Clients

[greyscaleinblue]

Is there any kind of penalty for clients not choosing an up worker for a project? I'm tired of using my connects on clients who aren't serious about the posted job. These will also be verified people. Out of 10-15 proposals you would think someone would get choose someone. Can't we get our connects back for jobs where the client hasn't chosen anyone? 90% of the jobs I apply to are left without choosing anyone. There's no way I can guess this advance especially if the client is verified, has reviews, and a well thought out description.

[petra_r]

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@Jordon S wrote:
Is there any kind of penalty for clients not choosing an up worker for a project? I'm tired of using my connects on clients who aren't serious about the posted job.

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 Of course not. Do you expect there to a penalty if you go into a shoe shop and don't buy any shoes? Clients are (obviously) free to look for freelancers in different places.

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@Jordon S wrote:
Can't we get our connects back for jobs where the client hasn't chosen anyone?

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 No.

[mwiggenhorn]

Clients use many ways to fill their needs - Upwork, other platforms, hiring locally, using internal workers.  There is no guarantee that they will hire from Upwork.  Apply, send your very best proposal and move on.

[wlyonsatl]

Jordon,

I agree with you that if the client doesn't hire someone on Upwork, the connects used by freelancers to submit proposals should be credited back to the freelancer. But only if that is a pattern by a client who has posted more than, say, 10 jobs that no freelancer was selected for on Upwork. (At that point, it is somewhat likely the client is hiring freelancers directly, rather than through Upwork, meaning Upwork is not receiving its fee. I suspect this is a serious problem in some precincts.)

Considering how many freelancers Upwork claims use its platform, it is unlikely no freelancer is ever available except in very niche areas of expertise. Of course, there needs to be a personality fit, too, but if a client is constantly unable to reach agreement with responding freelancers, other freelancers should know that.

However, if you look at all of the information on the right-hand side of each job below the “Submit a Proposal” button you can see each client’s history, include number of jobs posted, hire rate on these jobs and the average hourly rate paid. If the hire rate or the hourly rate paid on previous jobs posted by a client, just don’t apply to their job.

Upwork is loathe to return credits used by freelancers on unfilled jobs because that would reduce their income from freelancers buying more credits. But if you are selective in your applications and have a decent response rate from the jobs you bid on, do really need substantially more credits than your current Upwork plan allows per month? I don't, but you might.

[wlyonsatl]

"If the hire rate or the hourly rate paid on previous jobs posted by a client do not meet your requirements, just don't apply to their job."

[petra_r]

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@Will L wrote:

Jordon,

I agree with you that if the client doesn't hire someone on Upwork, the connects used by freelancers to submit proposals should be credited back to the freelancer. But only if that is a pattern by a client who has posted more than, say, 10 jobs that no freelancer was selected for on Upwork. (At that point, it is somewhat likely the client is hiring freelancers directly, rather than through Upwork, meaning Upwork is not receiving its fee. I suspect this is a serious problem in some precincts.)

Considering how many freelancers Upwork claims use its platform, it is unlikely no freelancer is ever available except in very niche areas of expertise. Of course, there needs to be a personality fit, too, but if a client is constantly unable to reach agreement with responding freelancers, other freelancers should know that.

However, if you look at all of the information on the right-hand side of each job below the “Submit a Proposal” button you can see each client’s history, include number of jobs posted, hire rate on these jobs and the average hourly rate paid. If the hire rate or the hourly rate paid on previous jobs posted by a client, just don’t apply to their job.

Upwork is loathe to return credits used by freelancers on unfilled jobs because that would reduce their income from freelancers buying more credits. But if you are selective in your applications and have a decent response rate from the jobs you bid on, do really need substantially more credits than your current Upwork plan allows per month? I don't, but you might.

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 I very much doubt that is the reason - I am pretty sure that the vast majority of the most profitable (for Upwork) freelancers never ever buy a single connect and equally rarely use all theirs or anywhere near.

The reason they don't return Connects is because they want freelancers to be more selective and write better proposals so clients don't get swamped with cr*p proposals.

Thy posting a job for graphic designer and wait what comes in. You'll lose the will to live after about the 20th horrible / copy paste / "dear sir, me weriey good, me design shell and Porsche logo" / irrelevant / unintelligible proposal...