What should you exclude from your content writing portfolio?

You must exclude irrelevant samples from your writing portfolio. For example, a prospect is looking for a crypto writer, and you have written on it. You send them your whole portfolio, which includes blogs about crypto, beauty, pets, etc, and everything you wrote about. The reason was to make them realize you can write about other niches, too. But after seeing samples of different niches, they may think you are not a pro at the crypto niche.

To build a strong content writing portfolio, showcase your best work and highlight your strengths. Avoid including anything that doesn't demonstrate your skills or expertise. 1. Low-quality content:"Exclude any work that you don't feel represents your best in your portfolio." 2. Unrelated content: If you have written content that is not related to the type of writing you want to do, it's best to leave it out of your portfolio as it may confuse potential clients. 3. Confidential content: Respect your client's privacy and avoid including any confidential content in your portfolio. 4. Outdated content: If you have written content that is no longer relevant or outdated, it's best to leave it out of your portfolio.

Deberías excluir todo lo que no te represente en la actualidad. La redacción es algo que evoluciona con el tiempo y la práctica. No redactas igual a como lo hacías hace 1 año...es más: no redactas igual que hace 3 meses. Vamos mejorando y evolucionando y eso debería verse reflejado en nuestros portafolios. También hay que eliminar cualquier muestra que no forme parte del nicho que queremos abarcar. ¿Por qué? Si ponemos trabajos de un tema que no nos gusta, es probable que recibamos ofertas justo de ese tema. Y sobre todo: quita todo lo que no te haga sentir orgullo. Si no sientes que terminaste una obra maestra, no merece estar en tu portafolio.

As I progressed in my marketing career, I realized the importance of tailoring my portfolio to the niche I'm targeting. Just like designing graphics for a specific audience, your writing portfolio should resonate with the clients you're aiming to attract. Including pieces that don't align with your expertise or the interests of potential clients can dilute your brand and diminish your appeal.

Exclude irrelevant or outdated work from your content writing portfolio to showcase only your best and most recent pieces, ensuring a focused and impressive representation of your skills.

Just as the way we speak constantly changes, so too does writing. Gone are the days, for instance, when it was considered appropriate to write text full of obscure words, overly long sentences and dense paragraphs. Today, simplicity and ease of reading is key. Your writing portfolio needs to include work that demonstrates your understanding of current writing principles and vocabulary. Pro tip: drop the jargon and corporate speak. It doesn't make you look clever. Rather, it makes you look out of touch with current trends.

Your content writing portfolio should showcase your best work and expertise. To maintain this, consider excluding: . Anything that doesn't reflect your current abilities or standards . Pieces that don't align with the type of writing you want to focus on . Content that you're not authorized to share publicly . Lengthy content—keep your portfolio concise and impactful . Outdated material that doesn't represent your style, voice, or skills anymore Remember, the goal is to present a strong, focused portfolio that highlights your strengths. Quality over quantity is key.

I've been writing since I was 5, but I'd never show the handmade books I scribbled up as a child to anyone who I hoped would still respect me. Your portfolio needs to be up-to-date to reflect what you can do now.

Except you want to be known as an "Ancient Landmark", you need to stay up to date. It's that simple! Let your audience feel the freshness of your brand through your updated content samples. It'll speak a lot about you, and show you to be more authentic. Stay close with new information and trends, and watch new audiences flow in.

In the fast-evolving world of marketing, staying current is key. My early graphic designs might show my journey, but in my writing portfolio, outdated content can give the impression of being out of touch. Ensure your samples reflect current trends, styles, and industry standards.

Quantity is good, but quality is best. Don't make the error of trying to impress your client with lots of mixed samples, including the not-so-good ones. Trust me, those ones will capture their minds more than the good work samples. If you got just one good sample, share it, and keep the other ones out. That's how you grow.

Throughout my career, I've learned the importance of ethical marketing. Just as I avoided controversial graphics, steer clear of including any writing that could be deemed offensive or harmful. Your portfolio should represent your professionalism and respect for diverse audiences.

As a writer, you will encounter various clients. Especially those who don't want to hear you out and proceed with their initial idea (even if the idea is harmful to their business or a better alternative can be found). Such samples could be harmful to your portfolio. Even if 70% of the content is your work, the other 30% won't showcase your tone of voice, strategies, and writing techniques. Avoid using such content on your portfolio or be specific when you showcase your work. Talk about your contributions to the project, your approach, and the client's decision.

One of my best digital content pieces was for the plastic surgery industry. The viewership of the article was staggering and I wanted to show that data. Unfortunately, the meta image associated with the link from the publisher was not appropriate for online portfolios. If I embedded the link (like in the projects here on LinkedIn), it was an image of nothing but cleavage. I ultimately decided to take it down. The analytics can still be showcased, but the article embed itself became harmful for others not in that industry. Someone asked me in an interview why I was using that image and where has it come from. I realized it was a harmful sample because the image derailed everyone from the stats and quality of writing.

It's a little too important to review our samples before we add them to our portfolio. If they involve content that is purely AI generated, or if the content is partly copied from different sources, or if the samples don't align with the goals or motivations of our client, they can invite unnecessary trouble. If you want to generate samples to impress your prospect, take help of AI and other sources only to brainstorm. Use your own skill to write the necessary content.

Bad samples are, well, bad news. Just skip them altogether. You should think of your portfolio as more of a highlight reel than a filing cabinet stretched to its limits with newspaper clippings no one wants to read or associate anything with. Bad samples of your writing just make you look like (drumroll here...) a bad writer. As a general rule, almost all of your samples from your first year of professional writing should be quarantined. Unless you have third-party proof that they are passable, they probably aren't very good. And no, your Mom's praise does not count as proof (bless her soul).

P.S. You're starting out newly, but your quality doesn't have to be low. In fact, a startup with top quality is a big plus ✓ Before you submit that work sample, check it twice more. Ensure to correct every seemingly small and large mistake, because some of your clients are very attentive to detail. Doing this would just make your client see no better for the job than you.

This topic can't be emphasized on enough. Relevant samples also involve appropriate vocabulary, grammar, and spellings in place. Might sound like a simple thing to take care of, but it creates a very big impact in the minds of your prospects about the attention you give to details. Better not leave it to luck that your prospects don't pay attention. It's always a good idea to run your content through Grammarly or any other tool that helps you check your grammar and vocabulary before you put it out there.

Starting as a basic graphic designer, I quickly learned that quality trumps quantity. The same goes for your writing samples. It's better to have a few high-quality pieces than a plethora of mediocre ones. Your portfolio is a testament to your skills and should only showcase your best work.

In my experience it is important to be able to really own up to your content. And if - after delivering your work to your client - it gets messed up with, you don't need to 'own it' anymore. I did an ENTIRE website redo for a client once, wrote all the content or re-edited existing copy. And when the job was done my time at the company was over. So I left and went on to other new clients. Little did I know, that they would completely f*ck up - pardon my French - the entire content! So nowadays when I get asked what I've done in the past, I make sure I only mention the ones that did respect my work and profession. If there's anything I've learnt from this experience: there's specialists for a reason. And it should stay that way :)

Using unpublished samples doesn't show credibility and authority. You can consider using samples from your blog or website to showcase your skills

In my freelancing journey, I've found that published pieces carry more weight. They show potential clients that your work is not only good but also marketable. While it's tempting to include unpublished gems, prioritize samples that have been recognized and shared in the public domain.

Honesty is very important, especially as a service provider. I didn't have a work sample when I met my first client. I simply asked for an opportunity to serve, and showed personal projects I did, mentioning that they are PERSONAL projects. P.S. Don't harm your brand with unauthentic work samples. It's better to be honest about your work history, than to give a false mystery.

Irrelevant samples. Outdated samples. Harmful samples. What experts are saying. Low-quality samples. Unpublished samples. Unapproved samples.

Showing clients samples that don't demonstrate your top skills and aren't available publicly might not give them the best impression of what you can do, making it harder for them to see your true capabilities.

Don't put stuff that you signed NDAs for. Seriously. In fact, you don't even need to have signed an NDA. You know what should be confidential 90% of the time. It's usually in the contract. For the other 10%, ask.

Just as I always sought approval for my graphic designs before publicizing them, ensure you have the right to share your written work. Including unapproved samples can lead to legal issues and tarnish your reputation. Always get consent from previous clients or employers before adding any work to your portfolio.

Unapproved samples of your clients should not be included. For example: As a ghost writer, you don't want to include samples of your clients without taking permission first. You can go for samples that does not reveal any detail/data

Your samples should explain how you met the KPIs that your Updated Ideal clients are searching for. E.g., I am a writer who wants to work with an Agriculture business. Do you know what you will find in my samples? ➣Links to all the past clients I have worked for regardless of niche. ➣Proof that I am a subject matter expert in Agriculture ➣And constant content that informs my ideal audience of the possibilities in online agriculture

Building a portfolio is much like building a brand. It should evolve as you do. Regularly update it, not just with new content, but also by reassessing your old pieces. As I climbed the ranks from a graphic designer to a marketing head, my portfolio evolved to reflect my growing skills and changing interests. Keep your portfolio dynamic and representative of your current capabilities and career aspirations.

Sujeto, verbo, predicado y punto. Ahí está el secreto. Bueno, y respetar las reglas gramaticales. Aprovecho a reivindicar que la @ no es una letra y que la X no se corresponde con ninguna vocal, así que mejor las usamos solo donde corresponda.

The things that I try to avoid are- 1. Your personal inclination towards a particular topic until is meant to be for that 2. The works that have potential to hurt someone's personal feelings and sentiments 3. The works that look biased or written to having only a limited criteria about the points 4. Works that are fake or copied Sum up, The samples of work in your portfolio that are indentity of your authenticity, credibility and your own thought process, should be included, rest should be avoided to be created and included in the portfolio.