Nigerian Freelancers

[Ijeoma I]

Hi Akinbode,

Thank you for your contributions. Yours and everyone whose comments I've read are encouraging.

I have to ask though, and I would appreciate your giving direct answers.

I became active again last month, after registering in 2014. What do you think I can do to increase my chances?

How much do you think I should charge for an hour given that I've not completed any jobs?

I put 3USD initially, and I read that I shouldn't underprice myself, so I increased it to 20USD. I feel like I'm unable to work out the pricing dynamics correctly given my "greenhorn" status.

Kindly share your thoughts.

Thank you.

[Akinbode A]

Hello Ijeoma,

Thank you for the contact and compliment.

First of all, I must confess, what a great profile you got out there. However, there is always room for improvement. I would list a few.  But do remember that there is no perfect profile.

1. Your hourly rate is good on 10USD
2. Your Profile overview is well written, you may only need to rearrange. some stuffs.
3. Let your first paragraph be your sales point, it should contain your experiences too.
4. Also, remove the test results at the end of the overview, they are displayed in their own section.
5. Your portfolio should contain more than one project using relevant image(s). Kindly remove your image from the project, its not professional enough.

Having said all these, your best weapon are your proposals for jobs.

• A solid professional proposal will drive the traffic towards your profile.
• Make your proposal as formal as possible by starting with a quick introduction of yourself, how competent you are for the job not forgetting to mention any of your past project that is relevant to the job and a quick breakdown of how you will go about it.
• You can add attachments too.
• I'd advise you apply for low budget jobs for now.
• Apply to jobs with low number of proposals submitted. Applying for jobs with 20 - 50 proposals is a no go area.
• Finally, make each proposal unique. Write each proposal fresh and not from your templates. It helps you tailor each proposal to a particular job posting.

I hope this helps.

Good luck ma'am

Kind regards,

Akinbode A.

“You Learn More From Failure Than From Success. Don’t Let It Stop You. Failure Builds Character.”

[Tope D]

I think I agree with you, although I have gotten reasonable jobs here. But with the number of proposals I have sent, if I was probably from the U.K, i'll have more opportunities. I have noticed few things, but I'll rather not say...I could be wrong. Just take a look at the screenshot, it says it all... things like this could be really discouraging.

[Kofoworola G]

In my opinion, you have to work hard on your profile. People may or may not be skeptical to hire Nigerians, but,  if you have skills and certification no one can deny your ability.

[Emmanuel O]

True.

[Opaola B]

Yes I agree with you Sir, have struggling and trying my best Sir, to get it but it seems sturborn.

[Akinbode A]

Hello Gabriel,

First of all, congratulations on your profile approval and welcome to Upwork. There are various ways you can get paid here on Upwork. However, the fastest and most convenient way is the Local Bank transfer.  It's the fastest because it takes less than 3 hours(for me, I use GTB)  to get credited, most convenient because you get the naira equivalent, no hassle of trying to sell your dollars. Finally, it's quite cheap, the transaction fee is less than $1.00.

Just add your bank details and your bank swift code(search the internet, its there) and within a few business days, your account will be confirmed. Note: Your account name and Upwork account name should be the same.

However, if you need your earnings in dollars, probably you want to make some transactions in dollars directly or you have an easy way of reselling the dollars, you can go Payoneer.

For now, your key focus is to land those jobs and build your job success, getting paid is one of the easiest processes on Upwork. Once again, you are welcome and good luck.

"A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work."

[Oladimeji T]

Thanks Akinbode for this info. But my major confusion here is, do I need to have a domiciliary account to receive payment?

[Karima U]

I agree 100%

[Akinbode A]

Hi Afolabi,

Firstly, I do not think profile approval on Upwork is controlled by humans but by alogrithms for the first stage before the humans do the once that came through the first stage.

However, checking your profile, it is too weak if I may say.  You still need to go back and tweak it. You should not just resubmit after being rejected. I will list some things I feel you should brace up on your profile.

1. You do not have a portfolio
2. There are no tests at all. Take tests that are relevant to your skills and the Upwork readiness test too.
3. One line or two line sentence for your experience is not enough. Explain what you do or did.
4. Make sure you have 100% profile completeness.
5. Is your email a professional email? I mean it includes your name and not some fancy aliases.

These are just tips and doesn't gurantee the approval, but I wish you success.

Kind regards,

Akinbode A.

"There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure."