One of my readers, Curtis, sent me this question:
Listened with great interest to your webinar on Upwork. All of your tips are very sound – quite a few I’d never thought of. One topic not addressed is, in my opinion, a major nut to crack. I’ve got over thirty years experience as a copywriter. I promote myself as an expert, I have great scores on Upwork, great reviews, etc.
The obstacle is the fact that so many people say they want an expert and when you check their stats, the average hourly rate the majority of them are paying (even ones in the U.S.) is less than twenty dollars an hour – many times less than ten!
Often, the description of their projects are outrageously involved, requiring work that could never be written by anything less than an expert, yet I routinely see average hourly pay rates of three to five dollars an hour.
I’ve never seen a single solicitation for an expert that offers more than thirty-five or forty. As a result, I’ve been contracted for work only sporadically (a fraction of those I apply for) – and that was for sixty per hour. Where are these people willing to pay seventy, eighty, one hundred and more?
It’s great that you’ve been able to get clients at $60/hr and get great reviews too. That proves that you have what it takes to succeed on Upwork.
But I’ll be straight with you: You also seem to be falling into a few of the more common traps that keep people from unlocking some of the bigger rewards Upwork has to offer.
For one thing, averages are one of the most deceiving ways to measure just about anything.
That’s why con artists and politicians are always telling you about the average this, or the average that.
The main thing averages are good for is helping you trick yourself.
I’ll prove it to you.
Check out the screenshot below. It’s an Upwork job I just ended, except instead of me being the freelancer, I’m the client.
As you can see, I paid the freelancer $50/hr, and left her a good review too.
But if you look at the average hourly rate I’ve paid as an Upwork client, it’s nowhere near that high.
Are you starting to see what I mean about averages being deceiving?
The truth is, Curtis, I’d love to find more great copywriters I could hire for $50/hr! I posted a job on Upwork a couple of months ago, and I’d have loved it if you’d applied.
Now maybe you’re wondering about those other (non-Danny) clients who are posting a job asking for “Experts.” How much are they willing to pay?
To answer that question, you need to look at what clients see when they post an “Expert” job:
As you can see, when they select “expert” from the list above they are specifically inviting bids of greater than $46.50/hr. Why would they do that if they weren’t even considering paying that amount?
Sure, a few of them may be “window shopping,” or hoping to get lucky and find an expert who’s willing to work for less.
But it’s clear that most clients who want to pay less than $40/hr would just choose Entry Level or Intermediate as their desired experience level. Otherwise they’d just be wasting their own time.
In case you’re still not convinced, here are a bunch of screenshots — from various Freelance To Win students across different work categories — that should put your concerns about what clients are willing to pay to rest for good:
I’ve been on Upwork for years but I’ve never seen as many people making great money there as I’m seeing today. The examples I just showed you aren’t even the tip of the iceberg.
On the flipside of that, I’ve always been able to find amazing clients on Upwork but today there are more than ever and they’re easier to find. Even as I’m writing this post I’m getting invitations like this:
I’m not showing you any of this to brag, just to show you what’s possible.
***
I have to admit, the first few times people emailed me asking “Where are all the good Upwork clients?” I was pretty confused. What, did 4 million clients suddenly stop posting jobs?
I even emailed a few of my Upwork friends to make sure they were still doing good.
Then one day I figured out the trick to responding to those emails. I wrote back to this one guy and said, “Describe to me the exact process you’re using when you’re looking for jobs.”
Do you know what he wrote back?
He said he was filtering his search to only include jobs with specific keywords, with specific budgets (keep in mind clients will often pay way more than their stated budget), by clients who had already hired at least 10+ freelancers and spent over $10,000, etc etc.
The guy was using so many filters he was screening out a ton of jobs that would have been perfect for him!
I know it for a fact because I did an unfiltered search and found a bunch of good jobs for him myself.
I tried to tell him but he wrote back insisting that he wanted to ‘be selective.’ How can you be selective when you can’t even see what your options are?
Other people tell me they use filters to search for jobs because it saves them time.
If your freelancing business is already pretty busy and successful, saving time with Upwork’s search filters can be OK.
But be careful not to take it too far.
When I first started on Upwork people told me to filter out clients who were new and had no spending history.
That didn’t make any sense to me. All of the best Upwork clients were brand new at some point, right?
Listening to that silly advice would have cost me tens of thousands of dollars and caused me to miss out on great clients like this one:
I knew another guy who always searched for jobs using the keyword “Email Copywriting”. But what he didn’t realize was that he missed out on all the jobs that said “Email Copywriter”, “Email Marketing Copy”, “Email Marketing Writer”, and on and on.
He was proud of himself for saving a few paltry minutes, but he missed out on countless opportunities that could have been worth tens of thousands of dollars…or more.
And yes, he too sent me an email asking “where are all the good Upwork jobs”.
My work is far from done.
Hope you have a great 2017! Thanks for sending in the question Curtis, please let me know how it goes for you.
(Flickr Creative Commons image via Bill Alldredge)
@Kelly – was so curious about this also, and entered my client account and tried to post a job. There is no range to see for the clients. Maybe the picture ( http://freelancetowin.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/upwork-rate-guidelines.jpg ) is taken long time ago
Hi Danny, Thank you for this information. I had NO IDEA that clients had a per-hour price range when they chose between Entry Level, Intermediate and Expert. I have actually complained about this feature to Upwork before, because it seemed to vague and subjective to me. An “expert” wage, if not attached to an actual number, could mean different things to different people. I thought it was really unhelpful for determining whether the job budget was a good fit. Strangely, whenever I mentioned this in communications with Upwork, they failed to mention the information that clients see a specific price… Read more »
Danny,
The post was a slap for me and a great Eye-opener. I also use filters to save time.
I never knew on the rate slab for experts on the client’s side when they are posting a job.
Thank you for the great post.
Have a wonderful day!????
Uma
This post doesn’t address clients who stop communicating and I think it should be mentioned. I’ve been ignored by many “good” clients who stop communicating entirely when every single effort made to keep them happy. The emails and Skype messages just go ignored. After a few weeks of this, I end up closing the contract, because they simply wont respond. My end goal is to get long-term clients, so it’s been tough to keep the balance with long-term clients vs repeat work. Having closed contracts without feedback has brought my JSS lower and lower. Upwork is aware of the issue… Read more »
Yes, a good point. Titly. It happens to me as well.
Great post Danny.
Most of these freelancers who ask where all the good clients go, seem to be struggling with a limiting belief, or cognitive bias that there are no clients.
See the world for the gold, not the dirt. Everything will be more beautiful that way.
How does upwork know what jobs to put in your feed if you’re not searching for specific keywords? What settings am I missing here?
About avoiding clients with no previous hiring history – my first two clients on Upwork were new to the platform, and they were great. I’m getting ongoing work from one, and the other was a big, well-paying gig (and they were great to work with). After that, I’ve decided I’m only not considering a gig if I’ve actually been in contact with the person and found it’s not a fit.
Hi Danny, I keep thinking about your post! I know the good clients are on Upwork; I’ve worked with several. However, they are often blanketed by job postings that are “misleading,” which might be why people like Curtis are wondering where all the good Upwork clients are. For example, here’s an invite I received today: Looking for an experienced copywriter A small IT Training company is looking for a copywriter who has extensive experience working with brochures, website, flyers, guarantee, emails and letters. Scope of the Project: Phase 1: 1. Copy write our Guarantee 2. Copy write 2 page flyers.… Read more »
I apply anyway. What people say they want to pay — and what they actually pay — are almost always two totally different things.
So Danny, I have a question. How would you actually search for a job? Like would you search keywords or just copywriting or etc. I am kind of confused here.
I don’t use keywords or filters.
Thanks Danny, do you have any advice for an absolute first starter?
Yes, look around this site and you’ll find plenty.
Some of my best clients have been with me since their beginning with Upwork. I was their first freelancer and they have stuck with me. Making me thousands of dollars in my very first year.
Everyone has to start somewhere. I was so happy when you sent out something like this before about not filtering the jobs, now I scroll through a lot of jobs that are not a fit for me, but I have told some friends about them that would be perfect for them. And who knows what’s there if you don’t look.
hey Danny, Thanks so much for the article. I’ve been filtering out new clients because my very first clients was someone that was new and wasted hours of my time… but I will change my tune about that. I’ve only landed two clients so far, but I am not sure how I should be applying. Sometimes 2 sentences gets me the interview, other times I write more and include my resume. then other times, I get someone that wants to pay me $2 per amazon listings when I clearly applied when it was $25… thus wasting some of my connections.… Read more »
I know I’m not Danny, but I’ve run into the NDA issue myself having previously worked as a software developer (with testing / QA as part of my role) for an avionics company (I’m skirting the NDA line just by telling you that much!), so I thought I could help. You’re on the right lines with changing the data – Danny’s fast track lesson where he describes his “Crystal Ball” technique is what you want to check out to take that one step further if you haven’t already. I found it really helped me get around that issue by simply… Read more »
Thanks, Danny! I just experienced this last week. I saw an interesting fixed-price job for a single email to tell their list about their new website launch and membership program. They wanted an expert, but their budget was only $15. I almost passed it up. But something told me to push through and apply, anyway. I could tell they knew what they wanted and seemed professional. So, I sent a proposal and a writing sample. For $50. More than triple their budget! I added a p.s. to the end of my proposal and addressed the fact that I was over… Read more »
Hey Danny! Stoked to see a new post. Thanks for sending it out! Something I never thought about was how inputting “content writing” into the search bar eliminates all other forms of that term! I’ve read your posts before where you mention limiting the amount of applied search filters, but I didn’t think about the impact of inputting words. Great point you make here! I’m sure there are many opportunities I have missed. I think I sell myself short when it comes to applying for some jobs. I know I am worth the amount I charge but when clients try… Read more »
Danny you are the Man! What I’m seeing is that a lot of it is mindset- subconsciously some folks are doing behaviors that limit them. I didn’t realize that filters were leaving out so much-I think I have like only 1 filter but now with your clear explanation I see why that sucks. Also yes I was looking at “average” pay and being like “oh no…low ballers.”
Wow. It’s funny as you know I started great on Upwork then seemed to hit a hard patch- this will help me go back and relaunch my work.
Good points made. I don’t worry about the cheaper competing freelancers. Being on the other side of the table, I know the struggle to find good, reliable freelancers. For the smart businesses with cash, they can chuck money and hire a true expert like you, Time is money and all that jazz. I always come in a little high when posting my initial rate, Set a high ceiling a work my way down. But definitely the key is to pick a niche that you think you can win. My definition of win is to be the best provider for that… Read more »
I was just discussing this with my friends a few hors ago , that I have started adding Reliability as my unique selling proposition, because one is surprised how many time you see, “my freelancer disappeared from face of earth” on upwork.
Even One client asked me to contact his freelance because he was not answering him 😀
Regards
Arif S.
Hi Danny,
I have been upworking as a CAD engineer for one year. Recently I have doubled my hourly rate (from $5 to $10) and successfully landed on a job at new rate!
I know that I am charging less. But I have a mindset that I can increase my hourly rate only after completing few jobs at $10. Is that right? Please let me know thoughts on this.
Best Regards,
Siva
If you’re happy with that rate, keep it… Your clients are surely very happy with it 🙂
But I think it’s a very low rate. The hourly rate on your profile also acts like a marketing tool / selling point. It “tells” clients how much you value your work / yourself. I think you’re missing out on some great clients because of that rate.
Danny, thanks for the quick lesson.
Looks like I am guilty as well and why I need to change my search terms. Looks easy when its pointed out, but that was needed. It is amazing how the simple things trip me up.
Darryl
Wow. Thanks for this Danny! It’s interesting that while the clients know the price ranges they are posting, I still get rejected for my wage being “too high.” I usually apply to the 2 and 3-star ads, so when I get a rejection for my cost on the 3-star ones, I am always mystified. I wondered why they posted under “expert” and assumed that must mean different things to different people. 😀 I certainly do not charge a lot as an editor. I have also seen 3-star ads with a very low budget. I still shake my head quite a… Read more »