Having trouble getting your Upwork profile approved? You are most certainly not alone. There are bound to be limitations with so many freelancers already on their platform and so many more wanting to join. 

Unlike before, an application is required to join Upwork now. Once submitted, it typically takes 24 hours to get a response for your application. You will receive an email notification once your Upwork profile is approved or in some cases, declined.

Upwork looks into many aspects of your profile to decide whether to approve or decline your application. Upwork receives 10,000 applications daily.

This is why your profile has to stand out and your skills clearly can make valuable contributions to the platform.

If the combination of skills and experience on your profile does not match the opportunities on Upwork, your application will most likely be declined.

But don’t worry, you can still fix, complete, and optimize your profile to join Upwork and take advantage of the thousands of opportunities waiting for you.

To make sure that your Upwork profile will be approved, it is important to submit complete information about your skills, and experiences, and highlight your previous achievements and works.

Upwork admission is highly competitive with more than 10,000 freelancer applications daily. If your registration was declined, there is always a chance to update your skills and experience to make sure they accurately represent you.

Creating a winning profile is the first step to becoming a successful freelancer on Upwork.

These Upwork profile approval tips will help you create a 100% freelancer profile and get the opportunity to get clients.

Optimize Your Profile. It is important to understand that your profile must be complete and accurately represents your skills and experiences so that Upwork can match you with relevant projects.

This also gives your potential client clear information about you to help them decide if you are a good fit.

1. Upload a Professional-looking Profile Picture

Clients want to hire only trustworthy freelancers and your profile photo is one of the deciding factors in hiring you. As they say, a picture can say a thousand words. What does your picture say about you?

PRO TIP:

• Avoid pictures with a shady background
• Choose a photo that has clear natural light
• Look for a plain, solid uncluttered background
• The picture should focus on your face; wear a professional attire
• Smile! Clients find smiling freelancers more warm, friendly, and trustworthy.

2. Complete Your Title and Overview

The title is a very powerful tool that most freelancers tend to overlook. It is the first thing that clients see when they search for freelancers. Your overview will be visible when the client visits your profile. It is where you describe your skills and pitch your services.

Upwork Approval TIP:

Adding an intro video to your profile can be a great way to have an interactive preview of your skills and experiences. It is also a way to create a quick bond with the client, catch their attention and gain their trust.

Here is an example of an intro video for your inspiration:

Czarina de los Reyes-Guevara – Customer Service Manager

3. Do not Miss Out on Employment History

Adding relevant employment history on and off Upwork can help clients understand your background. You can add role titles and descriptions of your previous work as well as your job responsibilities. It is important to add work experiences that are related to the type of job you are offering.

PRO TIP:

As your freelance business grows, consider adding new entries for a few of your most impressive projects to help reconfirm your credibility.

Also read 15 Social Media Content Ideas to Boost Your Brand

4. Highlight the Best Work in Your Portfolio

Your portfolio is practically guaranteed to draw a potential client’s attention: It’s your chance to show—not just tell—the quality of your work and the value of your expertise.

Choose pieces that reflect your niche and help prove your specialization. If your skills aren’t particularly visual, try to find creative ways to explain the challenge behind each sample and how your work had an impact.

Aim to make your portfolio exciting, not just a copy of your “Employment history” information. By thinking of each piece as its own story—whether you use words, images, reports, or something else to do so—you’re more likely to get people to pay attention to the projects you want to share with them.

Here are a few different ways to approach each example:

• Case studies: Write a short story about a challenge you have solved or a business you have helped. 
• Snippets: Include excerpts of your work—you don’t need to use the entire project, especially if it’s large or complex. For example, you could include a summary of a longer document, or share a preview or clip of a larger piece of work.
• Screenshots: Take screenshots of your work, such as spreadsheets, research documents, apps, social media posts, or even anonymized Google Analytics campaign results.
• Results: Create a visual representation of your successes using diagrams, charts, or graphs.
• Testimonials: Have former colleagues or clients vouch for your skills by including a testimonial. Make sure to make any quotes or testimonials you’re using visually appealing.
• Samples of your own work: Portfolio samples do not necessarily need to be a piece of paid work you have done. Consider creating a small number of relevant work samples, especially if you aren’t able to showcase previous projects.

PRO TIP:

Link your professional accounts or website that will showcase more of your accomplishments.

5. Include your Educational Background and other Experiences.

Your education and other activities — such as volunteer positions, mentorship programs, online courses, and other extracurricular activities — can also help shape what you do and how you present yourself online.

Consider including a detailed description of each relevant education item by listing the institution’s name and program in chronological order, beginning with the most recent one.

PRO TIP:

You can also add informal education and activities in the “Other Experiences” section. This may include research projects, competitions, or other interests that could help illustrate your value.

6. Show off your success stories in your employment history

Use this section to highlight projects you worked on before joining Upwork.

If you’re new to freelancing, include information about your previous professional experience. To establish credibility, highlight any work you’ve done with top creative agencies or large clients.

Those with Upwork experience should highlight any long-term projects or notable projects to demonstrate expertise. Each position should include a summary of your responsibilities as well as examples of successful projects.

Additional tips to make your profile stand out

You may find inspiration viewing other freelancers’ profiles, but remember to make your profile original and unique.

Consider the following these Upwork profile tips:

• Make your profile about your clients. How can you help them?
• Be consistent with your strongest skills and leverage all profile sections to back up your skills (title, skills, overview, work history)
• Help establish trust and confidence by completing all sections
• Be concise and straightforward in your language
• Proofread each section carefully and update your profile regularly

And before you publish your profile, ask friends to give you feedback. Another good tactic is to read your profile out loud: It’s a great way to see if your profile flows well, has a nice rhythm, and sounds like you.