How to Use Upwork as a Freelancer Webinar Video Lecture - Entrepreneurship

hello everyone and thank you so much for
joining us today we're here to talk
about building your business on up work
as a new freelancer to the up work
platform we welcome you
we're here to share with you tips and
best practices that we've heard from our
most successful freelancers on the
platform the most important one is this
online work is like any other work the
more you put in the more you get out
do a great job be professional and
you'll be a success before we get
started I want to go over our two
membership plans membership plans give
freelancers certain features and
benefits as part of their up work
account each freelancer chooses their
own plan the free plan gives you the
basic tools to be successful on up work
while the optional paid plan provides
additional benefits with the individual
freelancer basic membership it includes
a complete up work profile 60 connects
per billing cycle unlimited invitations
to projects and payment protection we
also offer a freelancer plus membership
nothing's different in terms of how
you're going to use the site but there
are some additional benefits first I'll
note it includes everything in the
freelancer basic membership plan but you
get 10 additional connects per billing
cycle you also get the ability to roll
over some unused connects you have the
option of buying extra connects and
visibility into what other freelancers
are bidding on projects for those of you
who are joining the up work platform as
a team
meaning bringing other colleagues of
yours onto the up work platform we offer
agency memberships we have a couple
options available for you as well the
agency basic plan is for single person
agencies only this is designed as a way
to brand yourself as a business this
plan doesn't allow an agency owner to
show a company logo or company name in
their upwork profile it includes 60
connects per billing cycle unlimited
invitations to client projects and
payment protection you should take note
no team members can be added or assigned
work on the basic plan if you do have a
multi person agency you might want to
look into the agency plus membership in
addition to being allowed a company
logo and company name this plan allows
the agency owner to add unlimited team
members and share connects among their
team it also includes 80 connects per
billing cycle and the ability to
rollover up to 80 unused connects to
following billing cycles you also get
the ability to buy extra connects
visibility into what other freelancers
are bidding on projects and payment
protection all membership plans are
renewed on a monthly billing cycle basis
and can be changed at any time let's go
ahead and set the agenda for today we're
going to talk about building a profile
and marketing your skills will talk
about submitting proposals and how to
make yourself stand out we'll talk about
getting paid and the best way to do that
through upwork will talk quickly about
your reputation and how to build a
strong reputation on out work and then
we get into some takeaways and resources
for you let's start with building a
profile there are several key elements
that go into creating a top notch
profile when we talk to clients who are
hiring freelancers on up work this is
what they say they look for first a
professional profile photo clients like
to see who they're working with
your profile picture puts a face to the
name use it as a chance to demonstrate
your professionalism upload an image
that's a headshot think about yourself
in the most professional light and
showcase it here the title should give
clients a quick summary of what you do
keep it short and sweet here are a
couple of good examples you have the web
UX UI designer and graphic designer
both are simple and to the point yet
they succinctly describe what the core
skills are they tell what services the
freelancer offers you see here that the
first gentleman has web UX UI designer
he's actually bringing together two
different skills or two different
offerings into one title yet it's not
overwhelming or too long the overview is
the place to tell your professional
story add color to your skills and work
history and make it clear why clients
should engage you rather than another
freelancer think about the title as
grabbing someone's attention and the
overview is telling them what you're all
about we advise using
sentences no bullet points this is your
first opportunity to tell clients who
you are and what kind of work you want
to do use the skills section to identify
the skills you're best at it will also
help ensure you show up in relevant
search results on the site pick the four
or five skills that describe what you do
and highlight those there show clients
you actually have these skills by taking
some tests to verify your abilities
let's talk about your education
employment and certification sections
use these sections to solidify your
reputation and show why you're qualified
for specific projects as a professional
you're coming to up work with a lot of
experience behind you you want to
highlight what you did before you
brought your business online clients
have told us this matters to them they
want to know you're a professional so
use these three areas to display past
coursework and accomplishments degrees
and areas of study etc make sure your
employment history is complete clients
want to see information in the
description section describe your duties
skills and responsibilities think of it
as a professional resume the portfolio
section is the place to add examples of
your work that bring your skills to life
through past projects you're sharing a
lot of good information but you want an
impactful way to stand out to potential
clients your portfolio is one place to
do that it shows a visual representation
of what you've produced you want to
update your portfolio as you complete
new projects on up work introduction
video we live in a visual world where
many people would rather watch a video
than read a long article create an
introduction video and let clients see
what it might be like to work with you
this is something that we've seen a lot
of our top rated freelancers take
advantage of lately a short 30 second to
1 minute video that gives a little
personality behind their profile make
sure your video has an introduction who
are you what services are you offering
what type of roles projects or clients
are you looking to work with think about
giving your client a call to action and
ask them to schedule for an interview
take a few tests
to verify that you can perform the
skills you've highlighted in the skills
section of your profile these tests are
free and offer through the platform
here's an example of a great profile
again it's complete it's dynamic with a
video that's included there is title as
succinct video production screen capture
and animation
I can tell quickly what this freelancer
does and then his overview section gives
me a little more information now that
you know how to craft an impressive
profile let's look at how to find the
types of projects and clients you'd like
to work with on up work and submit a
proposal before you submit a proposal
you have to find a project that matches
your interests here's a checklist of
items that we think you should consider
by all means this is your business so
feel free to develop your own checklist
in terms of what you're looking for is
your evaluating job opportunities first
does the project match my skills and
interests can I perform the tasks that
the client is asking next just a job
post have a complete and thoughtful job
description some clients are going to
put a lot of information in a work
description they're going to tell you
exactly what they want every step of the
way other clients are going to be a
little more brief into what they are
sharing but from what you can gather can
you clearly understand what these
clients are looking for of course does
the project have a suitable budget is it
within your range in terms of your
expected range in what you're trying to
earn well let's dive into those and
think about exactly what we should be
looking for in a work description do you
have a clear understanding of what this
project is ask yourself do you have the
time available to complete this project
does it meet up works Terms of Service
is there anything that doesn't seem
right
you can flag that project to us and our
team will take a look and review it ask
yourself am I qualified for this project
be sure to read the full description and
skills required also be on the lookout
for questions can you determine all of
the deliverables and if not do they at
least have some idea of what those
deliverables should be in the work
description can you identify required
skills look for keywords and anything
that stands out for you that's going to
be specific to your experience that
might make you a good fit
look for some preferences that the
client might have for example this
client says this freelancer must be
based in Australia if I'm not based in
Australia I'm not going to submit a
proposal on this project and I'm going
to move on clients often include
pre-screening questions that you'll need
to answer in your proposal a proposal is
your opportunity to introduce yourself
highlight your experience and show the
client why you're the best candidate for
the contract another important thing to
know is when searching you can only
apply to so many projects each month so
make sure each project is a perfect fit
before applying ask yourself am I really
100% qualified do I have time to tackle
this project can I do an awesome job
proposals take one to five connects
depending on factors like the size and
type of the project proposals must
include a bit amount a great proposal
should be customized to the client and
their specific project and show how you
can bring value to their project what
this means is as you look for projects
on the platform you might see some that
require only one connect all the way up
to five most projects today are two
connects if you have a basic membership
you get 60 connects every month that
means you have up to 30 proposals that
you'll be able to submit each month you
found the perfect project now let's talk
about how to create a winning proposal
so what does it take when you're
submitting a proposal you'll want to
tailor every proposal think custom not
cookie-cutter what clients don't like to
see is when they get a copy and paste'
proposal from freelancers because this
tells them the freelancer isn't
interested in their project specifically
now a framework for your proposals is
fine and may actually help however
that's different from copying the same
proposal over and over start with a
framework for example always start with
an intro you are always going to share
your understanding of this project and
its objectives go into your approach
outline your experience always be
specific to this project explain exactly
why you're submitting a proposal for
this project why do you want to win this
business what is it about this project
that's important to you that you think
you're particularly well-suited for show
some energy and some enthusiasm for
getting
you should definitely highlight what
makes you better from the rest is it
your experience is it your willingness
to do great work what is it about you
that makes you stand out now here's an
example of a proposal I won't read
through it but I'll leave it up for a
minute as you're reviewing make sure
your proposal always includes a
professional greeting why you're
interested in this project your unique
qualifications a request for an
interview any outstanding questions this
is your chance to make a great
impression on the client take the time
to craft a thoughtful proposal that's
tailored to the work description and
client and make sure to include
responses to any pre-screening questions
in the work description if a client
invites you to a work description you
won't need to create a proposal or use
any connects you can simply respond to
the client and start discussing the
project and begin negotiating part of
submitting your proposal means
submitting a price I often hear a lot of
new freelancers say how do I get started
I'm not sure what to charge for this
type of work
sorry there are no hard and fast rules
here as you're getting started take a
look at what other freelancers are
charging for similar work how much do
they typically charge what's their
hourly rate you can see that on their
profile page this is good information to
tell you where the market stands in what
you can be charging consider the clients
point of view they will indicate whether
they are looking for basic intermediate
or expert level freelancer that also
gives you an indication of what type of
budget they're considering you can take
a look at a client's work history see
how much they paid in the past if you
get the contract great if not learn from
the experience
think about your proposal and your
interview and how to improve then try
again until you find the perfect project
for you getting paid on up work is safe
and secure when considering projects
remember there are two types of
contracts and up work hourly contracts
and fixed price contracts after you've
submitted a proposal interviewed and
been awarded the fixed price contract
you and your client will set up
milestones fixed price contracts and up
work use milestones and escrow to ensure
a safe and secure workplace for both
clients and freelancers a fixed-price
contract can't start an up
work without a funded milestone that
means the client has to deposit funds
into an escrow account and then release
the funds as milestones and deliverables
are met milestones are dates when you
and your client have agreed you'll turn
over deliverables and they'll review and
pay the big thing here is payment
protection you need to follow a few
guidelines as you complete a milestone
you should submit all deliverables over
the up work platform for review use the
message Center to submit this work and
allow your client to review and approve
these files if the work is what your
client expected they will go ahead and
release funds for that milestone and
move on to funding the next one if it
isn't what you and your client discussed
they will communicate with you so that
you can make updates before they release
the escrow payment if no action is taken
by your clients after submitting a
deliverable funds will be released
automatically after 14 days remember to
be eligible for upward payment
protection you should only submit work
via up work once you've decided on an
hourly contract you and your client will
agree to a rate of pay a number of hours
a week you can work when you work on
hourly contracts you could qualify for
our hourly protection program
let's go over how to make sure you
qualify for payment protection work with
your client to negotiate the number of
hours authorized for each week if you go
over these or log manual time you will
not be covered by payment protection
make sure to verify your client has a
payment method in place do this before
you start working use the up work team
app to log all time on each project as
you're tracking time six screen shots
per hour are taken of your computer the
app also logs your activity level by
counting the number of mouse clicks and
keystrokes you'll also have to add a
memo about the work you're performing
your activity will automatically upload
to the work diary on up work clients
propose milestones and put them in
writing so there's documentation you'll
collaborate with a client on the
milestones through back and forth
dialogue using the message center
discuss all terms and expectations
before you start work
make sure both you and your clients are
on the same page sending them examples
and drafts of milestones that they can
review and provide
back to you you should set expectations
and be honest about your skills and your
delivery date your clients can either
approve your work and release funds or
reject your work and ask you to make
edits if they refuse approval you can
file a dispute but don't let it get to
that because with clear communication
you and your clients should be on the
same page if the client closes the
contract before the completion date or
ahead of the final milestone an email
will be sent to you to approve the
release of any remaining funds back into
escrow
if you don't approve it you can file a
dispute and upwork will try and help you
resolve it if you close or cancel the
project early the remaining funds will
go back to your client there is a five
day security period after the funds are
released that means after the client has
released escrow on a milestone it could
take five days before that money is
available for withdrawal I mentioned the
team app and the work diary and here's
what it looks like you can see the six
screenshots an hour and the green bar
monitoring your activity you're in
control of what is being sent in your
work diary you can delete the
screenshots during work diary until the
end of each billing cycle but this means
it won't be included in your billing
invoice make sure you enter regular
memos to describe the work you've
completed and that your work is
accurately described this is important
for qualifying for up work hourly
protection the billing cycle is Monday
through Sunday on the following Monday
the client is automatically charged now
they have four days to review the work
you did the previous week they can
dispute any time captured in the work
diary Friday is their last day to reject
or dispute any time there is then a
five-day security period from Saturday
through Wednesday after that the funds
will be available in your up work
account either way you work you receive
payments into your up work account from
there you withdraw funds using whatever
payment method works best for you in
eleven countries money is available in
local currencies be sure to keep all
work and all payments on up work this
builds your online reputation and gives
you payment protection so let's talk
quickly about your reputation how it's
reflected on the up work platform and
what that means
if you're a brand-new freelancer you
might not have a lot of information in
your work history and feedback area
that's okay these are areas that develop
over time and something that is under
your control from day one of submitting
proposals here are some things you can
do to help you control your stats make
sure you submit proposals on projects
that are a good fit for you make sure
you communicate well with your clients
and at the end of the day are delivering
the work that they're looking for
because all of that is going to affect
your reputation but you have complete
control over all these areas part of
what gets included in here is the final
feedback and the ratings that the client
provides for you you'll also have the
opportunity to rate clients so be
professional the reason why we say that
is those comments are permanent and
public information the job success score
measures private feedback public
feedback and long-term relationships
you'll get a job success score after
you've completed three to five projects
where feedback was left the score
reflects your overall history with your
clients and includes your public and
private feedback long-term relationships
and rehires many factors go into account
when calculating your score the score
factors in both public final ratings and
the private feedback they share with us
at the end of a contract we also take
into account long-term relationships and
repeat contracts say you start a
contract but you never start work or
there is no activity that might take
away from your job success score again
think about this as an overall measure
of performance and activity and you want
to strive to do your best and strive to
follow the rules and the policies here
and it will take care of itself how do
you see this information how do you
track your activity well every
freelancer will have access to their own
my stats dashboard upwork will show you
here in the client satisfaction section
your job success score and some more
detail in there around your star ratings
and things like that the my stats
dashboard can help you see where you
excel how you compare to the competition
and what you need to work on you can see
your job success score earnings feedback
score and more in my stats you'll also
see communication and what that does
is it shows responsiveness with clients
in other words how quickly are you
getting back to them and in the
marketing effectiveness area you'll see
some information around how effective
you are at submitting proposals winning
projects and your communication and
client satisfaction communicate and
respond quickly when clients reach out
and ask questions when you're unclear
and always be reliable my stats will
give you insight into your marketing
effectiveness on upwork your
communication and client satisfaction
finally just a few rules to keep you
safe you'll agree to our Terms of
Service if you don't know what they are
I encourage you to go back and
familiarize yourself with them just make
sure you feel good about the overall
guidelines and rules if there's anything
that just doesn't feel right if there's
anything that seems out of balance with
the contract that you're working on if
your client is asking you to buy
anything that you didn't agree to as
part of the project terms if they're
asking you for any private or financial
account information things like if
they're asking you to sign up on other
sites or share with them password or
login information all those things
should raise a flag for you and we
encourage you to contact us so we can
help remember
no custom samples or free work you don't
want to be giving your work away for
free you want to be getting paid for
what you're doing and then by working on
the up work platform you agree not to
take any client off the site for at
least two years up work is the workplace
for the world giving talented
freelancers like yourself access to the
best projects and best clients as work
moves online at record pace here are
tips you should remember for doing a
great job every time again you have a
lot under your control in terms of what
you're showing potential clients and how
you stand out to potential clients with
your profile so take the time to spend
on your profile to make sure it's
complete and professional customize
those proposals make sure that the
proposal that you're sending on a work
description is targeted is focused on
this particular client and the project
that they're hiring for it shows your
enthusiasm and your energy towards this
particular project
protect your earnings by understanding
the payment protection programs use
escrow and milestones for those fixed
price contracts and use the team app
with work diary for those hourly
contracts keep track of your reputation
through the my stats dashboard and by
paying attention to that job success
score and then lastly we invite you to
get involved with our community up work
is a true global community of
professionals and we've built a platform
of forums groups and multimedia that
enables members to discuss learn share
and and have a little bit of fun if you
ever need a hand doing a great job up
work has a number of places to find help
visit our hiring headquarters in
knowledge base or ask the up work
community you're sure to find answers on
building a thriving freelance career you
can find a link to the upward community
by clicking the question mark from your
upwork account and clicking community
and forums you'll be brought to the
upward community where you can post a
question or join a conversation we also
have a blog we welcome you to take a
look around our hiring headquarters to
find ideas to help and learn how you can
get more work done faster again I
mentioned our Terms of Service then we
have the up work help center which is
always there for you as well take a look
at how things work or get in touch with
this if you need some help
great and again thank you for your time
we are excited that you joined up work
we're excited to have you here on the
platform getting started and we look
forward to seeing your businesses grow
and become successful in upwork thank
you for your time everyone and have a
great day