Increasing Transparency in Boosted Proposals

[kochubei_valeria]

Our team recently launched a test to increase transparency around bidding in Boosted Proposals to help you make a more informed decision around spending Connects.

Check out the product update about this test here and let us know your thoughts about this update in the comments below.

[88fdf858]

Hey there , Hope all is well but simply I’m curious about and how you’re
using the system for what exactly?

[f1ecd428]

So I decided to play the boosting game and yes, all my boosted proposals are getting seen versus only 1/4 of organic proposals. The problem is the only interview I got was from a client who wanted pet portraits for $3 and then disappeared. Not sure what I'm doing wrong.

[dixitshubhashish]

ALERT ALERT, SCAM ALERT in LIVE BIDDING BY UPWORK !! Live Bidding is having another level of scam as well for us. Please keep an eye on your refunds as well if boosting some proposals.

So I applied for this job post and somehow boosted my proposal with 25 connects that's around 4 USD on 25th Jan 2023.

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

Now the current situation even you can check is the below level 

As you can see, this has reached to 399 connects but here is the thing the minimum bid is 64, but my connects haven't been reversed back to my account yet. So you can understand, the system has eaten 25 connects and more similar connects as well.

This level of scam is happening at CONNECT EATING SYSTEM!

Valeria - Is your team really paying head to the freelancers' feedback and need or just we are still in old 2022 and those methodologies. Please stand up for the community and folks and kill this live boosting mechanism for god sake.

Please please save the freelancers, they are getting dead of all this. 

[nav_designer]

why does Upwork charge connects when they don't give you any Booting SLOT, this is a big scam 

during the writing proposal in a sec, you could lose the slot but anyhow Upwork managed to charge connects and said they charged because of the client interaction but is it Upwork efficiently? if the client intact your proposal if you nor in the boosting slot?  It happens because of your luck or maybe your profile is strong,  so work has no right to charge those connects.

after boosting system hiring rate is now 0 % even if you invest 200$ USD on connects,  

the Quality of the platform is now the worst all good clients, already moved.

not sure how I will survive  I wasted my 12 years, 

[88fdf858]

When you connect with the client right do you actually already have work as
an example to show them that you’re qualified for that position or for that
assignment to get paid hourly and a clear KPI time frame to update there

[4c5b9f71]

Ouch, is some one helpingyou with this? I hope it was resolved ?

[yaizamg]

Need more proof as to why this is **Edited for Community Guidelines** and that there are bots involved in bidding and proposing? A freelancer posted a job ad by mistake, it not only has less than 5 proposals,

IT HAS A FREAKING 7 CONNECT BID

Please, we are asking you to remove this, to remove connects, to remove bids. There's already 50+ connects on jobs posted less than 2 hours ago. Looking for jobs is imposible, in a year I've lost my badges because my profile isn't being seeing and because my profile isn't being seen, I'm not being interviewd!! I had the same client for years, I've had more earnings and worked more hours than some of the people that are getting more jobs, and it was for nothing. I'm not getting nothing, no views, no invites to jobs, no interviews, nothing...it's discouraging.

[88fdf858]

Hey how are you what’s your motive’s? And what job you particularly you
want to work for as an career ? ##- Please type your reply above this line
-##

[waris14]

I simply don't like this waste of money feature.

It makes no sense spending crazy amount of connects .

Its very discouraging for most of the freelancers

[nehalkhan_nk]

i think now spending more connects and boosting your proposal will help you win projects only. looks like new and experienced both have to suffer more on Upwork. only person that can win proposal is the one who spend more and more

[ca9acb03]

I know this is an old post... but I'm really devastated by this concept... it was perfect before why change it?

[audthom59]

The new "better" way absolutely sucks! Just a way to get more money from the ones making them money. 

[marusia_tirmican]

Hello, thanks for sharing the invitation; much appreciated 

[4c5b9f71]

Hey Guys, 

I am trying to become a new freelancer here on Up-work  & when sending my proposals I see this fewture of bidding. 

The more you bid Up-work will place that proposal on the top of the list. Firstly this lft a bad taste in my mouth as this  is a off putting cash grab ( I am aware this is on Up-work Platform but I need to respectfully voice this) 

Taoday while placing proposals I see that people bidding 50 connets, 20 , 30 etc  

I dont want to bid but what advantages does this feature offer, is my bid at the bottom even though I applied to the job when there were only 5  proposals sent ? 

Is there a way for new freelancers to tackle this ( Freelancers new who dont wantto wate money on connects) 

I also want to keep an open mind, If your a freelancer that bids please write your experience I will consider my apprroach if I see reason in the staratergy you provide. 

Thank you

[4c5b9f71]

Valeria, 

I just read the article you posted and this may be blunt but this is an unjust  system. 

Upwork is  simply saying if I use more connects (which Costs money)  I will will get my proposal on the top. 

It will pass the freelancers who were there first & give it to freelancers that pay more. This is like the gaming loot box system where you pay to win

I know the that your just linking to this system that UP-work setup, but who do I petition to get this down. 

Thank you 

[audthom59]

Falling on deaf ears! This platform has changed so much since 2008 when it it oDesk. 

[4c5b9f71]

Hey Guys, 

I am trying to become a new freelancer here on Up-work  & when sending my proposals I see this fewture of bidding. 

The more you bid Up-work will place that proposal on the top of the list. Firstly this lft a bad taste in my mouth as this  is a off putting cash grab ( I am aware this is on Up-work Platform but I need to respectfully voice this) 

Taoday while placing proposals I see that people bidding 50 connets, 20 , 30 etc  

I dont want to bid but what advantages does this feature offer, is my bid at the bottom even though I applied to the job when there were only 5  proposals sent ? 

Is there a way for new freelancers to tackle this ( Freelancers new who dont wantto wate money on connects) 

I also want to keep an open mind, If your a freelancer that bids please write your experience I will consider my apprroach if I see reason in the staratergy you provide. 

Thank you

[e00b050e]

We all have been complaining about this bidding stuff but it seems upwork does not want to do something about it. Bidding is by choice anyway, if you wish to place your proposal at the top for client to see yours first, then u can bid, but there are clients that can take there time to find the best freelancer for their

job and not minding to pick from the first 4.

[d23d8d47]

Coonect bids are really unfair. You're just doing or making more money. So unfair!

[audthom59]

Absolutely unfair - nothing but a money maker. I got on this platform to make money not spend it .

[ovi-a]

I've seen jobs where people have paid 10 times the standard amount of connects you can pay to send a proposal to get it boosted. What's worse was that this job only had 10 proposals in the first place ! 😱🤯 

Of course, I wasn't wasting my connects, so I paid the standard amount and didn't get it boosted. If the client can't be bothered to read all the proposals considering there are only 10, It would probably not be best for me to work with them anyway.

BTW, my best strategy for getting work has always been submitting proposals for jobs that have 5 to 10 proposals anyway. 

[audthom59]

The whole connect thing is wrong and the boost thing amplifies it! 

[b2559eb4]

You guys need to do a better job screening people on this site. **Edited for Community Guidelines** passes himself as an ethical hacker, completely scammed me and delivered nothing.  Please screen your people better.  I will not use this site again.

[ebecb68b]

Boosted proposals are a problem for new freelancers like myself. A job pays a minimum amount of $3/hr or $5, and the requirement clearly says they need entry-level freelancers, going into the hands of the people who are using boosted proposals. Recently, I found a job that requires only 1 connect to use for a proposal, and someone used 90 connects so he could be the top candidate among other freelancers. We don't have that many connects in our account as new freelancers, and the fact that someone has more connects or can afford to have that many connects and use them on jobs that can be good for entry-level freelancers just proves it to be wrong on so many levels. Please have Upwork do something about it. At least cancel boosted proposals for entry-level jobs so that everyone can send proposals fairly.

[osama_minhas_786]

Boosted proposals win the job. What's the reason? I know they show on first. But what else? Do they qualify the criteria of the job posted?

[rohanxh]

Hi, Upworkers!
I just wanted to express that I am suffering from this killing feature. A freelancer like me who's trying hard to get on the top and earn more value on this platform by serving more clients but the thing is, no matter you write a perfect proposal even on time, a richie rich with unlimited connects will boost his/her proposal with infinite connects and drag you down. At the end we all are suffering. I request Upwork authorities to end this feature and let us survive on this platform.

Thanks for reading  😊

[hahamzay]

Similar thing experiencing from the last 3 months. Although I try to apply within 15 minutes of the job post, I see heavy bids with chunks of connects taking away the jobs. Upwork needs to look into this matter.

[rohanxh]

With you 🙌

[4c5b9f71]

Same observation here too Ameer 

[moolardevar]

God save us. UpWork in 2 months has turned into a quickly sinking ship after 10 years of being an innovative rocket.

[rohanxh]

Exactly! 
Now Upwork must take action on that after getting these reviews from around the world. After all, we all are here on this platform for some reason. Hope they understands our pain.  

[aaron-messer]

It's really hard to get jobs for freelancers. Many fake and unprofessional guys boost their proposals and took the top 4 slots.
So the other developers don't have enough chance to show their proposals to the clients.
Vise versa, clients have fewer chances to hire professional developers because many new freelancers(0 earned) boost their proposals to take the top 4 seats.
The boost option is not a good idea for both clients and freelancers.

[moolardevar]

I suspect they know they're sinking and just trying to grab as much loot before they're completely underwater. It's the only logical conclusion.

[rohanxh]

😂

[4c5b9f71]

Well it's hard to say, but mostly I have been connecting off this platform to get work. 

So are many other people rhat are networking, the clients too are catching wind of this system and not liking it. 

I think it will take sometime but yeah there is a decline of users 

[k_niewczas]

Hello - boosting proposal transparency makes it more gambling. It does not matter how hard you worked to earn Top Rated or even how many connections you are willing to pay; the later you apply, the more chance you have. I got interviews through bidding proposals, but it was simply luck and had nothing to do with my qualification and fit for the project. No one who applied later than me was willing to bid. It is simply UNFAIR! Are there plans to change it?

[lucioric]

Yesterday, I clicked on a job post I think I am an excellent fit for, but it required 50 connects to bid. I don't know if many of the jobs that I applied to I was missed out simply because I was outbid by anyone else. It seems that Upwork is converting from a talent-to-job marketplace to a pay-to-job marketplace.

[lucioric]

The only one that is earning from boosted proposals is Upwork, and that in the short term, because clients and freelancers are noticing that Upwork is being converted to a pay-to-job marketplace.

[aaron-messer]

Upwork says that the boost feature is for reducing the proposals but that's not true actually. 
Too many freelancers submit proposals and the clients don't want to scroll down and down to the bottom. 
They see only a few proposals on the first page. So only boosted proposals(4 guys) and 1 lucky guy has a chance to show their proposals to the clients. 
Whether the boost feature exists or not, still lots of freelancers submit their proposals. So the boost feature is not for reducing proposals, it's Upwork's strategy to take more money from the freelancers. Same for the Availability badge and the Connects based on the job types. 

[e00b050e]

Hello
Please I don't know what to say but I need clarification why I'm unable to get a job on this platform since I joined Upwork. I don't even get an invitation like I used to have. Some will only view my proposal and don't interview. I have spent a lot of money buying connect but getting at least one job is difficult for me

Please, what is the way forward, any advisor for me?