Let me ask you a question. How does someone go from not even getting their profile approved to “flooded with interviews” on Upwork — within a week? Is that kind of thing even possible? Well, consider this message I got from a student of mine:
Admittedly, it seems a bit unbelievable, but what I’m about to show you is a simple tweak you can make to how you build your Upwork profile that, from the reports I’m getting from students, seems to be creating an immediate spike in new job invites and clients for almost every Upworker who tries it.
This counter-intuitive, yet deadly effective, method is one I was forced to learn my first few months on Upwork that helped me to land big budget jobs like the ones below:
I only show you that because a lot of freelancers think this kind of thing is impossible because Upwork is saturated — millions of freelancers battling each other for the same projects.
They think it’s impossible for new Upworkers to beat out the established pros. But the unique methodology I’m going to show you, based on a quirk in Upwork’s Search and Suggestion algorithm, has been working for brand new freelancers, in some of the most competitive categories on Upwork, to “flood” their inbox with new job invites.
As I said, it’s all based on…
So, what is this “quirk”? Well, it’s YOU… literally.
Let me explain…
Upwork KNOWS it has new freelancers joining the site every day. It KNOWS if it just based its Search and Suggestion listings on Job History and Rank (Upwork’s internal determination of how good of a freelancer you are), those new freelancers would have no chance.
If THAT happened, new freelancers would stop joining the site. The talent pool would die, clients would get unhappy — they’d leave — and the site would die.
Upwork’s whole business model relies on fresh talent to meet the emerging needs of the clients on its platform. Disrupt that and it’d be a quick death.
So, what does it do?
It tests you. It puts your profile in front of clients it thinks you have a good chance of getting hired by — when, based solely on Rank — you’d never show up that high in their listings.
Because, again, you have no Job History or Rank.
Upwork doesn’t know if you can perform.
But, it gives you a chance anyway.
Now, here’s the trick. It not just about HOW well you can perform. It’s also about how well your PROFILE performs. You might know you can do a good job… but to even get to that point, you have to get hired in the first place.
Upwork is a business, not a charity. The algorithm says “bad profile” and moves on. So, HOW your profile is built is in those first few months is critical. But, it’s also a tremendous opportunity. Your chance to jumpstart your freelance career — and you have the largest freelancing platform on the planet giving you a leg up!
Unfortunately, what most new Upworkers do is copy what they see the established pros doing. It’s well-intended, but it’s NOT going to work.
Those pros get away with how their profiles are built. They get client work despite their profile, not because of it. Many of them started years ago, did a good job serving clients and have a long job history that brings them tons of new clients each month.
Good for them.
But…
THAT is what I teach. It’s not the same regurgitated nonsense you’re going to find on 1,000 blogs on the internet. It’s based on the science behind Upwork’s Search and Suggestion algorithm.
That’s why it’s been so devastatingly effective.
Think of it this way. You’re probably familiar with Google’s search engine ranking algorithm. It’s hundreds of different factors and “signals” Google uses to determine what sites rank highest in its search results.
The science behind that algorithm is a closely-guarded trade secret. People would literally kill to know how it all works. And for good reason. If you knew how it all worked, it wouldn’t take long to “game” that system and push your website to the top of whatever ranking you wanted.
Well, that’s basically what happened to me.
This was several years ago when I first started on the platform. I was like most everyone else who joins Upwork. When I first heard about it, I thought it was too good to be true… but there it was.
So, I excitedly joined — thinking this could finally be my ticket out.
At the time, I was working easily the most mind-numbingly boring job I’ve ever had — a line worker in a window factory. My job was screwing the same three screws into the same three holes on the 200 windows that flew by me everyday.
I wanted to stab myself in the eyeballs.
So, Upwork felt like a golden ticket to me. I’d been teaching myself web development and I felt like I could handle some smaller projects and then build from there. A site that promised to send new clients right to my inbox?
I couldn’t sign up fast enough.
I uploaded an old picture, haphazardly filled out my profile, left my portfolio completely blank and sat back waiting for the clients and money to rooooooll in!
Aaaaand…
Ugh, I was devastated. Just another “scam” making big promises and being full of — you know what. I’ll never forget that feeling of despair, anger and disappointment in the pit of my stomach. Makes me sick even thinking about it.
But, for some reason, I didn’t walk away.
I’m not really sure why as I look back. Maybe because I didn’t have a ton of other options, but I decided that come hell or high water I was going to figure this out. I could see all the other freelancers having success there…
Why can’t I?
I’m not dumb.
Hey, I’m John. I’m a freelance web developer. I’m best-known for my work with Tim Ferris, Lewis Howes, Inc. Magazine and Michael Hyatt.
I’m also an online teacher and, to date, I’ve taught 25,462 freelancers how to get clients, raise their rates and build a sustainable freelance business.
Below you can see what some of my clients and students have said about working with me. If you’re a freelancer, I’m here to help and I look forward to working with you and getting to know you better. Talk soon!
John is amazing at building membership sites. He converted one of my sites over from it’s existing (hardly working) platform over to the clean and simple to use WishList membership platform. I highly recommend using John and WishList for any of your membership site needs.
Really enjoyed the class. As usual, I came away with some nuggets I can use immediately. It also helps when I hear specifics that I am struggling with and find out they are not unique.
John and I have worked together on numerous projects. John is very quick and efficient and was a pleasure to work with.
I recommend John every chance I get. If every person I worked with were as committed to excellence, punctuality, value, and unquestionable integrity… the world would be a better place. Highest recommendation.
John is one of the best instructors I have come across, I learned a lot from his online tutorials.
I really like how John delivers his knowledge. It’s all good content, no extra filler stuff. When I see a new class from him I have the certainty that I will get valuable, quality content. Thank you John!
John has been the most important person in my freelance career ever since I started. Without him, I would have taken 10 or 20 years more to reach the position I am at now (Level 2 seller on Fiverr and Top Rated on Upwork).
John is a man of integrity, who gives generously of himself to projects and people he cares about.
John is a fantastic and patient tutor, who is not just able to share knowledge and communicate it very effectively – but able to support one in applying it. However, I believe that John has a very rare ability to go further than just imparting knowledge and showing one how to apply it. He is able to innately provoke one’s curiosity when explaining and demonstrating concepts, to the extent that one can explore and unravel their own learning journey. Thanks very much John!
After viewing John’s course, I made an Upwork account and it got approved the same day. Amazingly, I got my first job the very same day, I couldn’t believe it, I thought maybe I got it by coincidence. Anyways I completed the job and received my first earnings. Then, after two days, I got another job and within a week I got 3 jobs and completed them successfully. All the things he says seem to be minute but have a very great impact on your freelancing career.
Very professional worker who is extremely knowledgable in WordPress and Wishlist Member. I would definitely hire again.
I started this 3 days ago, following John’s suggestions, and I gained the Upwork Rising Talent badge in less than 2 days. I have a call with my first potential client tomorrow. Thanks, John!
John really delivers!
Made me get into action and start my online business! Thanks so much John, you’re the best teacher I ever had!
On the Freelancing on Upwork course: “This is by far the best course i have watched on Skillshare!! Thank you so much.”
John has a particular knack for the development and training of others.
I’ve definitely learnt so much in 2.5 hours than I’d learn watching different videos online on Youtube and reading tons of articles on the web. John has a natural way of teaching, where he is passionately diving in the topics and he makes it very easy to grasp — someone who wants you to really start running your business well by learning about the right tools and implement them in your online business. I will definitely share with many of the people I know who have been struggling for so long, I did find my answers and I’m sure will do too.
75 SEO and website clients now. My income went from sub zero to over 6K just last month. Tracking 10K for next month. Seriously, you changed my life.
John has a habit of over-delivering on the expectations he sets up. That’s why he’s the best.
John is the man! I followed his steps and I am flooded with interviews in a week. I got into two Talent clouds. The very next day, I got an invitation from the talent specialists from Upwork and a lot more. I wanna shout out, he is the best in this. Thanks John for helping me out!
John is top-notch and a great guy to work with.
By the way, just hit 95K for the year. I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve taught me. You’ve changed my life. Thank you!
John has a relaxed and engaging manner. His advice is solid and the explanations are well thought out.
The most amazing thing I ever learned! Thank you!
John did an outstanding job on my project. I highly recommend him and look forward to working with him on future projects.
He is the best and he knows how to make you the best.
John is an excellent teacher.
Incredibly helpful if you want to learn the nuts and bolts of using content to generate visitors and clients. Definitely was pleasantly surprised with how many new advice and tips I gathered from John!
John has provided expert knowledge and advice on multiple occasions that have helped me better serve my clients. John is a Rockstar!
Not only is John a very talented programmer and developer, he is also an excellent communicator. He has a talent for taking complex subjects and communicating them in terms that anyone can understand. This is a rare combination. This ability has enabled me to take my skills and knowledge to the next level. Thank you John for for all that you do.
He significantly improved my site through his expert knowledge of PHP, CSS and Javascript. Would definitely recommend John to others.
I have been following John Morris for several years now. His instruction ranges from beginner to advanced, to CEO-level guidance. I have referred friends and clients to John, and have encouraged my own daughter to pay attention to what he says. All of his teachings create wealth for me (and happiness for my clients!) I can’t speak highly enough about John, his name is well known in my home.
I’m a fan. I have completed several of John’s courses. I find him very knowledgeable and he has a great delivery.
John Morris is exceptional in his ability to give focused insight into Freelancing and starting one’s business. His direct methods inspire confidence in his honesty.
For me, the biggest challenge is to figure out the outcome service for the customer (the service customer understands he needs and is searching for) Your class helped me to do the important research and the technicalities to narrow it down which was really helpful, thank you!
I’ve been in an existential crisis for the last week about what the heck I’m doing as a business owner. Even though I’ve been a business for about a year, I’m constantly trying to think of how to prune and refine services. This was very personable and enjoyable to watch. Usually, business courses like this are dry and hard to get through…. repeating the same things over and over again. This was a breath of fresh air. THANK YOU.