Nobody replies to my job applications

[zlatagolaboska]

I have been on the platform actively from 2018. I have never experienced such a "dry" period. I have been applying for jobs for two months now- custom cover letters to a jobs I can actually excel, but seems like noone os responding. Out of ~50proposals I got only one declined, everything else is either "job is closed" either pending status. How can I be sure that my proposals are actually reaching the potential client?

[celgins]

Zlata,

Many (if not most) freelancers have noticed a significant drop in hires and invitations over the past 6-months to 1-year, and especially over the last 2-3 months. I believe some of this is due to the number of freelancers that flooded Upwork and similar sites during the pandemic. A lot of people began working from home during the pandemic and many never returned to their traditional employer-employee jobs.

In addition to that, there have been corporate adjustments (i.e. financial, marketing, strategy, etc.) and system adjustments (i.e., technical, platform, etc.) by Upwork, and I believe this is a huge factor. Plus, the evolution of generative AI content (i.e., ChatGPT) is part of the mix as well.

There is a lot of competition on Upwork, so receiving invites is a challenge and getting hired can be an even bigger challenge. I have experienced it too.

Continue to submit proposals to jobs for which you are qualified. You will eventually win some!

[zlatagolaboska]

My slight protest or wondering is pointed mainly to the part where we are paying to apply, but we don't receive any notification about it. Even if the hiring side decide never to reply, at least I have right to know if they opened my message, no? 
And invitations, oh! So rare!

[kelly_e]

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Zlata G wrote:

to know if they opened my message...

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This feature is on its way. They are beta-testing notifications of when employers have viewed your proposal right now. I imagine everybody will see it soon.

I'm seeing it. I don't find it all that helpful... unless you like knowing that most people *aren't* opening your proposal...   O.O

[25005175]

Knowing that they aren't opening the proposal IS helpful. It tells you that:

1. The first two lines of your proposal aren't inspiring enough to get the Client to open it
2. You are not placed high enough in the list to be in the Client's typical range before burnout.
3. Both

Combine the above knowledge with the ratio of viewed proposals that convert into a hire to determine if your bottleneck in your sales funnel is whether your propasal gets opened or if it is the interview process.

For me and some others, the bottleneck is getting the proposal viewed and that Boosting significantly increases our opened rate.

[the-right-writer]

Since you are top-rated, you should be able to see how many times your proposals has been viewed. Although it doesn't tell you who viewed, you have a good idea from the proposals you have submitted.

For anyone not top-rated, the feature is either rolling out now or should be in the near future. I'm looking for the announcement.

[zlatagolaboska]

Oh, this is something I didn't know existed! And seems like I can't find where to look at... 

[zlatagolaboska]

Found it! Thanks for the suggestion, this can be usefull 🙂

[the-right-writer]

Look under Find work, then My Stats from the first drop-down menu.

I hope this stays up. It's amazing. Upwork won't allow content it generated.

[25005175]

Invitations seem to depend on your category. In the 3D CAD/Engineering category, I routinely get 2-3 invitations per month. I chalk that up to there being fewer freelancers in this category compared to Writing and Graphic Design. So, the position of my profile in the USA-only search for my category is overall decent, even when it is not my turn at the top of the rotation. It is generally better for my main niche: plastics.

[kelly_e]

Zlata,

I'm seeing the same thing... and since the pandemic influx began three full years ago, I just can't imagine that's what this drop off is. I agree. I've never seen such a dry period.

For me it happened fairly suddenly about two months ago, and I keep checking back on the forums in case Upwork happens to explain it, since they've got access to data we haven't... but what I see is more people describing it, and a whole bunch of guesses. Algorithm? Connects? Boosts? Outside competition?

I've been working for myself for many years, and it doesn't feel like a seasonal lull or anything else—more like a switch turned almost completely off.

Sorry I can't be of help, but I wanted to let you know that you're not alone in your concerns.

[zlatagolaboska]

Thanks for replying. Even it feels releiving to know I am not alone in this, I hate that it's kind of trend. Hope better times are coming, hang on there! Cheers

[25005175]

Kelly, does your profile still have Categories selected? Some fields, like Writing, got their categories un-assigned in a big Category lineup change that Upwork implemented last year.

[kelly_e]

Yes, categories are still selected on my profile.

[loyalworker]

I've been around for well over a decade. Dry spells are inevitable unfortunately. Sure, you can work on your profile and cover letter, but at times nothing will be effective. You just have to accept it is one of the aspects of being a freelancer.

[the-right-writer]

As others have stated, in the last year/2 years or so, many established freelancers have similar experiences. It never hurts to examine your profile and portfolio.

Try experimenting with your proposals, different approaches, opening lines, etc. You may want to examine the clients more before applying. There are patterns to the jobs that never hire. There are a variety of reasons, but the never-hires include the scammers trying to get people outside Upwork. When looking for jobs, choose quality over quantity and learn to be an active scam detective. There may be times when you don't see any jobs that you think are real, and if so, think carefully about applying.

Think outside the box and don't limit yourself to one platform.

[8c0ab3dd]

Hy how can work tis website.

[alessandrosr]

Dear Zlata, it's easy to explain...it's the damned boosted feature...since it started I pretty much stopped getting jobs. Fortunately I have a few clients I've been working for some time as right now getting a job is pretty much impossible unless you don't boost your proposal with 60+ connects.

Now I know that all the upworks defenders and right-thinking will come and say that they win jobs against high-boosters only by snapping their fingers even if they didn't even know that the boosting feature exists, but that's it - let them talk. 

I'm a top-rated plus member and I've been around here when the thing was called oDesk, and I have never found myself in such a situation.