made available through the cloud. This ensures that your content will never disappear if the original website goes down.
Pressfolios have a free trial for 14 days and after that, they’ll charge you $14.99 per month.
Writerfolio
Writerfolio is specially designed to allow writers to showcase their talent and impress potential clients. It’s easy to use and will give your portfolio a professional look. Writerfolio provides you with a home page for your writing and a web address that could be either yourname.writerfolio.com or any other version you opt for, such as yourname.com, provided it’s not taken by another user.
You can choose from a range of templates to get started quickly or start from scratch with your own design.
You can add as many projects or samples as you like and include photos and videos if you want. You can also link directly to documents related to each project so potential clients can see what you have written before they contact you.
How to Market Your Copywriting Portfolio Effectively
Now that you have a great copywriting portfolio uploaded, how do you actually attract potential clients for your copywriting services or writing courses? Here’s how to market yourself to prospects and get them interested in working with you.
Post your copywriting portfolio on social media
It’s essential to reach as many prospects as possible, convincing clients that you can write the copy they need and showing individuals aspiring to a copywriting career that there’s a lot they can learn from you. Social media like Facebook and Instagram offer a great opportunity to spread the word about your expertise and skills.
What’s more, LinkedIn is one of the best places to promote yourself as a B2B copywriter. Make sure to include a short description of your post, followed by a link to your copywriting portfolio. That way, anyone clicking on it will immediately be able to understand what niches of expertise are.
Join online communities
This is where other copywriters hang out. Sharing your portfolio will help demonstrate your skills and experience. You’re likely to meet like-minded professionals and develop contacts that may be able to recommend you for jobs or refer you to past clients who might need your services.
Write a blog post about your experience as a copywriter
This is an excellent way to show prospective employers and new copywriters that you have experience in the field. You can write blog posts about your writing process, tips for creating an effective copy, and anything relevant to make your clients see that you’re a good fit for their needs. Make sure to link to your portfolio where visitors can find more samples of your work.
Create a resource guide for new copywriters
You can share tips on how you got started writing copy and what resources helped you along the way. A resource guide is an easy way for new writers to learn about the industry and can be the lead magnet that will attract them to your course. Remember to include a link to your portfolio – what better way to show potential trainees that you can teach them valuable skills!
Create a YouTube channel
Talk about your experiences as a writer in actionable videos that are designed specifically for other writers who want to break into this field. Having video content like this on your channel will help attract more viewers and build an audience of people interested in learning from you directly.
A YouTube channel with a substantial following can help establish yourself as a thought leader and expert, which will have a positive impact on your copywriting career. Make sure to promote your portfolio so that potential clients who are interested in hiring you can get a better idea of your work.
Spread the word in email newsletters
Here’s the deal: You’ve included a subscription form on your personal website and built a list of subscribers. Whether these are potential clients interested in your copywriting services or in your writing courses, keep them warm by sending them updates of your portfolio and any new projects you’ve added.
Conclusion – Time To Rise and Shine With Your Irresistible Copywriting Portfolio
Ready to get in the spotlight? All you need to do is follow the guidelines above and apply the tips you’ve learned. And most importantly, create a copywriting portfolio that is an accurate representation of your skills and capabilities.
Don’t just throw any old work of yours and call it a day. Instead, think about what makes you unique as a copywriter, and what sets you apart from the competition so you can incorporate that into your portfolio.
Include your best work and keep your site in a well-organized format. Also, pay careful attention to detail and make sure that your copywriting portfolio is consistent across all pages. If done correctly, it will establish you as a trustworthy and knowledgeable copywriter, which will certainly open doors to prospective clients.
Remember that your success is all about your client’s success – make sure to get that message across and deliver on your promise later.
Good luck with your copywriting portfolio!
