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bernadeeuy
Community Member

Partial Payments for Test Article

Good day!

 

I have a client who messaged me (in response to my proposal) and told me to that to test me, they will have me rewrite an article for $2.00. I performed the rewrite (1000 words) and submitted it to them, but they told me they needed for me to make revisions for it to pass Copyscape.

 

I am certain that I did not plagiarize any of the content I produced and I refuse to make any more revisions, as I spent quite some time waiting for their responses and following up on their comments, so I told them that I will withdraw my proposal. 

 

The client declined the proposal on Upwork but did not pay me. Given this, am I entitled to collect payment from them or is it understood that since I was not willing to revise the article, the client does not have to pay?

 

Thank you!

7 REPLIES 7
jutta_beinker
Community Member

Bernadee,

 

2$ is laughable first of all for writing 1,000 words - you should charge way more than that.That aside.

The client has to pay you - you ahve deliverd the work.

Please rport client / contract to the Upwork team.

" The bond with a true dog is as lasting as the ties of this earth will ever be "
vdubeau
Community Member

If you didn't have an actual contract showing in "My Jobs" then you just did free work. Do not pass GO, do not collect $2.00.

"Remember, no matter where you go, there you are."
Buckaroo Banzai
sam-sly
Community Member

Sorry, if I am understanding correctly there is just all kinds of wrong here. I will point out what I see so hopefully you (and other newbies) won't repeat the same mistake....

1. Don't do work for an Upwork client without an Upwork contract (that you accepted) and a funded milestone. Otherwise, you have no recourse at. all if the client decides not to pay.  

2. Don't fall for the "test job." While some clients may sincerely want to test before committing, most here are just looking for free work. It is okay if the client wants to hire you for a small job first. But there should be. contract and a funded milestone for that job. 

3. Rewriting often is plagiarism, the client is hiring you to help him/her get away with plagiarism.  The client wants a duplicate of someone else's article. A non-plagiarized article would be one where you are writing an original article based on experience or research. It would not be based on just one article someone else wrote. The client's definition of "plagiarism" is whether it passes CopyScape. If you are going to do this kind of work, you need to ensure it passes CopyScape before you submit it. Even for an actual original article, few clients would accept or pay for work that can't pass CopyScape. (Yes many quality clients wouldn't check, but they also wouldn't ask for rewritten articles and pay so little either).  For the type of low-tier writing you are doing, passing CopyScape is probably the only thing the client actually requires.

4. $2 for 1000 words is way too low. However, I don't think this client intends to pay you anyway, since there is no contract.

AveryO
Community Manager
Community Manager

Hi Bernadee, 

 

I was unable to identify this client you are referring to, so I'm not sure if he did set a contract for this project. If he did, you should be able to dispute the amount in escrow

If the client didn't create a contract, or fund the escrow, this unfortunately doesn't fall under the eligibility requirements of the Upwork Payment Protection Program

 

Please check the freelancer resources we compiled and tips for avoiding questionable jobs, for more information about working safely through Upwork.


~ Avery
Upwork
dalahast
Community Member

If clients ask for them, I'll usually accept requests for short samples that only take a few minutes of my time. I submit them as watermarked PDFs that require a password to edit, print, or even copy text out of—if the client wants to use it without paying and they're willing to sit there retyping the whole thing manually, whatever. Since it's a sample, don't make it something that can be used out of the box: if the client needs you to edit or proofread an article, finish only the first two or three paragraphs.

 

I've gotten some good contracts from doing samples, so I don't automatically refuse requests for them. I do refuse requests for complete, ready-to-use work, and I take steps to make it difficult for clients to use samples without paying for them. Honest clients don't mind the locked-down PDFs, in my experience.


@Cory K wrote:

 

Honest clients don't mind the locked-down PDFs, in my experience.


 Generally, honest clients don't ask you to create free samples, since it violates Upwork's TOS and they can have their accounts suspended for asking.

rainer_
Community Member

Sounds like you got shafted by a scamming POS. When it comes to free samples, there's a very easy rule of thumb: don't do them. If they're a genuine client, they'll respect your decision.