13 Mistakes Beginners Must Avoid When Submitting Upwork Proposal

You will submit work proposals to clients, regardless of whether you use Upwork or another platform for freelancing. It's a popular way of making money all over the world, and it's growing in popularity in Pakistan. These projects include ERozgaarand DigiSkills. They play an important role in encouraging a culture of freelance work throughout Pakistan. With newbies joining freelancing sites worldwide, it is becoming more challenging to be a successful freelancer.

Since my freelancing career began, I have helped many people. But I also learned from them the common mistakes they make when submitting their Upwork proposals.

1- Do not be self-centered.

Image credit by Sajid Nazeer

I noticed that many of my new graduates could not place their first order through Upwork. So, tell them to submit me their proposal screenshots. It doesn't matter what they write, I just need a screenshot of the proposal, and you must send it to me. The first three to four lines of their screenshots were about them. The rest of the lines were about their majors and research. They were only interested in their work and saw little value in the client's early work.

If you fail to grab clients' attention in the first few lines, you will lose them. Clients want to hear about your solutions and the value that you have to offer.

2- Don't be too slow.

Although length is important, understanding human behavior is also essential. A client might receive hundreds of proposals and not have time to go through them all. However, if your Upwork proposal is too long, the client may read it.

Your Upwork proposal should be short and concise. On the other hand, don't make your proposal too long. The word count doesn't need to be excessive. You can write more than one thousand characters on Upwork, but they are not permitted to be used all the time without a valid reason.

3- Do not talk about degrees that don't apply.

Another thing that I have seen is that college students will talk about their degrees even if the degrees aren't compatible. This is where you can show your selling skills. Clients don't care much about your degree or where it came from. Young grads, on the other side, love to talk about their degrees.

You can mention your Marketing degree if you are involved in a project that involves social media marketing or digital marketing. However, it is not the best way of noting the same degree if you are working in the same position. Your degree should only be mentioned if it is relevant to the project.

4. Don't try to be too difficult.

A well-written and spontaneous proposal will attract clients' attention better than one that is difficult to understand. It is not uncommon to repeat the same thing repeatedly. It can appear desperate or worse and give the impression you are asking for work.

These are unnecessary. You won't look low-quality if you write your proposal professionally.

5- Keep it in your profile.

Your profile, skills, and proposals should be complementary. For example, some freelancers create a data entry profile to submit proposals for a Facebook marketing project. Make sure you are not stating this when you submit your bid. If you have any new skills, it is worth re-evaluating your profile.

Your introduction should be rewritten to reflect your new skills. Compare your profile to the skills you have listed. The proposal, profile introduction, skills, and experience must match.

6- Don't pass irrelevant compliments.

I was surprised to find a proposal where the freelancer complimented a client's website design and layout. It explained the science behind colors and how they were selected. The client was looking for someone to help create social media communities on the site.

It cannot be easy to give compliments. It's not easy to pass a compliment if you don't understand the situation of the person in front of you. A short proposal should be made with an actionable outcome.

7- Don't Over-Commit.

Image credit by Sajid Nazeer

Everyone wants more value. Don't let your progress get in the way of your goals. You may be amazed that you deliver more than you promise. Write a proposal asking for ten articles per week. It would still be a great proposal.

It's possible to appear to be an expert at overcommitting and make it look like you are trying hard to complete the project.

8- Don't bid until you are entirely familiar with the job.

It is essential to understand the client's requirements. However, it can be difficult to identify the problem statement. Because of the variety of ways a project description can be written, it can be difficult to identify the problem statement. You must read the job description multiple times to find the problem statement. If you don't understand what clients are looking for, it will be difficult to win them over.

Some people may be able to locate the problem statement by simply reading the job description one time, while others may need to read it several times. Everybody has different analytical skills, so everyone may need to spend different amounts of time trying to find the problem statement.

9- Do not submit if it isn't comfortable.

If you don't know Facebook Pixel well enough but are an expert in Facebook marketing, you shouldn't submit your Upwork proposal. This is an essential tool for conversion tracking. I have seen freelancers submit job proposals that don't require the skill they already know.

You might not be able to deliver satisfactory results on these projects. Therefore, it would be best not to leave negative feedback on your profile.

10- Don't avoid questions.

Don't be lazy. Clients are more inclined to ask questions than other people. This is how clients evaluate your proposals and help you choose the best freelancers to do the job. Clients often require that you answer their questions.

These are the most important questions to answer. When working on these projects, don't close your browser tab. These questions must be answered to create a winning proposal.

11- Don't present yourself as an expert on all subjects.

Clients prefer to work in one field and only with experts. Please prove that you are skillful in one area and not all. You might be multi-talented and have many skills, but it is better to concentrate your efforts on one skill.

You can surprise your clients later by telling them you are capable of doing more than they originally thought. Clients may be confused if you mention multiple skills at the beginning. This can cause them to skim your proposal while they look for the right fit.

12- Don't abruptly end your proposal.

The proposal should be concluded with a smooth conclusion. To send a proposal, you can ask a relevant question. Although you may be able to ask questions about the project after submitting your proposal, c.losing it is not a good idea.

13- Conservation.

it's very important and part tells the client every point audit report and your strategy. convinced your client with fluency and proper guidance. that's the best way to submit an Upwork proposal and get project chances.

These are the same mistakes that I have seen new freelancers make. Of course, you can avoid many more mistakes, but these are the ones I've seen freelancers make. Contribute to this article with your ideas.