[MalcolmDiggs]

I freelanced for about 5 years, and honestly almost nobody EVER went to my website. It's a referral driven business; you shine through the projects you build for other people. If clients are satisfied with your work, they'll spread the news about you. I can't think of anyone I know who has ever gotten business from some random person who landed on their website. That's why many freelancer sites just contain contact-info and that's it.

[codegeek]

I don't quite agree with you. I have personally contacted freelancers randomly whom I found online due to their blogs or specific writings on topics that I needed help with. It is true that this effort does not always pay off but I still think that creating your own online brand is always a good idea for a freelancer.

The thing is that if you just have a website with basic information, it is as good as not having one. You need to put some effort into it by sharing your knowledge online. This is tough for a lot of people as writing and teaching is a skill that not everyone has. But it does help if you do it with a specific focus.

[MalcolmDiggs]

I totally see what you're saying; and when I started freelancing I thought the same way. But the longer I played the game, the more I noticed an inverse correlation between the success of freelancers, and their perceived accessibility. It' much like hedge-fund managers, or attorneys, or personal trainers, any other bespoke service provider. The folks with very little information, who are hard to reach, and who will only take a meeting if you're referred by someone in their circle, those are the ones who (in my experience) are making the most money.

It's a bit like perceived scarcity. Building a flashy portfolio website really only says two things: "I have free time on my hands", and "My demand is so low I have to put effort into advertising". Sure, if you're just getting started, that might be the brand you wanna build. But as you gain momentum, having less of a public brand is often better for business than having more.

It's counter-intuitive, I know; and maybe my experience was colored by the freelancers I happened to know at the time. But it convinced me enough that I took down my website while I was freelancing full time, I only put it back up after I quit, (to use as a resume to get full time job.) Removing my online presence did wonders for my business, and that's why I recommend it.

[BjoernKW]

In my experience, the freelancers who do this almost entirely depend on recruiters and whatever job those have lined up at the moment. Having your own professional website conveys the message that you're an independent service provider instead of a commodity.

[k__]

Point is, how do you get word around in the first place?

[Zelmor]

Legwork. Find sites that you find you could make better. Make a demo, contact the owner. Do this a hundred times a week. Starting is hard, and you should be willing to do the legwork. Also reach out to folks at your old workplace.

As for portfolio, just go with linkedin and whatever you feel you would like to sign up for. These hubs are the first place people check. A personal site is nice for blog posts and such, but I wouldn't put more effort into it than a wordpress site with contact info and links to things you already made. Stuff you write, if you do at all. See weatherfactory biz for an example

[dalerus]

Great article on this: http://alistapart.com/article/getting-clients

[BjoernKW]

Yes, referrals are an important sales channel for freelancing.

However, meeting and talking to people, in other words just plain old sales work is vital, too. That's where a decent website helps a lot: You can refer people interested in your services to your website for further information, testimonials, previous projects etc.

In other words, potential customers probably won't find you via a Google search (unless you're a high-profile specialist or open source contributor in your area of expertise) but a decent business website will complement the rest of your sales efforts.

[rabidonrails]

Perhaps this makes a difference if the freelancer is a designer. The first thing I do when looking at a designer is check out their personal site. To me it's kind of like hiring an interior designer -- I want to know what their own house looks like before I hire them to work on mine.

[k__]

I know.

I just wanted it to be kind of a better "business card".