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You should create samples of the kind of work you'd like to be commissioned to do. Samples of pretty little girls in dresses will get you hired to do the same. If this is what you'd like to paint (and it IS what I like to paint) then you should create samples of that subject matter. It totally depends on what you want to do.
When I look at the samples of the very successful family portrait artists in many parts of the country, this is what I see a lot of. Some artists can't stand painting this type of thing. It's purely personal preference.
Commenting specifically on these photo examples, I think there are problems with the lighting in all of them. A more directional light source, without all the ambient light bouncing around, will allow you to define the form more clearly. Also the artificial lighting temperature is very warm which can do odd things to the skintones.
As far as compositions, I like the first one best, with most of the upper background cropped out.
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