Upwork Job Success Score (Upwork Algorithm Explained)
Are you looking to get your ‘Upwork Job Success Score’ up to 100% and the “top-rated” status that comes with it?
Then this is the post for you!
Why should you listen to me?
I have used Upwork both as a freelancer and to hire freelancers for the past 11 years. I have also trained over 700 people on how to most effectively use the Upwork platform, so I know what I am talking about.
What Are Some of the Major Issues Real Users Have Had with the Upwork Job Success Score System?
Here are three common issues that clients have had with their Upwork job success score:
- No feedback counts as zero stars
- After no feedback, we lost our top-rated badge and
- Negative feedback has caused our score to drop
How Can I Avoid These Problems?
Here are some of my best tips for avoiding these problems and to help you get more out of the Upwork platform:
Do Calls, Avoid Chatting
You should talk to clients on a live call. This will allow you to determine if they are the best type of client that you want to work with, and that you are certain that you will be able to deliver the project.
Establish Project Communication
Make sure you set out with the client how communication between you and them will work once the project gets underway. For example, where it will happen, how frequently, which dates, which hours of the day, and what will be discussed.
Get an Agreement That You Will Get a Review After the Project
Getting a good review is worth more in the long term than any one client. It's important to get clients to agree that they will leave you a review once the project is complete. If you have higher rated reviews you will rank higher on the Upwork platform which will lead to more sales. You will create an ongoing funnel of sales for your business, this is the “secret sauce” that most top-rated freelancers are using to grow their Upwork businesses.
Don’t Spend All Of Your Time Reacting to Bad Reviews
It can become very time consuming to always be playing “defense” and trying to sort out problems that a client may have after the fact. You need to be proactive with clients by always having an open line of communication so that you both know the project’s progress and project deliverables can be known by both parties.
How does Upwork determine the Upwork Job Success Score?
According to Upwork, this is their high-level calculation to determine your JSS:
(Successful contract outcomes – negative contract outcomes)
/ total outcomes
Based on this calculation, and my observations on how they determine your Upwork job success score, here are some important things to keep in mind:
Client Ratings and Reviews
When clients review your project they are given a list of criteria to judge you on a scale of 1 to 5. To get 100% you have to get a 5 for each criterion. Obviously, you want a rating of 5 for each criterion as this will give you a top score.
Maintain Long Term Relationships and Contracts
To boost your Upwork job success score it is good to build long term relationships with the clients that you work with on Upwork. This is a good signal to prospective clients that you are trustworthy.
Contracts Without Activity and Excessive Lack of Feedback Will Negatively Affect Your Score
You need to ensure that you get feedback from every project that you do, always prompt clients at the completion of a project to leave you feedback. If you only have one or two now and then it won't affect you too much but aim to have zero. The worst thing you can have is a profile that shows no earnings of feedback.
How Do I Deal with Unreasonable Clients?
Most freelancers agree that some clients are just never going to be happy with the work that you do, no matter what. When they leave you negative feedback it won't necessarily affect your job success score because they get a bad score and sometimes their accounts are even removed completely off the platform.
The Bottom Line
You should aim to keep your JSS between 90 and 100%. Upwork looks at your 6, 12, and 24-month activity on the platform; they will give you a score based on your best rating on either of those activity time frames.
You won’t be punished if you have a brief period of bad feedback, just make sure to always prompt all of your clients to give you feedback at the end of the project so that your average score remains high.
Remember that it is better, in the long run, to be careful about which clients you work with, even if it takes more time to grow your business.
Interested in building a business like this? Get on a call with one of our instructors and get advised on what you can do to build a business like this.
You may even get offered a chance to join the mastermind where we all share working business models (optional). Click the button below to apply.
