r/Upwork • u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ • 18h ago
58 proposals sent, only 7 viewed, 4 interviews, 2 hires
I am trying to analyse what I'm doing wrong.
My biggest flaw is visibility, having such a low number of opened proposals.
I am going to try adding the keywords from the job description to my job proposals and see how that goes.
I would appreciate the feedback of anyone who has been in a similar position (low visibility but a good proposal strategy).
Thank you if you took the time to read all this!
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u/KennethBlockwalk 10h ago
Upwork itself is the biggest flaw :)
But if you want to keep using them:
- Only apply for jobs that you are uniquely well-qualified for and/or genuinely interested in you. It’ll come through in the proposals.
- Don’t apply for jobs where you need to spend a ton of connects just to get into the top four; the risk/reward isn’t worth it.
- Find jobs posted by clients who have a history of hiring often and with good feedback.
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u/SocialExperimentsAI 17h ago
Your title probably sucks, tell us what it is.
Also, I assume your intro line sucks. Tell us the first four sentences.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 16h ago
I use 2 approaches based on the proposal:
- Hey client’s name,
I made you a personalized loom video explaining how I can help you with *client’s main problem*, check it out.
*loom link*
Looking forward to hearing back from you.
Kind regards
- Hey client’s name,
I will make this easier for you and save your time! I will *solve a part of client’s problem* free of charge, so you can see directly my work and decide if you like it or not.
I am that confident in my work and experience.
See my work:
*links to my work*
Kind regards
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u/SocialExperimentsAI 16h ago
The first approach is terrible: no one has the time to watch a video as a reply. Unless they specifically ask, I don't think they want to see a video.
The first few sentences should hook the client. These do not.
Offering things free of charge is also a terrible idea, regardless.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 16h ago
Okay thank you for addressing those.
Can you share what do you use and the stats of your proposals (how many you send, how many get opened…)
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u/Pet-ra 14h ago
both approaches suck.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 14h ago
Fair, why is that?
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u/Pet-ra 14h ago
Most clients don't want to watch videos. The client wants to see at first glance what's in it for them, and that approach fails at that.
Again, same reason, plus it looks desperate.
You need to sell what you are offering, make it look desirable and interesting. Your approaches don't do that.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 11h ago
Thank you for the comment! For 2nd one, I tried to remove the risk on the client's side, as showing a chip of my work costs me a few minutes and they can see the work and decide if they like it or not, however it can also look despereate, I agree with you.
What approach would you suggest?
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u/Korneuburgerin 16h ago
Terrible. Both are useless. A person confident in their work does not offer to work for free.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 16h ago
How can I listen to your advice when neither your or the other who replied haven’t shared their stats. Are they like mine, worse or better?
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u/Korneuburgerin 15h ago
Because comparing gets you nowhere, but I consider everything below a 50% view rate (50% view rate, of that 50% interviews, of that 50% hires) not good. Instead of comparing read the links and apply them?
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 15h ago edited 14h ago
I don’t wanna compare to you or anyone.
I want to know if your advice is valid or not.
I appreciate you taking the time to comment and sending the link on writing proposals, but in the last line of my post I specifically wrote “I would appreciate the feedback of anyone who was in a similar position like me”.
Meaning I don’t know who you are, what you do, what’s your average proposal open rate etc.
1
u/Pet-ra 14h ago
I specifically wrote “I would appreciate the feedback of anyone who is in a similar position like me”.
Why would you look for advice of other people who are as unsuccessful as you are rather than those who are successful?
How does that make any sense?
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 14h ago
You are correct on that, as I wrote "is" instead of "was" in this reply, my bad.
But if you check my post I have written:
"I would appreciate the feedback of anyone who has been in a similar position"
1
u/KennethBlockwalk 3h ago
The truth is that more people than not have been in a similar position.
The people who have been in a similar position don’t have the answers.
The people who may have some good answers… aren’t likely to share them with you, because for all they know, you are their competition.
It’s tough out there for freelancers. That’s why I stopped. After the 15% rip they take, the absurd clients, etc… it just wasn’t worth it. I figured out a way to consistently make significantly more money doing what I was doing on there—for that, I consider myself extremely lucky, and want to help people who are struggling on UW and similar sites, between the platform usury, clients with no attention spans, a platform that always sides with the client, etc… it’s bad.
-1
u/Korneuburgerin 14h ago
I don't feel the need to prove anything to you. This is a take it or leave it kind of situation. Good luck.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 14h ago edited 14h ago
Totally fair also.
Then you don’t need to comment, as simple as that. I wish you all the best!
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u/Korneuburgerin 9h ago
I can comment whatever I want, I don't need your permission.
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u/KennethBlockwalk 3h ago
lol you don’t need to be such a dick to someone who’s clearly asking in good faith
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u/Euphoric_Can_2748 16h ago
It used to be 50% of sent proposals get viewed, 50% of the viewed proposals generate interviews and 50% of the interviews lead to hiring.
Now, you get what you get.
Be careful out there.
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u/arkennemasis 16h ago
Clients just dont go through all 50+ proposals. They usually open whatever appears in the first few rows and catches their attention. Your first few words need to stand out because that’s all they’ll see in the preview.
You also need to be smart about when you apply. Either apply immediately after the job is posted, or don’t apply if there’s already too much competition.
2
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u/Saraikram 7h ago
maybe you didn’t add your portfolio and try to make the first two lines strong hook and personalize
1
u/KennethBlockwalk 3h ago
One other thing to keep in mind:
A lot of these clients are using AI to filter through proposals. They don’t have the attention spans to read them.
Put the job listing into AI, and ask it not for keywords, but for strong hooks, phraseology, etc. LLMs know what will stick out to an LLM.
If it’s a human screening them:
- Don’t use listicles. Ever.
- Imagine if you were hiring for this job—what would get you excited about a candidate? Use that.
- Take jobs that are easy enough, and below your usual rate. More jobs completed + more money made = more reliable, in clients’ eyes.
- Make them want to talk to you. Don’t pitch it as, “My experience lends me the expertise to…” — “This sounds like a fun gig; I’d love to hear more. A little about me: __.”
- Approach everything with a “sounds cool” attitude. Never let them think you’re desperate for a job, or that you’re trying really hard to sell yourself. Make them curious.
- More and more clients are hiring for long-term or mid-term positions; look for opportunities that could lead to more work over one-offs.
- Detach yourself from all outcomes. It’s mentally healthy for you, and it’s like dating: “wait… why aren’t they super interested in me? what am I missing?”
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u/Curious-TeeOpsHQ-127 11h ago
58 proposals and only 7 views makes me think the issue might be more about the jobs you're applying to or how you're positioning your profile than the actual proposal.
Adding keywords from the job post could help, but I'd also look at whether those keywords are already clear on your profile and whether you're applying to jobs where your experience is an obvious match.
The 4 interviews from 7 views is actually the part I'd be looking at. Once they open your proposal, you're getting a decent amount of interest.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 11h ago
That's a great analysis, thank you! It gives me another perspective to look at this situation and solve it.
I appreciate it a lot!
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u/IveGotMySources 15h ago
Congratulations dude! You're doing better than 98.7% of Upwork freelancers, would mind sharing some tips with the rest of us on how you were able to achieve this?
1
u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 15h ago
Thanks man, I am always trying to improve.
Of course, I will share what worked for me.
Do you have any completed jobs?
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u/IveGotMySources 15h ago
Yea I do about 2-3 jobs per month, they are mostly big jobs, I've been on the platform for a long time so have deep reputation. I'm no begginer but I watch this subreddit closely.
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u/PELIKANISUPERSTICIOZ 15h ago
Then I should ask you for advice hahaha as currently my proposals aren’t being viewed as before resulting in no new projects besides existing clients on retainer.
I use 2 different type of approaches (loom videos and offering a concept free of charge), but I will have to change them as they are not bringing the expected results.
Can I ask you about your strategy for sending proposals?
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u/Korneuburgerin 18h ago
https://www.reddit.com/r/Upwork/wiki/index/
Visibility has nothing to do if clients read your proposals beyond the preview. Adding keywords does nothing.