Boost Your Proposal to the Top of List (March 2022 Update): Questions & Feedback

[MichaelJ]

Today we’re reintroducing the boosted proposals feature with some changes. Read the announcement from James, Director of Product, here and let us know your thoughts about these updates in the comments below.

[petra_r]

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Manish M wrote:

specailly for those who spend hours to create a customized proposal.

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HOURS?

[m1mehta]

This means, investing time to work on a customized proposal that caters to the client's requirements rather than a copy-paste job.

[2c724a5e]

Manish,

Upwork is a very competitive marketplace and there can be a magnitude of variables as to why you have seen a reduced amount of open jobs. Boosting your proposal does not guarantee that you will be selected. You can always check out our Profile Feedback from Experienced Freelancers on Upwork. This is an area to help craft your profile and get feedback from the community.

Best,

Christopher F.

Content Program Manager, Community

[crart]

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Christopher F wrote:

Second, we want to reiterate that part of our mission at Upwork is to connect talent with more opportunities

Upwork team always encourages feedback as we look to make Upwork The World’s work marketplace. 

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All lies but let's focus on these two specifically.

Don't you read our feedback with understanding? Freelancers are against as this feature does not help nor us, nor clients and we gave multitude of arguments. You should show us results that led you to implementing something no one wanted, maybe that will convince us. You know, TRANSPARENCY. Where money is involved there is no place for being shady like you are. Upwork requires our sensitive data, give us your data on which you base your ridiculous "features". We're not asking for you addresses and bank account info, just this little honest backup of your decisions which hit us hard.

Encouraging feedback is one, ignoring it is the other. Why wasting space on threads like this if you clearly don't care, either being incapable of understanding what damage you are causing, being shortsighted and focused on next few days earnings, or simply taking twisted pleasure in destroying human lives? Are you not proud of this used-to-be-great platform? Apparently not which makes all your decisions questionable. 

All in all, the time will come to move on and then when you look back you will see how you destroyed the platform. Keep it up, I'm sure disaster never tasted better.

[the-right-writer]

The freelancers overwhelming said they did not want paid advertising. What was this "multiple channels" of feedback? It did not include freelancers (who overwhelmingly said no) nor the clients (they were not told about boosts/paid advertising), so the two vital aspects of Upwork were ignored? What were the determining factors? A poll? Survey in the WSJ? Since we are paying the fees to get a job, in addition to the 20% (or 10%) and possibly other fees, Upwork just decides to ignore our comments? If you listen to feedback, why do you ignore the majority?

[nhansen]

So you say the value to clients is it shows who has a strong desire for the job?

I'll tell you something, as a client, I care more about someone's abilities to do the job. In fact, I often overlook applications from writers who say they have a "passion" for writing because it just screams that they have a silly dream to be the next Hemingway but are highly unlikely to be the next Hemingway. I don't care how they feel about it, that's fluff and in no way is an indication of talent. What's important to me is whether they can do the job well. 

Upwork really needs to put more effort into making it easy for clients and freelancers who are a good match for one another to find eachother.

[nhansen]

I also wonder how importaint this is. I've been applying for a number of jobs over the last month and I often check within an hour after applying whether the clients have viewed the job since I applied. And in a surprisingly large number of cases, they are viewing my application immediately after I made it, even if it was the middle of the night their time. I was really surprised by this. That tells me clients aren't going in and viewing a long list of applicants, but looking at them as they apply. In some of these cases the job was just posted, others days ago. So really I don't see boost helping freelancers if the clients review applications as they come in.

[m_o____sewe]

I've taken the time to assess this feature for some time now and I feel it's a bad and unfair revenue generation strategy!
Please, let's not "breakdance" by navigating through the paths of excuses and "insoluble" justifications.

If the “front-end” feedbacks are negative, there is no reason "sanitize" them through your “back-end” team.
Let's call a spade a spade.

The fuel that propelled your team to move forward with this feature is simple and clear: to power Upwork's monetary fire engines. A good business intention, but a bad and unfair strategy aimed at flattening freelancers’ milk breasts!

It ought to be relooked with the lens of Freelancers and Clients…not only by Upwork’s monetary microscopes!

As they talk of justice, fairness too "should not only be done but must be seen to be done"

Since clients have the opportunity of directly inviting Freelancers for interviews or hiring, it actually adds no value to them. So, for clients, the benefit isn't guaranteed. Now, let's move to freelancers...

Your view is that it benefits freelancers. I see where you’re coming from, but I don’t buy it. It actually harms more freelancers while benefiting Upwork more.

What you are doing is telling us to just wear wrinkled clothes because your team already "believes" they are well-ironed and fashionable, right? How I wish you were a little bit more realistic!

Let's face it. If I'm the client, I'll clearly tell that the 1st "blue bids" are paid for, and not necessarily from qualified writers.

My interest isn’t to be attracted by blue signs of boosted bids. I need my freedom to choose capable writers with no distractions or color seductions.

An approach that works for clients does not necessarily work for freelancers. This is simple logic that crafters of this feature seem to have overlooked. 1st you pay to bid, then you pay again so that you are outbid! A bulk harvest for Upwork, right?

Clients are smart people. They’ll change their strategies and even start checking the last bids instead of the boosted ones. Their “hiring journey” can’t be an “instant coffee” of boosted bids, or is it?

What's annoying (I’m sorry to say this but I can’t just help it in this particular case) is ignoring the feedback by choosing to massage them with your team’s “fueled forward decision”. You’ve acknowledged the problem but have chosen NOT to recognize it. From where I sit, this is unfortunate.

[mccarthys]

As a client I'm irritated by the fact that the Sort no longer works.

Whichever Sort I select, I now have to ignore the top three applicants because they're 'boosted' and therefore likely to be spammers.

[882ce1d9]

If my boosted proposal was outbid, did it still appear in the client as the boosted proposal even is not in the top list, or just a normal proposal?

[j_sykora]

IF I AM BOTHERING TO SUBMIT A PROPOSAL IN THE FIRST PLACE, I AM EXTREMELY INTERESTED IN THE PROJECT. Nobody thinks of saying, I'm going to apply for this job, but I'm just lukewarm about it. NO!  

This is the ultimate slap in the face of veteran freelancers. Don't you see you are de-valuing the very people who are the reason there are repeat clients, the reason new clients learn the system, the reason clients refer other people, the reason new freelancers get referred to you? The reason you make money. 

I've been a top-rated freelancer since 2017, with over 300 5-star ratings. Since this ridiculous system started, I have gotten no requests for interviews when I had so many a couple of months ago that I barely managed them. And I always turned proposals into contracts. Always. 

Do you realize you are messing with people's lives? I cannot sustain this little-to-no activity for long and will have to pivot. In the meantime, the spam requests for interviews continue with no end. Upwork, you got greedy and, in the process, you will lose the best people you had. 

[nazarvoitko]

Now If you have a **Edited for Community Guidelines** service but have some money you can easily outbid the quality and take the project. Don't know how this can be beneficial to Upwork. Less quality = fewer clients in Upwork next month.

Since the boost was introduced I never got a client, not even a response!! even though I was boosting 30-200 connects for Web Development.

[10579c3e]

What about upcoming freelancers like me that spend so much on connects just to get a job. Why not give everyone an equal chance to bid for jobs? This is not cool.

[al_jovayer]

Hello Cristopher, 

It is really good for new feeelancers but this feature will deteriorate the progress of expert freelancers. How? 

Most of the expert freelancers focuses on quality work. They don't get enough time to bid lots of jobs posted in the platform. For your new boosting feature, expert freelnacers profile shows at the bottom of clients' list of talents. So, they don't get noticed. 

Again, most the new freelnacers boost with unexpected and unrealistic marketing words. Some new clients fall on the trap of over marketing words. Clients hire them and don't get expected outcome. They become unsatisfied.  

Even expert freelncers don't get invitation like before for your boosted features. So, expert freelncers are also unhappy to Upwork. If expert freelncers don't get enough work from this platform, they will switch this platform or think other careers. 

Again, this feature cost extra money to the freelncers. You already charge 20% on our work. If I have to spend more 5-10% to get work, it will deteriorate the life of freelncers. 

So, take back and think about this policy again. 

We love Upwork but this love will not last if we don't get expected work. You not only should think your progress rather should think our progress and satisfaction in this platform. 

[1f26c6c8]

Upwork's new policies are putting new and rising talents at a serious disadvantage and making it near possible for them to grow or have a career in it.

A newbie or rising talent has a very limited number of connects,at start,to land a job.A rising talent can never compete with a top rated or plus freelancer in a connect war to be ontop.As upwork itself says that boosted propals do have more chance to land in job than an organic one. So,only due to the limited number of connects a possibly better freelancer is outranked.

Simply putting the new policy will not only affect future expert vetted freelancers but will also make the platform more of monopolistic by advancing a limited pool of top rated plus and expert vetted freelancers.

[s_m_huzaifa_ali]

I have around more than 4-5 years of experience working on Upwork platform , have worked various types of accounts and I would like to point out some things.

1. Boosted porposal does help in getting noticed but just for very few seconds only because I have seen stats and many people crazily use more than 50-150 connects on a single proposal to boost their bids and if they have a mature profile then no matter how skilled, experienced or the best solution a freelancer place on their proposal , if they don't have a top rated, top rated plus profile etc they won't get noticed , one more thing, I also monitored stats for whole month, have wasted a lot of connects on for boosted proposal , Let me tell truth , I wasted more money on connects daily and only to increase views on my proposal and the ratio of interview opened on that profile organically was like 10:1 as compared to boosted proposal.

2.  If Upwork truly believes they are helping each type of freelancer and giving equal opportunity, then should give to outboosted connects back after 2-3 days bare minimum, so that people get incouraged to use more connects but don't be afriad to lose a lot of money without any result.

But right now, All I see is Upwork clearly increasing their revenue multiple times just from connects purchase and only top rated mature or rich freelancer are taking the maximum benefits out of it.

3. One more thing, I would like to point it out is that Upwork should integrate a Ai/automated system which checks for templated proposal or checks whether a proposal freelancer is pitching is genuine or not since I have seen people placing more than 50 bids within 10 sec like how it is humanly possible to complete and provide a complete or short solution this fast , Upwork should also have option to automatically highlight a proper custom best proposal which will in terms of Upwork policy and also showcase the amount of time it took to place that proposal so that client can know if the freelancer took time to review the project description and that freelancer who have responded well based on client requirements.

I know this feature may come after 3-5 decades later since Upwork are quite slow in implementing best features for their freelancers , and I think if it takes that amount of time, I rather built freelancer platform based on Web3 with all these best features since I am losing my patience and trust on Upwork daily.

4. The other most important issue which Upwork have still not addressed, why there are so many fake clients and job listing nowadays , it is becoming exactly like Freelancer platform where fake Client spam / list multiple jobs from different locations and ask us to go outside and work together. First of All, Upwork should not allow clients to list jobs on Upwork untill they have verified their identity and payment method and completed verification process.

So No matter what kind of ideal or great reason Upwork support gives to me like we have included this feature after a lot of research and based on freelancer feedback and testing, in the end its utter bull**bleep** and misscommitment with all of kinds of User(freelancer community)

Lastly, if you want my suggestion on how to improve it, here is a small tip:

Limit each freelancer to boost 4-6 or just 8 proposal daily so that each freelancer gets equal opportunity on other jobs , otherwise this boosted feature is causing havoc and imbalance within the Upwork platform.

[tjmisny]

Eliminate the Boost system.

Clients do not care who spent the most money to apply.  They want to know who is best suited for the job.

Stop ripping off Freelancers with this nonsense.  

[nair_rahul2104]

Please remove this feature as it is no good for a freelancer or a client. It is a complete dissapointment!

[calado-marco]

Hi Christopher.

Andrea G  just merged my post "Bid boosting does it work?" to the post " Boost Your Proposal to the Top of List (March 2022 Update): Questions &"

I understand why she did it, and it helps.

The thing is that when i posted it, my intention was to get a general idea on how is it working for other freelancers. Call it a "poll".

When you merged the two topics it defeated the purpose. It got lost in the sea of other answers so to say.

Is it possible to set it again to a single topic?

All the best and keep on the good work!

[anis_u_rehman]

This is an extremely bad feature. Please disable it.

[c_mitseas]

I am not sure what is happening here but i HATE it!! First, I am forced to use a ton of "connects," to boost a proposal, and then, if the client even glances at it, I am charged for the privilege of trying to get a job on a platform that is already taking 10 to 20 percent of my work? This awful. Today i used 49 connects on one job! What kind of scam is this? 

[deamillion]

I was getting a lot more clients before you brought in the bidding boost system. I'm very disenchanted and struggling to get work. Please take it away. I feel it's just another way for you to get more money from us and this is very dissappointing. Thank you for listening.

[4c5b9f71]

My apologies if this comes disrecpectful but the way this reads feels like a "slimy cash grab"

It is a feature where you pay to be seen, the more you pay the top spot you get. 

I have mentioned this before UP-work is turning like the video game industry where everything is behinf a pay wall:

1) Awailablity Badge ( 7connects a week)

2) Boost Connects ( Seen bitds of 100 connects and more) 

3) Connects to send Network Request. 

4) No longer awarding 10 connects on winning the interview ( I see the tread by moderators on freelancers gaming the system but I think it very convinient that now you took measure of taking away connct rather than policing striclty on your site) 

All this is showcasing  a very bad system. 

Please change it to something fair, I realise what I have typed is a huge ask but I been seeing this platform just keep introducing crappy systems. 

Pleas go back to what you were before. 

Thanks You 

[4c5b9f71]

Christopher, I took time to read this and Still don't like the boos/bidding for jobs system. 

I just keep looking at the same system that says pay to get in the top 3. 

Please take it down and don't have this feature at all. 

I also took 2 days to read all the comments, it seems that many freelancers don't want this system for its pay to get ahead nature. 

It's shocking to see that there is no response from you or the upwork team. 

Thanks 

[30c58aad]

Boosted Proposal really works

[ce2c1190]

So as a new member, there's no way I can get any clients if I constantly get outbid even for the smallest of jobs. 

I don't like the "outbid" system. It's too easy for people to work the system and trample over newbies and other people that don't have the cash to buy more connects.

Sorry, I need to use my money to buy groceries, not try to outbid someone just to make a logo.

I'll keep trying, but I'm beginning to think my chance here are dubious at best.

[4c5b9f71]

I sorry this doesn't resolve anything. 

If you have to pay to boost, then it's your classic pay to win Lind of system. 

If I bid/ boost more the system favors me rather than me being the right fit. 

Also I realise that there are people spending connects/money that find this favorable but just showing that statistic and saying hey see is this not the reason to keep this system is showcasing how out of touch you guys are with your community and fair practices. 

Please take this system out. 

Thank you 

[louiselouw]

Hi Upwork

I've been working with you for the past 15 years and have always been very happy with the platform that you provide. I do however feel that it is becoming a lot more for your own gain and pocket and less and less for us as freelancers to get work. This boosting system is terrible. So now the one with the most money 'buys' the job and it is not about the one with the talent or correct skills. I used to get steady replies from applications that I sent, but now nothing because I am not at the top of the boosting list. As a South African trying to make a living it costs a lot to buy all these extra connects just to send my application. In dollars it is not a lot of money, but in Rands it is! Please reconsider the way you are working with this unfair money making scheme. Thank you!

[shhako]

This is such a scam. It is a terrible feature only designed to basically trick people into paying more for applying for a job. Please remove this! I will move my business elsewhere if this consists. It takes the spirit out of the beautifulk platform this used to be.

[d173df1a]

Thank you! Its healthy for new comers.

[syedmaizaz]

Concerns Regarding the Boosted Proposal System's Negative Impact on the Freelancer Community

Dear Upwork Team,

I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to share my feedback and express concerns about the recent implementation of the Boosted Proposal System on the Upwork platform.

While I understand that the intention behind the Boosted Proposal System was to enhance the visibility of certain proposals and improve the overall hiring process, I must highlight that its effects have been quite detrimental to the audience and many of the freelancers, including myself, have stopped using the platform as a result.

Here are some of the specific issues and negative impacts we have experienced:

1. Unfair Advantage: The Boosted Proposal System has created an uneven playing field, favoring certain proposals over others based on their financial backing rather than the quality of the services offered. This has led to talented freelancers being overshadowed by those who can afford to boost their proposals, ultimately undermining the meritocracy that was once an essential part of Upwork.

2. Reduced Opportunities: As a consequence of the Boosted Proposal System, many freelancers have observed a significant decrease in job invitations and overall project visibility. This has led to a decline in the number of potential opportunities, making it challenging for freelancers to secure new projects and sustain their livelihoods.

3. Negative Impact on Reputation: The freelancers who have been unable to participate in the Boosted Proposal System have felt disheartened and undervalued. This has resulted in a decline in the morale and motivation of the freelance community, ultimately affecting the overall quality of work on the platform.

4. Loss of Trust: Many freelancers, including long-time users of Upwork, have lost trust in the fairness of the platform due to the implementation of the Boosted Proposal System. The sense of community that once thrived on Upwork has been eroded as a result, leading to a lack of confidence in the platform's commitment to supporting freelancers.

5. Marketplace Fragmentation: The introduction of the Boosted Proposal System has led to the division of the marketplace into those who can afford to boost their proposals and those who cannot. This fragmentation hinders collaboration and diversity of talent, which were previously key strengths of Upwork.

In light of these concerns, I earnestly request that Upwork reevaluates the effectiveness of the Boosted Proposal System and considers alternative approaches to achieve the desired objectives without compromising the integrity and fairness of the platform. By addressing these issues, Upwork can rebuild trust with its freelancer community, attract more talent, and strengthen its position as a leading platform for freelance work.

I am hopeful that, as a company dedicated to fostering successful professional relationships, Upwork will listen to the feedback from its users and take the necessary steps to restore confidence in the platform. Together, we can create an environment that supports and empowers freelancers, leading to mutually beneficial collaborations with clients.

Thank you for your time and attention to this matter. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this issue and how you plan to address our concerns.

Sincerely,

Syed Muhammad Aizaz

Syedmaizaz@gmail.com

[louiselouw]

I agree with you 100%. And have myself stopped working on Upwork because of
this after being with them for over 10 years!

[8f837380]

Hello 

How can I get new clients to work for?

[anis_u_rehman]

Boost Proposal is an unfavorable feature for talented freelancers. This feature only supports millionaires only.

Please remove this feature if you want to stay talented freelancers on this platform.

[imran191371]

Please have a look at my profile and let me know if anyone is willing to give me the best feedback.

Thank you.

Here is my profile link. https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~010aeef1b00e671257

[17019ec7]

• can you help me

[66b1a7f9]

As a freelancer, i want to bid on $100 , i wrote proposal and while submitting someone boosted the proposal with 110 connects and i was having only 36 connects with me. So please justify how this is giving equal opportunity to me and the freelancer who boosted at 110 connects. 
How this determines that i am less interested and less knowledgable for this job post.

If someone is having 101 connects for just 100 dollars job post then it might be possible that that person is having much more resources than me and i am in more need of that job and more capable on my skills.

In this way, you are just grabbing the chance of a growing freelancer and  client who want someone talented and really in need for that job.

Upwork, please be transparent, fix maximum connects limit on the proposals. Its request from the behalf of all the needy and the growing freelancers who want to win the job on the behalf of thier skills not the money.

We have so many hopes from the upwork and we hope that you will understand our problem that we are facing because of the freelancers and agencies who have enough resorces for bidding with very high number of proposals.

[d74c25b5]

hello..

what meaning boost with connect ?

does help connect to show profile ?

thanks

[saimanasir]

Hello

 i want to know whats the use of boosting the proposal. Can my proposal will be considered more if i boost it

Thanks