What do we want? Fabulous, well-paying clients! When do we want them? Right this minue! Every freelancer needs to find work, but do popular outsourcing websites like Upwork, People Per Hour, 3desk, Fiverr, and Guru actually lead to well-paid work for Virtual Assistants? Read on to find out.
Ahh, the joys of today’s gig economy. Great when you need a cheap taxi or a burger in a hurry, but not always so good when (like those overworked, underpaid Uber and Deliveroo drivers) you’re the one providing the service.
Take Upwork, for example. Upwork is just one of a growing number of websites where freelancers can register, bid and apply for jobs posted by companies and individuals around the world.
On paper, Upwork is a dream for Virtual Assistants, connecting them to a pool of global clients while letting them pick and choose projects that are the perfect match to their skill set.
But when it comes down to it, is Upwork good for Virtual Assistants?
The question I know you want answered is whether registering with Upwork will lead to good clients and satisfying work and (an even bigger question) whether it will pay anywhere near the average hourly rate of £30 currently charged by UK Virtual Assistants.
Read on for the good, bad and the (sometimes) ugly truth in my in-depth guide to Upwork for Virtual Assistants and I’ll do my best to provide you with the answers.
I’ll even provide you with some clever tips and tricks if you do decide to go ahead and sign up.
What’s Upwork?
Formerly Elance-oDesk, Upwork is a global digital network that connects freelancers to clients for task-based work. Clients can interview, hire, and work with you, and then pay you entirely through the platform.
Upwork makes the bulk of its revenue through freelancers like you because it takes a chunk of your earnings (more on that later). It also makes some money from clients, through admin costs like payment processing, currency exchange charges and membership fees.
How does Upwork work?
If a client has a job that needs doing, they can search through freelancer profile listings to find the person who looks like the best match. Or they can post the job as an advert on the platform so that any freelancer who is interested can apply.
If the client chooses you for the job, they hire you by sending you a contract with set hours, pay rate and a deadline for the work to be completed.
They do all this through Upwork’s real-time chat. This feature also lets you send and receive files, keep in touch about the job, send invoices and get paid.
Basically, Upwork wants to keep everything squirrelled away within its own platform so it knows what everyone’s up to.
In fact, it all gets even more Big Brother.
If you’re on an hourly contract, Upwork will count your keystrokes and take photos of your screen every now and then to check you’re actually working and not shopping on Amazon or watching cat videos.
Upwork is algorithm-based, so if you do a good job, clients can leave you a review and a rating, which helps other prospective clients decide whether or not to hire you.
Good ratings will win you badges to make your profile stand out from the crowd – something that’s super important given there are an estimated eight million other Virtual Assistants on Upwork.
My own experience
Before we go into the nuts and bolts of getting started on Upwork, I thought I’d let you know a bit more about my own experience.
When I first set my business up in 2008, I registered on a few of these sites because, at that point, I didn’t have a clue where to find clients.
To be honest, it felt a bit like a cattle market.
I felt as if I was having to “sell myself” and prove my worth to strangers and that I had to justify my rates or lower them in order to be chosen.
It was totally demoralising.
I think many businesses on these sites are actually looking for the cheapest solution. They know they can hire someone willing to undercut everyone else or a freelancer living in a low-cost country who can afford to do the job for half the price.
My experience at the time was that it was hard to be selected unless you were willing to undervalue and underprice yourself.
What do other Virtual Assistants think about Upwork?
Now, that was my personal experience and, for transparency, it has been a very, very long time since I tried to get any work through freelancing job sites.
However, many members of my Facebook group say they get a lot of work through Upwork.
When I asked for personal experiences using these kinds of websites, there were some incredibly positive comments about Upwork in particular:
“Upwork has been extremely successful for me. I think it all depends on the VA and how much work they’re willing to put in. It does take some time to build up ratings, and there’s a ton of “rejection” just getting started, but it can pay off if you stick with it. The majority of my long-term clients have come from Upwork. They pay extremely well, and I’ve gotten tons of referrals from them, too.”
“I use Upwork and literally have clients fall in my lap DAILY. I’ve worked hard to gain a Top Rated Plus status so I get tons of invitations, especially from enterprise clients. The downside is they do take a percentage of your earnings (that’s how they profit), but the more you earn with a specific client, the less Upwork takes in fees on any contracts with that client.”
What kind of work is there for Virtual Assistants on Upwork?
A quick look at current job listings on Upwork for Virtual Assistants brings up tens of thousands of admin jobs, ranging from research, data entry, customer service, blog post writing, social media and bookkeeping. There are one-off projects as well as ongoing work on both fixed-price and hourly contracts.
In fact, in the world of admin jobs, if you can name it, chances are it’ll be on there, as this member of your VA Handbookers Facebook group can testify…
“I’ve had several long-term brilliant clients from Upwork and they all pay my hourly rate. I’ve been managing the marketing for a chauffeur business since Feb 2018. This year I’ve worked for a tuition school managing social media and since October 2020 I’ve been working for a meditation teacher managing admin/customer service/marketing. The meditation teacher is Alistair Appleton (BBC Escape to the Country) so well-known people use Upwork too!”
Can Virtual Assistants make money from Upwork?
Whenever I ask the Facebook group if they get work from these kinds of job sites, the results are always mixed.
While many VAs report that lucrative VA work and Upwork don’t always go hand in hand:
“I often get replies to my proposals and get turned down A LOT after I give my hourly rate. It seems like people are charging lower rates and there and businesses go to Upwork expecting “cheaper” professionals.”
“It definitely seems like the lower-priced bids win more. I had one CEO basically tell me I was being outbid by those in other countries that can live on $5/h.”
“I got a couple of one-off projects which paid OK, but low-cost competition made getting more work very difficult. I tried multiple platforms and generally found the clients didn’t want to pay what the work was worth.”
“I found them to be a waste of time and full of scammers wanting you for a role completely different to the one they advertise and normally involved selling puppies (which I guess are non-existent) for them – which infuriated me and I told them as much, only not quite as polite as that. I can’t be bothered with them, the pay is awful too.”
“I refuse to compete with someone who will charge $7 for a service I charge $30 for. It’s not my bag.”
“I was rejected from Upwork but ended up approved in 2020 and think the only luck I’ve had on it is this one potential client. A friend of mine has had great luck with it and is currently working for someone in Mexico, but I feel like I’m an animal at the market. Also, what incentive is there for me to pay for Connects when 90% of the time I’m going to be undercut. I’d rather put that money towards ads for my services.”
But then other Virtual Assistants say they make decent money from the site.
“It’s true that clients are often looking for a better or easier deal, but I found two clients through Upwork – a BIG global Fortune 500 company a consumer goods startup. I never expected to find these clients on Upwork but they have given me all my work and treat me like their employees. The rates started off lower than I wanted but I was able to bump this up after showing them my worth.”
Strategies for being successful on Upwork
As you can see, the feedback on Upwork is very mixed, but the successful VAs seem to have a clear strategy. Their advice is:
Go niche – the most successful VAs on Upwork tend to specialise in in-demand services, which means they can command a higher price for their services. So, don’t go too general when you’re writing your profile.
Instead, focus on just one or two things you’re good at and that are highly sought-after by clients. Use these skills as keywords and sprinkle them throughout your profile.
Here are the ten most in-demand admin skills on Upwork for 2022.
Set your filters – when searching Upwork for jobs, set your filters so you only see listings in the UK (if you’re a UK-based VA obvs).
It’s much easier to work with people who share your working culture, and although it’s not always the case, UK clients might be more likely to pay a semi-decent wage.
Don’t compete in a race to the bottom – quality clients will always want quality freelancers. So don’t be afraid to set your hourly rate at the amount you’d be happy to work for, and always bid what YOU think the job is worth.
Yes, even if that means exceeding the client’s stated budget!
This is usually just a placeholder figure anyway, as most employers have no idea of what it costs to do the job they’re posting.
Pricing higher than the dozens of other freelancers bidding for the work is actually a good way to demonstrate your expertise and can set you apart from the rest.
One of the Virtual Assistants from your Facebook group uses just this strategy.
“I’ve had more setbacks than success, most coming back saying I’m too high priced. However, I politely go back explaining my time is valuable and my service standards are high, you get what you pay for.”
Read client reviews – before you send a proposal for the job you’ve got your eye on, read reviews of the client written by freelancers who’ve worked for them.
If they’ve got previous for scope creep, stinginess or just being a nightmare to work with, you’ll get a feel for it.
How do I land my first Virtual Assistant job on Upwork?
Total Upwork newbie? Getting your first VA job on Upwork means you have to bid for it. Only those who’ve been working via the site for a long time will have built up the reputation it takes to get clients to approach them.
You bid for a job by writing a proposal, which is similar to a cover letter. Writing winning proposals can be time-consuming, so choose which jobs you apply for carefully.
Search the site regularly and pounce on any new postings, like a hyena on a wildebeest.
Clients often fill positions from the first ten applications they receive, so you have to get your proposal in fast if you’re to stand any chance at all. If there are more than 25 proposals already submitted, forget it. You’ll be wasting your time.
How do I write a killer VA proposal on Upwork?
While your Upwork profile is your shop window, crafting a badass proposal is even more important when it comes to landing clients.
It’s the only way you’ll convince prospective employers to hire you, as this VA Handbooker (and total Upwork pro) explains…
“I make sure every proposal I write is very specific to the job and includes details about why I’m the best fit. If the job entails advanced Excel experience, for example, I make sure to include that I am an Excel expert and share some previous jobs that are similar.”
Land more clients on Upwork with these proposal-writing tips.
Make it personal – addressing the client by name will make your proposal stand out from the gazillions of templated versions they’ll receive. You can normally find a client’s name in seconds by looking at their freelancer feedback.
Make it tailored – sending thousands of off-the-peg proposals will cost you Connects and won’t win you the work anyway.
It’s much better to send ten proposals that are carefully tailored to the job you’re applying for than 100 that aren’t, as it shows the client you care about their project.
Make it all about the client – each job on Upwork represents a problem to be solved. So forget writing irrelevant paragraphs about yourself, your education or even your work history and instead, focus entirely on what you can do for the client and how you’d go about solving their particular problem.
How do I optimise my profile on Upwork?
Creating your profile is the first thing you’ll do on Upwork and it’s worth taking the time to make it a good ‘un.
This will probably take you half a day, at least.
At its very basic, writing a good VA profile on Upwork means making sure EVERY section is as complete as possible – yes, even the boring sections, like education.
Choose an eye-catching title along with a professional-looking photo and add testimonials from past and present clients.
You should also optimise your Upwork profile by sprinkling it with a few relevant industry keywords related to your niche to help the site’s algorithm find you.
The most crucial part of any VA profile on Upwork is the overview.
Write this with your dream client firmly in mind – what are they looking for? What are their problems or goals, and how would you go about solving them?
Make sure your bio is focused on how you will improve their lives, not the other way around!
Why does Upwork keep rejecting my profile?
Getting your Upwork profile rejected is a common complaint from the VAs in the Facebook group.
“I tried twice to get on Upwork and was rejected both times! Yet the VA agency I worked through managed it and found the client that she subsequently placed me with. So it’s not a complete waste of time.”
So, if you’ve been rejected, don’t take it personally – and don’t give up. There’s an algorithm that decides whether you get accepted or not, and it’s not uncommon to have a profile rejected three or four times before you finally nail one that beats the system.
Make sure you’re using a business email rather than Gmail or Hotmail, and the more specialised you can make your profile sound, the better.
Upwork receives tens of thousands of submissions from Virtual Assistants each week so drilling down into a niche that has lower submissions, such as a WordPress developer or social media manager, for example, is more likely to see your profile accepted.
So, is Upwork a good site for Virtual Assistants?
Say the word ‘Upwork’ to a group of VAs, and you’ll quickly hear plenty of horror stories, scams, dubious accountancy practices, clients disappearing and clients wanting the moon on a stick for a tenner.
But some VAs do make money on Upwork – it just takes time and effort and knowing how to play the game.
If you’re struggling to get clients you have nothing to lose (except a big chunk of your waking hours and perhaps even a bit of your soul) by giving these freelancing job sites a go.
In my opinion, I still think it’s better to decide who you want to work with and then contact those clients directly rather than sitting around hoping to be picked.
Instead, be proactive with your marketing. Choose the tasks you want to do and the services you want to offer, and then find the people who need those services instead of taking on every piece of work that comes your way.
Conclusion
As you’ve seen, Upwork seems to be a potential revenue source for VAs, so I guess it shouldn’t be written off.
However, my advice is to treat the platform the same way you would your other marketing efforts. Find out how it works, give it your best effort, assess the results, and if you decide that it isn’t working, turn your attention elsewhere.
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Not getting clients on social media?Then you’re doing it wrong. Social media can be a goldmine for attracting clients—but only if you have a solid strategy and use the right platforms for your target market. I can’t have you posting any old thing on any old platform, so I’ve written an entire course covering everything you need to use social media to land your ideal client. |
I have been on Upwork and currently a VA for 4 different clients! I personally LOVE it. It’s easy to use, easy to find people who need me, etc. Two of mine have actually moved off of Upwork.
Thank you for commenting, Megan. I love that you are having such luck with Upwork and I’m going to add your comment to the post itself. I’ve really noticed that VA’s experiences with the platform have improved since I wrote the post and I like to have balanced viewpoints.
I joined ” Upworks”, sent numerous proposal and they all were people trying to get my personal information from all over the world. Luckily I decided to contact the companies they said they represented and was told they were all scams, not one was real. One person even presented himself as a pastor of a very large Non-profit organization.
I accepted a job offer, due to having family responsibilities and am building my business part time. I now use contacts from my network events.
I tried Elance for a while and even paid for a few extras on the site. I found the overall quality of the offered jobs to be poor. Lots of writing crap blog posts – almost link bait – for pennies. When I did bid on work I have the same feeling as Joanne described in the post. Pick me, Pick me! I got all the way to a Skype interview for one potential client where my skill set (nutritional supplement knowledge) was essential. I gave a fair quote and so be honest, lowered my rate a bit, becasue I wanted the work and becasue I knew that those bids got more work. In the end the potential client exclaimed, ‘Oh that is more than double what I want pay!’ In my opinion the bidding process takes too much time for little or no reward.
I agree; you’ll never be the cheapest and you wouldn’t want to be. Thank you so much for your comment and taking time out to contribute to the site, it’s really appreciated. x
Hi guys I signed up to a few of these sites when first starting out but soon found that the simply drained my energy and took my focus away from creating great work to writing bids all day. For some of them if you don’t accept a job in super speedy time (and by this I mean 5 mins or less) you lose out which is not what I personallyfeel is a great start to a client/freelance brief. I soon stepped away from this model as if clients want the cheapest proposal they will shop around and have no loyalty to your brand.
I registered with a few too and had a response from a proposal saying other VA’s were cheaper, even though I had reduced my fee within the proposal. I had another that kept emailing me making appointments to ring me in response to another proposal – and he never rang – just kept emailing me, apologising and making new appointments – he still never rang. So, I agree, try it – but try to put more effort in elsewhere, where the quality of the Client is a little superior.
I joined Time Etc and although the work was coming in, if you were not quick enough to accept the task then another VA got it. I have had no work from them for 2 months, due to them saying I have negative customer feedback but I have never seen the feedback. I have only done 3 tasks in 3 months!!!!!!
Thank you for taking the time to comment Suzanne. I’ve never used sites such as these but they had always seemed a waste of time – if they were that good then surely all the VAs would be using them! I think working for sites like these also make you a bit of an online temp – at the mercy of another (but invisible) boss. I’ve always thought it better to go out and get your own clients and be recognised for the work you do – and paid well for it! Thanks for sharing your experience Suzanne. x
I’ve been with Time Etc for over a year now, the tasks that come in initially are fastest response wins but I soon got offered my own clients rather than the random tasks… I now have 4 clients who keep me as busy as I want to be, they all top up the same amount of hours each month so whilst my rate has only gone from £11 to £13 an hour, I know where I am each month and feel I’m gaining valuable experience for the future having never been a VA before.
I signed up to one of these sites – but didn’t find it very effective for the amount you were paid per hour. I don’t think you can beat finding your own clients and coming to a ongoing business relationship where you build up a rapport with them.
I completely agree Emma! x
i’m a beginner in this field but i like it very much. I have more than 6 years experience as an markting/ manager/ personal assistant and I’m eager to become a successful virtual assistant. I placed lots of proposals on freelancing job sites but no response. Where should i start from? How can I put myself on the market and get noticed? Thank you for the amazing job that you do helping hundreds of youngsters to find their way!
Thank you for your comment Andreea. I suggest a combination of reading my post on 23 ways to market your business and buying my guide on how to get clients. It outlines the only way I use to get clients – plus, you have marketing experience so just think of yourself as the product! Most of the people who read my site and who become VAs are actually women aged 30+ so not just youngsters. To be a good VA you have to be resourceful and to communicate well. Where there’s a will, there’s a way! x
I had a horrible experience with Elance. I bid on and won a couple of jobs, worked very hard and did good work. My first job, I did excellent work but because the client would not verify themselves with the hours tracker software my hours could not be verified. My invoice was rejected. I was ripped off to the tune of about $700 USD (about $1000 CAD). The second job I won, same thing. The client simply would not verify himself. I didn’t do any of the work but much time was wasted still. There are many ways clients can take advantage of newbies on the site and get a lot of work done for free.
Hi Kelley – that sounds AWFUL! What a nightmare and that is such a lot of money to lose. I’ve never used Elance myself so it’s really interesting hearing from people who have. Your report doesn’t make me want to go near it to be honest…