What is Upwork?
Upwork is a freelancing platform that allows businesses to connect with independent professionals from all over the world. Businesses can post projects and freelancers can compete for the work. Once a freelancer is hire, they completed the work and submit it to the business for approval. If the work is approved, the freelancer gets paid through Upwork.
Different types of Projects?
There are many different types of projects that businesses post on Upwork, ranging from writing and design to web development and administrative tasks. Businesses usually post projects with a fixed price or an hourly rate. Freelancers can browse through projects and send proposals to businesses they would like to work with.
When you create a profile on Upwork, you’ll be ask to fill out your skills and experience. You’ll also be able to take tests that showcase your skills. After completing your profile, you can start applying for jobs. To started, head over to Upwork and create a free account. Then, take some time to fill out your profile and take any tests you’re interested in. Once you’re ready, start applying for jobs.
How Does Upwork Work?
Upwork helps growing businesses find and work with top-notch talent and agencies. It’s simple to get started: Just sign up, post your project, then review proposals to find the right independent contractor or agency for you. Once you’ve engaged your talent, use the platform’s tools to communicate, collaborate, and securely pay for your project.
The easiest way to look at how Upwork works are in these three phases:
- Before you hire
- Finding and engaging talent
- Doing the work
Along the way, the process will change slightly depending on the plan you choose: Upwork Basic, Plus, Business or Upwork Enterprise.
How to Get Started on Upwork?
Your success on Upwork relies on creating a compelling profile that will make clients see you as a highly skilled professional.
When creating your profile make sure that you focus on showing the client why hiring you is the best decision they will ever make.
Complete your profile all the way to the end. Add a professional looking photo, create a catchy title and write a powerful description that shows the value to will bring to your client.
Add a portfolio showcasing your past work. Mention your educational background and list your previous experience. Do not forget to take various tests in your skills set. All this information will act as proof of your expertise and convince clients that you’re the best candidate for the job.
Think of your Upwork profile as a resume or marketing brochure. So highlight your professional skills, experience, portfolio, education and accomplishments.
Don’t forget grammar. Make sure your profile is grammatically correct and error free regardless of the area of expertise you’re interested in. good grammar is not expected from writers and bloggers but from anyone who considers themselves a professional.
Is Upwork Legit?
Upwork is a legitimate company that has paid out billions of dollars to freelancers since its inception. They connect freelancers with clients, and they charge a fair commission for this convenience. Many freelancers actually prefer using Upwork because they have more protection than freelancing on their own.
Is Upwork Worth it?
Depending on your area of expertise, Upwork might not be a great place to apply to right now, as it tries to balance the number of new talents with the number of clients. It’s not easy to get accepted, and evidenced by the great purge of 2020, winning access to the platform doesn’t guarantee your long-term success.
That said, Upwork has the potential to be very powerful. It can be a springboard for your career, allowing you to gain experience, make some money, and learn the ins and outs of the freelance world.
How Much Does It Cost to use Upwork?
Joining Upwork is free for freelancers but you can also choose to upgrade to a Plus Plan for $10 per month.
While joining Upwork is free, working on the site is not. Upwork charges every freelancer a service fee.
This is a percentage of your earnings charge when a client pays you. The service fee is a sliding fee based on your lifetime billings with each client. This means that the service fee reduces as you keep earning more from each client.
The charges are as follows:
- 20% for every job as long as the amount paid by the client is below $500.
- 10% once the total amount paid to you by the client is above $500 but below $10,000
- 5% once the total amount paid by the client exceeds $10,000
How Do You Get Paid on Upwork?
There are two types of contracts on Upwork – hourly and fixed price.
Hourly projects are track on a weekly basis from Monday to Sunday. It’s your responsibility to ensure that every time you work on the hourly project the time work is record on your work diary.
Once the work week is over, the client has 5 days to dispute any time recorded. If there are no disputes the money will then be move to your Upwork account. The funds will be ready for withdrawal after a few days.
You can choose to withdraw your money from Upwork via different payment gateways including bank transfer, wire transfer, PayPal. The methods of withdrawal will depend on your country.