A Complete Review Of Upwork
"Join the world's work marketplace"
Upwork Overview
Upwork is another freelancer marketplace offering a range of creative, marketing, and technical services. While there is no contest option, the site recently launched a gig marketplace similar to Fiverr. The platform is a bit more geared toward long-term work; indeed, some clients find long-lasting freelancer relationships on the platform.
How
Upwork Works
As with other marketplace platforms, you simply post a project and let freelancers come to you. It’s simple:
Or, browse freelancers’ pre-packaged offerings and buy your design/copy/etc. in advance. You can choose which freelancer you want to hire, although you may have limited deliverables or a longer turnaround compared to what you could get in a custom project.
- Describe your project or job.
- Choose a category and sub-category.
- List the required skills.
- Identify any prerequisites or screening characteristics (e.g. freelancers with a certain experience level or time zone).
- Select either fixed-price or hourly.
- Set your budget.
- Review proposals and interview freelancers. This is where you can choose “milestones” for fixed-price projects so you can pay-as-you-go.
- Make an offer when you’re ready to hire.
Is Upwork right for you?
Upwork is great for solopreneurs and business owners who need to hire experts, agencies who need to outsource work, and anyone who needs specialty projects done. You can use it either as a one-and-done platform or find a freelancer for a long-term working relationship.
Upwork is not ideal if you need a lot of work completed or if you’re not sure what shape your project will take. You need to have an overall plan and details in place before you post a job. There are no options for on-demand services or crowdsourcing on this platform.
Why Upwork is awesome:
Upwork is a very intuitive, easy-to-use platform that allows you to customize your budget and overall project process. Convenient messaging tools and simple contracts help you manage projects more easily. And you’ll have access to a lot of freelancers. If your project or job requires multiple skills, you can roll them into one contract — no need to silo as with some other platforms.
Pricing
And Packages
Upwork’s prices depend entirely on your budget and the proposal you accept from your chosen freelancer. You will have to pay a 3% processing fee on all payments. There is no option to rush upgrade a project, hide your listings, or anything like that, although you can give bonuses to freelancers for good work. Keep your needs in mind when setting your budget.
Speed
For standard projects, it generally takes a few days to get enough submissions to move forward. And you’ll need to wait for the freelancer to accept your offer before they get started. In other words, Upwork is not ideal for quick-turnaround projects (although you can roll a “rush fee” into your offer to motivate faster results, but nothing is guaranteed).
Hiring on the gig marketplace may be faster, assuming you can find someone who meets your needs.
Upwork
PROS
- Wide variety of freelance services and ability to “mix and match” skills
- Customizable budget and compensation
- Ability to pre-qualify candidates in your job posting and interview them after they send a proposal
Upwork
CONS
- No contest or on-demand options
- Takes a while to get things rolling; longer turnarounds in general
- No pre-vetting of freelancers on the platform
