It took me practically 10 years of freelancing to determine it out, however I lastly recognized the one best stumbling block that would-be freelance writers face:
The web site.
Simply give it some thought — many people, when getting began, do not know tips on how to make an internet site that promotes our freelance writing providers and there’s a mountain of choices to make, plus a steep studying curve going through us. Even with an amazing tutorial about how to start a blog, it’s powerful to get all of it sorted out.
Why is making a author web site so difficult?
Right here’s the way it usually performs out.
You desire a web site however you don’t know how to choose a domain name. Ought to it’s your identify? A enterprise identify? One thing cute and intelligent? And also you’re hesitant to do the rest in your fledgling enterprise till you’ve picked out the best enterprise identify of all time.
As soon as you progress previous the identify debate and choose a very good choice, there’s all of the tech to worry over. Speak about intimidating!
Actually, intimidation is the secret, and it goes rather a lot deeper than simply determining tips on how to create an internet site. For a lot of would-be writers, web site prices are the primary actual enterprise expense you incur. You might be paying actual cash to speculate on this enterprise…and placing some pores and skin within the sport, regardless of how small, makes it actual.
What do people do after they’re going through one thing new and scary? We keep away from.
Enter: Web site evaluation paralysis. We overplay the importance of each element to make this procrastination “legitimate” after which really feel justified in delaying the actual work of freelance writing (which is, after all, the precise arduous half).
I’ve seen this cycle play out many dozens if not a whole lot of instances over the previous 10 years, first amongst my colleagues after which with my college students.
Right here’s a straightforward resolution: Create a one-page web site
Lastly, I discovered a workaround.
What I’ve been recommending currently — with good outcomes — is what I name the one-page web site.
It’s a easy, elegant resolution for freelance service suppliers who don’t have the finances or bandwidth to place collectively a sturdy website (the way in which we’re “speculated to”) however nonetheless need one thing extra customized than a number of the writing portfolio web sites for writers available on the market.
The one-pager is strictly because it sounds: an internet site that has one web page.
It may be as stripped-down as a easy touchdown web page or as sturdy as a multi-section scroll-fest (often known as parallax fashion).
It doesn’t matter what, every thing you want is true there on the entrance web page.
The fantastic thing about the one-page web site is that it delivers all the mandatory info whereas eradicating the “stress” of constructing after which filling a number of pages of content material. For severe rookies who need to do their web site “the proper manner” however discover the tech components too intimidating, the thought of leaning on a one-page theme and writing simply a few paragraphs is welcome reduction.
Curious? Let me present you the way it works.
What ought to a one-page web site for freelance writers embrace?
The one-pager distills all of the vital info your shoppers want and presents it in a small, tidy bundle. This consists of:
- Your identify
- Your expertise
- The service(s) you supply
- Samples of your writing
- Testimonials and social proof
- Tips on how to attain you
- Nice photograph of you (extremely really useful, however not required)
That’s it! Actually there’s extra you might embrace if you happen to wished, however these are the necessities.
May you provide you with a sentence or two for every of those sections? Method quicker than writing a whole website’s price of content material? Yep, I assumed so.
Tips on how to construct a one-page web site
Probably the most difficult a part of placing collectively a one-page web site is discovering the template you need to use.
I take advantage of WordPress and at all times have, so my go-to for a one-pager is WordPress templates. Many WordPress themes, together with free themes, include built-in one-page templates. Just a few I’ve heard others advocate are Uncode, OceanWP, Astra (the free Completely satisfied Paws theme is a superb place to begin) and Clear-Fix.
The simplest solution to get began on WordPress is thru BlueHost. If you purchase internet hosting from this firm, it prices simply $2.95/month, they usually’ll throw within the area of your selection. Then you’ll be able to add WordPress to that website with a one-click set up. (If this sounds complicated, right here’s a information to starting a blog that walks you thru it.)
In the event you want inspiration, The Muse has an attention-grabbing assortment of one-page websites. Some are very simple and appear to be touchdown pages; others are extra complicated and design-focused.
As you overview examples and contemplate themes and templates, look extra at layouts than particular particulars like colours and pictures. See the place images are positioned on these templates, and take into consideration what images you’d need there as a substitute.
Additionally have in mind the way you need to strategy testimonials; some themes have a complete part dedicated to them, and others have part breaks in-built all through the web page that could be a very good place to park a overview or two.
Constructing an internet site from scratch takes a while, particularly if you happen to’ve by no means performed it earlier than. If you end up spending greater than per week or two on it, nevertheless, you could be veering into “overcomplication” territory.
Lean into the one-page web site to streamline the method and get your website constructed rapidly, so you will get onto the half the place you construct your rock-solid freelance writing enterprise.
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Photograph by way of GuadiLab / Shutterstock
