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elitebsolutions
Community Member

Is there something wrong with my profile? Zero responses to my proposals.

Hello,

 

I'm an accountant and have been on Upwork for over 1 month. I've been submitting proposals almost every day for accounting work. I think I submitted at least 15 proposals, and I'm getting zero response.

Am I doing something wrong? Do clients really getting my proposals?

Is there something wrong with my profile? Please could someone check my profile and let me know if I need to do some changes? https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~01b26a8696d3162fbd?viewMode=1

Please help!

Much appreciated!

Thanks

9 REPLIES 9
barada00
Community Member

Hello Christie,

There is nothing wrong with your profile. There might be something wrong with your proposals though. Being a new freelancer you are competing with people who have worked and earned money on the platform, so you should write something to attract attention. When clients look at the overview of proposals they only see the first couple of lines of your proposal, so don't waste that space with greetings or "my name is Christie..."

 

Your first goal should be to make them read the rest of your proposal even though you have no prior work here. Don't write about yourself, write about how you can solve their problem, how you can handle the job, when you can deliver, etc. Then read your proposal and ask yourself if you were the client would you give this job to (..err) you.

 

If there is something you can do better than the rest of the candidates, write that first. Don't write might, may, would; write will, am going to, etc. Be confident and make the client feel that (not too much).

 

Search "proposal" in the search box above and read every thread you find.

 

Welcome and good luck.

 

Edit: Make your English level Native.

 

Hi Baris,

 

Thank you so much for your input!

This is my last proposal I sent out which I tweaked a bit from my previous ones. Please could I get your recommendation about it? It will be so much appreciated.

 

"To whom it may concern,

I came across your post that you are looking for a Bookkeeper to help you with your financial management.

I am an accountant with over 15 years of accounting experience and run an accounting, bookkeeping & tax services firm, working primarily with small and mid-sized businesses wherever in the U.S.

I am 100% U.S based and am dedicated to remove clients' back office burden while delivering timely, actionable financial intelligence to help small businesses increase profitability and reduce costs.

Also, I am a QuickBooks ProAdvisor Online Certified with over 5 years of experience.

It would be my pleasure to further detail my services and expertise to you via telephone, email or Meet.

I am new to Upwork, hence I haven't gotten any hours yet. Please, don't let this to make you disregard my application as I am confident that I have the skills and experience needed for this position.

If it makes sense for us to work together, I also offer a fixed monthly rate with 20% Off for accounting and bookkeeping services, so that there are no surprises and you always know what to expect.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,

Christie Keller

www.elitebsolutions.com"

 

Thanks! 

Christie,

That won't work, I'm sorry. Short answer to why it won't work is that I can't even tell what kind of a job you're applying with this proposal. When you write a proposal even a totally unrelated person like me should understand what you are applying for. What I mean is this is too generic.

 

To give a longer answer I made a job search about accounting jobs in USA. (I have no idea what people are looking for) The first one I saw is some residential real estate owner looking for a bookkeeper. They are receiving statements from management companies, using different spreadsheets for different properties (?), and they want to begin using a consistent system.

 

As I wrote before, you don't need any greetings like "to whom it may concern". This is not a 5 to 9 job interview. They have a problem, they want it solved, or they have a job, they want it done. If they wonder who you are and what you do, they can check out your profile. So I'm writing a proposal right off the top of my head (this is the first line; no hello, no greeting, no nothing):

 

I've been keeping books of 18 residential properties for XX Real Estate in Miami for the last 6 years. All their books are kept with XX software, in the YY style so that they can find what they are looking for with a click of a mouse.

(I have absolutely no idea if these are things they would want or you would do as an accountant but I guess you can understand what I'm trying to do here...)  

I can use this experience to help you begin using a consistent system. If you decide to work with me I can use XXXXX to collect them in a single file and etc etc...

I am 100% U.S based and QuickBooks ProAdvisor Online Certified with over 5 years of experience. Please contact me to discuss your project further.

 

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Christie.

 

Now if they like to learn more about you they can check your profile and learn all the things you wrote on the other proposal. If you like you can add your web site in your proposal because it is not allowed to share it in your profile.

 

Hope this helps, and believe me you can find so much more in these forums just with a search string.

Thank you so much Baris for taking the time to help me! I really appreciate it!

I will definitely keep in mind your suggestions and tips. This really helps a lot and gives me a better idea of how to write the proposals.

 


undefined:

Hi Baris,

 

Thank you so much for your input!

This is my last proposal I sent out which I tweaked a bit from my previous ones. Please could I get your recommendation about it? It will be so much appreciated.

 

"To whom it may concern Hello,

I came across your post that you are looking for a Bookkeeper to help you with your financial management.

I am an accountant with have over 15 years of accounting experience and run an my accounting, bookkeeping & tax services firm, working primarily with supports small and mid-sized businesses wherever in across the U.S.  

I am 100% U.S based, and am dedicated to 

Also, I am a QuickBooks ProAdvisor Online Certified with over 5 years of experience and my practice is 100% U.S. based.

remove clients' I relieve your back office burden while delivering timely, actionable financial intelligence to help small businesses increase profitability and reduce costs. I am available for both ad hoc assignments and ongoing arrangements at a monthly rate that incorporates a 20% discount. 

It would be my pleasure to further detail my services and expertise to you via telephone, email or Meet.

I am new to Upwork, hence I haven't gotten any hours yet. Please, don't let this to make you disregard my application as I am confident that I have the skills and experience needed for this position.

If it makes sense for us to work together, I also offer a fixed monthly rate with 20% Off for accounting and bookkeeping services, so that there are no surprises and you always know what to expect. Please contact me to schedule a chat or phone conversation to get acquainted and explore how I can support your business.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,

Christie Keller

www.elitebsolutions.com"

 

Thanks! 


 Hi, Christie, welcome to Upwork! It takes many FLs longer than a month to land their first project here, so don't get discouraged. You've definitely come to the right place for advice. Baris gave you great tips and will likely have good suggestions for your proposal. I'm going to chime in, too, for what it's worth. See my suggested edits above.

Thank you so much Phyllis!! That really helps. I will definitely use your suggestions!

Hi Christie,

 

I just started in January and it took a long time to get my first job. But that first job I got was one of the first proposals I sent out - they just took a while to pick someone. The first few took a while to get but I kept at it, tweaking my profile and proposal. Some tips that helped me:

 

I landed a few small flat-fee projects that I knew I could do immediately, very specialized. They hired me right away which resulted in quick feedback. That feedback helped to land more.

 

I had been sending lots of proposals to many jobs that were vague and where the client didn't have a verified payment source. The majority of these jobs just closed without hiring anyone. I suspect many of these jobs weren't real. So I stopped wasting the connects and just applied to those jobs that had clients with verified payment sources and some freelancer feedback. 

 

Be one of the first to send a proposal. So hit up jobs just posted. Don't apply to jobs that already have 20 proposals and several interviews lined up. (Just for now, while you're new).

 

Jobs posted in the evening and on the weekends seem to garner less proposals which will increase your chance of winning the bid.

 

Note the location of the job. Make sure it is in the USA. 

 

In the first few lines of the proposal, reference the job and why you would be a great fit for getting it done. Drop a few specific notations about the job and what you would do. This is VERY important. Make the proposal about them, not you.

 

Hope this helps!

Hi baris,

I have applied more than 10 jobs. But couldn't get selected?

Can you help me to find a job? highly appreciated.

thank you


Yasindra W wrote:

Hi baris,

I have applied more than 10 jobs. But couldn't get selected?

Can you help me to find a job? highly appreciated.

thank you


I'm a dynamic professional worker in challenging environment, adding value through my knowledge that would enable to enhance and utilize my experience, skills and abilities in Accounting sector effecting mutual employee and employer growth and success.

This is a meaningless word salad, do you even understand what this is supposed to mean? Did you copy this from a resume? You are not an employee here, and you are not trying to find employers. 

If you don't invest a minimal amount of effort into your profile text and expect a job after only 10 proposals, you must take a step back and rethink your whole approach.

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