Connects are too expensive.

[#1]

Now , the connects are too expensive. This is the worst decision for freelancers. It's killing them.

16 connects for a job of 20 or 25 dollars. 50+ proposals on that job. How someone can get hired after spending 16 connects. After spending 200 connects worth of 30$, if someone gets a job, how it will be beneficial for him/her. Please take a look on this matter and revise your decision as it's not allowing us to work or to submit expensive proposals. If you can't do anything, please give some good package on buying connects.

[#2]

I recently returned from job hunting on UpWork. Initially, I had 262 connects and applied for 5 jobs, but now I only have 12 connects left. This is frustrating because the platform used to be different. I have to spend almost 50 connects for each job application, and I can't tell if the job is a scam or if the employer is even considering applicants. Meanwhile, UpWork takes its commission, but I'm left paying for something that isn't guaranteed. 

If UpWork is losing money, they should be transparent about it instead of hiding behind indirect methods. A 10% commission is already high for long-term clients, and now they're cutting off our money before we even have a chance to earn. UpWork can't fight against the wind forever. 

I suspect that UpWork is reporting to their investors or bosses that they're making 10 times more money now, but this will lead to a tragedy soon. I have to pay for 5 freelancers to apply for a job, and UpWork seems to think that this is sustainable. Let's see who will come out on top.

[#3]

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Suat K wrote:

If UpWork is losing money, they should be transparent about it instead of hiding behind indirect methods. 

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It's entirely transparent that Upwork has been losing money from the very beginning - their financial records are easy to find online - so yes, increasing the price of connects is one way for them to cut their losses and (perhaps) become profitable at some point.

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Suat K wrote:

I suspect that UpWork is reporting to their investors or bosses that they're making 10 times more money now, but this will lead to a tragedy soon. I have to pay for 5 freelancers to apply for a job, and UpWork seems to think that this is sustainable. Let's see who will come out on top.

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If all 18 million or so freelancers leave Upwork and there's nobody left to bid on projects any more, then I'm sure they'll rethink this. I don't see any sign of this happening.

[#4]

It seems like maybe you don't know what "have to" means.

[#5]

Absolutely right, before I could bid on more projects as the bids wrere like 2 to 4 connects, but now I project I for 16 connects. it has become so so expensive, and most of the clients dont even go throug the bids . Its very diappointing and the work suffers, please do something about it.

[#6]

Here's some free advice. Instead of buying connects, buy some Upwork stock. Become a co-owner of the company. The better Upwork is, the better we all are.

[#7]

Not sure if this is a good decision.

Buying stock in a declining company where User Experience on the Freelancer and Client Side have both reportably taken a downturn, as well as the major threat of "Bogus Freelancers + Bogus Clients" does not get addressed - Just because you operate on Upwork - does not mean you should buy its stock.

[#8]

I'm not into buying stock, it's not in my philosophy 👎 . But if Upwork needs a little help to keep going, and they only need me to spend a few dollars, I'm all for it. It's a "I need Upwork, they need me relationship" - a sort of collaboration. Plus I really like Upwork and would hate to see it disappear.

[#9]

It sounds like you didn't do much research before typing this. I actually did buy Upwork stock on Stash once upon a time. The investment kept going down and I eventually sold. Make sure your "free" advice is researched advice. Right now, the five-year annualized rate is -7.78% and 10-year is -13.43%. I absolutely tried this for a year or so though. Other companies were far more successful. 

[#10]

I agree with this. Connects becomes too expensive, costly. I used to apply 30-40 times in 15-20 days and luckily got 2-3 jobs with the old 4-6 connects. Now with 16 connects I have 1 and half month and have not been awarded any job. I only apply 1 job a day or none. This meassure force me to apply to less jobs. You never know when you will get hired. With the old method I applied to all jobs like crazy and found good clients. Now I cant apply, spend $3 per application. I would have to spend around $200-$300 with the new connects method. I'm a top rated since it was Elance-oDesk and this model is bring me down. I surely will not spend=waist=unfeasible my money unless they get it back. 

[#11]

You have to aply to 30+ jobs to land a job so for one job you willl need 30x2.4= 72 or USD Plus you have 10% and trensfer fees so getting one job cost around 100 USD. 

This is madness and needs to stop.

[#12]

mmmm

....  20conn.. are 4$ (tax too)..... proposals are 50+

so let we say   50x4$= 200$ for upWork income

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That is calling around EU  gambling

[#13]

I'm new here, there is no way I'm going to pay 3 dollars for each application I make. They can take the fee after I get hired but I'm not going to pay anything just for applying. They should charge a fee from the client who posts the job, not from the applicants who have a very small chance of getting hired.

[#14]

If you don't pay you can't apply, well, wait for the invitations. Wait, now you also have to pay to answer them!

And customers are already being charged for more things, which they don't seem to like very much. If clients leave you won't have to spend money on connects, everything ok for you then.

[#15]

Before you sign a Terms of Service agreement, you should know what you are signing. There is a plethora of information on the platform and how it functions available without joining. If you didn't want to use the platform, you shouldn't have joined.

No matter where or how you freelance, it costs money. If you had read the rules on how the platform works, you would know who is paying what fees, and when.

Freelancing means you are responsible for everything. If you don't want to pay, then you need to find your clients yourself, off the platform. Every time you approach a client, there are costs, and you pay for them, or you are not freelancing. No one paid for my education, additional skills training, CEU's, license renewals, etc. right up to the cost of printing a CV and letter and the cost of transportation to get to the prospective client.

[#16]

Like any other big brand name, Upwork is now a brand that people would love to stick to, even if it robs them straight. I have read this thread throughout and I feel there are so many ways to look at it. 

First, I heard someone say do not apply to **bleep**ty or low-quality jobs. Sweetheart, there is never knowing if the job is **bleep**ty or low quality until you have NOT DONE THE JOB. Period. Every job looks so glamorous but you get the essence of it once you work with the client and boom -  there is no accountability for the clients who ghost you and never reply, or worse never hire. WE SHOULD GET THOSE CONNECTS BACK. 

I understand just like any business Upwork is a business too, and every business has profits and losses. However, in this scenario, Upwork is the only one who is always in profit. Always.

Let's say you want to have my Connects for a job I applied for. Okay, sure. I will buy Connects. 
The client hired somebody else? Sure, I was not a good fit no worries. 

BUT GIVE ME MY CONNECTS BACK IF THE CLIENT DROPS DEAD AND GHOSTS AND NEVER LOGS IN AND NEVER HIRES. 

The client didn't get a service, I did get a job - fair. BUT UPWORK STILL MADE MONEY OUT OF IT. 
 

[#17]

First, I heard someone say do not apply to **bleep**ty or low-quality jobs. Sweetheart, there is never knowing if the job is **bleep**ty or low quality until you have NOT DONE THE JOB.

Of course, you can tell if a job is of low quality. If you don't understand vetting, then you should do research and learn before you lose money and get scammed. You know if the job is low quality, and it's silly to put that on Upwork.

Every job looks so glamorous

What platform are you using? Glamorous? Please show me some of these "glamourous" jobs, or at least describe them.

but you get the essence of it once you work with the client and boom -

No, you know all about the job before you take it, or you need to use the Academy and do research.

there is no accountability for the clients who ghost you and never reply, or worse never hire. WE SHOULD GET THOSE CONNECTS BACK.

That's part of freelancing and happens to some extent for many freelancers. If the client doesn't respond, and you have worked, you should know how to be paid even if you never hear from the client.

No, you nor anyone should get your connects back. If you learn to vet jobs and clients, you won't waste them. If that means you don't have a job here, then you look elsewhere. Free connects for all is not going to make the platform any better and only allows people to harass genuine clients.

Just because you didn't get hired doesn't necessarily mean it was a bad client. We all know there are more scams than jobs, so if you want to use Upwork, you need to take the scams into consideration. Is this a good situation? No. Is it a happy place? No. But it is a business, and we are the cogs in the wheel. If the same kind of management is in place, no one at Upwork will ever care anything about the freelancers or the clients. It may not be fun to hear, but it's the truth. We have tried to get Upwork to listen, and no one cares, and no one cares if the quality is in the toilet. Freelancers need to understand the truth and make sure they are thinking as a freelancer and not an employee.

[#18]

Why so mad? Did you really read through the thread? You didn't address a few points.

I'll take your last sentence only and respond to it: "what's wrong with Upwork making money from it? Did they break any laws? Are they obligated to care about your well-being? What if 'thinking about freelancers' have actually brought them losses for nearly a decade (which is true)? Aren't you the one who is evil when you want them to go back to the way it was before where you profit and they are having loss?

They are smart in inventing the 'perception of opportunity' games, because there are so many people willing to play; people who can't even see thousands of **bleep**ty or low-quality jobs posted without submitting a proposal 😁

[#19]

I am quoting again "I understand just like any business Upwork is a business too, and every business has profits and losses. However, in this scenario, Upwork is the only one who is always in profit. Always."
 
I said I understand them making money, but if your audience is not happy - you will go out of business anyway. 

Also, I guess you haven't read the thread well but just a few replies above I found this by a community member:

"You have to apply to 30+ jobs to land a job so for one job you will need 30x2.4= 72 or USD Plus you have 10% and transfer fees so getting one job costs around 100 USD. 

This is madness and needs to stop."

This is the kind of madness we are talking about. If you go to a grocery store where the prices are 2x more expensive than the normal price, you talk about in the community, discuss how expensive they are, and decide not to shop from them anymore. We cannot ask the owners to close their store it's their business how they run it. 

[#20]

As per your quoted, still, what's wrong with Upwork as the only one who profit? Bad, but they don't break any laws.

If you found a way to legally-trick internet users to milik them to give money to you, will you do that?

Maybe not, but if your business has previously collected losses for a decade, will you do that?

If still not, then you'd rather close the business than keep running it at a loss.

Yes it's madness but can't tell it to stop. It's us who shouldn't get caught in their games.