Let's Advocate for More Clarity from Editing Clients (books, manuscripts)

[judilighthopson]

Hello Admin Staff:

In order to keep the work flowing properly (with good results for both clients/provider), we need to clarify job details that must be included. Otherwise, editors such as myself are wasting their connects.

For example, here's what Upwork should dictate:

1. Genre of a book (fiction/nonfiction/business book, etc.) must be defined clearly in the job proposal.

2. The length of the manuscript should be clarified for a bidder (otherwise, our connects are being wasted, or we may win a bid we don't really want).

3. A deadline should be defined. (Some of the offers are two months old).

Judi Light Hopson

[petra_r]

You do realise that there are hundreds of categories, all with wildly differing work flow and criteria? Whilst more details on a lot of job postings would be nice, the idea that Upwork needs to set a bunch of necessarily included criteria for every single one of all the endless categories and then program the site accordingly is simply not realistic.

[tlsanders]

I agree with Petra, and would like to add that it's pretty easy to manage most of the issues listed.

If a job posting is two months old, check the activity. If the client is regularly checking the posting and doesn't have interviews in progress, I might bid, but probably not. 

If it's not clear how long the manuscript is, write "bid assumes manuscript length of approximately XX. If the content is longer or shorter, I will be happy to provide an updated bid." It's pretty hard to place a blind bid on a book-editing job, anyway; there are many factors beyond length that impact the amount of work/number of hours required. I'd think most bids in that circumstance would be labeled as placeholders pending review of a sample. 

[judilighthopson]

My point of asking Upwork administrators to step in is this: If someone is posting a job for a book editor, this individual or company is surely serious about needing professional assistance. Many of the postings read like this: I need a book edited. Please help. 100,000 words. Pay is $15. As it turns out, most of these listings are authors who have done good (even great) work; however, they do not know how to present their information. A little guidance on Upwork's end of things can't hurt. Since when does it hurt to help clients put forth accurate, detailed information? It would save time on everyone's part.

[tlsanders]

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@Judi H wrote:

 Since when does it hurt to help clients put forth accurate, detailed information? It would save time on everyone's part.

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 When we have to pay for a vastly increased Upwork staff with expertises in each of the hundreds (thousands?) of different types of projects posted here. 

I recognize that reasonable people may differ on whether they'd rather make the extra investment in asking a few questions/offering some guidance or have Upwork take more control, impose more direction, and charge more. I prefer to manage my own client relationships, and find that these particular issues don't cost me more than a few minutes, so for me, the current system is fine.

[researchediting]

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@Judi H wrote:

....If someone is posting a job for a book editor, this individual or company is surely serious about needing professional assistance. Many of the postings read like this: I need a book edited. Please help. 100,000 words. Pay is $15. As it turns out, most of these listings are authors who have done good (even great) work; however, they do not know how to present their information.... 

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Judi,

Um, no.

As your example indicates, few editing prospects have the slightest clue what is entailed in editorial work, let alone what it costs. The quality of the work an author may have done is unrelated to their expectations of an editor. Lack of detail is the least of our concerns with such postings, and more detail won't make them any less ridiculous. Most of us ignore anyone who expects the moon for peanuts. There is nothing Upwork can do to "fix" these postings. if you want to take it upon yourself to educate these wannabes about the realities of the editorial process, it's your meter that's running.

Best,

Michael

[datasciencewonk]

That's why I ask the client each of those questions (and more).

On the client side, the more "parameters" demanded of me, the more likely I'll go somewhere else. 

[ravi_iitian]

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@Judi H wrote:

Hello Admin Staff:

In order to keep the work flowing properly (with good results for both clients/provider), we need to clarify job details that must be included. Otherwise, editors such as myself are wasting their connects.

For example, here's what Upwork should dictate:

1. Genre of a book (fiction/nonfiction/business book, etc.) must be defined clearly in the job proposal.

2. The length of the manuscript should be clarified for a bidder (otherwise, our connects are being wasted, or we may win a bid we don't really want).

3. A deadline should be defined. (Some of the offers are two months old).

Judi Light Hopson

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Hi Judi,

Most client’s do specify the genre, the size (in words), and the expected delivery time.

Those that don’t aren’t worth considering, so don’t waste your time, energy, or connects on them.

[thebookdoc]

I see this from both sides: if the client doesn't put in a reliable word count, you might well blow all your connects in a month applying for jobs you would never have applied for if they were listed correctly (and I don't know how editors give a reliable quote without a reliable word count). 

There are hints in listings, such as no rating, only one job listing, incompetent or incomplete listings, lack of verified payment...I skip a lot of them.