How did SJ Innovation Become Top Rated Upwork Talent?

“How do you become top-rated on Upwork?”, It’s a question many freelancers and agencies ask themselves at some point or the other. A wise one at that, especially if you are establishing a freelancing career. After all, Upwork is gaining traction, and for good reason. 

Right from being the ideal opportunity to kickstart your freelancing career to establishing your reputation and gaining premium clients — Upwork is here to stay. 

However, while any agency or individual can join the platform, earning the Top Rated designation on Upwork is a whole different ballgame altogether. As it implies you need to stand true to Upwork top-rated requirements.

So naturally, we were elated when SJ Innovation became Upwork's Top Rated Talent!

Why?

Gaining the achievement of Top Rated Upwork Talent proves that:

• You have built a strong reputation on Upwork by getting positive feedback from clients consistently 

• You have been working zealously to offer clients a phenomenal experience 
• Your work is a cut above the rest as you appeal to and lure in more clients 
• You are putting in the hard work to develop your business 
• Your agency works functionally across experience levels in all categories all over the globe

To put it simply, it means crossing a milestone as ‘Top Rated’ represents the top 10% of talent on Upwork!

What are the advantages of being Rated as a Top Rated Freelancer or Agency on Upwork?

1. You are given a dedicated badge

• Top-rated Upwork profiles are bestowed with the Top Rated badge — a devoted badge that is put on your agency, freelancer, agency members’ profile, projects, and proposals on the ‘Project Catalog’. 
• It shows clients you have a proven track record of amazing work, inevitably increasing your chances of being invited to interview.

2. You benefit from low-cost fees on ‘Featured Jobs’

• Top-rated Upwork profiles are charged a reduced fee on Featured Jobs. 
• If your agency makes it to the best Upwork profile, your reduced fees begin at 10%

3. Better command over Job Success Score

• As a Top Rated Upwork freelancer or agency, your dedication and hard work have helped you achieve better control over your Job Success score. 

4. Other benefits that come with being an Upwork Top Talent 

You gain:

• Invitations to submit proposals to jobs assisted by Talent Specialists 
• Improved control over your Job Success Score 
• Premium Upwork support options including chat and phone 
• Access to Job Digest email so searching for perfectly suited jobs becomes easier 
• Speedy payments on an hourly contract basis

How did SJ Innovation become an Upwork Top Talent?

While the above-mentioned points are some of the ways in which your agency can earn Top Rated Talent status, here are a few ways how we at SJ Innovation slowly but successfully became Top Rated Upwork Talent ourselves.

1. Upgrade profile with relevant details

• Your professional profile is very crucial to your success on Upwork and being thought of as a top-rated freelancer or agency. 
• It’s an opportunity to get acquainted with prospective clients, grab the right attention, and set yourself apart from the competition to gain the right kind of clients your way.
• You can also showcase your skills and accomplishments to help you stand out from the crowd.
• Have a complete profile with all of the relevant details needed such as work history, payment verification, and portfolios. 
• It works as a proactive approach as businesses can help fill their project requirements successfully and promptly. 

2. Build specific service pages 

• Building a project in ‘Project Catalog’ is a great way to connect with clients and earn wisely.
• Creating specific service pages makes it easy to set up a function that determines what you want your site to accomplish. 
• Decide what you want on every specific page and understand which content will be placed on your homepage and which pages will fall into the navigation menu.
• Based on this, you can decide the website’s design, function, and content. 
• Set clear, well-defined workflow along with set timing, pricing structure, and details. 

3. Go for Freemium if you are a newbie!

• Upwork is a competitive platform so it may take a while for you to get a hang of and master it. 
• However, it also makes it easy to connect with thousands of potential clients which is a huge plus when you are just a beginner and have no clients or network of your own.
• During this time, it’s best to go in for Freemium for access to basic services at no cost.
• It helps you get the feel of the platform so you establish a certain level of engagement with clients.
• Going for the freemium version also allocates you some free hours so you can make your proposal attractive.

4. Timely follow-up with clients 

• To be considered a top-rated Upwork talent, make sure you always follow up with your clients and get back to them in less than 4 to 6 hours. 
• Also, always be transparent in your approach and do not leave any message unanswered.
• Be certain to follow up promptly with a complete answer to their query.
• Take note that the last response should come from the freelancer. 

5. Always answer all invites 

• Refrain from leaving any invite unattended or answered, even if it means you need to decline the invite owing to a valid reason.
• Make sure you address the invite and politely decline the invitation.
• Having some kind of activity — proposals, earnings, accepted invitation, in the past 90 days is important

6. Display weekly progress reports

• Make certain weekly progress is measured especially for hourly contracts as it showcases your clients’ satisfaction in terms of feedback, professional relationships, and job outcomes over time. 
• Remember, an inactive hourly contract will harm your JSS score (Job Success Score)
• Your JSS score is crucial as it calculates your overall work history on Upwork’s platform. 
• Showing your weekly progress reports is a measure of how much your client is satisfied with your overall work history.
• Not updating your weekly reports harms your JSS score which hinders your progress from obtaining ‘top-rated talent’ with a 100% success score.

7. Focus on making the client successful

• To fulfill Upwork top-rated requirements, always pay attention to the client and work towards making them successful. 
• When you focus on the client, it leads to a higher rating and positive feedback. 

8. Send reminders to gain valuable feedback on the completion of a contract

• After the contract comes to an end, it doesn’t mean you move on to the next project.
• Gaining valuable feedback from your clients isn’t optional, it’s a necessity as you need to know how you fared and can accordingly improve. 
• However, don’t be too pushy about it but rather, ensure you send timely reminders to clients so they can offer their feedback and a time that is convenient for them.

9. Gaining Upwork Top Talent is an ongoing process

• Gaining top-rated Upwork Talent recognition isn’t an accolade that is granted to you overnight. 
• If you’re wondering how to become a freelancer for Upwork and get the best Upwork profile recognition, it’s vital to remember that nothing can compensate for hard work.
• Continuously striving to offer quality services is a prerequisite if you want to earn massive success!

If you are looking to become a Top-Rated freelancer or agency on Upwork, never forgo professionalism and communication. Have an agency owner job success score of 90% or higher or maintain agency Rising Talent status for at least 13 of the last 16 weeks. Make sure you have a 100% complete agency owner profile with a photo logo, overview, and services provided. To know more, you can also read about everything you must know about becoming a Top-Rated talent on Upwork.

Now all that’s left to do is put all of this into practice!