Upwork Hiding Proposals and just showing boosted proposals?

[ankitmws]

I am a Top Rated freelancer (untill last month, I was Top Rated plus for more than 2 years) on Upwork with earnings of over $70K and all 5-star reviews and ratings. Usually, when I apply to jobs, I receive replies. However, for the last 03 months, I have not been getting replies, and even my proposals are not being viewed by clients, on an average I have applied on 10-12 jobs per week and that means have spent many connects. This is strange because all my proposals are custom and carefully address the clients' requirements, I do not just apply to any job but only the ones where I think I fit in the criteria and have enough material to support my proposal. It is same for the invites as well, untill January I was getting atleast one invitation per week but for last 03 months there are no invites and yes my profile is not set to private.

Now, not receiving replies could be one thing, but as I mentioned, my proposals are not even being viewed, which is unusual. I have even applied to a few projects where the number of proposals was only between 5-10, and even in those cases, my proposal was not viewed.

So, how can I know if Upwork is hiding my profile or proposals for any reason and only promoting boosted proposals?

I did try to reach the customer support but it has that stupid bot that keeps on repeating the same thing "proposals are not hidden and you can try boosting proposal - just see the attached reference how all the replies just go to explain about boosting of proposal".

Don't take it otherwise but I would request everyone to please do not explain to me that I can boost proposals 🙂  What if I do not want to boost proposals? In that case, will Upwork ignore all my proposals? If that is the case, then there is no point in being on the platform.

Or does anyone know if Upwork can simply give leads directly to anyone who pays them more 🙂 (understand sarcasam). Why all this drama of boosting proposals and submitting proposals, just to pay for connects.

[a8d1dc31]

It's interesting that also "veterans" of the platform face the same situation as "newbies" like me. I don't think that non-boosted proposals are hidden, because I got views on proposals I didn't boost. The learning paths and mini courses dealing with the profile and proposal stuff are very useful (and I have applied nearly all), but there must be some "hidden secrets".

While skimming through the forums, I realized that this situation leads to significant frustration on the freelancer's side, and so far the only way out seems to be to massively invest in connects for bidding and boosting. In my point of view, this isn't a sustainable solution, and I would prefer a higher service fee and getting rid off the connect and boost stuff. I learned that this was the case until begin of 2023 or so. 

[atreglia]

No matter how qualified you think you are for a job, Upwork will put an unboosted proposal in the “Other” folder if their algorithm thinks you don’t meet all of the qualifications it.  Nobody knows what’s in the algorithm, nor do we know when and how often that happens.  It’s also up to the client to find the “Other” folder and look through those proposals as well.  So, it would be fair to say that some of the proposals you send don’t get viewed because the client never saw them to begin with.  You can read all about it here, https://community.upwork.com/t5/Freelancers/Is-there-an-quot-Other-quot-list-for-proposals/m-p/14019...

[ankitmws]

Thank you Anna. Firstly the link that you have shared here with the reply is not taking me anywhere but just gives the message that it is blocked, can you give a public or any other link where I can read about "Other" folder?

I was not aware of this "Other folder" thing and it's is a bit strange atleast for my liking. Why would Upwork do that and shall they not try to put all the proposals in front of the cleints? It is quite possible that the client would never ever open the "other folder" and the freelancer does not even knows what is the criteria/algorithm that is putting their proposal in the "regular" folder or "other" folder. It seems there is only one thing that is known to freelancer (and Upwork) with certainity and i.e. "Boosted" proposals. So, if someone boosts the proposal they can be sure that the proposal would be in the  "boosted"folder and will be viewed, otherwise the freelancers are just on the mercy of whatever Upwork does and whatever algorithm it applies to put the proposal on "regular"  or "other" folder.

No, doubt people have not been happy with this thing and have been raising their voices to make the system better and give more transaprency:) but thing is that freelancer are dependent and thus Upwork simply does not cares about them 🙂 I do not even know why I came here and asked about it, when I know that none of our posts or frustrations matter.

[atreglia]

Ankit, figures, the first time I try to insert a link it didn’t work.  Try this one: here.   If not, just go to the search bar on this page and type “Is there an other list for proposals”.

Unfortunately, there are many freelancers and clients that are unaware of the “Other” folder.  IMO it is a very disingenuous practice because as long as we are paying real money for an “opportunity” to connect with a client, Upwork has no business manipulating that opportunity by applying an algorithm we don’t know anything about.  

[tjmisny]

I post as a client and I can say that sometimes 100% JSS Freelancers with Badges end up in the Other folder, while Freelancers with no JSS and no earnings are labeled "Best Match".  The entire system is designed to blur the lines between who is qualified and unqualified... so more Freelancers apply, and so Clients are intentionally shown extremely cheap bids (rather than prioritizing who is a quality candidate).  

[celgins]

The short answer is: you can't know if Upwork is hiding your proposals; not without seeing what clients see.

There is a chance your proposals are being pushed to the client's Other Proposals tab. Meaning, your proposal does not appear in the organiic list of proposals and is only shown when a client clicks the Other Proposals tab. Upwork says a proposal might appear under the Other Proposals tab if it doesn't meet some of the preferences the client defined. Unfortunately, many highly skilled freelancers will proposals that match the client's job will also end up in the Other Proposals tab.

[tjmisny]

Even boosted proposals are not viewed often.  I boosted like mad earlier in the year, spending thousands in boosts and still only 60% of my boosted proposals were even viewed.

The issue is Upwork has destroyed its credibility with clients and they are so overwhelmed by the confusing list of applicant results that they decide to not hire.  I can say with confidence that the number of jobs resulting in a hire is lower than it was in years prior and I think the transformation of Upwork into a Casino has eroded away many quality clients' willingness to follow through with a hire, or even interviews of candidates.  

[spectralua]

I think hidding. Reason: connects.

Client posted job, got your good proposal, hired - thats all. 

Client posted job, see no good proposals - job active, freelancers wasting and wasting money. Profit.