How the UpWork new Connects will work from now - Read details here.
Lena E, a community manager of UpWork says, "When the change takes effect, Connects will cost $0.15 each and we will no longer be providing users with 60 free Connects (or 80 free for agencies) each month. Submitting a proposal will no longer cost 0-2 Connects and will range from 1-6 Connects, depending on the job post. However, proposals submitted to invites from clients will remain free."
She also says, "We will calculate the number of Connects needed to submit a proposal based on the projected job value. This is determined using the estimated duration and budget amount for the job, as well as marketplace demand. Essentially, a longer-term job with a high budget will require more Connects than a small short-term, entry-level project."
For example, Up work will estimate the following Connects amounts for submitting proposals to these job posts:
Up Work Example Job Type
|
Connects
|
Cost of Connects
|
Invites from clients
|
0
|
Free
|
Quick jobs for $50 or less
|
1-2
|
$0.15 - $0.30
|
Short-term jobs (less than a week) with a budget of $50 to $600
|
3-4
|
$0.45 - $0.60
|
Longer-term jobs with a budget of $600+
|
5-6
|
$0.75- $0.90
|
Fundamentally, it’ll take fewer Connects to submit a proposal for a project with a $40 budget that is expected to last one day, than it will for a bigger project where you can earn $1,000 or more.
Connects will be sold in bundles in the following rules:
- 10 for $1.50
- 20 for $3
- 40 for $6
- 60 for $9
- 80 for $12
That means each connect will cost $0.15 USD.
Recap on how the new Connects system will work
1. Proposals submitted for invitations you receive from clients and those submitted for projects in an Enterprise client's Talent Cloud will continue to be free.
2. If a client closes their job without hiring or a job is removed by Up work for violating our Terms of Service, your Connects will be returned.
3. New freelancers will be given a one time allotment of 20 Connects for free so they can trial the platform before purchasing additional Connects
4. Rising Talent freelancers will continue to receive a one-time allotment of 30 free Connects when they receive Rising Talent status.
5. Current Top Rated freelancers and agencies will be given a one-time allotment of 60 Connects, to help with this transition. You must be Top Rated when this launches in your category to qualify
6. Freelancer Plus membership costs will increase to $14.99/month. This plan includes 70 free Connects each month, with the option to purchase additional Connects at $0.15.
7. Agency Plus members will continue to pay the $20 membership plan amount and can purchase Connects at $0.15 each.
Freelancers can rollover up to 140 Connects monthly.
Agencies can rollover up to 160 Connects monthly.
Connects will expire 1 year from the purchase date.
When this change takes place for you, Connects that are currently in your account will remain and rollover.
UpWork also wrote that "We know this is a big change. Before deciding on this new Connects system we interviewed many freelancers, agencies and clients about their hiring concerns and Connects usage. We also thoroughly researched platform hiring and proposal trends. We found that most freelancers do not utilize the full 60 connects they were provided with each month. Because of the surplus in Connects, many freelancers are less selective when submitting proposals and often times submit proposals to jobs not suitable for their skill set."
Thanks a lot.