There's a lot that goes under the term personal branding. Luckily, you don't have to be a branding expert to build a successful freelance career.

However, we highly recommend setting up foundations for a strong personal brand at the very beginning of your freelance career. Doing so will help you gain more visibility and use your online presence to win over potential clients.

With that said, here are 8 best personal website examples to serve as inspiration as you're creating your own online presence.

‍Gary's landing page is a great example of a personal website because of one important element - his photo. When clients click on your site, they expect to see your face and your personality, as well as what you can do for their business.

Remember, you are building a PERSONAL brand website, not a company brand. That means you should have your own photo (preferably a professionally taken one) displayed on the landing page.

You know what they say... Walk the talk. Brandon is a true example of that. A good personal brand website should show authenticity and integrity. Being that Brandon is a fitness coach, he made sure clients see that he actually lives what he preaches.

Even if you cannot showcase your authenticity as transparently as a fitness coach would, you can always find ways to show you are dedicated to your craft and passionate about getting results with it.

On top of showcasing your skills and talents, a personal brand website should also tell your story. Whether you can think of one on the spot or you need some time to brainstorm, there should be some kind of personal story behind why you chose to do what you do.

Even if it takes some sugarcoating and imagination, it's worth putting together a My Story/About page to give clients a clear idea of whom they're connecting with. If you can add visual elements to this section like Quinton did, even better!

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Next up is Taylor Vowell whose website takes interactive features to a whole new level. As you scroll through Taylor's site, you'll notice a lot of cool elements on the page paired up with a great representation of his personality.

Just by going through the landing page, you can sense that Taylor is a quirky yet very skillful dude who's probably really good at his craft... and a fun guy to talk to! That's the kind of impression anyone would want their landing page to create, right?

A personal branding website should be engaging and user-friendly. Now, if you're not a web developer or designer, these terms might not hit close to home. However, Hugo's website is a great example of an engaging landing page that showcases his skills and profession.

Sure, having a bunch of sliding letters and visuals popping all over the place looks cool, but there's one key component here. Did you notice how this landing page makes it very obvious that Hugo is some sort of a creative designer? Remember, every element of the page needs to point back to the very core message - who you are and what you do.

One way you can go about creating a branding website as a freelancer is to keep it simple with a dash of personality. That's exactly what Christian's website portrays. Notice how the whole landing page is nothing but a few short sentences about Christian?

He could've placed the same text on a plain white background in typical Times New Roman font and you would be looking at the worst personal branding website ever. But instead, you're seeing a very creative page that stands out among the rest. Why? A dash of personality, that's the key!

Red Russak's website truly shows that you don't need a technically demanding or complicated site to get your message across. All you have to do is be uniquely and unapologetically yourself (but still keep it professional, to some level)!

Red chose a classic timeline style to portray his entire life story in a couple of short sentences. Very simple and straightforward. It proves that you don't need to overthink this process, just start writing and see what comes out of it.

Last but not least, here's a good example of a personal branding website that showcases creative work. Showing your best work online is going to raise your credibility and trustworthiness score.

Hence, don't hesitate to "brag" about your latest successes or creations on your personal site. The more work samples potential clients see, the more they're going to believe in your expertise and knowledge.

Start Building a Personal Brand Website Today

Now that you've seen some of the best personal websites out there, it's time to go and create your own. Don't get stuck in the process of choosing a website builder or a fancy color scheme.

Start with simple things like drag-and-drop tools and a few light colors, to begin with. Remember, building a creative and personal online presence is a continuous work in progress.

Take into account your profession (industry) and the services you offer. If you're a graphic designer, your website should showcase more advanced design features as an example of your style of work. Same thing if you're a writer, make sure your content speaks for itself.

Last but not least, don't forget to link your social media pages to your homepage for bonus social proof and trustworthiness points. If you're not using social media platforms to build your online presence, now is a great time to start.

Doing so will help you connect with potential clients and land great job opportunities through different communication channels.

Combining a well-done personal branding website with credible social media accounts will give you the ability to generate inbound leads and build your contact list outside of freelance platforms.