If you want freelance writing work you absolutely need an up-to-date portfolio that showcases your writing style across a range of topics and projects. If you're just starting out and are still chasing that first client, guest posts are a great starter for your writing portfolio.
A guest post is simply writing an online article for someone else's blog (and mostly unpaid). Many large websites and blogs rely on guest posts to grow their content and are always looking for new writers. Try googling ‘write for us xxxxx’ (and your niche) or browsing the content of some of your favourite blogs.
Look for websites and blogs that are professional looking and contain credible content -- making sure they’ve published something in the last 15-30 days. Read their submissions page carefully to find out exactly what type of articles they accept.
Also make sure they display an author byline as some websites pass off guest posts as their own writing. Ideally the byline will show the writer’s photograph (that's you) as well as a short bio, plus links to a website and social media. Remember you are looking for something that’s going to make you look like a professional writer and will be attractive to your client prospects.
My first guest post was for an online network of small business owners in the USA; I actually received a lot of traffic back to my blog from that article (and still do). They have a nice looking author byline that also linked to all my social media.
Don't waste your time writing for crappy blogs that aren't going to present you in a professional way. Most especially:
- Spammy looking sites with lots of click-bait ads
- Sites that don’t display an author byline
- Sites with no recent posts
Some websites want you to send a completed article with your submission, others prefer you to pitch them first. For my first few guest articles I contacted websites that requested the article up-front, that way I didn’t have to provide examples of writing to get a start.
It’s a great feeling when you get that first ‘yes’ email and you can use the published posts to establish your writer's portfolio. Then you can start getting paid for your writing.
PS: guest posting is also an excellent way of boosting the SEO rankings of your own website or blog.