**Boosted Profiles

These are the quick basics, but please be sure to also review the customer-facing help articles, as well, for more details!

Freelancers will have the option to promote greater visibility for themselves by boosting their profile which will highlight them at the top of the client’s Proposal Manager dashboard under “Invite Freelancers”. 

This “Invite Freelancers” list showcases the freelancers that our platform recommends to clients based on their job post. If a freelancer matches the criteria of our platform to be displayed here + they are boosted, they’ll be shown at the TOP of the list:

Freelancers can boost their profile from Find Work Home or My Profile.

It works by allowing freelancers to bid to appear at the top of the freelancer search results on jobs that match the target L3 category of their ad. Each time they appear in a promoted slot and get clicked on by a client, they are charged their bid amount. 

Getting started with  boosting your profile is easy:

(a) They select the  boost your profile option

(b) specify the L3 category they wish to target

(c) specify the number of Connects they want to pay per click

(d) specify the total limit they want to place on their spending

Eligibility:

It is possible to turn ON this feature with an incomplete profile, BUT there are minimum requirements the freelancer must meet in order to turn it on:

• Profile Overview complete
• Profile Photo added
• At least one Employment History item added
• At least one Skills tag added
• Profile is not set to private

From “My profile” view:

From “My work” view:

Under “Promote your profile” with a popup modal if that shares more info about it if they hover over “NEW”.

Setting up “Boost your profile”: 

If clicking the pencil icon on either of the previous “Boost your profile” sections. They fill in:

• Category to Specialty to help showcase to the right client audience
• Bid per click to Limit to enter in their Connect limit
• End date, which is optional - in case they’d like it to shut off by a specific date, otherwise they can manually turn it off whenever they’d like

At this point, they may see a few different types of error messages:

• If their profile lacks any information from the minimum requirements, they’ll see red notifications at the top specific to what’s missing, but if they click the links, it’ll link them to that section of their profile for updating
• If they enter a bid that will surpass the amount of Connects they have in their account, they’ll receive a yellow notification, but will also have a link to “Buy more Connects” if they wish to do so.

Stop / Change Boost

The freelancer can navigate back to their Boost settings at any time by going back to Find Work or My Profile (as shown at the top of this drop-down).

To EDIT a boost, if they want to change what they’re boosting, they’ll want to simply stop their boost first, then turn it back on updating to the new criteria of their choosing.

To STOP a boost, they can click the pencil icon > “Stop Boosting” > select the reason why and submit:

An AUTOMATED boost stop will occur is there’s insufficient Connects to continue keeping it on. A notification will alert in the bell icon if that happens:

If they click the “Buy more” link, we’ll direct them to purchasing more showing a second message, in more detail, as to why the Boost stopped:

Once clicking “Buy Connects”, they’re able to select the amount of Connects they’d like to purchase, then click “Restart boost” to be charged + reactive their Boost:

Checking Boost Activity

FLs can check their MyStats to verify the impressions and clicks received while profile boost is running.

Navigate to analytics MyStats page and In the existing Profile Clicks graph, there’s an added dimension to drill into clicks resulting from “Boosted profile”.

When looking for candidates for their job post, if under Invite Freelancers, this is where clients will recognize the paid promotion in their search results. 

Any freelancers that boosted their profile that match the categories of the client’s job post will show a “Boosted” ad tooltip and will be displayed at the TOP of the client’s list: 

Note - there are more FAQs that are FL and CL-facing that can be found directly on the customer-facing help articles:

• Boosted Profiles (for clients)
• Boost Your Profile (for freelancers)

Reactive FAQs:

Why are you doing this?

Thanks for your feedback. We created this to help freelancers increase their visibility, and to help clients see who’s eager to work right now. The feature is optional, and clients can still find and engage with your profile if it isn’t boosted. We’ll pass your feedback on to the right teams. 

What if there is a tie for the top spots? 

An auction determines which profiles get boosted. Our system takes bid amount and ad relevance among other factors into consideration in the event of a tie.

What are the benefits of boosting my profile? (reactive version, but another version on help page)

Boosted Profiles are helpful to freelancers who are looking for work right away, and are willing to spend Connects for increased client visibility. 

Can I boost my proposal for Enterprise job posts?

No, only marketplace job posts are eligible for Boosted Profiles at this time. 

I went to my client account, found my own Boosted Profile, and clicked on it. Will I be charged?

Yes, any client interactions with a Boosted Profile will be charged. 

Do I get my Connects back if I boost my profile and do not get hired?

No. We charge if a client clicks on your Boosted Profile, so charges are based on clicks, not hires. This feature was designed to get your profile extra attention; it doesn’t guarantee successful profile hires or outcomes. Like any business, you may need to try different strategies (like changing the bid, budget, or work categories) to attract the right clients. 

Are my Connects refunded if I stop my boost/nobody has viewed my profile?
We only charge your Connects balance when a client engages with your profile from its boosted position, so if you stop your boost before anyone has interacted with your boosted profile, you will keep your Connects.. Refunds for this feature are not available at this time. 

Will I know which part of my Boosted Profile the client clicked on?

No, it won’t show whether a client has clicked view, save, invite, or hire on your Boosted Profile. We may look to update this feature in the future, stay tuned! 

I hired a freelancer with a Boosted Profile and am unhappy with my experience with them. Why would you recommend them to me?

We’re sorry you weren’t happy with your experience. Boosted Profiles are not recommendations made by Upwork. It is a paid promotional ad product that allows freelancers to promote themselves to clients who match their target audience.  We can never guarantee successful project outcomes, and always recommend you vet anybody you’d like to work with carefully before starting.

Why are you recommending talent to me with a low JSS / profile rating?

Boosted Profiles are not recommendations made by Upwork. It is a paid promotional ad product that allows freelancers to promote themselves to clients who match their target audience.. We can never guarantee successful project outcomes, and always recommend you vet anybody you’d like to work with carefully before starting. 

Isn’t this the same as Boosted Proposals? 

Boosted Profiles is a way to expand your reach by targeting more than one client whose jobs match the category in which you're boosting. Each Boosted Proposal is highly-targeted to one specific job, showcasing your propensity to satisfy a client's needs for a specific project. Learn more about Boosted Proposals.

If I boost both my profile and proposal, will I show on top of a client’s results (invite list and proposal list)? 

You can use the Boosted Proposal and the Boosted Profile feature at the same time. Both operate differently, but we can’t guarantee you’ll be boosted for either feature. 

Upwork is not listening! We have shared feedback that boosting doesn’t work and hurts the marketplace!

Thanks for your feedback and we’re sorry you feel unheard. Boosting is always optional and may not be helpful for every freelancer or client. We know freelancers work hard to build their experience and reputation on the platform. Boosted Profiles is another way to help you drive more  profile views that could lead to more invites.

I boosted my profile  several times and hasn’t led me to any success. What makes this feature different? 

Our goal with these features is to increase your visibility, but we can never guarantee successful outcomes. 

This is a money-grab by Upwork. Why aren’t you listening to us? 

Thanks for your feedback, we’ll make sure to pass it to the right team. While we do aim to profit as a business, our primary goal is to create value for both clients and freelancers. Our Boosted features are always optional.