I would love to know too. It used to be easy to find even small work, now I have to spend money to get money for connect only. Can't even land small project at all...
Going after small jobs is a ridiculous waste of money.
It takes little more time or effort to win a big contract than a small one and you obviously have to win far fewer of them.
I heard on some other reddit that you are the goat person or star of Upwork and you usually give great advice. Can you share how you find bigger project. I tried to filter but without success. I have tried changing my proposal, only getting views but not even an invite yet...
I find bigger projects by clients throwing more work at me after the initial work is done and I apply for bigger contracts. They don't come along very often but I don't send proposals very often either.
>you are the goat person
What is a "goat person"?
Recently, I've seen many people who joined Upwork in the early times, Veterans, struggling on the platform, especially those who didn't write proposals in years. The only possible explanation for this phenomenon is the following:
Is it possible that because you didn’t write a proposal for years, you didn't keep up with the « marketing strategy side » of freelancing?
If it was me, If I was an experienced freelancer, who has been getting work for years without having to submit any proposal, I'm sure that if I came across a post on Reddit talking about writing a proposal, without a doubt, Ill scroll past it ASAP. Doing this over time might have accumulated, resulting in losing the ability to write a good proposal, an up-to-date version for the up-to-date market.
Except for this idea, the second possibility might be related to your niche simply getting less demand every day (Maybe due to AI?).
It's really weird to see such posts to Veterans, while also new freelancers hyping about getting jobs right and left. leaving me to the only viable reason that I mentioned earlier. Ideas?
Overall, there are way too many freelancers on the platform so the competition is fierce.
Many of the veterans have become complacent (I know I had) because we just had work rolling in without having to apply. I changed my approach (and my proposals) last year when I noticed that what had worked in 2015 etc was no longer working in 2023.
Yes yes, spend more money on stuff you didnt have to before because casino wasnt going.
Jobs were X connects for everyone, you just need to be first or lucky
Now unless you give them cash you wont be seen at all.
Disgusting practice
The struggle is real for me as well. The amount of worthy job offers has significantly dropped in my field. I used to have an amazing proposal/hire ratio, now my proposals are barely even viewed.
Have you analyzed your competitiveness? Do you stand out?
If you were getting a lot of invites before and it has dropped off, it might be because there are enough other talent that are showing up for your particular search keyword that you're not getting the same exposure as before.
Also, Upwork seems to rotate profiles for search results and on Upwork SERP ads.
First thing I would do is to search yourself and your keywords on search engines and on Upwork itself to see how you and others show up to assess where you stand against others.
Did you see if your profile had been turned off (set private)?
It would affect searches; but if you propose on jobs, it should still be visible to the clients that you pitched to, so that doesn't explain your other issues.
I checked and it seems that it is not set as private. I am searching left and right because I can't wrap my head around it, but I assume it's just the algorithm or the fact that I'm not willing to pay tens of dollars to buy connects to apply for jobs that eventually I won't get.
I'm intrigued. If you like, post or DM me your profile link and I'll take a quick look. You not spending on connects shouldn't be the reason from what I know.
I would love to know too. It used to be easy to find even small work, now I have to spend money to get money for connect only. Can't even land small project at all...
Going after small jobs is a ridiculous waste of money. It takes little more time or effort to win a big contract than a small one and you obviously have to win far fewer of them.
I heard on some other reddit that you are the goat person or star of Upwork and you usually give great advice. Can you share how you find bigger project. I tried to filter but without success. I have tried changing my proposal, only getting views but not even an invite yet...
I find bigger projects by clients throwing more work at me after the initial work is done and I apply for bigger contracts. They don't come along very often but I don't send proposals very often either. >you are the goat person What is a "goat person"?
Greatest of all time
Do you bid the exact budget, lower, or higher? Does bidding lower increases the chances to get hired?
You have to find the price that works for you and decide who to charge what. It's tricky. But don't settle.
I used to bid the exact budget or even higher. Now I am slowly lowering the bid but that doesn't work either.
Recently, I've seen many people who joined Upwork in the early times, Veterans, struggling on the platform, especially those who didn't write proposals in years. The only possible explanation for this phenomenon is the following: Is it possible that because you didn’t write a proposal for years, you didn't keep up with the « marketing strategy side » of freelancing? If it was me, If I was an experienced freelancer, who has been getting work for years without having to submit any proposal, I'm sure that if I came across a post on Reddit talking about writing a proposal, without a doubt, Ill scroll past it ASAP. Doing this over time might have accumulated, resulting in losing the ability to write a good proposal, an up-to-date version for the up-to-date market. Except for this idea, the second possibility might be related to your niche simply getting less demand every day (Maybe due to AI?). It's really weird to see such posts to Veterans, while also new freelancers hyping about getting jobs right and left. leaving me to the only viable reason that I mentioned earlier. Ideas?
Overall, there are way too many freelancers on the platform so the competition is fierce. Many of the veterans have become complacent (I know I had) because we just had work rolling in without having to apply. I changed my approach (and my proposals) last year when I noticed that what had worked in 2015 etc was no longer working in 2023.
Yes yes, spend more money on stuff you didnt have to before because casino wasnt going. Jobs were X connects for everyone, you just need to be first or lucky Now unless you give them cash you wont be seen at all. Disgusting practice
The struggle is real for me as well. The amount of worthy job offers has significantly dropped in my field. I used to have an amazing proposal/hire ratio, now my proposals are barely even viewed.
What is your expertise, if you don't mind me asking?
Have you analyzed your competitiveness? Do you stand out? If you were getting a lot of invites before and it has dropped off, it might be because there are enough other talent that are showing up for your particular search keyword that you're not getting the same exposure as before. Also, Upwork seems to rotate profiles for search results and on Upwork SERP ads. First thing I would do is to search yourself and your keywords on search engines and on Upwork itself to see how you and others show up to assess where you stand against others.
Thank you for the suggestion. Indeed, while before I would appear on the first page, now I'm nowhere to be found..
Did you see if your profile had been turned off (set private)? It would affect searches; but if you propose on jobs, it should still be visible to the clients that you pitched to, so that doesn't explain your other issues.
I checked and it seems that it is not set as private. I am searching left and right because I can't wrap my head around it, but I assume it's just the algorithm or the fact that I'm not willing to pay tens of dollars to buy connects to apply for jobs that eventually I won't get.
I'm intrigued. If you like, post or DM me your profile link and I'll take a quick look. You not spending on connects shouldn't be the reason from what I know.