As you're building your freelance career, you'll notice that most clients ask for your online portfolio first, before even proceeding with the interview stage or the project. Hence, having a professional portfolio is a must!

And no, you don't need advanced web development skills to set up a portfolio page. A simple website builder with drag-and-drop features is more than enough to show your work in a sleek and professional manner.

With that said, here are 8 Squarespace portfolio examples to inspire you and get your creative juices going.

First up is Word Weaver Freelance, a content marketing and copywriting service provider with a unique portfolio site. What we liked about this example is their human-centered approach to content and copywriting.

Shocker, right?!

After all, that's what they do best. The point is - you want your Squarespace site to show your work but also be an example of your work at the same time. So, instead of just listing copy and content samples, they managed to show their talent and expertise through written content on the site.

Next up is Olivia A. Lipski, a creative writer with a simple yet very aesthetic portfolio site. It's not packed with work samples yet it still shows enough to get clients interested. Above all, this portfolio website is a great example of clean and friendly design.

As you glance through the site, you'll notice how visuals and text flow together on the page, turning your quick scroll into a very enjoyable experience. User experience, as the pros call it, is an important factor to keep in mind when creating your own portfolio.

The main purpose of a portfolio is to show your best work. If you're an illustrator or an artist, let the images speak for themselves and focus on visuals over text. Michael Mariscano did a great job at presenting visuals and cutting out the noise on his portfolio site.

If your craft is related to art, digital creation, or anything visual, make sure to showcase as many photos as possible, and keep the text at a minimum. Perhaps this website can serve as inspiration for illustration and graphic design portfolios.

Next up is Tate Callejas and his very simple yet to the point portfolio website. This website is a great example of the importance of color coordination in page design. As you're creating your own portfolio, make sure the colors of your visuals and fonts match and complement one another.

It's easy to throw a bunch of photos on a site and call it a portfolio. However, making those visuals align is a true art of web design. Now, you don't have to be a web designer to create this effect but, if you're absolutely clueless about color coordination, we suggest consulting with a designer first.

What we liked about Samantha Leigh Smith's portfolio is the navigation bar that separated two different styles of work. A common mistake freelancers make when creating portfolio sites is that they throw a bunch of work samples together without any organisation or filtration system.

Ideally, you want to have separate pages for each service/style of work that you do. In this case, Samantha is clearly a designer/illustrator and she made a great choice to separate her design samples from illustration samples and make it easier for potential clients to find their way through the site.

If you're selling some sort of product, whether digital or tangible, the portfolio is a great place to showcase the item and make it available for people to buy. In this case, Samuel Zeller did a great job at putting the focus and attention onto his book.

That way, the portfolio website serves as both a portfolio and an e-commerce channel that opens up opportunities for extra revenue. If your work can be sold like this, you might want to consider creating an e-commerce channel for the sake of diversifying your income.

‍Emma Block's portfolio perfectly illustrates (excuse the pun) creative display of work. Every section of the landing page screams "creative illustrator," especially the illustrated headline (possibly even handwritten) that makes Emma stand out among the crowd.

Keep in mind that a design portfolio should showcase your style, aesthetic preferences, and personality all through creative visuals and out-of-the-box thinking. Another thing we liked about Emma's Squarespace portfolio is the fact that she had a popup element to promote her newsletter. Nice touch!

Liz Aggnett's portfolio site shows that you don't have to complicate your design to make it look good. In fact, a simpler landing page would work better for freelancers in more complex industries such as web development.

If you need web development portfolio website examples to get inspired, this can serve as a good one to start with. Although Liz is a freelance visual designer, her portfolio showcases simplicity and straightforwardness - two key elements for success in complex industries.

Set Up Your Freelance Portfolio Website Today

The style of your professional portfolio will depend on the industry you're in and the work that you do. Naturally, visual designers and creatives will need more image-focused portfolios. On the other hand, creating an engineering portfolio is going to require more technically advanced knowledge and features that highlight engineering expertise.

While we can't give you specific advice without knowing exactly what you do, we can highlight three key elements of every successful portfolio:

• It is simple and easy to navigate.
• It shows plenty of work samples, including different styles and creative angles.
• It ties in personality and expertise in a unique way.

Keep these in mind when you sit down to create your own website pages on Squarespace!