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Boost Your Proposal to the Top of List

kochubei_valeria
Community Member

Update 10/13: Our Boosted Proposals test has ended, for now, so we can study the results and learn. We sincerely appreciate all of the feedback you gave us during this test, and we’re taking time to review our data and plan some improvements with your input in mind. 

We will share more information about our plans for a re-launch of Boosted Proposals. So stay tuned!

 

Open auctions will run their course; however, no new boosts will be available.

Our goal remains to support the best outcomes for Talent and Clients and help you win more. We’re working to make this feature even better as part of that effort!

 



We are testing a new way to help you
make your proposals stand out to clients. We’re dropping the required price of proposals to 1 Connect and allowing talent to bid for a chance to boost their proposal to appear in one of three promoted slots at the top of the client’s proposal manager. With boosting, you can promote yourself to clients by signalling that you are highly interested in their job. You can use your Connects to boost your proposal and increase the chances of being among the first that’s noticed. When clients see “Highly Interested” next to a blue lightning bolt, they’ll know these proposals are from talent who paid to express their interest by investing extra Connects into their proposal.

 

 

How it works 

When you submit a proposal, you can choose to boost it by spending additional Connects — whatever amount you think it’s worth. If you bid high enough relative to the other bidders, we’ll boost your proposal to the top of the stack, so it’s one of the first proposals the client sees.

 

  • Decide. If you really value a job, choose to bid to be eligible to boost your proposal above others. 
  • Bid. Set the number of Connects you’re willing to use to outbid other freelancers. We encourage you to bid the amount you truly think the job is worth.
  • Submit. Your proposal will be boosted to the client if your bid is high enough. If another freelancer bids more than you and your proposal is not boosted, we will refund some of your Connects (if boosting did not result in an engagement with a client). You’ll be notified either way and your proposal will still show up for the client, even if you’re outbid. 
  • The auction will last up to 7 days. It starts when the job is posted, and it is cleared after 7 days, or sooner if the job is closed or a hire has been made. 
  • Using Connects. The value of a job is always up to you, and you never have to worry about wasting Connects if you over or underbid. 

 

  • For example, if a job post allows for 3 boosted proposals, the top 3 bids will win those slots, and the final cost will be set by the lowest of those 3 bids. 

  • So if you spent 7 Connects to boost a proposal, and the lowest of the top 3 bidders spent just 5 — you’re in! Plus, you’ll receive a refund of 2 Connects to match the cost of the lowest qualifying bid.

  • What if you had bid just 3 Connects instead of 5? No worries! Your proposal won’t be boosted, but it will still show up for the client just like a regular proposal, and you’ll be refunded all the additional Connects you spent to boost your proposal.



We know you put a lot of effort into developing quality proposals, especially for projects you’re excited about. That’s one of the reasons we created the option to bid to boost your proposal, so you have an even better chance of being seen by clients for projects you’re really passionate about. We see this as a way to express your level of interest while increasing the odds of being noticed. So, in cases where boosting your proposal results in an engagement with a client, you will be charged - even if you are outbid, since this exposure can often lead to future interactions. An engagement means one or more of the following was done by the client (in other words, the client engaged a freelancer in at least one of these ways): viewed your proposal, messaged you, shortlisted you, sent an offer, and/or archived or declined your proposal. It’s another way to make your Connects work for you!

 

Screenshot from September 8, 2021 9_20 AM.png

 

For more information about boosting your proposals so you’re more likely to land the work you really want, check out our help article.

 

Excited to try this out? We are eager to gather feedback while we’re testing this feature. Let us know your thoughts so we can continue to make the work marketplace even better for you.

629 Comments
roberty1y
Community Member

I hope we can get a few more clients on to this thread to tell Upwork that it's an equally awful idea from their side. It will probably take them a while longer to see what's really going on.

 

I think a simple non-refundable connects idea is best. You spend connects, and you don't get them back, ever. It must be easy for dishonest freelancers to game the "connects refunded for interview" system. Just lie about being uniquely qualified for some jobs (or promise to do them at a fraction of the going rate), and you're pretty sure to get a response at least half the time.

jr-translation
Community Member

Christine A wrote:

I'd like to know the reasoning behind the decision that only 1 connect will be required to apply to all jobs now. Won't this increase spam bidding and overwhelm clients again? (Yes, it will.) So has Upwork decided that this is magically no longer a problem?

 

And the way that boosted proposals will appear to clients makes me think that I'll never use it. First of all, I imagine that there will be loads of ties, with 20-30 people all "boosting" by 3-6 connects (no more than that), within an hour of a job being posted. So if that's the case, the early bidders will get the top spots, and those usually aren't the most qualified people. If I don't spend all of my time hovering over the jobs feed - which I don't - then I won't stand a chance. And having a little lightening bolt next to your name with an explanation to the client that these people are just super, mega interested in being hired - meh, it sounds desperate, and will mostly be used by the desperate. I predict that the top spots will mostly be rubbish bids, and I think that clients will quickly learn to ignore them, in much the same way that I scroll past the ads at the top of Google searches in order to get to the "real" results.

They should come with a hazard warning.

 

 

Upwork, if you want to increase revenue from the sale of connects, wouldn't it be better to stop rewarding 10 connects for interviews (now that you've brought in this boosting nonsense, I expect that there will be a frenzy of fake projects so that people can keep their connects topped up)? And/or increase the number of connects required for higher-paying jobs? Or just increase the price of connects, period?

I am going to use the first two lines to tell the client to wait with reading my proposal until the lightening bolt has disappeared and then message me to discuss the project. With some luck you get 15 connects and a contract.


 

wescowley
Community Member

Vladimir G wrote:

Thanks for the follow-up, Wes.

Yes, that's the correct sequence of events but I'd like to note that additional Connects will be refunded to freelancer "C" from your example only if their proposal didn’t lead to an eligible interaction while it was boosted. We’ll only charge them one Connect in that case.

Eligible interactions include:

  • The client opens your proposal

  • The client sends an offer to you

  • The client shortlists your proposal

  • The client messages you

  • The client archives your proposal

  • The client declines your proposal


Thanks for the clarification. That "eligible interaction" bit is something that wasn't clear before (or I glazed over it).

 

I see now that what Upwork has really implemented is a way for people to spend connects for a chance to see if the client has looked at their proposal, something we see new freelancers ask for a lot in the forums.

 

Along with a way for clients to be bombarded with at least twice the spam proposals as before because of the 1 connect bids.

 

And a way to make it look to clients like only three people are really interested in their job without making it obvious that those people paid for that flag, while the rest are just bidding for the hell of it.

 

And a way to make it harder/more expensive for new freelancers to get noticed and hired.

 

And a way to clutter clients' screens with the boosted proposals that don't meet the sort order.

 

Was this really thought out, or are we just implementing stuff so the coders have something to do?

wescowley
Community Member

Jennifer R wrote:

 

As a client, I do not hire the first person but I do look at the proposals. I would find it highly irritating if someone who was top 3 would suddenly disappear from the list.

Will clients know, how many connects where spend by the freelancers?


Yes, exactly - someone who was "highly interested" suddenly isn't. It's sending a message to the client that the freelancer is no longer interested in their job.

2a05aa63
Community Member

I do like that people get refunded when they don't get to the top and that the top 3 will spend the same amount.

I see that the premise is to slim down the number of freelancers visible to the client. If the client doesn't like the top 3 they will just choose someone else who spent 1 connect.

Compared to the information we got last month, I do see this feature having some positives. It gives freelancers a way to show that they are highly interested in a specific job. And since they have to pay for it, they won't be able to do this on every job.

And no matter how much you spend, it won't guarantee that you will get the job. But the client will at least look at your profile.

martina_plaschka
Community Member

Maria T wrote:

Wes C wrote:

Valeria K wrote:

Hi Wes and Martina,

 

Thanks for sharing your feedback and questions. This option is currently being tested with select jobs so it will not be available for all jobs.
Boosted proposals will be pinned to the top of the client’s Proposal Manager. All other proposals will be located below and they will be ranked organically just like they are today. The client can scroll down to see all proposals and will be able to sort them as usual. Boosted proposals will stay pinned on top. The client will see a blue lightning bolt icon with “Highly interested” next to a boosted proposal. If they hover over, they'll see a message "This freelancer spent more on this job to get noticed."

We will enforce all of our standard rules for proposals and client job preferences. Replying to invites will still require no Connects. While those proposals can’t be boosted, they are given a dedicated place within the Upwork Proposal Manager and will have an “Invited” badge.Currently, while we’re testing this feature, there are three slots available to boosted proposals. In the event of a tie bid, the earlier time stamp prevails.
The auction is closed after 7 days and there will not be an option to boost a proposal after that. The top bidders at that time will appear at the top of the list and the rest of the proposals will appear organically as usual. The bids will not disappear and there will be no need to resubmit them.


Valeria, thanks for those answers.

 

Following up to see if I have the mechanics right. Is this how it works?

Shortly after the job post goes up, freelancers A, B, and C bid 3, and everyone else bids 1. A, B, and C get boosted. 

Two days later, D comes along and bids 5. One of the first three, let's say C, gets booted from the boosting and D takes their place.

 

Does C get 2 connects back because they're no longer boosted? 

Or do they lose them because they were boosted for a while? 

 

Then, this outbidding and bumping people out of the slots continues until day 7, when the slots are locked and stay that way until the job is closed.

 

Is that how it works?


Well now I see the new thread when a freelancer has bid and is suddenly returned the connects from the bid.
It could be something like: Can't I bid again at work to get back in the top three, please?

Ideas about new posts are allowed as a result of this nonsense.


- Why did I only get 2 connects back? The best bid was my friend and I know for a fact that he bid 10 and I bid 5 so where are my 3 connects? Where, oh where are they?

- Can I ask the client to unsee my proposal so that I get my connects back?

- I don't wanna know any more if the client has seen my proposal! In fact, I prefer he doesn't even look at it!

 

m_terrazas
Community Member

Martina P wrote:

Maria T wrote:

Wes C wrote:

Valeria K wrote:

 

Ideas about new posts are allowed as a result of this nonsense.


- Why did I only get 2 connects back? The best bid was my friend and I know for a fact that he bid 10 and I bid 5 so where are my 3 connects? Where, oh where are they?

- Can I ask the client to unsee my proposal so that I get my connects back?

- I don't wanna know any more if the client has seen my proposal! In fact, I prefer he doesn't even look at it!

 


LOL, I think I'm going to go get some popcorn to be ready.

m_terrazas
Community Member

Viacheslav K wrote:

I do like that people get refunded when they don't get to the top and that the top 3 will spend the same amount.

I see that the premise is to slim down the number of freelancers visible to the client. If the client doesn't like the top 3 they will just choose someone else who spent 1 connect.

Compared to the information we got last month, I do see this feature having some positives. It gives freelancers a way to show that they are highly interested in a specific job. And since they have to pay for it, they won't be able to do this on every job.

And no matter how much you spend, it won't guarantee that you will get the job. But the client will at least look at your profile.


They are showing the customer in first position 3 feelancers (who do not have to be the same from one minute to another depending on the bids), that they do not have to be even remotely the best option for the job. Does that sound like a good idea to you?
We know that customers have a strange way of receiving best matches. If we add this to that, how difficult will it be for them to see your proposal that fits well with their work and is supported by a good profile?
How long will it take for clients to get fed up with seeing 3 freelancers popping up and disappearing from the top positions?
How long will it take for customers to find another site?

 

Upwork, make free connects and connects returns disappear and everyone has to buy them. This way you will get the earnings for connects that it seems you are looking for.
But not like this, please.

moonraker
Community Member

Viacheslav K wrote:

I do like that people get refunded when they don't get to the top and that the top 3 will spend the same amount.


I think the refunds possibly make it even worse. What's stopping people from bidding 100 connects if they think they'll get their money back if they're not successful? It'll become an exercise in who is willing and able to buy themselves the biggest bank of connects.


2a05aa63
Community Member

Maria T wrote:


They are showing the customer in first position 3 feelancers (who do not have to be the same from one minute to another depending on the bids), that they do not have to be even remotely the best option for the job. Does that sound like a good idea to you?
We know that customers have a strange way of receiving best matches. If we add this to that, how difficult will it be for them to see your proposal that fits well with their work and is supported by a good profile?
How long will it take for clients to get fed up with seeing 3 freelancers popping up and disappearing from the top positions?
How long will it take for customers to find another site?

 

Upwork, make free connects and connects returns disappear and everyone has to buy them. This way you will get the earnings for connects that it seems you are looking for.
But not like this, please.


Upwork can't really guess the "best" fit for the project. In 5 years I got only 1 job from Upwork talent specialist.

It was as random before and it is now, it just gives 3 people the option to "show off" if they pay. It's still the client's decision.

Weren't the top freelancers before random too (order of proposal) ? Might be a bit annoying but I don't see it being a big deal.

Out of all the possible ways to do  "boost proposals" features, I think they did a good job. I don't see things changing much. 

Paying with limited resources makes things more variable. I doubt people will spend a lot on connects for all the jobs. The point is to spend more for jobs you are more interested in.

The client doesn't get any benefits from hiring the top freelancers like freelancers do from applying to featured job. That would be unfair. Imagine if they would get a discount or smth. But it's just 3 people that will most likely not be chosen anyway. The profile picture, history and rate do more for hiring than the position in the list of proposals.