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Upwork vs. direct referrals - one sucked way worse for me
I spent like 6 months grinding on Upwork with a profile that looked solid, got maybe 3 real bites and one guy who wanted me to build a whole Shopify store for $200. Then I asked a buddy who runs a local print shop if he knew anyone needing help with their online store, and he hooked me up with a cafe owner in Austin who paid me $1,500 upfront for a basic site. The difference was huge, on Upwork you're fighting 50 people from other countries who bid $5 an hour, while a direct referral skips all that noise and they actually trust you from the jump. Has anyone else found that personal connections totally smoke those job platforms for international client work?
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the_elizabeth9d agoMost Upvoted
A buddy of mine named Derek tried Upwork for his freelance design work and got stuck bidding against someone from Bangladesh who offered to do a full branding package for $50. After three months of nothing, his cousin's neighbor who ran a small bakery in Denver asked him to design their menu boards and website for $800 cash. @wade_anderson is right about the headache part, Derek said the bakery owner actually listened to his ideas instead of treating him like a robot from a catalog.
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wade_anderson9d ago
Did you actually save any cash by going direct, or was it just less of a headache dealing with people who actually know what a website costs?
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