From your posts it is clear that you were disappointed in how long it took to resolve this. My one bit of advice is: Don't expect that to change. For that reason, I always advise Upwork users to avoid disputes if at all possible. I always want to resolve things directly between freelancers and clients rather than involving Upwork. It's really not worth my time to involve Upwork, and I don't like the uncertainty of the process.
I think you are trying to be helpful in your comments and critique of the process. But the whole "dispute" process is inherently fraught with problems, partially because Upwork officially can NOT decide who is "right" or "wrong" in disputes. They can only advise both parties to work out their differences.
Hi Preston, and thanks for responding. I agree that freelancers should avoid disputes whenever possible--the process is inefficient to say the least. For my part, I politely but firmly pled my case to the client before I filed a dispute. She was beyond rude, and behaved like a child. It simply was not possible to reason with her.
This is the first time I've had to file a dispute, but I've been burned by numerous clients in the past, and had no real leg to stand on. I used to set up contracts with 2 milestones -- 50% due when I deliver a draft, and 50% due after edits/revision, and when they approve the script. But, I had clients receive the draft of the script, pay the first milestone, and then say they didn't want to move forward with the project any longer because of budget, change of mind, more pressing projects, whatever. I later found their videos online with my exact script. So, they got a very well-written script for half price. And I had no recourse because all I did was deliver the draft. It's as though I'm being ripped off for doing too good a job on the first try.
For that very reason, I set my contracts up with 3 milestones now.
(1) Kickoff (Research, alignment, concept development, and outline) -- 1/3 due when we're in agreement on approach and concept, and before I ever begin writing the actual script.
(2) Delivery of first draft -- 1/3 due when I submit the first draft, and
(3) Revision(s) and final approval -- the final 1/3 due when the client is completely satisfed with every word of the script.
This way, even if a client receives the draft and tries to duck out of the contract, I at least receive 2/3 of what I'm owed. In this particular case, the client received the draft and closed the contract without paying milestone 2.
I find that, as a writer, it's very easy for clients to end a contract early, then go on to use my work without any additional changes. I'm considering changing the "weight" of my milestones after this experience. Maybe percentages more like 30/50/20 ... or maybe even 40/50/10, since the editing/revising stage is the quickest and easiest part of the process, and the one that clients are most likely to back out of.
This obviously isn't the case with all clients, or even the majority -- but it happens often enough that I have had to change the way I do business on Upwork. I think the whole thing is disappointing because it feels like the "Upwork Payment Protection" isn't really protection at all. It's like me telling two of my bickering children to work it out for themselves. The only reason I "won" this dispute is because the client didn't bother to respond. If she had, and maintained her argument that she shouldn't have to pay for work she was unhappy with, we would've had to go to arbitration for someone to actually make a decision. And that costs more than most of my milestones. Clearly, I wouldn't pay $291 for arbitration when the amount owed was only $125.
Part of the reason I'm willing to give up 20% of my earnings AND pay a monthly fee to use the platform is because I'm offered some level of protection against clients who don't want to pay. But, I'm beginning to rethink that, because it doesn't feel like there's any real protection in place.
