What is Upwork?
Upwork, formerly Elance-oDesk, is a global freelancing platform where businesses and independent professionals connect and collaborate remotely. In 2015, Elance-oDesk was rebranded as Upwork. It is based in Santa Clara and San Francisco, California. The full name is Upwork Global Inc.
Upwork has twelve million registered freelancers and five million registered clients. Three million jobs are posted annually, worth a total of US$1 billion, making it the largest freelancer marketplace in the world. The Upwork story begins over a decade ago when the tech lead of a Silicon Valley startup realized his close friend in Athens would be perfect for a web project. The team agreed he was the best choice, but were concerned about working with someone halfway around the globe.
New Upwork;
In response, the two friends created a new web-based platform that brought visibility and trust to remote work. It was so successful the two realized other businesses would also benefit from reliable access to a larger pool of quality talent, while workers would enjoy freedom and flexibility to find jobs online. Together they decided to start a company that would deliver on the promise of this technology. Fast-forward to today, that technology is the foundation of Upwork — the largest global freelancing website. With millions of jobs posted on Upwork annually, freelancers are earning money by providing companies with over 5,000 skills across more than 70 categories of work.
*How to make money on Upwork;
1. Set up a robust and honest profile; Your profile serves the same purpose as a general résumé for prospective employers. You can’t get work without one. Fill out the job type you’d like to do, the specific areas in which you’re skilled and your level of expertise. This is all self-reported, so be honest. If you get hired for jobs you can’t deliver on, your account could be put on hold or closed. After that, add a headshot and a detailed description of your background. You can include links to a portfolio or to specific work samples. You can also fill in your education, how many hours per week you can work, location and preferred rate. If you’re not sure what to charge, check out the rates of other freelancers on Upwork who have a similar experience.
Assuming everything is verifiable and accurate, Upwork will approve your profile within 24 hours. Then you can get working.
2. Connect with (legitimate) employers; Submit proposals for jobs you qualify for with Connects, the platform’s internal tokens. Upwork provides a limited supply of these, so consider carefully which gigs you want to go for. You get 60 Connects per month with a free account. The proposals you submit include an introductory letter, your desired fee and answers to questions the client included in the posting. You can also send examples of any work you think would be relevant. If someone reaches out to you, you don’t have to use any connections. The more robust your profile looks, the more likely you are to receive job offers from potential clients. Displaying your best work or highlighting specific experience can help you stand out. If you’re new to your field, volunteer experience counts, too.
Before applying for a gig, get an idea of the potential employer’s reputation. The Better Business Bureau, Glassdoor and a search for news coverage of the employer on Google are good places to start your research. Even if everything checks out, keep communication and payments within the site. Documenting behavior on both sides discourages scams, as clients will be held accountable for making a shady payment or work requests or making claims about your work without in-site proof.
3. Set your price and start working; Upwork’s fee structure is based on how much money you make from each client over time. On the first $500 earned from an individual client, you incur a 20% service charge. Once you reach the $500.01 to $10,000 range, Upwork takes a 10% cut. After that, it’s 5%. You can get paid in one of two ways: hourly or fixed price. Upwork’s fees are the same for both.
Your hourly rate on Upwork is the price before the service deduction. So if you list a rate of $20 per hour for your first gig, you can expect to earn $16 per hour. When you negotiate a rate for a fixed-price job, the same idea applies; if you’re getting paid $400 for a job, you’ll be paid $320 after the cut.
You can also turn the Work Diary on and off at any time and log work manually instead, but using the tool helps you qualify for an Upwork service called Hourly Protection. This service ensures that you've paid for work you can prove you completed, even if a client refuses. Payment for fixed-price projects is more straightforward. The person or company contracting you has to set aside a certain amount of money when you make the agreement. The employer must also set milestones, which are concrete deliverables on the way to the finished job. You’re paid with some or all of the deposit once you hit these checkpoints, and the remainder is paid once everything is complete.
4. Get paid;
All of your hourly projects are billed weekly. You’ll get paid after you and the client review the work, 10 days after the billing period ends. You can get paid through options like direct transfer to your bank or PayPal.
If a project gets dropped before it’s finished, that’s when Hourly Protection and milestones come in handy. If you think you weren’t compensated fairly, Upwork has a dispute process.
For fixed-price projects, you can begin a dispute if the client fails to pay for a milestone or refuses to pay for what you think is completed work. Hourly Protection helps with payment disputes on other projects, as the documentation from your Work Diary can help prove when you were working and what you were working on. Upwork makes it easier to find jobs and make more money but think carefully about which gigs you want to apply for. And check out our guide to money as a freelancer for advice on how to handle your newfound income, once it starts rolling in.
*Define your title: Creating a title for yourself is extremely important because, if done well, you can increase your chances of getting hired. Ideally, your title should be a two- to the three-word summary of your core strengths, with maybe a few enhancing words on either side.
*Define your tags: Choosing skills tags is very important because it affects how you are found by potential clients as well as how you are perceived. Luckily, the process can be easily done by brainstorming 10-20 words that tie in with your freelance title and then cross-checking these with what successful oDesk freelancers in your field are using.
*Write a clear description: Writing a description can be easily done after you have made a headline and associated tags. When you write your description, try to present arguments for why someone should hire you by focusing on the best pitches first. Most clients are interested in arguments that focus on quality and bigger returns on their investment.
*Take relevant tests: Taking a few tests that are relevant to the work you do is the best way to validate what you claim in your profile description. It can also be an interesting way to learn which skills you need to enhance (or learn from scratch) in order to get jobs in a certain field of work. If English is not your first language, you can use the English tests indirectly to prove your ability to communicate.
*Do 5-10 small assignments: Even when you’re just starting out, you have to think long term. Be honest, over-deliver, and grow your reputation. Start small by applying for assignments less than $50. Make sure they are given by clients with good feedback and who have spent a good deal of money on freelancers. You can then work towards a better rate of pay as you gain more experience and better feedback. To increase your chances of getting hired for these first projects, make sure to answer everything in the client’s brief and say why you should be picked by referring to your skills and experience.
*Create a portfolio: With the work you have done so far, see if you can add a few samples into the portfolio section of your profile so clients can get an idea of the work you do. Ideally, you want to showcase not only your best work but your range of skills and project types. It’s also worthwhile to regularly update your portfolio with new jobs as your career progresses.
*Go for larger jobs: Larger assignments give you the chance to take on more jobs that are similar or to try something new. It’s largely a matter of being strategic and using your existing clients as springboards to get more work. If you have established yourself as a highly-skilled freelancer, your future prospects could include continuing in that role, creating and managing an agency or taking your work offline, if you choose.
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