How To Make Your Upwork Profile Stand Out

So, you’re looking to get started with Upwork and want to make sure that your profile stands out. We’re here to help! This article will explain how to make your Upwork profile stand out so that you can get more clients on Upwork.

Takeaways
1. Optimize your profile: Use relevant keywords, showcase your expertise, and highlight your unique selling points.
2. Provide a compelling overview: Craft a concise and engaging summary that captures clients’ attention and communicates your value.
3. Showcase your portfolio: Display your best work to demonstrate your skills and build credibility with potential clients.
4. Request endorsements and testimonials: Encourage previous clients to provide positive feedback to enhance your profile’s credibility.
5. Continuously update and improve: Stay active on Upwork, refine your skills, and regularly update your profile with new achievements and projects.
6. Network and engage: Connect with other freelancers, participate in relevant communities, and engage in meaningful conversations to expand your professional network.
7. Demonstrate professionalism: Be responsive, maintain a professional tone in your communications, and deliver high-quality work to build a strong reputation.
8. Research and target the right clients: Understand your target market, identify ideal clients, and tailor your profile to attract their attention.
9. Seek ongoing skill development: Continuously upgrade your skills, stay updated with industry trends, and pursue relevant certifications or training.
10. Be proactive and persistent: Actively seek opportunities, submit proposals regularly, and follow up with potential clients to increase your chances of success.

Choose A Good Photo

Choosing a photo is important. It’s the first thing clients see, and they may use it to decide whether or not they want to work with you. You don’t want your profile picture to be too informal (like a selfie), too professional (you are in business attire at the office), or too creative (you holding up two thumbs). Your goal is to find a balance between looking professional and being yourself.

The best way to do this is by finding an image that reflects who you are but doesn’t make you look like someone else entirely. A great example of this is Jon Loomer from acquiring, who uses multiple photos of himself on his Upwork account: one for his bio image and one for his public profile image. He’s wearing different clothes in each picture, but otherwise, he looks the same!

When it comes to maximizing your freelancing career, Upwork is a platform you shouldn’t ignore. Learn the best ways to use Upwork and unlock its full potential for your professional success.

Create A Strong Headline

Your headline is the first thing potential clients see, so it’s important to make it count. Your headline should be specific to the job you’re applying for and communicate what you’re looking to do. 

Don’t use a generic headline like “I love writing,” because most of your competitors will say the same thing (and probably have better grammar). Instead, use language like “Hire me for freelance business writing” or “Let’s work together.”

You can also add keywords from the job description into your tagline, which may help boost your placement in Upwork’s search results. But don’t go overboard if your tagline sounds spammy or copied from another freelancer’s profile, that kind of approach won’t look great on anyone’s resume.

If there are any words in the job description that stand out to you like if they’re included twice or mentioned several times those are likely relevant keywords that could give you an edge over other applicants (and show how closely you’ve read through everything!). Make sure they’re incorporated into your headline and other sections of your profile too!

Write A Good Overview

The first thing potential clients will see is your overview, so it’s important to make it count. Your skills in this section should be specific and well-defined. Think of the best possible way to describe your capabilities this will help clients know exactly what you’re capable of doing for them. 

You can also include bullet points under each skill (e.g., “I am skilled at x, y and z”). This helps break up the text and makes it easier for readers to scan through your profile.

Include a brief description of yourself, but don’t go overboard! Keep in mind that someone who has never met or talked with you before probably won’t have any idea who you are based on a few sentences alone you want them to feel confident hiring someone they don’t know yet!

Don’t forget about personal touches like adding photos or videos or including links to your portfolio site (or wherever else they might want more information). You may even find it useful to have an extra “about me” section where everything from education history down to favorite color goes!

Your Upwork profile is your digital resume, and optimizing it is crucial for attracting clients. Discover how to optimize your Upwork profile in 13 easy steps and increase your chances of landing high-quality projects.

List Your Skills

List any skills you have that are relevant to freelancing. If you are applying for a customer service role, but you also know how to use Photoshop, it’s worth including in your profile.

Don’t list skills that aren’t relevant to the job. If your top position at Starbucks was a barista and the job on Upwork requires experience as a quality control manager, then there’s no reason why you should include “barista” on your list of qualifications.

Don’t list irrelevant skills or ones where you don’t have much knowledge or experience (e.g., “I once saw someone playing with clay in kindergarten”) – this only shows that you don’t do research before registering on Upwork and makes it difficult for clients who read profiles carefully when hiring freelancers!

Never Stop Learning New Skills

You should never stop learning new skills. You don’t necessarily need to sign up for school, but you should be actively pursuing some kind of education that will help you grow as a person and build your professional profile. One way to accomplish this is by mentioning your areas of interest and how you are currently pursuing those interests. For example:

• I’ve been learning French because I love traveling and want to visit more places in Europe.
• Learning about nutrition so that I can live a healthy lifestyle that supports my work schedule and active lifestyle!

Don’t Forget To Mention The Languages You Speak

If you can speak more than one language, don’t forget to mention it. A majority of the jobs on Upwork require workers who are fluent in multiple languages and can communicate with clients from around the world. As such, companies will often look at your profile with a keen eye to see if they need someone who speaks one or more of their preferred languages. 

You should always include your native language the one you were born speaking and any additional ones that you speak fluently. If you’re learning another language for work purposes, be sure to list that as well so employers know how quickly they could expect results from working with you.

You should also include any other skills related to language learning: reading comprehension and writing ability in certain languages; knowledge of various cultures (if applicable); translation experience; etcetera. The more detail about these things that are listed on your profile page, the better prepared potential employers will feel when considering hiring someone like yourself!

Standing out on Upwork requires a standout resume. Check out our guide with 13 tips for making your resume stand out when applying for a job on Upwork and make a lasting impression on potential clients.

Provide Job History

Job history is a great place to start. It shows people what skills you have, where they can find out more about your work history and your ability to do the job they need to be done. You should include:

• The job title of each position and employer name
• Dates of employment (or end date if not applicable)
• Specific project details (for example, what did you do for this company?)
• A link to their website if relevant (this helps them see how well known and respected the company is)

Include Education, Certification, And Awards

It’s important to include your education, certifications, and awards. This shows that you are a professional and have invested in yourself, as well as your skillset.

Education: A degree can be a great addition to any profile and even if it isn’t strictly required for the position you’re applying for, it will show potential clients that you’re serious about your career. 

If possible, a list of which degree(s) you obtained from which university/college/institute (or schools), along with the year in which they were awarded. You should also include any relevant experience or coursework related to the job description at hand.

Show Off Your Portfolio

When you’re advertising your skills and portfolio, it’s important to make sure that you are showing off your work in the best light possible. The way you present yourself on Upwork matters in a big way, so let’s talk about how to create an engaging profile that shows off what you can do. For your portfolio to be effective at getting jobs, it needs to include:

• A description of your specialty (for example: “I’m a great writer” or “I design elegant webpages”). This should ideally be one sentence long and written in an active voice for example: “I am an experienced writer who specializes in content creation.”

• Links to some of the best pieces of work from your past projects (this is where those links come into play). You’ll want these pieces of work linked so they can easily be seen by potential employers browsing through profiles on Upwork.

Ask For Recommendations From Clients And Managers

When you’re bidding on a job, ask your client if they’d be willing to write you a recommendation. You can do this by clicking on their profile and typing: “Would you mind writing me a recommendation?”

I recommend asking them immediately after completing the job so that they don’t forget about it later. If they say no, just move on don’t try to guilt-trip them into writing one for your sake!

If the client agrees but forgets about it, remind them as early in the process as possible (ideally before work begins). This will prevent any miscommunication or confusion from arising later down the road.

If you want to attract more attention to your Upwork profile, increasing your profile views is essential. Explore 13 proven tips to boost your profile visibility and attract potential clients to your freelance services.

Use The Right Keywords In Your Profile Title And Description Tags

The title tag is the text that appears in a browser’s tab bar. The description tag is the text that appears under your title in search results. Meta keywords and description tags are used by Google and other search engines to determine what your page is about.

You can use these fields to help people find you on Upwork, but they have very little effect on how you rank in search results (compared to having great content), so you should focus more on using good keywords elsewhere on your profile instead of relying solely on them here.

Optimize Your Profile For Search Engines (Keyword Research)

It’s a good idea to optimize your profile so that it will be found in search engines. Of course, when you’re looking for a remote worker on Upwork, you’re probably not doing a Google search. But optimizing your profile can help increase the likelihood that other remote workers who are looking for jobs and clients will find yours. To do this, include keywords in the following areas:

Title of Profile; Include keywords here that are related to the type of work you do (e.g., “SEO” or “Web Design”). You should also include descriptors such as languages spoken, experience level, etc. if they apply directly to what your business needs.

Bio/Summary; Here’s another place where you can use keywords to entice potential employers into hiring you.

Skills & Expertise; This is where people go when they want someone with specific skill sets such as programming languages or design tools (Adobe Photoshop). Make sure all relevant skills are listed here so people searching for those terms can easily find them.

Work Samples; In addition to being able to see samples from previous projects completed by contractors on Upwork (if available), potential employers can also view samples uploaded by contractors themselves through the application process itself!

Talk Up Your Specialties (And Be Specific)

Now that you have a good idea of how to make your Upwork profile stand out, let’s go over some specific tips on how to talk up your specialties and be specific.

List relevant skills: Make sure to include any certifications and tests that demonstrate these skills. It’s also important to note that listing relevant achievements is key (these may not always be directly related to the position).

Reduce the skills section: You can reduce the number of skills by combining similar ones or reducing them down to only those necessary for the job you’re applying for. This will help increase the chances of you being selected by giving potential employers exactly what they’re looking for and nothing more!

Get Certified When Possible

A certification is an indication that you have achieved mastery in a specific skill or knowledge area. If you have relevant certification, it’s important to list it on your Upwork profile. Even if you don’t have one, there are ways to get certified for free or for a small investment.

Certifications are not required for all jobs and clients will typically ask about them only when they’re looking for someone with specific skills or experience. You may need one if you’re applying for such jobs as IT specialist, web developer, or project manager positions.

As a freelance writer on Upwork, earning better ratings is key to building a solid reputation and securing more projects. Discover 9 ways freelance writers on Upwork can earn better ratings to enhance your credibility and stand out in the competitive freelance writing market.

Get Top-Rated Status

Make sure you’re a good fit for the client’s needs; The first step is to make sure that you’re a good fit for the client’s needs. This means that if they’ve specified their budget as $10,000 per month and you can only do $5,000 per month, then this job isn’t for you try applying for it again when your skills have improved!

Complete jobs in a professional manner; When completing projects on Upwork, always be respectful of other people and remember that there are real human beings on the other end! You should always complete your work on time and by what was asked of you by your employer or client.

Always be on time (or early!); If someone expects something from me at 3 pm and I don’t deliver until 4 pm, my reputation will take a hit and so will theirs. People expect things from me because they know they can count on me; if I let them down even once, then why should anyone hire me again? That goes double when it comes time to pay out bonuses or commissions; I don’t want anyone getting angry over money when all went well priorly!

Participate In Groups On Upwork

Upwork groups are a great way to interact with other freelancers and get exposure to your services. You mustn’t spam or be annoying; make sure you’re providing value by sharing helpful information and asking questions yourself. Don’t be afraid to disagree with other people in the group, either! If someone says something wrong, feel free to correct them politely (but firmly).

The main thing is not just talking about yourself, but also participating in conversations or answering questions others have posted. And remember: if you start posting your questions and then leaving immediately without engaging the community further, it’s almost definitely going to get noticed as rude behavior on Upwork!

Write Articles For Other People’s Blogs

If you’ve already got a few published pieces on your Upwork profile, then consider taking on some guest posts for other blogs. You may have to do some research and reach out to the blog owners with a pitch. If they like it, they may ask for a sample of your writing before agreeing to publish your piece. This is an easy way to add some more experience and credibility to your Upwork profile without spending any money!

Publish Guest Posts On Smaller Blogs

When it comes to guest posting, the key is to choose smaller blogs that are relevant to your industry and niche.

If you’re in a niche like a web development, then you should be looking for websites with a similar audience as you. These can be found by searching keywords related to your topic on Google (for example “web developer blogs”).

Once you have a list of potential sites that publish content related to yours, take some time to look at their content and browse around their website. You want to find something that fits the following criteria:

Final Thoughts

Upwork is an excellent source of income for freelancers, but it can also be a great place to get started with freelance work. It has a vibrant community of professionals and clients looking to connect. There are many ways that you can use Upwork to build your reputation as a freelancer, whether you’re looking for full-time work or part-time work on the side.

If you want to use Upwork as your first client, then you must make sure your profile is up to par before reaching out to potential clients. This article has given you some tips on how to do this. I hope that they help!

Further Reading

Here are some additional resources to further enhance your knowledge on creating a great Upwork profile:

Jamie Johnson Writes: Create an Upwork Profile

Learn how to craft a compelling Upwork profile that showcases your skills and attracts clients.

Creatibly: How Do I Write a Great Upwork Profile?

Gain insights into writing an impressive Upwork profile that effectively highlights your expertise and increases your chances of getting hired.

Better Marketing: 7 Easy Tips to Create a Winning Upwork Profile & Land Clients

Discover seven actionable tips to create a winning Upwork profile that attracts clients and sets you apart from the competition.

FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about creating a standout Upwork profile:

How can I optimize my Upwork profile to attract clients?

To optimize your Upwork profile, focus on the following:

• Use a professional profile photo that represents your brand.
• Craft a compelling headline and overview that showcases your skills and expertise.
• Highlight relevant experience and achievements.
• Include a portfolio of your best work.
• Request endorsements and testimonials from previous clients.

What should I include in the overview section of my Upwork profile?

In your overview section, provide a concise and compelling summary of your skills, experience, and what you can offer to clients. It’s essential to showcase your unique value proposition and explain how you can help clients achieve their goals.

How important is it to have a portfolio on my Upwork profile?

Having a portfolio on your Upwork profile is crucial as it allows clients to see your past work and assess your skills. It provides evidence of your capabilities and helps clients make informed decisions when hiring freelancers.

How can I make my Upwork profile stand out from the competition?

To make your Upwork profile stand out, consider the following:

• Use a unique headline that grabs attention.
• Customize your overview to highlight your unique strengths.
• Showcase your best work in a well-curated portfolio.
• Obtain positive reviews and ratings from satisfied clients.
• Continuously update and improve your profile with relevant skills and experiences.

Should I include my rates on my Upwork profile?

Including your rates on your Upwork profile is a personal choice. It’s advisable to provide an estimated range or indicate that rates are negotiable. Discussing rates further during the client communication stage allows for better negotiation based on project specifics.

What Is Upwork?

Upwork is the world’s largest freelancing website. With more than 15 million registered users and a database of over 2 million businesses, it’s easy to see why so many people trust Upwork to find their next great employee or job.

How Does Upwork Work?

It’s simple: you post your project or job, browse our database of talented individuals from all over the globe (including some of our top-rated experts), select one based on their profile, interview them over video chat or phone call if necessary, hire them once you’re satisfied with their skill set and experience level and then watch your project get done right!

How Do I Make My Upwork Profile Stand Out?

Here are some tips for making sure your profile stands out:

Write an effective headline – Use keywords in the title of your job post to let people know what kind of jobs you want to take on, what skills you have, and whether or not you have any certifications (for example, “looking for a web developer with SEO experience).

Put effort into writing the description of your work – This is where you can show off your skills and how they might apply to specific projects. Be sure to include details such as dates when working on projects or how long it took for them to be completed (if relevant).

Add links or references – Reference previous clients/customers and provide links back to their websites if appropriate (or include screenshots with permission). This will help potential employers see examples of past work and get a better idea of what kind of person they’re dealing with before reaching out about projects themselves!

How Do I Write A Good Overview On Upwork?

To get jobs on Upwork, you need to stand out from the competition. Writing an impressive overview is one way to do this and get noticed by potential clients. Your goal when writing an overview should be to give potential clients a sense of what makes me different from all other freelancers so that they’ll choose me over someone else. 

A good way to do this is by using statistics, such as how many hours per week it takes for me complete tasks or how much experience working remotely has taught me about communication with my clients. Once you’ve set yourself apart from other freelancers in this way, it will be easier for clients looking for top-quality work from experienced individuals who value deadlines and deliverables over everything else!