Have trouble getting your profile approved on Upwork? You're certainly not alone. It's been reported that over 50% of applicants do not meet the approval criteria, regardless if they are highly skilled and experienced
Getting rejected on Upwork doesn't mean you are inferior. Some people are masters in their skills, yet their profiles don't get approval—moreover, this results in no contentment, which doesn't sound good.
It is undoubtedly a tale of woe for beginners or experts for not getting approved on the site. Due to frauds and scams on other freelancing sites, Upwork is overcompensating for freelancers and clients working. Furthermore, Upwork doesn't check every profile manually,
There are nuances that most disapproved freelancers aren't acknowledged. So, are you speculating on how to get stand on Upwork?
Certain people on social media sites would ask you to pay some amount and get your account approved. Don't get trapped in their harpoon. They would exacerbate it further.
In this article, we'll fix the humdrum image of your Upwork profile and unleash the solutions for getting approved. However, if you become lethargic in following them, there won't be a substantial outcome.
Without further ado, let's dive into it.
Have a Professional Working Email
This is the first part, where Upwork’s automated system comes into play. Upwork itself recommends you sign up with a business domain, not gmail.com.
The business domain can cost you an arm or a leg, so why not try the cost-effective way? The Google way. It's free and secure, too.
However, if you still require a working email address. Certain websites let you have your domain in the email address. You can buy it from any hosting site. Just search on Google "hosting providers," and you'll be there.
Here's what a professional email looks like [email protected].
Moreover, it will ask for relevant information like first and last name, country, and username. After that, Upwork will send you a verification email to your provided email address; click on it, and you are good to go.
Choose Sub-categories of your Skills
After signing up with working or Google email, Upwork will direct you to the next page, where the individual must choose their skills and sub-categories. The site gives you the privilege to choose up to ten sub-categories. If possible, prefer many as possible.
It shows how qualified a freelancer you are and how you can help clients in their projects. There will be an option for selecting the leading service. Furthermore, also choose the types of your mentioned service. You can select up to four.
For example: - If you have selected Web, Mobile & Software Developer as your primary category, Upwork will ask you, "What type of Web, Mobile & Software developer." You can select up to four from the relevant options, i.e., Game Development, QA & testing, etc.
However, don't be fake to the community, or you might face the consequences later.
Write a Catchy Title
A good title will help you get noticed in the search results. But a title that is overwhelmed with words doesn't make you stand out properly on Upwork and is inconceivable for the spectators.
You should make your title succinct and to the point of your skillset. It is sometimes difficult to make a brief title.
Let's see the difference between two similar skill sets but different titles. It will help you understand. You can check these title examples as the starting point.
How should your title be?
Make your profile title 3-4 words, don't make it too concise. Let's check out an example below.
The title contains the word "SEO," which is an additional skill; it makes it sound more professional and a prodigy marketing strategy.
How your title shouldn't be?
If your title is mind-numbing, of course, it will not lead to anywhere except rejection on Upwork. Let's check out this example.
The above title image is tantamount to a lazy freelancer. You can check out other freelancer profiles and get an idea.
Link your Accounts
While signing up, Upwork asks you to link your social media accounts. There are five Twitter, GitHub, StackOverflow, Dribble, and DeviantART. The users usually link Twitter accounts. It will also be beneficial for your complete profile completeness.
Write an Impactful Profile Description
Your profile description is what says a lot about you, making your profile eminent. You should keep in mind components: a catchy First Bio Line that can quickly seek client attention, Skills set and Achievements, and Call-to-action.
Moreover, it is the first impression towards your upcoming clients and Upwork itself. Don't make it tedious or too short. A few paragraphs with some spice to your story would be good enough.
We have mentioned client attention above, which works as a hook. With this, you can pulverize other competitors, which makes you different from others.
You can spruce it up in those paragraphs by adding short notes regarding your skillsets and how you'd work. Furthermore, you can also discuss your achievements in your primary category.
After aggrandizing your profile with skills and achievements, the last step is the CTA, which prompts clients to take further steps.
If Upwork finds any lack of professionalism, they'll reject it. Because clients worldwide are looking for potential and skilled freelancers, not gawky ones.
Reveal Employment history
It's an essential requirement for your profile completeness. If you have worked for a company or a client, add that in this section.
However, if you have no employment history, most freelancers find another way to fill this; they frequently list themselves as their employment history. Moreover, if you are a blogger and have worked for specific sites, you can add "Blogger at xyw.com" or anything that suits the place.
Perhaps, you are new to freelancing and currently don't have any employment. We prefer you to work for local clients primarily on social media sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, etc. With that, you'll gain experience in how to deal with clients.
Tell about your educational background
Adding your educational background is an excellent way to build a reputation and present your skills. Also, it is up to 10% of your profile completeness. Furthermore, the freelancing doesn't require any college degree.
However, it is a masterly piece of strategy to present your skills to your clients.
Moreover, you can add your school, college, or other educational institutes. Perhaps, if you haven't gone to any college, you can add certifications instead. It will boost your profile overview and helps in completing your profile.
Present your Skills
No past work? Say Goodbye to Upwork then. Just take a moment and think. Why would you hire someone in your company without relevant past work or any work sample? It is the same case with the Upwork algorithm.
With that said, you must add your portfolio items. These samples should be your best ones. It will help you get approved on Upwork fluently.
Upwork offers you to create your portfolio on the site, and there are templates that the freelancer can use Gallery, Case, and Classic.
Gallery
You can add images or videos of your past work in this template. It is more suitable for graphic designers and video editors.
Case Study
Your work will be highlighted with the solution you provide in this template.
Classic
In this template, the clients can conveniently scroll through your samples.
You can choose any of the templates to showcase your work. It would also help clients have more know-how of your work.
Conclusion
In sum, starting on Upwork is not everyone's game. But some guidelines can make your way out. Let's see what we have covered in this article.
- We Learned about professional email writing.
- Know-how of sub-categories.
- The Title and Profile overview.
- Employment and Educational Background.
So before starting on Upwork, you should read the above instructions. Subscribe to our blog to help you start your freelancing journey.
Questions to Answer
How long does Upwork take to approve my profile?
It can take seconds or maybe hours. It all depends on the Upwork team.
Moreover, it shouldn't create an obstacle if you have done everything right. Read the above instructions, and you might get your account approved in quick succession!
Why is Upwork rejecting my profile?
You have done everything right, and the site is still rejecting you. It sucks, isn't it? If you're fed up, it won't work that way. As we mentioned above, Upwork won't be checking every profile manually, and they have just set up a bot with random instructions.
Go through every detail, information, portfolio, skills, etc. And try to figure out where's the problem. Every new freelancer who registers themselves on Upwork gets rejected at first. So, there is nothing to worry about!
We have some quick tips besides those above if you are in a hurry.
- Did you know Upwork automatically approves profiles whenever a client hires them? So, if you can request your client to hire you on a direct contract, your profile will be automatically approved.
- There is a skill test on Upwork for every niche. You can try scoring as high as you can. So, the bots will recognize you as a potential freelancer and approves your profile.
Moreover, if you are signing as a content writer, graphic designer, or developer, it would be hard to crack unless you have a boisterous portfolio to show. These skills are in high demand.
Sadly, this is where most freelancers fail. Freelancing for beginners is not a piece of cake these days; it requires much professionalism, dedication, and perseverance.
In addition, the best way to over this is to keep on applying some additional skills and apply to Upwork again. There is no limit to the number of applications.
What to do if my Upwork profile gets rejected?
You'll receive an email that your profile wasn't accepted with a message to try again in a few months. We have already mentioned ideas in the above paragraph.
It will help if you experiment with improving your skills, way of approach, profile overview, and pass the skill test on Upwork. It might help your profile gets approval.
Can I have more than one profile on Upwork?
Nope, every individual can only create ONE Upwork account. However, they have given you the privilege to set up specialized profiles. The specialized profiles let you display more skills in a single account.
Moreover, you can also switch that account to a client, freelancer, or agency. Moreover, Upwork has an identification system. The freelancer or client must submit their CNIC/National ID card or Passport and a selfie or attempt a video call for verification.
Of course, an individual won't have two ID cards or passwords. There is no way to use multiple accounts unless someone else hands over their account to you.
How do I know if my profile is approved?
What if you don't know whether your account is approved or not? For that, you can try submitting proposals for jobs. If you can submit it, congratulations, your profile is approved!
Furthermore, you must know how to use Upwork. Upwork gives you free "connects"; without that, you can't submit proposals.
