Promoting Your Portfolio URL

Dear Writing Reader,

Another one of the most popular questions from Authors on Writing.Com is:
         How do I promote my Public Portfolio URL outside of Writing.Com?

In this letter, I will provide numerous tips for increasing the amount of exposure you receive from outside of Writing.Com.

But first, let's make sure we all know what our URL is. Your Public Portfolio URL is found on your "My Account" page, but even without that, it's easy to figure out. It begins with:
         http://www.Writing.Com/authors/
And to the end, just add your Writing.Com username! For example, my Public Portfolio URL is:
         http://www.Writing.Com/authors/storymaster

Tip #1: Add your Writing.Com Public Portfolio URL to your email signatures.

The simplest way to promote your Public Portfolio URL is to add it to the email signature of any and all email accounts you have. With just a few minutes of your time, you'll turn any correspondence you have with non-Writing.Com members into referral generating machines! Here's a couple quick examples:

Check out my portfolio!
http://www.Writing.Com/authors/storymaster

or

I'm an Author @ Writing.Com!
http://www.Writing.Com/authors/storymaster

Tip #2: Link to your Public Portfolio from your homepage or other sites you control.

Next on the simplicity ladder is linking to your public portfolio from your personal homepage or business website. You can provide your site's visitors with a text link or copy and paste the four (4) lines of HTML that we provide on our Linking To Writing.Com page. This page is accessible from the bottom of every one of our pages or directly at:
         http://www.Writing.Com/main/webmasters.php

Ebay and other auction sites are also great places to get added exposure. The next time you list something for sale, don't forget to add your portfolio URL and you'll have your referral number on the rise in no time!


Tip #3: Directly invite family, friends, teachers, coworkers, publishers, agents, editors and more to visit your Writing.Com public portfolio.

Inviting your own family and friends doesn't always have the highest appeal to members. Afterall, its not necessarily their opinion you want and you can ask them to read your writing any time you want.

On the other hand, it's always someone else's friend or family member who lends that helping hand or offers the right word of encouragement to brighten your day. So the deal is: you bring your friends and family... and we'll bring ours!

Teachers, co-workers, editors, publishers and other associates are also great people to refer! Remember, the more members Writing.Com has, the more people there are to read, rate, review and befriend within our community!


Tip #4: Start an Interactive Story on Writing.Com and invite your friends to participate with you!

Writing.Com's Interactive Stories require that readers become members of Writing.Com if they want to write the "next chapter". Invite your real world friends for a little online fun in our interactive realm. You might help your friends discover a talent they never knew they had and you'll all have a great time in the process!


Tip #5: Create business cards with your portfolio URL and hand them to friends, associates and other people you may meet who are interested in reading or writing.

Anyone can create their own business cards. The least expensive route is to purchase ready-to-print business card paper sold at stores such as Staples, OfficeMax, Walmart and others. The paper is heavy cover stock and is perferated which makes each business card clean and easy to separate! If you'd like the whole thing done for you, Staples, Kinkos and others business shops offer complete and inexpensive business card creation services.

When you design your own cards to hand out, include basic information about your Writing.Com portfolio. Your Portfolio URL and Writing.Com email address are two things that everyone should include. You might also include a 'tag line' about your writing style or favorite genres. For example: "Specializing in Horror and Science Fiction" or "Writing Romance and Mystery Novels of Young Adults" or "Featuring the action packed adventures of 'Jack Rubble'".


Tip #6: Include your Portfolio URL when posting in relevant newsgroups, groups or discussion forums.

Those members on Writing.Com who have already acquired a sizeable number of referred members have done so by posting their Public Portfolio URL on non-Writing.Com message boards, clubs and newsgroups. There are countless online gathering places that focus on specific genres such as romance, sci-fi, fanfiction... or more general item types such as poetry or short stories.

Remember: Internet etiquette states that you should not post in a newsgroup or forum unless your post can stay on topic. Bulk emailing and other "spam" like tactics are NOT acceptable and will not be tolerated!

I hope you found useful information within my letter. Good luck and have fun promoting your writing and Writing.Com! We sincerely appreciate everyone's efforts!!

~~ The StoryMaster