Feedback

[brownsusan62]

Seems to me the feedback of a client who you worked with for less than 4 hours should be weighted less than that of a client you have more hours with. That's not apparently how it is though. I had a contract with a client who suspended the contract after less than 4 hours billed because she was too busy to train me. After a few months, I suggested the contract be ended. Her 2 star review brought my 4.9 rating down to 4.41! Hardly seems equitable! Odesk should look into weighting scores based on hours worked.

[david_gregory]

I just looked and your average is still 4.90.

[asajid]

Hi Susan, You are still 4.9. The ratings must have taken a bit of time to adjust I guess, but right now, your overall and 6-month average is at 4.9. These averages are already weighted, using the dollar value of the contract and the score received for it to determine how it affects your average. Here's the exact formula. Hope this helps!

[stephenbrightman]

That's a bad link - Apparently I don't have access to that topic. Who does?? Because for my own reasons I'd love to see the formula as well

[natacharodriguez]

That link is from the old help center. I don't know why the hell they didn't just update the help center. There is a lot of info missing from the new one, I actually have a ticket about this. Also, clients help center is not visible to contractors, this is just great for hiring managers :( Lots of forum posts with useful links are now useless.

[asajid]

The link is from the new help center but I wonder why Stephen can't see it!

[natacharodriguez]

[quote=Ayesha Sadaf Kamal]The link is from the new help center but I wonder why Stephen can't see it![/quote] I get > You do not have access to this topic You do not have access to this page. Please contact the account owner of this Zendesk for further help.

[david_donna]

I can't see it either, it says I don't have access.

[asajid]

That is strange, let me escalate this.

[david_gregory]

I just checked and I don't have access either.

[natacharodriguez]

[quote=Ayesha S.]The link is from the new help center [/quote] I can't find it in the new help center. I still think your link is from the old help center, all the links form the old help give the same error "You do not have access to this topic".

[asajid]

It is from the new help center. Let me copy paste the exact URL, see if that works for you guys? https://support.odesk.com/entries/23117701 Please try copying to your browser and see if it works. I have reported this though.

[natacharodriguez]

I got the same message telling me I don't have access.

[david_gregory]

I tried as well as got the "no access" message.

[zoomconcepts]

[quote=Natasha R.] I don't know why the hell they didn't just update the help center. There is a lot of info missing from the new one, I actually have a ticket about this. Also, clients help center is not visible to contractors, this is just great for hiring managers :([/quote] This. Especially with the clients' section not visible to contractors. I take on new clients (new to oDesk) - sometimes they're not familiar with the interface and with the system and they ask me how to do this and that. Before, I was able to guide them even without client account - I had access to the help section so I could just link the relevant article. Now I have to generally describe the process and advise them to ask Support if they can't find their way through the GUI. Headache for the client, more Support time wasted for minor stuff - both can be avoided if you just update the thing and leave the sections visible to all users.

[natacharodriguez]

[quote=Bojana D.][quote=Natasha R.] clients help center is not visible to contractors, this is just great for hiring managers :([/quote] This. Especially with the clients' section not visible to contractors. I take on new clients (new to oDesk) - sometimes they're not familiar with the interface and with the system and they ask me how to do this and that. Before, I was able to guide them even without client account - I had access to the help section so I could just link the relevant article. Now I have to generally describe the process and advise them to ask Support if they can't find their way through the GUI. Headache for the client, more Support time wasted for minor stuff - both can be avoided if you just update the thing and leave the sections visible to all users.[/quote] First ticket: Rest assured that I already escalated the issue with our Engineers and requested for the highest priority for your concern. Second: Please be informed that this ticket is still in our work queue and we appreciate your patience while we are reviewing this request.

[zoomconcepts]

Third: Please be informed that your ticket has been automatically closed because we ran out of canned replies. p.s. Fair is fair though, the last time I was on LiveChat, the service was fast and the agent was helpful. I guess tickets are just slower...

[natacharodriguez]

Apologies for the long wait and delayed response. We are pleased to inform you that this issue has now been resolved.

[zoomconcepts]

I still see only the Freelancers' section 😕 Perhaps they resolved it for staffing managers?

[natacharodriguez]

I'm going to reopen the ticket and ask. ............ Me and my thousand tickets. There's a new bug, freelancers decline reason cannot be seen, you click on "view message" and it just shows the freelancers profile. Some take the time to include a nice a message thinking clients will read it. Not to mention that it's quite useful, sometimes the message will say "Too busy for the next 2 weeks, but if you still need etc"..

[natacharodriguez]

[quote=Bojana D.]I still see only the Freelancers' section 😕 Perhaps they resolved it for staffing managers?[/quote] CS: Unfortunately, unless a user has Hiring Manager privilege, they wont be able to access clients help pages.

[zoomconcepts]

Thought as much. Thanks for confirming. I still stand by my original opinion: this decision is stupid. I hope Support enjoys working the time that freelancers could've saved them by simply linking a Help thread to a new client.

[asajid]

Stephen, the link is working for me. Please try clearing your cache to see if that helps. But just in case, I'm copying the entire thing below: How does oDesk calculate freelancers feedback scores? The Basics Clients can provide star ratings for freelancers in six categories: skills, quality, availability, deadlines, communication, and cooperation. Skills and quality carry slightly more weight in the overall ranking—20%. Availability, deadlines, communication, and cooperation each carry 15%. The Background A freelancer's last six months feedback score is weighted by the net dollar value of their contracts, including current contracts and feedback received during this period. The net dollar value equals the total payment made to the contractor, minus any refunded payments. Current contracts are assigned the contractor’s all-time feedback score along with their net earnings from the past six months. Here are a couple of examples: In the last six months, a contractor has a $1000 contract with five stars, a $200 contract with one star, and a $500 ongoing contract. The freelancer's all-time feedback score is 4.0. The last six months feedback score is 4.24. A freelancer has a $1000 contract with 5 stars, a $200 contract with 1 star, and a $50 contract with no feedback. The freelancer’s all-time feedback score is 4.33. It's important to note that contracts with less than $1 in net earnings are hidden from contractors' work histories and excluded from their feedback scores. Also, if a freelancer or client didn’t leave feedback for the other at the end of the contract, that contract will be excluded from the feedback calculation. The Details To view a freelancer’s work history in more detail or read a freelancer’s full feedback comments: > From the Work History and Feedback section of the freelancer’s profile page, click any job title in the list to view a bit more detail. > For public jobs, you’ll see a short preview. To read more, click the View complete job description link. If the job is private, you’ll only see the full feedback comment and rating.

[bitlaslt]

Thank you for explaining ,but it cant be right. In 3 month time: I had 4.97 rating i got 2 feedbacks: 4.7 and 2.6(200$ and 30$ ) IT droped my rating to 4.95(somehow 4.7 dropped rating to lower 😄 ) After that i completed job for $2,808 and guess what .IT didn't increased rating at all .IT was still 4.95. After i completed other 5 jobs ~500$ of value .I got my rating back to 4.97 I remember that clearly because 230$ dropped my rating,but 2800 didnt increased it at all.IT was strange and still is . Rating system works in mysterious ways for me 😄

[stephenbrightman]

[quote=Ayesha Sadaf Kamal]Stephen, the link is working for me. Please try clearing your cache to see if that helps. But just in case, I'm copying the entire thing below: [/quote] Ayesha, thanks for that. Seriously, on a personal level. Now for the rant, not personal to you... I tried it again today and still the same message. And guess what, I'm not prepared to clear my cache, believe it or not I use other websites as well as oDesk and don't see why I should have to compromise them every time oDesk has a problem.

[coffman-robin]

it might behoove you to learn a little something about how to work with technology. [quote=Stephen B.]I'm not prepared to clear my cache, believe it or not I use other websites as well as oDesk and don't see why I should have to compromise them every time oDesk has a problem.[/quote] Compromise other websites by clearing the cashe? Uh, what? Do you understand how silly that sounds? It is not oDesks fault, or the fault of any other site you choose to try to work with, if there are issues because you have been remiss in clearing the cashe. It is seriously ridiculous to consider that it is. I have a sneaky suspicion that you have a very slow computer. After all, why should you have to do any of the regular maintenance things to keep it running smoothly, right? And this from a thread about the new Dropbox tool: [quote=Stephen B.]I've never known any other website where you're expected to regularly and randomly clear caches and change browsers just to keep it working for you. And while at times it's just annoying, it's frightening to think that this is the site that controls all or part of our livelihoods via earnings. if my bank's site kept having the same issues I'd leave that bank.[/quote] There are numerous sites that regularly have compatibility issues. Amazon KDP, for one, is simply not fully compatible with IE, and many other sites are not either. Americas largest self publishing web site, where many people earn a living has compatibility issues. So what. Change browsers. Easy enough. Is it oDesks fault that a tool that they offer may have compatibility issues with a browser that is known to have compatibility issues. They offer you a tool that you may have to make concessions to use. How dare they. Yes, its all truly rant worthy. I am not saying that oDesk is perfect. I just find the things that people choose to complain about to be ridiculous sometimes. If you want it to work, do the things that will help ensure that it can work. Changing browsers and clearing cashes are the two most common things for a site to recommend to people who have issues using it, regardless of the site. You know why? Because it often works. How dare they offer the advice that has the best chance of getting you what you want.

[coffman-robin]

It is weighted based on the monetary value of the contract, a much better measure than time. BTW, something is screwy with your feedback. I only see one (a small contract) that is 4.6 and the rest are all 5 stars or no feedback. The math doesn't work out to 4.41, no matter how you weigh it. I would contact CS to figure out what is going on. Edit: oops, the 4.6 is for a comparatively larger contract, I see now. It still doesn't add up, though. You simply cannot have an overall score that is lower than your lowest individual score. Funky math, I think. Edit: It has changed from the 4.41 it was at when you posted. Now, it is 4.9, which is much better math. I guess you got it figured out with CS? Good for you.

[brownsusan62]

The reason you don't see the 2 star review is because I refunded her the measly $30 - prior to "refunding" my 4.9 went to 4.41. Again, for less than 4 hours(and $30) I don't understand how that one review should have brought my rating down so much.

[asajid]

Hi everyone, Sorry, that link was from the client section, here's the correct link for the Freelancer version.

[zoomconcepts]

Cool, but do we get at least explanation why freelancers shouldn't have access to the client's help section? The issues was raised here and I'm pretty sure there are other folks who are also affected by that (hiring managers).

[natacharodriguez]

We already relayed this with our Production Team and they are reviewing this option. We will close this ticket for now. This issue is still on our Production Team's list. Unfortunately we do not have a specific time yet for a solution. Rest assured that we will update you once it is done.