JSS & No Feedback Given: Good, repeat clients

[#1]

Hi There,

I have been successful in maintaining a perfect JSS and recently noticed my score had dropped to 98%. The only reason for this would appear to be that the client(s) neglected to leave feedback. These same clients have hired me again - multiple times in some cases.

It seems to me that I should not be getting demerits in my JSS on the assumption by Upwork that only dissatisfied clients fail to leave feedback. Also, a returning client should cancel out any previous demerits to JSS.

Any thoughts from the Community on this?

PS Perhaps the Client should be getting a demerit for failing to hold up their end of the agreement by providing feedback?

[#2]

---

Kathryn M wrote:

PS Perhaps the Client should be getting a demerit for failing to hold up their end of the agreement by providing feedback?

---

Um...what agreement is that, exactly?

[#3]

Perhaps that is the exact point: how effectively does Upwork communicate the expectation that a Client should provide a rating for the Freelancer?

[#4]

---

Kathryn M wrote:

Perhaps that is the exact point: how effectively does Upwork communicate the expectation that a Client should provide a rating for the Freelancer?

---

Answer: not at all. They don't communicate that because it's not really part of their business model. The clients post jobs, we freelancers get paid and Upwork gets a cut. My experience has been that client management is left up to us, it's on the freelancer to train the clients how to use the platform. Your concern is one that's been discussed more than I can fathom here in the Community. There seem to be 2 camps: one that takes the JSS lumps as part of doing business and doesn't let the score rule their work lives (2% has not, to my knowledge, affected anyone's chances of landing work in any measurable way - I've teetered between 98-100% at times and haven't noticed a downtick in work), and other other that gently educates the client about leaving feedback in a professional manner. 

[#5]

---

Kathryn wrote:

---

Perhaps that is the exact point: how effectively does Upwork communicate the expectation that a Client should provide a rating for the Freelancer

---

If you let clients end the contract, you are guaranteed feedback.

That said, what makes you think that the drop has anything at all to do with no feedback contracts rather than with private feedback?

[#6]

Many of my clients leave the contract open because they come back for more work at a later date. I am going to be more diligent about asking Clients to end the contract, if I remember correctly Freelancers get penalized for inactive contracts also.

Pretty positive the drop was not related to Private Feedback based on my stats, client activity at time of drop, understanding of client satisfaction level, repeat clients etc.

[#7]

---

Kathryn M wrote:

. I am going to be more diligent about asking Clients to end the contract, if I remember correctly Freelancers get penalized for inactive contracts also.

---

Not if money has (ever) been paid under the contract and you do not have an insanely high percentage of such contracts. The same as "No feedback" contracts. As long as money was paid and you don't havecrazy many of them, they do absolutely no harm at all.

[#8]

Thanks, Petra.

Actually, percentage-wise I do have quite a few 'No Feedback Given' and old contracts (I recently ended a bunch).

Also, since my jobs are few in numbers, would that mean a single bad rating could have a big impact on my JSS?

[#9 · Accepted solution]

---

Kathryn M wrote:

Thanks, Petra.

Actually, percentage-wise I do have quite a few 'No Feedback Given' and old contracts (I recently ended a bunch).

Also, since my jobs are few in numbers, would that mean a single bad rating could have a big impact on my JSS?

---

Yes, the JSS of low-volume contractors seems more sensitive to single ratings than that of higher-volume contractors. Two points, however (the JSS is not really a percentage, it's a hundred-point scale), is hardly what most people here would consider "a big impact."

Your private "clients who would recommend" score is a pretty good bellwether of JSS, although they update on a different schedule. It's a generally good predictor, and can after the fact confirm that you might have taken a hit in private feedback.

Those of us who make a point of requesting closure on old jobs, or close them ourselves, usually do so a few at a time. I do mine quarterly, and present it to the client as a matter of my own housekeeping. There's rarely if  ever reason to mention the rating system to a client.

[#10]

Thanks for clariying, Petra!