UpWork Biased Buckets

[rlong98]

Dear UpWork Community

This is an example of how you make it hard for someone who could have years of knowledge and skill – but still be locked into a bucket where you cannot start a successful business.

I can find many jobs that I can do blind folded – but I will not be hired because of “UpWork Bias Buckets”

1. Rising Talent  (Still have no idea what this exactly means, yet how does it portrait “talent” in getting a job done?)
2. Not Made 10,000 K  (What does how much someone made denote skill?)
3. Job Success Rate  (I had 3 jobs on UpWork since I started.  ONLY 3!  I spent more on Connects and Special Software subscriptions I need to do a job).  The Jobs I did were done very quickly – yet extended because of other scope creep tasks added.  Is it based on timing?

It’s #2 that is the most biased, that because someone made money, makes them special?  I’m seeing this more, and I used to be able to Still submit a proposal, but this time I couldn’t – getting the attached message.

I’m at the point of discouragement that I’m going to bow out of UpWork…  but where else will I turn?   It’s clear UpWork “cares” for us, it is a business (if I make money, UpWork makes money), but at the same time – yet no one would miss me since there are 1000’s of Rob Long’s who do what I do (even better) out there getting the job.

I joined all your events in proposal submission.  I apply the great suggestions, but now I cannot even submit a proposa because of the tags against me.

I guess I don’t know what to do – since I’m proposing, and losing connects quickly.

I know there is nothing one can say – but someone needs to look at the way Client’s get to bucket people into a group that do NOT pertain to talent.

[petra_r]

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Robert L wrote:

I’m seeing this more, and I used to be able to Still submit a proposal, but this time I couldn’t – getting the attached message.

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You can still do so. It even clearly tells you that you can do so

As for the rest, everyone else started from scratch, and you are miles ahead of the vast majority of newbies who never even win a single job at all.

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Robert L wrote:

I cannot even submit a proposa because of the tags against me.

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Yes, you can. Of course you can. Those are preferences, not requirements. I am currently negotiating a contract I sent a proposal for this morning and don't meet one of the preferences.

[rlong98]

Hey Petra,

It was odd that today for that one proposal I couldn't submit... Myabe it was from the Phone App?  I'll have to try on PC.  First time I ever seent that message, but couldn't go fwd

[florydev · Accepted solution]

Robert, it doesn't matter propose anyway.  There is nothing stopping you and personally I am pretty well convinced it hardly matters.

It sounds like you maybe going away so it is hard to bother with much more advice but I do find that when people talk about their knowledge and skill they are usually missing the point.  Having stated knowledge and skill and being able to convince a client of same are two different things.  One is your belief in yourself and the other is your ability to sell that belief.

A perfect example is your profile is about you, and only you, and what it needs to be about is what you can do for your clients.  You are selling yourself but a client doesn't want to buy you.  They want to know that you understand and can solve their problems.

My advice is don't sell yourself, your knowledge, or your skills but instead sell the solutions to the problems client's have.

[rlong98]

Thank you Mark,

I'm not sure how to address my profile in a way that pertains to "what a client needs" since it varies from job to job.

I guess I take the Profile to be the Resume of where "I" been, what "I do". . . 

My Proposals are following the UpWork suggestions to address the need.

My Profile - if you have an example of how to do that would be appreciated... I think I know what you're talking about - so I'll at least get started on the re-design.

Thank you so much Mark

[florydev]

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Robert L wrote:

Thank you Mark,

I'm not sure how to address my profile in a way that pertains to "what a client needs" since it varies from job to job.

I guess I take the Profile to be the Resume of where "I" been, what "I do". . . 

My Proposals are following the UpWork suggestions to address the need.

My Profile - if you have an example of how to do that would be appreciated... I think I know what you're talking about - so I'll at least get started on the re-design.

Thank you so much Mark

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I don't know that I can but just looking at your functional QA profile I can tell you there is a number of things I would remove.  In particular I would not say that you are going to "try Freelancing", there is no way to know for sure how a client will  interpret that, and I would guess many would poorly.  In fact I would question why you are telling anyone this at all.

There is an art to the vagueness you should use in this.  A common example is people like to say they have X experience when it isn't clear if X is good or bad.  You have, for example from your data analytics profile, three major corporations. Three is a good number, right?  But if you instead say:

I have worked with many major corporations doing X

Now, the client has in there head...how many corporations has he worked for?  Many.  

Then back to your question, that is a better statement in my opinion but it still about yourself, so what do you do instead...something like this

In my work with many major corporations I have found that their problems in regards to X are commonly misunderstood and I have been able to guide them along the path of righteousness.

Or back to your QA profile, I might take the neg you have about click testing and do something like this as a first statement in my profile:

It used to be that people thought that Quality Assurance was simple click testing to see if a component passes or fails but now things have changed {and then assert what you do differently}

If that is the first line in your profile and someone sees it on a search and the get to the words "things have changed" don't you think they might click to find out how things have changed.  The whole idea is to signal you have the solutions that a client needs, you don't have to be specific about it.

My bottom line opinion about profiles and proposals is you are telling the client who has a problem that I know your problem, I can solve your problem, you can trust me to get it done for you in the easiest way possible for you.

[a_lipsey]

Robert, your profile doesn't really tell me at all what kind of work you do. And all that stuff about your hobbies? It's not a dating site.  What kind of projects do you work on and what can you offer a client?  Your profile is very generic. It's not a bio. That's the big mistake many make. Think of it as a sales ad. What SERVCIES are you offering and how can you show that you do these better than anyone else? 

[tlbp]

I think what OP is dealing with is what a lot of new-to-freelancing or new-to-freelance-platform people experience. Freelancing requires more than just having the skill to complete a particular task. Employees have the skill to complete a task. Freelancers have to also be able to market themselves and manage their business. 

If a client prefers someone with $10k in earnings, I would take it as a signal that they are interested in candidates who understand how to freelance not just someone with the requisite skill to complete the underlying task. In other words, the client knows that their requirement will eliminate capable individuals who are inexperienced freelancers and that is their intent.