Let's vote for the increase in the amount of connects for the agencies

[andrew_nikulin]

UpWork promotes agencies a lot recently pushing more freelancers to go open a 'company'. At the same time, no one has even dared to review the agency's resources against the increased number of freelancers joining them now, or outgrowing competition. 

The agency now has almost the same amount of connects as an independent freelancer which makes pretty no sense, when you have a couple of dozens of agency members. A few years back most agencies would only have just a few members, but that's not a case anymore. 

Eventually, the growing agency has to pay hundreds of dollars for what? Just for the attempt to get a job? Leave alone the fact we pay enormous fees  (starting with 24-20%), which is purely insane. 

I do really want to move this issue to the level of UpWork product management team, otherwise, I'm highly unsure about sticking further with UpWork and bringing more people there from outside. There're plenty of alternatives out there if UpWork doesn't want to do simply neat product management and establish a business balance for the platform members. More and more disappointment over the last half a year.  

[JoanneP]

Hi Andrew,

Thanks for your feedback regarding the agency connects. I'll be sure to share this with the team for consideration. You do have the option to upgrade to the plus plan to get more connects for your agency. You can learn more on this help article. 

[andrew_nikulin]

Thank you, Joanne, this would be really helpful!

As for the  Plus plan, we already have it, and it adds almost nothing if compared to the basic plan. Imagine having 30 team members and just 80 connects for the whole month. This is just a bit more than 1 proposal per member per month. Ridiculous.  We need more to survive without paying thousands of dollars for the overheated market (which we won't do if that would be a choice eventually, and rather just leave). 

[petra_r]

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Andrew N wrote:

I do really want to move this issue to the level of UpWork product management team, otherwise, I'm highly unsure about sticking further with UpWork and bringing more people there from outside.

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As, in your other post, you acknowledged that the market is overcrowded (which leads to clients drowning in proposals) - why do you think it would ever make sense to overcrowd an overcrowded marketplace even MORE (by dragging in more freelancers) and giving agencies more Connects to drown clients even more?

Also, your maths is wrong. Overall, the freelancers in the agency each bring 60 - 70 Connects to the table, so with 20 agency members that adds up to collectively 1200 - 1400 plus the agency Connects every month. A case could be made for (drastically) reducing the number of Connects.

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Andrew N wrote:

There're plenty of alternatives out there if UpWork doesn't want to do simply neat product management and establish a business balance for the platform members. More and more disappointment over the last half a year.  

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Upwork has far too many freelancers in the majority of categories. Obviously, if you find the fees here too high and the conditions not to your liking and have established that you get a better deal at those "plenty of alternatives" the only logical thing to do is close your agency and take yourself off to those "plenty of alternatives"

[andrew_nikulin]

Cheers, Petra, my math is absolutely correct. We have non-exclusive freelancers only, which means their pull of connects belongs to them solely. 

The market is overheated for completely other reasons - overall skills disbalance,  incredible reduce in the flow of clients who hire and pay, overheated hourly rates, and the increasing amount of fake profiles when lots of users pretend to be European freelancers. 

[richard_wein]

Hi Andrew. I don't know much about Upwork agencies, I admit. But it doesn't seem right that a nonexclusive freelancer should get 60 connects to use themselves plus additional connects for the agency to use on their behalf. Perhaps the best solution would be to allow freelancers to give some of their connects to the agency, or to automatically divide the 60 connects between the freelancer and the agency.

[petra_r]

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Richard W wrote:

Hi Andrew. I don't know much about Upwork agencies, I admit. But it doesn't seem right that a nonexclusive freelancer should get 60 connects to use themselves plus additional connects for the agency to use on their behalf. Perhaps the best solution would be to allow freelancers to give some of their connects to the agency.

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That is ultimately what happens. Non exclusive freelancers are free to decide whether to apply under the agency or individually. If they liked and believed in their agency I can not see why they would not use (some?) of their connects under the agency.

My brain was fuzzy, the above is of course not the case.

[andrew_nikulin]

Petra, I would really appreciate if you take time and investigate the issue just a bit to make this discussion valuable, please.

If a non-exclusive freelancer applies to a job from the agency, he spends agency's connects, not his own. Agency would always have just 80 connects per month for a Plus plan despite any number of team members. Agency can't use team members' connects and their connects cant' be transferred to the agency. 

[petra_r]

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Andrew N wrote:

Petra, I would really appreciate if you take time and investigate the issue just a bit to make this discussion valuable, please.

If a non-exclusive freelancer applies to a job from the agency, he spends agency's connects, not his own. Agency would always have just 80 connects per month for a Plus plan despite any number of team members. Agency can't use team members' connects and their connects cant' be transferred to the agency. 

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You're right, I had a brain-freeze 😄 - Let me correct my post to reflect the facts correctly so we don't confuse people.

[andrew_nikulin]

Cheers, Richard, I used to have the same vision recently, this might definitely be a way out without ruining the overall balance. 

[piarix]

Petra, great thing is that along the month you can apply only to 10 600+ projects. As currently you need 6 connects to apply. This is absolutely bad. Even as a Top-rated professional I am considering TopTall to go out, because of this policy. Sometimes customers even don't know who do they need, closing jobs, placing it in 2-3 week advance.

As I am aware on how to work with customer history and description, I am good with that. And even though, it is so hard to start on Upwork for newbees.