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Why you should never use Upwork

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Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#191

Post by davemel37 »

forgetsusername wrote: post #165
davemel37 wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shouldn't respect be a two way street? His comment implies it should be a one way, just the opposite way of this evil Kevin guy. Edit: Just to be clear, I am drawing my assumption from the second part of his post that tries to correlate "idea guys" to "abusive people", almost as if he equates idea guys that try to hire developers as somehow "less than" him.

> almost as if he equates idea guys that try to hire developers as somehow "less than" him. I used "idea guys" in quotes because I'm referencing a specific type of person who you may not be familiar with, but I'm sure many other people here are, especially in the freelancing world. If you read the post, you can spot the cliche. Having an idea, no matter how good it is (and believe me when I say I'm not one of those "…

Thanks for clarifying. I mistakenly assumed you were referring to "any non technical person with an idea (who can't build it himself),"

...as opposed to jerks who overvalue their contribution, thinking everyone else owes them something for just coming up with the idea.

In general, I think the bias flows both ways. Some developers think ideas are worthless and that idea guys/business and marketing folks contribution is somehow worth significantly less than a developers contribution. Other "idea guys" think their idea gives them the keys to the kingdom.

You really need both to succeed.

In reality, there are lots of ways for both sides to make significant contributions to bringing ideas to life, outside of writing the actual code or ideation.

It takes a village...

I think we were both coming from opposite perspectives, but share similar views. I was "lashing out" against the guys who undervalue business guy contributions, and you were against the guys who undervalue the developers contribution...

I just heard on a podcast that, "Every Mark Needs their Sheryl"

Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#192

Post by babaganoosh223 »

delegate wrote: post #87

I once interviewed for Upwork pro. They sent me an Xcode project and I had to make some changes to it. However, the required changes referenced features and files which weren't in the project and made absolutely no sense. Even worse, the project they sent me was the "Photomania" project from Stanford's CS193p class: http://web.stanford.edu/class/cs193p/cgi-bin/drupal/node/289 But the copyright information (Copyright…

Sounds like what'd you expect from Upwork clients

Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#193

Post by StrangeWill »

soreasan wrote: post #97
nmat wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aren't people on this thread being too harsh on Upwork? I agree that there are problems with the way it works, but nothing is ever perfect. I happen to be from a country with a lower cost of living than US/UK and Upwork allows me to do remote freelancing and charge more than I would be able to charge for work in person. Also, the world is full of clients that won't pay for your work after you deliver it. I don't know…

>I happen to be from a country with a lower cost of living than US/UK and Upwork allows me to do remote freelancing and charge more than I would be able to charge for work in person. This is part of the problem for freelancers who do live in the US/UK. They're expected to work for less than they could charge in person because they're competing internationally with people who live in areas with much lower cost of livi…

You're selling the wrong product if you're just looking to sell on the bottom dollar.

I meet clients in-person and focus on quality and consistency. Yeah sure you can save a few thousand by having someone do it on a site like this, but you'll lose many more times that much the first time a deploy gets botched, the site goes down, they can't help you get what you need as opposed to what you asked for, etc.

I stopped trying to beat on price long ago, wasn't worth it, just meant I had to put out lower quality code and slap stuff together sloppily to compete and I didn't like doing that.

Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#194

Post by StrangeWill »

almata wrote: post #69

From the Upwork FAQ: "You'll need to download and use the Upwork Team App—this tool includes the Work Diary, which ensures you are guaranteed payment. By taking work-in-progress screenshots every 10 minutes, it provides proof to your clients that you are hard at work." Screenshots every 10 minutes? You mean... screenshots of MY SCREEN every 10 minutes? That was what made me close their website and totally forget it u…

It's trying to protect people that want to hire bottom-dollar work, but not get bottom-dollar quality.

If you're not happy with the rate at which I'm getting things done, you don't need screenshots of my desktop, feel free to hire someone else and let me know how that goes.

Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#195

Post by Gigablah »

dkns wrote: post #113
desaiguddu wrote: post #96

Brave of you to put a write-up ! Fuck you Upwork !! When I started my consulting company, I decided I will not rely on this Upwork - Freelancer.com shit! I use various aggregator services - 1.) StackOverFlow Jobs 2.) No Mad Jobs 3.) PDX Startups 4.) Slack Groups 5.) Domino Slack 6.) Meet, demonstrate your services Everyone can teach WipeRecord service a lesson - I will be giving them 1 Rating on Facebook, Yelp and al…

Actions of one (presumably) manager guy doesn't reflect company as a whole. Yelp/facebook/etc. isn't for rating how company deals with freelancers. Don't be childish.

Unfortunately it looks like this Kevin guy is the company director, if you look up his full name.

Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#197

Post by cobby »

Mithaldu wrote: post #170
brian-armstrong wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's fair. What if you didn't notice that it happened? It seems like dealing with checking for sensitive onscreen information every 10 minutes could be kind of flow-destroying.

There's a fairly noticable popup, that you can also configure to make a sound; and if you're really worried you can review the screenshots in your work diary at the end of the day.

As far as I know all screenshots are available for clients right away.

Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#198

Post by ivm »

marcell wrote: post #109

Shameless plug: I run a new company, CodeGophers, that competes with Upwork. We get a lot of unhappy Upwork customers. Unlike Upwork our service has a quality guarantee, so clients aren't forced to manage freelancers, and deal with low quality work. It's kind of like a product manager and freelancer combo, and overall it's much easier for the client. If you're unhappy with Upwork, please give us a shot. You can see o…

From your landing page:

> Anything from $100 to $1000 is fair game. If the project is too big, we won't accept it.

I know many people who use Upwork for long-term hourly billed projects that last months if not years.

Re: Why you should never use Upwork

#199

Post by erklik »

znpy wrote: post #180
webtechgal wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Anyone who has been a freelancer has dealt with the random, uncalled for threats from clients to give you a bad review or try to suspend your account. This. Totally. Several times, at 3/3 platforms where I've been working (for over two years now). Surprisingly (not), they (the clients) can do this and get away with it any time, but I (the freelancer) can't.

You know... Who has the money? Who has Upwork to please? The client. So what is your role in Upwork? Let me tell you what I have realised... Do you pay to use Upwork? Not directly (you're not the one fueling the whole thing). Are you paid to use Upwork? No, because the money you get is a counterpart for the work you perform. So... What is the your role in Upwork? Well, you're the product being sold. In any case you w…

Exactly. I realised how true this is very recently. A AirBnb host decided to kick me out early without refunding anything and i escalated it. The swiftness that their customer service showed me in getting a refund without regards to the "feelings" of the host shows how i am more important to AirBnb.

This is because the Host is the product, while i am their Customer. and Apparently, the Customer is always right.

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