I need to hire some people by commission based. How can I do it without violating the TOS of Upwork?

[xpturk]

We have a software solution for Amazon Professional Sellers and we need to market it in Amazon related Facebook groups and also using some virtual assistants who already knows so many Amazon Sellers.

Our plan is to give them referral commissions per paid customer. Actually, we already have a commission system in our web site but how can I create a project and hire people in this platform without violating your terms and conditions? All I want is to use their existing network and contacts and pay them if they refer these people to our solution.

Could you please guide me about my need? I'm open to suggestions if you already have an experience and suggest another way, I'd love to hear that.

Thanks.

[petra_r · Accepted solution]

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ILKER C wrote:

We have a software solution for Amazon Professional Sellers and we need to market it in Amazon related Facebook groups and also using some virtual assistants who already knows so many Amazon Sellers.

Our plan is to give them referral commissions per paid customer. Actually, we already have a commission system in our web site but how can I create a project and hire people in this platform without violating your terms and conditions? All I want is to use their existing network and contacts and pay them if they refer these people to our solution.

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If you want to pay commission *only*, you'd have to set up fixed rate contracts and fund the first milestone. So if the commission for selling one solution is $ 50, you set up the first milestone at $ 50 and as soon as the person you hired finds a customer, you release that milestone and set up the next.

Be aware that you will likely get very few applicants, as "commission only" jobs are usually unpopular and most lead to little or no earnings.

[versailles]

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Petra R wrote:

Be aware that you will likely get very few applicants, 

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Or only spam applicants...

[prestonhunter]

The original poster is an honest person who wants to play by the rules.

He wants to use a commission-based pay model, which is a legitimate pay model.

He wants to use Upwork, which is a popular place to hire freelancer workers.

Unfortunately, commission-based pay is not one of the contract models that Upwork directly supports. It CAN be done. But this is true in the sense that you CAN hire somebody on Upwork to cook you steak, or you CAN hire somebody on Upwork to drive you to the airport.

There are things that aren't against the rules at all, and can be done, but which Upwork really isn't set up for. There are more efficient ways to get a steak or get a ride to the airport. You could try GrubHub or Uber, for example.

[colettelewis]

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Preston H wrote:

The original poster is an honest person who wants to play by the rules.

He wants to use a commission-based pay model, which is a legitimate pay model.

He wants to use Upwork, which is a popular place to hire freelancer workers.

Unfortunately, commission-based pay is not one of the contract models that Upwork directly supports. It CAN be done. But this is true in the sense that you CAN hire somebody on Upwork to cook you steak, or you CAN hire somebody on Upwork to drive you to the airport.

There are things that aren't against the rules at all, and can be done, but which Upwork really isn't set up for. There are more efficient ways to get a steak or get a drive to the airport. You could try GrubHub or Uber, for example.

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Preston - please - get rid of the tie. It is strangling you and it is affecting your writing.  I like the one-liner Preston - usually humorous. 

[d067c588]

We are looking for commission based on % of sales and not a fixed fee. Actually, our commission base is incredibly attractive as we are trying to set up our sales network and prepared to share the first year's profits. 

Any further help or suggestions??? Please!

[xpturk]

Thank you all for your responses. I totally understand the difficulties of what I wanted. It seems that it would be better to find a better solution which fits such platforms 🙂

Have a great weekend!

[prestonhunter]

re: "We are looking for commission based on % of sales and not a fixed fee. Actually, our commission base is incredibly attractive as we are trying to set up our sales network and prepared to share the first year's profits. Any further help or suggestions??? Please!"

Peter:

It is quite possible that Upwork is not the solution you are looking for. Upwork is not a commission payment processing service.

It is possible for you to pay commission-based bonus payments on top of the other payments you make to freelancers. But you can not ONLY pay commissions. There is no option for that within the Upwork user interface.

You would need to choose from among existing payment methods:

- fixed-price

- hourly

- weekly stipend

In addition to that, Upwork places no limit on how much additional money you can pay to freelancers using the "Pay Bonus" tool.