🐈
» Support » Product Release Notes » More Connects to win more of the work you lov...
Page options

More Connects to win more of the work you love

katbenjamin
Community Member

UPDATE: This is already live. You’ll see these free Connects added to your account at the start of your next billing cycle. You can find this date on your Memberships and Connects page under User Settings.

 

 

 

In December, we’re upgrading Connects to provide you free monthly Connects and bonus Connects for interviews you win. You’re doing amazing things on Upwork, and more Connects means more chances to do the work you love. 

 

We’ve seen a huge surge in client activity, and our work marketplace is full of opportunities for all the incredible talent on our platform. We can’t wait to watch you use these Connects to win your share of these opportunities, form stronger relationships with clients, and grow your career on Upwork.

 

We introduced paid Connects to keep spam from crowding out your proposals and help you win the jobs you want. But we want to ensure connecting with clients is exciting and affordable, so we’re changing our program to provide you with the Connects you need to build deeper relationships and unlock the best opportunities.

 

Here’s exactly what you can expect:

 

Freelancer Basic Plan

Receive 10 free Connects per month (according to billing cycle)

Freelancer Plus Plan

Receive 80 Connects per month (70 + 10 free Connects)

(according to billing cycle)

Connects Rollover Limits

 The Basic and Plus roll over limit is now 200 Connects

Interview Requests 

Freelancers receive free Connects (the number may vary) when they win an interview with an established client on Upwork**

 

 

In December, you’ll see these free Connects added to your account at the start of your next billing cycle. You can find this date on your Memberships and Connects page under User Settings. You’ll also receive an email when your Connects are available for use.

 

These changes will create more opportunities for everyone in our community, and we’re continuing to explore other ways to show our appreciation for everything you do. Your success is our success, and we’re proud to provide a home where you can do the work you love, form lucrative relationships, and build an amazing independent business.

 

Learn more about how Connects work here

Update 7/23/2021: Note that when Connects are awarded for interview requests this will show up as two transactions in the Connects History. There is no change to how these are awarded, this is simply done for accounting purposes.

** Updated 1/2/2023

2,370 Comments
kinector
Community Member

Sajib, just mentioning that most starting freelancers don't yet understand that to build a business you have to spend some of your resources, either time or money.

 

What's the cost of 6 Connects compared to a good project that you get? Peanuts, right?

 

So, no need to worry about the price of Connects or how many you get for free.

 

If you know your ideal clients and you also know what makes them tick, all you need is 6 or less Connects to get one project. 😉

kinector
Community Member

Davide, I think the problem with too few Connects relates to the understanding of your ideal clients (or the lack of it).

 

Alternatively, the proposals lack a clear value proposition or credibility.

 

Upwork is one of the VERY few platforms where you can define a very nice perfect niche and keep doing business with very specific kinds of people.

 

(That being said, I'd remove all freebies from this platform to make it fairer from the business-building perspective. The best freelancers always win anyway.)

kinector
Community Member

Probal, the platform has been pretty fair from the beginning. Their system, their rules. Perfectly fair.

 

Those businesses, freelance or agency, who depend on the number of Connects to get any projects going, are simply not doing it right.

 

It's never about the volume.

 

The less and the more specific proposals you send, the more efficient your business is.

 

Upwork enables the best talent to be visible enough to get a constant flow of invitations. Then, you can just pick the ones you like.

 

So, assuming you WILL get to the top at some point where you don't need to send any proposals anymore, just think of the whole thing as a process that requires an investment. A little bit of time and perhaps some money too. Just calculate the estimated amount and make a business decision of it. Before that, set a realistic goal by looking at how far the top guys have gotten before you.

 

Highlighting this again: it's perfectly fair.

kinector
Community Member

Benson, 10 free Connects is too low for what?

 

In my opinion, it's too MUCH for freeloaders who anyway don't have a realistic chance of doing any good work for any good clients and therefore sabotaging the entire platform (even if it is unintentional, of course).

 

Nobody, nobody, builds any kind of business for free without any kind of investment. It's either money or time, and most often both.

 

When thinking of Upwork in business terms, e.g. how much I get vs. how much I need to pay, this is BY FAR the best platform at the moment. And by best, I mean the most efficient for finding the best kinds of clients... even to the point you can by default just reject all second-best ones.

sandeep_winux
Community Member

10 connects is 1 proposal only. If you make proposal cost max 2 connects then it may still be good. Else its just nothing. You should consider sticking freelancer and companies sticking to your platform rather than shooing them away from this platform with exorbitant costs.We used to get business from upwok earlier but then started putting more effort in direct marketing and other platforms as this became almost non-viable with cost going higher and higher even for a proposal. 

kinector
Community Member

Karibul, if your business depends on having a big bunch of FREE Connects, your business strategy (e.g. how to find the right kinds of clients) is probably not yet as polished as it could be. Basically, your approach lacks efficiency, which is the main part of any business.

 

Nobody should send more than 10 proposals to nail a project. Just focus on those ones that are a perfect match.

 

If a project I could get pays 20 dollars and I spend one hour doing the work, but I need several hours of work to get that project, it is not a viable business. If that project came to me without any effort, that could be more reasonable.

 

This wonderful platform even allows you to avoid most of the competition when you play your cards right, so I would never complain even if all Connects cost $1 per piece and all other platform fees would be double. 😉

kinector
Community Member

Sandeep, this is a very fair platform for those who are here to do real business where real money changes hands.

 

It's a matter of efficiency in finding good clients and getting them to hire you. The most common problem is that the offering is too wide which doesn't appeal to those clients willing to pay more for specific expertise. Good generalists rarely win on any platform that is exposed to the global economy.

 

Those who are always in direct competition with everyone else won't succeed on any other platform either, simply because the cost of getting a paying customer is too high to make any profit.

kinector
Community Member

Jose, as every freelancer on this platform quickly learns, big projects in your work history bring you more big projects in the future.

 

So, go ahead and shoot yourself in the leg if you want to maximize the number of Connects over really good contracts. But don't post complaints here afterward. 😉

avetnaz
Community Member

Thank you! Great news.

alimib-54
Community Member

Okay, i have passed the test and now how I can get connect?