Tips for Using the Upwork Community Forums

Pandora H · Sep 23, 2016 02:27:29 PM

Tips for Using the Upwork Community Forums

Overview

A few tips for making the most of the Upwork Community Forums. This information should be especially useful for new members of the Upwork Community Forums.

Topics Covered

Your first forum post
Setting up your notifications
Forum Guidelines
Forum Areas
Using the Search Function
Bookmarking Threads and Posts
Forum Software FAQ

Video – HD video covering the topics outlined in this post

**This is video is narrated in English.**

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VasrPyH1q4

Your First Forum Post

If you are reading this, chances are you have just joined the Forums, and have posted your first question. Community members or Community Moderators will eventually respond to your question, so do check back for replies. If those replies have helped you, it's appropriate to respond with a 'thank you', or if needed, you can ask for additional details.

By default, you WILL NOT be notified via email when your question is answered. You will need to turn this feature on. Use the below section to adjust your settings to allow Post response notifications and Private message notifications to show up in your email.

Set up your Notifications

Turn on Email Notifications - Vital (everyone should do this)
Allow Private Messages - Useful, but you don't have to
Notification Settings - Getting too many notifications? Not enough notifications?

To get to this settings area, click the gear icon, which is at the top left area underneath your name. This icon is accessible in most main Forum areas.

Link: Forum Settings

Forum Guidelines - A must read

Before becoming any more active on the forums, it's very important that you become familiar with the Guidelines required for using the Forums. Read this thread NOW:

Link: Upwork Community Forum Guidelines

Overview of the Main Forum Areas

Official Upwork - Upwork Announcements, Community Announcements, Content Corner (Educational content about using Upwork)

Community Discussions - Specific Forums for Freelancers, Clients, Upwork site problems, and the Coffee Break Forum

Job Skill Discussions - Specific Forums for various Skills - Upwork updates this area from time to time

Groups - Regional Forums - Upwork updates this area from time to time

New to Upwork and have a lot of questions? Use the search bar!

That is the large, empty field at the top of most of the Forum areas. Input the topic you want more information about, then click the search icon inside the field. Chances are your question(s) has been already answered in the Forums.

Video Link - Tips for Using Search

Bookmarking Your Favorite Posts / Threads

If you have been browsing the forums for a couple of days, you have probably found posts or threads that you want to save for future reference. Use the pulldown menu on the right section, top area of each thread or post and from the menu, select Bookmark.

To view / manage your Bookmarks:

Go to My Settings > Subscriptions & Notifications.

Click My Bookmarks.

You can click a bookmark to go to the item.

To delete a bookmark, click the check box for the bookmark and click Bookmark Options > Delete Selected Bookmarks.

Forum Software FAQ

Want to know more tricks related to using the Forums? There is a detailed help section that covers several other aspects of the forums.

Link: Community Forum FAQ

Note: This is a generic FAQ related to the Forum software. Not all features that this FAQ covers are available in the Upwork Community Forums.

Isabelle Anne A · Sep 23, 2016 03:44:02 PM

Great job Pandora - even if I could create video tutorials, I'd never have the patience to do this I hope this post gets pinned/highlighted.

Pandora H · Sep 23, 2016 03:48:05 PM

@Isabelle Anne A wrote:
Great job Pandora - even if I could create video tutorials, I'd never have the patience to do this I hope this post gets pinned/highlighted.

Thanks Isabelle! It was a lot more work then I thought, and my voiceover skills are horrible. As for getting it pinned, I don't want to say anything specific, but: An Upwork Moderator sent me a PM about it, and there is hope for it to be more visible eventually, but probably not anytime soon.

Pandora H · Sep 23, 2016 07:33:10 PM

Upwork Community Forum Do's and Don’ts

Overview

The Upwork Community forum is a member based community for both Freelancers and Clients. Like many other online communities, this Forum has its own rules and culture. Some of these rules and culture quirks are like other forums, and some are specific to this particular community.

This post outlines the various do's and don'ts that are expected (and sometimes enforced) in the Upwork Community Forums.

If you haven't already read the basic Upwork Community Forums Guidelines, you should. You are expected to know these guidelines, and abide by them.

Click here to read the Upwork Community Forums Guidelines

So, now that you have read the basic Guidelines, what do some of those restrictions and recommendations really mean?

First, your post content.

That includes your post title, the body of your post, and any replies you make to someone else’s post. There are certain things that are 100% NOT allowed in you post content. Let's look at some examples:

Client / Job Data

*Note: if you want to report a job post, submit a ticket to Support, and flag the job post.

**Note: if you want to report a scammy client, submit a ticket to Support.

Putting a client or company name into the title of your post - Don't.

This means if you want to discuss a job post, or ask about a possible fraudulent client, you can't name the client or company.

Putting a client or company name into the body of your post - Don't.

This means if you want to discuss a job post, or ask about a possible fraudulent client, you can't name the client or company.

Copying a job post description into a post - Don't.

If you wish to discuss or report a job post, you must manually write about the job post or client. Do not post ANY content from a job post.

*Note: if you want to report a job post, submit a ticket to Support, and flag the job post.

Including a link to a job post inside your post - Don't

*Note: if you must report a job post, submit a ticket to Support, and include the job post URL.

Freelancer Data

*Note: if you want to report a fraudulent freelancer, submit a ticket to Support.

Putting a freelancer name into the title of your post - Don't.

This means if you want to discuss a possible fraudulent freelancer, you can't name the freelancer.

Putting a freelancer name into the body of your post - Don't.

This means if you want to discuss a possible fraudulent freelancer, you can't name the freelancer.

Copying a details from a Freelancer Profile into a post - Don't.

If you wish to discuss or report a Freelancer Profile, you must manually write about the profile. Do not post ANY content from the Profile.

*Note: if you must report a fraudulent freelancer, submit a ticket to Support, and include the Profile URL.

If you do include any of the above data, your post will be edited (and possibly removed) by an Upwork Moderator. If this happens, don't complain. Your responsible for knowing this is against the rules.

What else can't we post?

This is a professional community. If you would not want a current or perspective Client to see your post, it's very likely not appropriate for this forum. And of course, the usual forum rules apply here. Hateful speech, flaming, spamming and trolling isn't allowed.

Here are some misc. items that are considered to be inappropriate, and will either get you a slap on the wrist (edited/deleted post), possible suspension, or even banishment.

Links to other freelancer sites
Dissing Upwork (general criticism is allowed, but saying Upwork Sucks! isn't going to fly)
Hostile or rude behavior to other Members, or the Upwork Moderators
Spam posts
Not Safe For Work (NSFW) written, image or video content
Promoting your own services

Before you think these restrictions are just simply too much, consider the community. Upwork is a business, offers the forums as service to the Member base, and has every right to enforce whatever rules they want.

General Etiquette Tips

Forum moderators work hard to maintain a professional environment for the Member base. In addition, there are professional Freelancers and Clients who go out of their way to provide informative and helpful posts.

Be nice to them, and they will be nice to you.

If you appreciate the support of a Moderator or other Member, thank them. If they offer constructive criticism, don't be hostile.

Know where to post

Freelancer Forum - For freelancers, obviously. You can post in the Client area, but be watchful of what you are posting.

Client Forum - For Clients, obviously. Clients can post in the Freelancer area, but for support and Client related questions, the Client area is best.

Coffee Break - Anything goes, for everyone. Within reason, obviously.

There are other areas, but they are much more specific and don't really need an explanation. If you post something by accident in the wrong forum, don't panic. A moderator will eventually move your post to the correct area.

Common Questions

If your brand new to Upwork, your question probably isn't unique. For now, the Search function is your best friend. Chances are that your question has already been asked, and discussed at length, in an existing post.

Note: The video in the first post in this thread has a section related to searching. If you haven't watched the video, do check it out.

Do check out these 2 main threads that have a lot of good info for new Freelancer Members of the Community:

Link: Job Warning Signs - https://community.upwork.com/t5/Freelancers/Job-warning-signs/td-p/21467

Link: Want to get that first job? Check this out! - https://community.upwork.com/t5/Freelancers/Want-to-get-that-first-job-Then-check-this-out/td-p/2145...

Note: At the time of this writing, Upwork has announced that they will be re-organizing the Forums somewhat. These changes will make it much easier to find answers to the most common questions. Stay tuned, and watch out for updates regarding the new changes.

Conclusion

Being an active member of the Upwork Community Forums means that you are familiar with the rules, are respectful to the Members, and are mindful of the content you post. Having a bad day and want to rant? Go for it, within reason. Got a fun story to share? Please do. Having a problem with Upwork, a Freelancer, or a Client? Go ahead and post, but be mindful of the rules.

Setu M · Sep 24, 2016 07:05:03 AM

Your time and effort is much appreciated.

---- easy like Sunday morning ----

Petra R · Sep 24, 2016 07:09:46 AM

Brilliant