When I decided to ditch my job in the gambling industry and turn freelance, Upwork unquestionably played a key role in the transition.
Once I’d picked up my first few gigs as a gambling writer, earning five-star reviews, there was no turning back.
However, in the past few years, the site has become an utter clown show. It’s nothing but price gouging and underhand tactics, carefully designed to drain every last penny out of us freelancers – the very people who make the site its money.
Penny Pinching Upwork
Three years ago, I was fully aboard the bandwagon, happily telling anyone who’d listen that Upwork was better than Fiverr, for example. But I noticed it starting to go downhill sometime in 2022.
Here’s a few of the things that upset me, causing me to move away from that money-grabbing platform and work to build my own brand.
Commission Structure
The first change that upset me was a move away from tiered commission. Upwork used to charge 20% when first working with a client, but it was quickly reduced to 10%. Eventually, it fell to just 5% for long-term clients.
Basically, you were incentivised to be good at your job. Provide excellent service and win repeat business and you’ll be rewarded with low commission.
When they chose to make it a flat 10%, it sent a clear message that people like me were no longer appreciated. Instead, they were encouraging newbies to chase a dream, prioritising newcomers over their longest-serving freelancers.
They tried to sell this as a good thing. And for some, it probably was. But given that all of my Upwork clients fell into the 5% bracket at that point, this “benefit” was actually a pay cut for me.
To then tell me it’s a good thing was a massive insult to my intelligence and began to turn me off.
Minimum Connect Fees
Soon after, I started to notice that prices were increasing. I’d never seen a job require more than 16 connects to bid before. Suddenly it was costing almost 30 to apply to work with clients that needed iGaming content.
Today, you can regularly see jobs that require more than 30. It’s too much when you only get 10 free connects per month.
Bidding System
Next up, they introduced the bidding system, designed to pit all of us against each other. My understanding is that this actually used to be the case at Upwork in the past, but this system was removed. You have to ask why they did that, and why they chose to bring it back.
Not content with directly increasing the ceiling on the number of connects, they could now massively inflate prices even more. Desperate freelancers throw every cent they have at jobs, inflating prices on Upwork’s behalf.
Even worse, they openly admitted to using phantom bids to kickstart auctions, as well as “placebo jobs”, where you waste your time applying, only to then be told it’s not a real job.
Admin Fees
General admin fees, such as the contract initiation fee, have skyrocketed in recent years. The most egregious example of this is when they sneakily brought in a fee for accepting contracts from clients approaching you directly.
In the past, if a potential client reached out to the freelancer (as opposed to bidding for the job) then it wouldn’t cost anything to start working together. Now it’s $4.99 to play.
Only, they kept this change quiet, and many freelancers continued to accept work, have their fingers burned and wonder why. The forums were full of complaints.
It’s particularly disgusting to see how they happily exploit people in developing countries. See my LinkedIn post about someone I know in the Philippines. They were charged $5.49 for a $5 Upwork job.
When people say you should give 110%, it’s not meant to be taken literally.
What’s the Solution?
Nobody cares about moaning and whining. That’s why I decided to take action.
I no longer accept jobs from Upwork and I’d encourage others to adopt a similar stance. I’ll tell anyone who wants to listen about how crappy the platform is.
If you have to use it, perhaps because you’re just starting out, take full advantage and don’t be afraid to be as unscrupulous as they are. Win a few clients, talk to them off-platform and arrange private payments.
Build Your Own Brand
Put together a portfolio, take Upwork for everything you can and build your personal brand in the meantime.
The aim should be to get off as quickly as possible, using platforms like LinkedIn and your own website.
Upwork doesn’t care about you. There’s no need for you to care about them and their rules. Treat the platform the same way they treat us. Shabbily.