Clients not leaving feedback

6a6db855 · ‎12-02-2019

How common is it for clients not to leave feedback? And how much does it put off potential future clients if I have some previous contracts without feedback?

I've had a few where they've seemed really happy with my work, they've come back for repeat business, but then not left feedback at the end of the contract.

I think in some cases they just stop checking their Upwork account after the work is completed, so they don't realise they're supposed to leave feedback, even if I send a message politely requesting it - they might not see the message.

And I think in some cases they don't see it as an expectation, in the same way as I don't feel obliged to review every single product I buy on Amazon. Am I wrong to expect that they should leave feedback for me on Upwork? I think it's different from Amazon because buyers on Amazon only see the feedback that has been left, whereas potential clients on Upwork see a lot of jobs on my profile that state "No feedback given", which I feel looks like a red flag. I do have some very positive feedback and star ratings - how much of a red flag is it to have several "No feedback given" interspersed with those?

Relatedly, I have a bunch of old contracts where I've completed the work and the client seems happy, but I've asked them if we can end the contract and they say no, they want to keep it open because they might have more work for me in future. I would like to get the contracts closed so that I can get feedback and so that I don't have a whole bunch of open stale contracts. I want them to leave feedback now, while they remember me and still feel enthusiastic about the work I did, rather than in a few months when they've forgotten me. But I think if I insist on closing contracts when they've explicitly said they want to leave them open, they will be annoyed and leave bad feedback because of that.

kkwan1 · ‎12-02-2019

Hi Rachel!

I checked out your profile and I actually think you've got a good thing going. I see lots of fantastic ratings and reviews, so I wouldn't stress too much if I were you. I used to be concerned about clients not leaving feedback, so I started asking them to leave reviews in the message I send along with completed work.

I'd ultimately just stress the importance of a good review as a freelancer and explain that it's an important factor in getting more business. If a client doesn't leave a review, it's not that big of a deal. It doesn't affect your Job Success Score too much. And besides, you have a 100% success rate (that's so awesome!), so I'm sure potential clients will see this and take it into consideration.

With regards to older contracts and the fear of letting them go stale, I would maybe give them a bit more time to see if they really do have more work for you. I've personally experienced this myself and will wait about two weeks. If I don't hear anything back from them, I'll close the contract and explain my reasoning for doing so. Be sure to mention that you're more than happy to start up a new contract when they're ready, and in the meantime explain that a review would be super helpful.

I hope this helps! Good luck!

robin_hyman · ‎12-02-2019

With regards to older contracts and the fear of letting them go stale, I would maybe give them a bit more time to see if they really do have more work for you. I've personally experienced this myself and will wait about two weeks. If I don't hear anything back from them, I'll close the contract and explain my reasoning for doing so. Be sure to mention that you're more than happy to start up a new contract when they're ready, and in the meantime explain that a review would be super helpful.

I disagree with what Katrina states above. Don't wait if they have work for you. Likely they will not and forget all about you leaving the job open forever. Also don't close it yourself (or don't close multiple contracts at once) which could result in a negative effect on your perfect JSS.

Instead, JUST as the project is about to end and you have the client's attention, thank them for the great experience. Tell them you would be happy to work with them again in the future, but at this time kindly close the contract and when they are ready, message you to discuss project scope, pricing and your availability. Also mention when they end the contract you will appreciate honest private and public feedback. If it was a positive experience for both of you, it will be a glowing review.

6a6db855 · ‎12-18-2019

Thanks for your replies. Sorry I took a long time to respond.

Robin - what do you do, or recommend doing, if you ask them to close the contract and they don't? This is what I usually do already - after the work seems to be finished, I say something like "can we close the contract now?" and they say "no, I might need you in the future."

At that point I have two options that I can see - leave it open indefinitely, or close it myself against their express wishes, which is likely to annoy them and provoke negative feedback even if they were otherwise happy.

robin_hyman · ‎12-18-2019

Robin - what do you do, or recommend doing, if you ask them to close the contract and they don't? This is what I usually do already - after the work seems to be finished, I say something like "can we close the contract now?" and they say "no, I might need you in the future."
At that point I have two options that I can see - leave it open indefinitely, or close it myself against their express wishes, which is likely to annoy them and provoke negative feedback even if they were otherwise happy.

If client writes, "no, I might need you in the future."

Your response, "I would love to work with you again, [client name]. If you have additional projects, please reach out to me directly and hopefully I will have the availability. In the meantime, please close this project and provide feedback on your experience. I appreciate it!"

I've been in this situation and the client graciously closed it and provided positive feedback. AND, this client recently started a new contract with me at an even higher rate than before.

If the client still doesn't close the contract, give it some time. Nothing will happen to your JSS with an open contract as long as you've received payment. Open contracts without payment will negatively affect your JSS over time.

Let me know if you have further questions!