Writing Portfolio Makeover #1 - monicashaw.com
Real life portfolio makeovers with a 5-point action plan to make them really shine
Welcome to my Writing Portfolio Makeovers! In this monthly series I review a real person’s writing portfolio and reveal what’s working, what needs work, and specific actions the writer can do to create a standout portfolio that sells their craft and gets them more gigs. Paid subscribers can read the full makeover and learn valuable tips for their own portfolio from real life examples. Founding members get their own portfolio makeover! Learn more about portfolio makeovers in my previous post, and get in with 25% off an annual subscription so you can keep reading, and potentially get a critique of your own - remember it’s founding members who get the critique!
I’m kick starting the series with something very personal by reviewing my own writing portfolio at monicashaw.com.
Summary
Monica (me!) is what many freelance writers are - a person with a lot of side hustles and different threads to her long “career”. As a freelance writer, she’s written on many topics - her passion is food and travel but having studied math and science, she’s also written a ton about data science, e-commerce, and tech. Monica also runs a software business, consults on SEO and analytics for other companies, and freelances as a mountain guide. That’s a lot of hustling.
This presents an inherent challenge when it comes to her writing portfolio. How do you encapsulate all of that work into a cohesive “story” that sells through a portfolio website? (This is, after all, what a portfolio is meant to do: “sell” who you are, whether you’re a freelance writer, journalist, designer, architect, or anything else with a portfolio of work that demonstrates how awesome you are.)
What Works / Doesn’t Work
✅ First impressions are everything and the portfolio website is immediately easy to read with straightforward navigation. There’s no flashy graphics; visually you might call it “simple”, but in the game of writing portfolios, simplicity is your friend. It should be really straightforward for the reader to find the information they care about, and that’s probably going to be your writing samples and potentially your resume / experience. ❌ Arguably, Monica might benefit from a more obvious headshot / profile picture so people can SEE who’s behind the words - that personal connection is a big deal, which is why social platforms like LinkedIn are so popular.
✅ Writing samples are organised by Category (Business, Food, Travel, etc). This helps address the issue of having numerous writing samples on a huge variety of topics. There’s a lot of writing samples here, but the most recent writing sample is from 2008 (!!!). ❌ This gives the impression that the writer hasn’t written in a while, or hasn’t taken the time to update her portfolio. Either way, the lack of updates could make potential clients / editors wonder if indeed the Monica is still writing - or is no longer part of this mortal world!
✅ Monica has a lot of good info about herself on the homepage, in the writing samples, and on the About Page. ❌ However, the story across pages is a bit disjoint. The About page is focused on my general freelancing, the Home page is focused on freelance writing and her SaaS, and the Writing Samples page is focused on freelance writing.
✅ The writing samples look good. Clippings are displayed in a visually appealing way. Links to download clips or visit the publication are easy to find.
✅ Contact info is easy to find, however… ❌ social media links are buried at the bottom of the page in the footer. Not ideal, particularly when LinkedIn is such a popular way for writers to network.
❌ With such a long-standing career, it would be great to see some professional proof, be it through testimonials or, better yet, case studies.
❌ The site lacks any calls to action, even a simple “contact me to discuss your needs”.
The 5-Point Action Plan
What 5 Things Should Monica Do Now To Improve Her Portfolio?
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