If you’re reading this, it means that you’re a professional freelancer using Upwork. You’ve probably been on the internet long enough to know how important client feedback is when it comes to your success as a freelancer. You might even be a bit nervous about getting negative client feedback, or not sure how to take advantage of positive feedback. In this article, I’ll explain how to make the most out of them.
| Takeaway |
|---|
| Request feedback promptly after completing projects to capture clients’ fresh impressions. |
| Actively listen to clients’ feedback, understanding their needs, and using it to improve your services. |
| Express appreciation for positive feedback and address any negative feedback professionally and constructively. |
| Utilize client feedback as a tool for professional growth and continuous improvement. |
| Implement changes based on feedback to enhance your reputation and attract more clients on Upwork. |
Be Consistent And Honest
Consistency is key to getting the most out of your client feedback. If you are not consistent, then your feedback will be seen as unreliable and you will lose credibility with clients.
Be honest, even when it is difficult. You have a responsibility to give accurate feedback; if a client asks for your thoughts on their work and you know that they did not do what they said they would do, then honesty demands that you tell them so (even if it means losing the job).
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Be Specific
Being as specific and detailed as possible when giving feedback is crucial. Clients are more likely to understand what you’re trying to convey if they can get a clear picture of the situation and how it should be handled.
For example, instead of writing “You did a good job,” try saying something like: “The report was well-written and included all necessary information within the appropriate timeframe.”
Avoid vague statements such as “You were good” or “Your work was great.” You’ll be much better off providing specific examples or instances where the client performed exceptionally well or poorly this way, it’s easier for them to know how they can improve their performance in the future.
Be Kind, Even When It Is Hard
When you first receive feedback, it is important to be kind and constructive. Many people on Upwork will be new freelancers and may not know exactly how the system works yet. Feedback is a great way to help them improve their business, so don’t use it as a way to vent your frustrations or get back at someone who has given you negative feedback in the past.
The most important thing is to stay positive! If you find yourself getting upset about something that was said in the review, take some time away from your computer before responding. If possible, let someone else read over what you’ve written before clicking send; there’s no guarantee that our emotions will disappear by then if we put ourselves through an emotional roller coaster while writing our response!
Don’t Wait To Give Feedback
We get it. You’re busy, and you want to make sure that the client is happy with your work before you provide any form of feedback. But if you wait too long, it will be hard for the client to remember what exactly happened during the project because they’ve already moved on (and most likely forgotten) by then.
Every great relationship starts with good communication and nothing builds trust faster than timely feedback after each task has been completed. That’s why we recommend responding within 24 hours of completing a task or milestone it shows that you care enough about your clients’ projects to stay involved in their day-to-day operations while also giving them ample time to review any notes or comments made throughout their project without feeling overwhelmed by a sudden deluge of notes from different people at once.
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Use The Right Words And The Whole Scale
There are many ways to say something, and different words can have a big impact on how the feedback is received. The following tips will help you ensure that your comments are received in the best way possible.
The more specific you are with your praise or criticism, the better it will be received by your client. For example, rather than simply saying “Good job!” try saying something along these lines instead: “The only thing I would change about this project is making sure all of your sentences start with an action verb that matches what I’m looking for here (e.g., ‘I like how you took initiative in X area). If there’s anything else I can do for you today let me know.”
This kind of detailed feedback allows clients who want more information on how they can improve their work to get it without feeling like they’re being nitpicked at every turn!
Don’t Compliment Excessively
If a client gives you a 5-star review, don’t be afraid to return the favor. Just don’t do it excessively. While there are certainly times when you should offer lots of praise and compliments like when delivering amazing work or going above and beyond in your efforts there is such thing as overdoing it.
Praising your client too much can actually cause them to lose motivation because they feel like they are receiving something for nothing. It also doesn’t look good on Upwork if all of your reviews are glowing; clients may start to wonder if there is any validity behind those reviews or whether you may be trying too hard (or even lying) to make yourself look better than you really are.
Provide Opportunities For Improvement
When you provide the opportunity to improve, your client will:
- feel respected
- be motivated to do better next time
- feel closer to you as a result of this feedback process.
You want your clients to see that you care about their success and want them to succeed on Upwork, but in order for them to take action on any point-of-improvement suggestions you give, they need specific information about what exactly they need improvement on.
In addition, having examples of good work (whether it’s yours or someone else’s) will help you deliver the message more effectively and ensure that the desired behaviors are properly understood by the client.
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Ask For Feedback, Too
As a freelancer, it’s important to make sure that you’re getting the most out of your Upwork client feedback. One way to do this is by asking for feedback from your clients as well.
It can be tricky to know how much feedback is too much. You want the client to feel comfortable telling you what they liked and didn’t like about your work, but at the same time, there are certain things they might prefer not to share with you or with anyone else on Upwork.
For example, maybe they really hated working with someone who was always late or too busy on social media during business hours. They may not want to say that publicly because it could hurt their reputation (and possibly yours).
So when asking for feedback from a client:
Ask privately via email or in person. It’s best if clients don’t see each other’s comments even if those comments are positive ones. Also make sure that no one sees any replies between yourselves until after both parties have had time to digest everything shared during this conversation process; otherwise we run into problems where one side thinks everything went great while another feels like nothing changed since last week.
Be specific when asking questions so as not leave room for misinterpretation make them answer yes/no questions where possible because then both parties know exactly where each stands before moving forward or deciding against working together again (which often happens).
Do Your Research
Before you begin working with a client, make sure you do your research. You can learn more about your clients before you start by looking at their profiles and their previous feedback ratings on Upwork.
This will help you understand what they expect, what they value and how they like to work. It’s also important that you get an idea of the kind of work they’ve done in the past so that when it comes time for them to review your work product which we’ll cover more below you’re prepared for constructive criticism if necessary (and able to act on it).
Clarify Expectations From The Start
To help you get the most out of your Upwork client feedback (and to ensure that you’re getting the best value for your time), it’s important to clarify expectations from the start.
Asking upfront whether a project is meant to be a quick solution or an in-depth, long-term plan will allow you to tailor your approach accordingly. If there’s no clear goal, then what’s even being measured? What do success metrics look like? How can we measure them?
To avoid this problem, set goals before starting on a solution. It’s not always easy, especially with complicated projects but defining objectives before diving into work will save everyone time and money.
And if certain details aren’t concrete yet (e.g., what does “success” look like?), make sure they’re clarified before getting started so that everyone involved has realistic expectations of what needs to be done and when it needs doing by (or “what” vs “why”).
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Offer Examples Of Great Work
It’s OK to be specific. Don’t say, “Your design is great; keep up the good work.” Instead, say something like, “I really like the way you use negative space in your designs and think it gives them their own unique style. I also noticed that sometimes you tend to put too much text on a page. If you could fix that, I think our website would be even better!”
When offering examples of bad work or unhelpful comments from past clients:
- Be specific about what went wrong (and how) so they know exactly where they need to improve. This makes it easier for clients to recognize their mistakes and improve upon them in future jobs.
- Make sure these examples are focused on things that actually matter when working with freelancers for example: punctuality/responsiveness during deadlines/etc., rather than personal attributes like kindness or friendliness toward people who haven’t paid yet).
Encourage Collaboration, Not Competition
One of the biggest mistakes freelancers make is viewing other freelancers as competition. This can be especially true when we are all new to the world of freelancing and are trying to establish ourselves as professionals. This mindset will only hold you back from growing your business and could potentially damage your relationship with clients, who want to see you succeed in your field!
Instead, think about how you can use other people’s strengths and weaknesses to help yourself become better at what you do. Think about how much easier it would be if everyone were on board with this idea! If every person were working together towards a common goal, imagine how much more effective we could all be at improving our businesses!
So rather than seeing other freelancers as rivals, view them as colleagues who are not only working toward similar goals but also have valuable insights into their fields that can help improve yours not necessarily by exposing things to copy but by offering different perspectives on tactics or strategies that might work better than the ones you currently use.
Provide Praise In Public And Criticism In Private
There are two main ways to give feedback: publicly, or privately. Providing praise publicly encourages your client to continue doing well, but giving criticism privately ensures that the critique is constructive and not demoralizing.
You should strive to provide at least five times as much positive feedback for every negative piece of feedback you give so if you have a balance of good and bad work from one client, try to make sure that those positives far outweigh any negatives. If you don’t, then it might be time for the relationship between yourself and your client (or potential clients) to come to an end.
Don’t Take Feedback Personally
There’s a good chance that feedback is being given to you because the client didn’t like something about your work. This can be counterintuitive, but remember that it’s not really about you, it’s about the work. You can learn from your mistakes and use those lessons to improve your performance in the future.
Remember that this isn’t personal, even if it feels like it at first. A client may not have liked something specific about your project, but there are likely other things that went well too – don’t forget to mention those as well!
If someone on your team gives feedback about one of their colleagues or direct reports (your team), make sure they keep their comments focused on work-related issues and try not to get into personality conflicts or personal attacks unless absolutely necessary (and even then probably best left unsaid).
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Final Thoughts
A lot of people think that they can just get by doing what they’re good at and not learning any new skills, but as a freelancer that’s not going to work out for long you’ll end up stagnating or getting replaced by someone who’s willing to learn new things.
The best way to prevent this from happening is by making an effort every time you finish an assignment with one of your clients: sit down for five minutes and reflect on where things went well, where things went poorly, and what you could do differently next time around in order for things to go better next time around. This will help you identify areas where your skills need improvement so that when future projects come along, you’ll be able to deliver better results than before.
All in all, getting feedback (and giving it) is the key to professional growth and development. It’s also essential for team building and communication, which are crucial for business success. And this feedback can’t just be about what someone does well it needs to address areas where they need improvement, as well as praise them when they do something great. The key is being specific, honest, and kind.
Further Reading
How to Remove a Bad Review on Upwork: Learn the steps to address and potentially remove negative feedback on Upwork, safeguarding your freelance reputation.
Upwork Reviews: A Comprehensive Guide: Dive into this detailed guide to understand the significance of reviews on Upwork and how they can impact your freelancing career.
Getting Client Feedback from Upwork: Best Practices: Discover effective strategies for obtaining valuable client feedback on Upwork and improving your freelancing services.
People Also Ask
What Is Positive Feedback?
Positive feedback is a response in which the person shares their positive feelings about your work. This type of feedback can help you know where to improve and better yourself as a freelancer. For example: “Thank you so much for all your hard work on this project, it looks great.”
What Is Negative Feedback?
Negative feedback is any response that doesn’t make you feel good about yourself or your business. It may be constructive criticism from clients, or simply an upset client leaving less-than-positive reviews online without actually reaching out personally first (and therefore providing constructive criticism).
Negative reviews can cause other businesses not to hire someone with such bad ratings, so it’s important for freelancers to address issues head-on when they arise rather than ignoring them entirely. However, there are ways to deal with negative comments that don’t involve getting defensive.
How Do You Ask For Client Feedback?
Asking for client feedback can be difficult. You may worry that your request will come across as pushy or needy and that the customer won’t take it well. To make sure you don’t get rejected by potential clients, try to write a brief email explaining why you want their input.
Make sure to use specific examples of what went well and what could be improved upon in your work together so that the client knows exactly how his or her feedback will help improve your future work with clients.
If you’re feeling nervous about asking for written feedback, try sending an email requesting verbal comments instead it still lets them know how much value they’ll get from sharing their thoughts with others on Upwork if they choose to do so!
How Do I Know If An Employer Is Trustworthy?
In addition to having a badge system as freelancers do, employers also provide references from past clients who can tell you more about their experience working with them. These references are posted publicly on their profile so you can see exactly what other people have had to say about them before deciding whether or not you want to work with them yourself!
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.