How to write an Upwork proposal (5 simple steps)

When it comes to Upwork proposals, one question always pops up and that is; can one get a job in Upwork using the same proposal over and over again? Well, the answer is yes you can. But before you recycle your Upwork proposal, make sure that it meets the following at least three of the following qualities;

Apart from Upwork, you can also get direct clients on Fiverr which is also one of the leading bid accounts for freelancers.

How to write an Upwork proposal

A good proposal should have the following five sections;

• Introduction
• Your understanding of the job
• Your approach to the project
• Your experience
• Reviews

How to write the introduction of an Upwork proposal

The introduction to your proposal is very important when because it introduces the (possible) employer to your proposal. A wrong introduction turns off the employer and they might not even go through the whole of your proposal before they turn down your application.

Your introduction should begin with greetings. Conduct a research to determine if the employer is either a male, female, or transgender. After knowing their sex, you can go ahead to offer a Hello sir or Hello madam depending on their sex. Go ahead to introduce yourself stating your full name, your profession/education and your skills. Avoid informal greetings like hey, hi… Below is an example of a good introduction;

Hello sir,

Great to meet you. Am Mwangangi Marion and I am a Kenyan fourth year Journalism student at The Multimedia University of Kenya. I am a graphic designer who specializes on brand identity and logo design.

Your understanding of the job

After greeting the employer and introducing themselves, use the second paragraph to express how best you understand the task the employer is looking to delegate. This will raise you above other bidders as you will give the impression that you understand how the job is supposed to be done.

In this paragraph, use the specific terms used in the field where the job falls in and show how best you understand the task at hand.

Go through the the jobs description and recommend some solutions to the employer’s problems even before they employ you. For example if an employer is looking for someone to write them a blog post, go through the blog and identify the mistakes they have done in their previous blog posts and suggest a solution.  Below is an example of a good second paragraph;

I have gone through your blog your blog onlinejobsinkenya.com and I am impressed with your progress in bringing up the new blog. I would however advise you to structure your keywords to target low competition, in your last post, you failed to include a backlink and this is why you should go for someone with at least two years experience in blogging as your next writer. This is the experience I will bring on the table.

Your Approach to the project

Here you will state how you will tackle the project if given a chance to do so. The approach should be general and should include other extra duties not delegated by the employer.

Create other duties yourself and promise to deliver more than the employer asks for.

The approach should be from general to specific. This is a good example of how you should write the third paragraph;

Given the chance to write the blog post, I will begin by rectifying the previous posts in your blog to make them SEO friendly. I will go ahead to create a privacy policies and contact page which are very important for any blog especially a commercial one. After doing all the corrections, I will go ahead and write a 1500 words blog that is in line with all the SEO rules and post it on your blog. I will take 12 hours to complete the task.

Your experience

Here you will give your experience in handling similar tasks. You should also move from general to specific in this paragraph. First state your experience in handling tasks related to the one assigned by the employer. Finally narrow down to your experience in handling the same task as that stated by the employer.

Attach your samples to prove your claim. Your samples should have your name clearly written on them to clear any doubt of plagiarism and you should have a watermark to avoid them being plagiarized by another freelancer.

Reviews

If you have completed a task on Upwork before and the employer was kind enough to review your work honestly, this is the right place to give your reviews as a confirmation of your exemplary work.

If you have never completed any work on Upwork before, make sure you ask a client for a review when you complete your first job on the platform. The reviews will attract clients to your account. In the meantime you can follow the above steps to get your first client on the platform.