UpWork Tips for Freelancers

From a Freelancer who Hires Freelancers on UpWork.

As I have grown in my freelancing career, I have often become the liaise between my clients and other contractors – a bit of a project manager within marketing departments for businesses. And with that comes the hiring for other freelancers which is often done on Upwork.

 I have a unique perspective as someone who has now been on both ends of the spectrum of freelancing for over two years. And during this time, especially recently, I have noticed some patterns of freelancers that can be a negative for both themselves and the client.

 UpWork can be a fantastic platform if used and leveraged appropriately. As a freelancer, you likely  have a love/hate relationship with the platform. Love, because you have access to a plethora of opportunities. But hate, because you see the exploitation of contractors first-hand, and it can be easy to become part of the problem. And as a freelancer, the choice is yours on how you use and leverage the platform to the best of your ability.

 Here are my top tips for freelancers who are using platforms such as Upwork.

Properly Read the Proposals – and take your time.

 In a sea of 75+ proposals, if you have a starting line that directly references the job posting, there is a better chance of having your proposal considered. Take your time to properly read through the post you are submitting.

 It is easy to spot the proposals that are a copy + paste on every job they see. They are often irrelevant to the post, ingenuine, and don’t reference anything about the posting itself.

 A few things that I have noticed that stand out to me quite well:

-       Provide a hook: Include a hook in your first line of text something that references something in the job post specifically

-       Attach a quick voice note that asks the hiring manager direct questions about the job or brand. This shows that you actually care and took the time to research.

-       Attach relevant links to examples of work that you have done in the past, and be prepared to speak on them.

 And a little sub-tip: don’t be put off by the amount of proposals submitted. Hiring managers will still often sift through the applications, and will read those who stick out more. I typically receive anywhere from 50 – 150 proposals on gigs, and it doesn’t matter if you’re first or last in the submitting process.

Be Transparent in Your Proposals

 The point of having a quote included in proposals is for the hiring manager to understand what rates they would expect from you. When you submit a proposal, make sure that you are honest about you pricing upfront.

 For example, don’t say your proposed bid is $75 if your rates are $500. You’re wasting everyone’s time. I’m more likely to hire you if your proposal states a higher bid than if you try to snake me in to a higher rate.

If you submit a posting with a higher bid than what the client initially has posted – go for it! Make sure you can back up why you’re the best candidate, and that your client will get what they paid for.

Keep Your Work On UpWork

I know – the fees are high. You want your money for yourself. I’ve been there. But there are quite a few benefits to keeping your gigs active on UpWork:

 The main benefit is the social proof and job success score you will receive. This, to clients, shows that you are reliable and have a good track record. Clients have the option to filter through applications on a job by earnings and previous job success score. If you take all of your clients off of UpWork, you will not be made into those filters.

Also, from my own experience, I started to get more invites to interview at my hourly rate of $85/hr once I had a solid track record of gigs – which is considerably higher than what you typically see on the platform. When only submitting proposals at a higher than average hourly rate with 0 job experience on the platform, it is tough to gain the trust of potential clients.

Some teams will hire contractors such as myself to build out projects and hire from UpWork specifically, because their payment set-ups and all of their contracts on the one platform.  

On top of those benefits mentioned above, keeping your gigs on UpWork allows you to leverage the mediation and protection that UpWork provides. Without it, you can easily be ghosted or treated unfairly.