Mar 2, 2019 01:31:15 PM by Brian C
I recently applied for a job and the client immediately responsed by asking me to email him directly for the details. How should I handle this?
Solved! Go to Solution.
Mar 2, 2019 03:15:58 PM Edited Mar 2, 2019 03:16:27 PM by John K
Brian, you may be overlooking a detail. Note that the regulation you cited specifies "before they invite you to interview". But once you apply for a job, and the client messages you, then you're in the interview stage in Upwork parlance, so emails are permitted.
Mar 2, 2019 01:33:55 PM by Brian C
Here is what he wrote, minus the email address:
Hey,
Thank you for wanting to do this with me..I feel Elated and Happy
Kindly shoot me a private mail on email address deleted for details
Thanks
Mar 2, 2019 02:48:34 PM by John K
Brian, there isn't anything necessarily suspicious about wanting to use email, but if you don't have a disposable email account to use, then it's up to you to decide if you're willing to share your email. Does the client have any sort of hiring history on Upwork? If he does, then that decreases the chance that he's just collecting email addresses for his own use.
Mar 2, 2019 03:08:38 PM by Brian C
Thank you, John.
I posted this because on this page: https://support.upwork.com/hc/en-us/articles/211063118-Report-Suspicious-User-Activity#client is says, "It is time to contact Customer Support when a client . . . .
Then the Customer Support Q&A said I should post a question here.
I am not too suspicious yet, but since this type of request was mentioned by Upwork as suspicious, I wanted to be careful.
Mar 2, 2019 03:15:58 PM Edited Mar 2, 2019 03:16:27 PM by John K
Brian, you may be overlooking a detail. Note that the regulation you cited specifies "before they invite you to interview". But once you apply for a job, and the client messages you, then you're in the interview stage in Upwork parlance, so emails are permitted.
Mar 2, 2019 03:32:35 PM by Brian C
Thank you, John. I did not know the defintion of Invite. Now I do. Moving forward. I have emailed him.
Thank you again.
Mar 2, 2019 03:52:45 PM by Virginia F
Brian C wrote:I recently applied for a job and the client immediately responsed by asking me to email him directly for the details. How should I handle this?
Everything John told you is correct. That said, if a client responds to your bid, a message room on Upwork opens up for both you and the client to communicate. It's a good idea to keep communications on Upwork initially, especially with a new client. If you don't use the message room, you should copy all email messages to your message room so there is a record.
Honestly, this comment "I feel Elated and Happy" strikes me as odd. Proceed with caution.
Mar 2, 2019 04:34:08 PM by Brian C
Thank you, Virginia.
I had added a reply in Messages saying I had emailed him. Trying to cover all bases.
I am cautious but giving him the benefit of the doubt for now. I am assuming English might not be his primary language, so that odd phrase might result from that. Or not. LOL.
Thank you again.
Mar 2, 2019 05:11:49 PM by Virginia F
Brian C wrote:Thank you, Virginia.
I had added a reply in Messages saying I had emailed him. Trying to cover all bases.
I am cautious but giving him the benefit of the doubt for now. I am assuming English might not be his primary language, so that odd phrase might result from that. Or not. LOL.
Thank you again.
Yes, that turn of phrase would indicate that English not the client's primary language. That's not a bad thing, as long as they can state clearly whatever it is they need. If they're new as well, it could be a challenge. If they're not new, look at their history and feedback (something best done before bids are presented).
Mar 3, 2019 06:56:29 AM Edited Mar 3, 2019 08:04:07 AM by Joanne P
Well, it turns out I won't be doing any jobs for this client.
He emailed me back, asked for all my contact info, said he wanted our contacts to be direct, and as if that were not the killer:
He said he would be mailing me a check.
I will be reporting him, of course.
Brian **Edited for Community Guidelines**
Mar 3, 2019 07:03:25 AM Edited Mar 3, 2019 08:49:57 AM by Brian C
Mar 3, 2019 08:30:16 AM by Virginia F
Brian C wrote:OK, I flagged it. But just to let you see what I saw, here is his email reply to me:
______________________________
Is there anything else I need to do other than Flagging the job?
Yes, you need to edit/delete the message info in your post immediately (or a forum mod will), because that is not allowed. I'm not surprised it was a scam. It might help to read this:
https://community.upwork.com/t5/New-to-Upwork/Tips-to-Avoid-Questionable-Jobs/td-p/240833
Mar 3, 2019 09:01:32 AM Edited Mar 3, 2019 09:01:58 AM by Brian C
Mar 3, 2019 10:21:41 AM by Brian C
Mar 3, 2019 10:40:30 AM by Martina P
Brian C wrote:
Looks like the client is no longer with Upwork. Should I cancel the Proposal or keep it as a reminder of who it was in case he comes back?
doesn't matter. The proposal will be archived by upwork after 30 days of inactivity and move into your "archived proposals" list.
So, just forget about it.
Mar 3, 2019 11:09:15 AM by Brian C
OK, thank you.
I will keep chugging along. I'm not discouraged that of the 5 jobs I've applied for, 2 have been busts and the other 3 clients never replied to my app. That's actually a better percentage than I'd gotten from making job applications for full time and part time jobs before finding Upwork.
With those, I am 0 for a gazillion.
That's either an approximation or an exaggeration.