Filtering for $$$ - Budget question

john_stagner · ‎02-18-2019

Hey guys. I'm new around here, so forgive me if this sounds dumb...

I've noticed some here will work for peanuts. I've also noticed some companies pay peanuts. I've also noticed the opposite in both cases.

So I did a job search and applied "$$$" as one of my filters. It filtered a lot of trash, but not all of it. So here's my question:

If a client wants 3-4 articles. for example, and the budget is $80, can I assume that's per article? Can I assume that's the total budget? Can I assume anything?

Thanks in advance...

John

michael_skaggs · ‎02-18-2019

I never assume anything, but if they want 3-4 articles, and they list their budget as $80, they probably mean $80 total. A lot of listings seem to have no concept of "you get what you pay for." Also, many seem to think that $$$ means the level of quality they can demand regardless of what they're willing to pay. I've seen several listings wanting crazy things like 1,200 pages of text narrated, edited, and mastered....for $200 ("Studio quality, American English, native speakers ONLY, please!").

Best thing to do is look at all the info to figure out if it's worth your time. If you think it is, bid what you would charge for a project, and also use your proposal to get more information from them.

And the best bit of information you can get is the amounts paid on previous jobs. That will tell you more than anything else.

john_stagner · ‎02-18-2019

Thanks, Michael. I was thinking along the same lines. Some are clear about it, some aren't.

Does your reputation or JSS suffer in any way if you bid on too many but don't take them?

michael_skaggs · ‎02-18-2019

You can bid on as many as you have connects for. JSS only comes into play once you have an active contract.

martina_plaschka · ‎02-18-2019

John S wrote:
Thanks, Michael. I was thinking along the same lines. Some are clear about it, some aren't.
Does your reputation or JSS suffer in any way if you bid on too many but don't take them?

No to both questions, but if you sent "too many" proposals and never win a job, upwork might deem your services to not be in demand and kick you off the platform.

Your best strategy is to be very discerning which jobs you apply to and be very serious in landing a few.

michael_skaggs · ‎02-19-2019

Martina P wrote:
John S wrote:
Thanks, Michael. I was thinking along the same lines. Some are clear about it, some aren't.
Does your reputation or JSS suffer in any way if you bid on too many but don't take them?
No to both questions, but if you sent "too many" proposals and never win a job, upwork might deem your services to not be in demand and kick you off the platform.
Your best strategy is to be very discerning which jobs you apply to and be very serious in landing a few.

From what I can tell "too many" more than simply using all of your connects some months, even without winning a job, especially if you're creating a unique proposal for each one. My guess is it a lot of the algorithm is comparing your proposals against each other to make sure you're not just copy/paste spamming them (which, unfortunately, some do).

Some months, I go through all my connects with no hits, and it's not been a problem. But I also write a unique cover for each proposal, so there's that.