Because most proposals are about the freelancer, not the client – and they ignore the client’s instructions. When I posted a job on Upwork with a simple test (“start your proposal with GTftW”), 95% of applicants disqualified themselves.
Every client wants 3 questions answered before they happily hire you: Are you capable of doing this job properly? Can you deliver what you promised in a timely manner? Are you easy to work with?
The one I hired talked about my specific situation, included the details I asked for (problem, timeframe, price) and made it easy to get on a call.
A while back, I had something on my mind that’s probably more important for YOUR long-term success as a professional who’s trying to sell clients your products or services!
(copywriting, content writing, marketing, coaching, physical products, etc.)
Namely, why good clients don’t hire freelancers, contractors, and agencies.
You see…
It all started when I posted a job on Upwork looking for someone to speed up my website.
Why?
Because I’d noticed that most of my web pages loaded extremely slowly…
And this massively lowers the conversion rate on landing pages.
In fact, every SECOND of extra load time can cost you conversions…
And this is especially true on mobile!
Not good.
So – instead of trying to figure this out myself – I posted the following gig to find someone who could help me fix this issue for good:
Looking for a WordPress Page Speed Optimization Expert
Hey there,
If you’re a rockstar page speed optimization expert, this one’s for you.
Here’s the problem: lately, I noticed that my website started loading REALLY slowly, and I can’t seem to figure out why.
The website in question: www.gameofconversions.com
Granted, I was never the speediest website out there… but I still had scores between A-C in tools like GTMetrix.
But now… I’m getting E-s and F-s. I’m also failing Google’s Core Web Vitals (which – since I’m a content-based business, it’s pretty bad for SEO).
So here’s where YOU come in:
I need you to help me diagnose the problem(s), fix them, and upgrade the speed of my website so that pages load in 1-2 seconds.
I’m using WordPress + ThriveThemes + WP Rocket as my stack… so if you have experience in these tools, that’s a HUGE plus.
I’m also looking to get this done as early as possible because each day I’m losing subscribers because of this.
Here’s what I’m looking for in the ideal candidate:
-You have lots of experience optimizing the speed of WordPress websites
-[IMPORTANT] You’re reliable: you deliver what you promise on time… like you promised. I’m not looking for people who over-promise and under-deliver.
-You can help fix this fast
-You’re a great guy (or gal) whom I’d be happy to have a beer (or drink of your choice) with on a Friday afternoon.
That’s what I’m looking for.
Are you up for the challenge?
Please send me your proposal that includes the following details:
1 – WHY is my website slow
2 – WHAT can you do to help me fix it
3 – The amount of TIME you think you’d need
4 – HOW much would you charge for it
Also, please begin your proposal with “GTftW” as your first word (written EXACTLY like how I just wrote it).
The only way your proposal will be considered is if you also include this word written exactly how I wrote it!
Thanks for taking the time to read this job post.
Looking forward to your proposal :)
Cheers,
Csaba
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Send Me the Rapid Lead Activator →Why do most freelancer proposals fail?
Now…
I don’t usually use Upwork for these types of small gigs…
But due to the nature of this project, I wanted to find someone with a proven track record of success who can’t just hijack my website or break things without consequence.
(unless they want a ginormous stain on their Upwork profile)
However…
The trend I saw after less than 24 hours of posting the job was SHOCKING!
95% of “expert” applicants immediately disqualified themselves by doing something obviously stupid like:
🤦🏼♂️ Sending me a 2-page canned proposal with all their qualifications (don’t care)
🤦🏼♂️ Only talking about them, what they do, and how they’re the best (yeah, right)
🤦🏼♂️ Not including the CLEARLY laid-out instructions in their proposal (turning their reply into one big self-promotion)
🤦🏼♂️ IMPORTANT: Not including “GTftW” as their first word (which is soooo obviously a test to see if they actually pay attention and read the post)
And my favorite…
🤦🏼♂️ Cold-emailing me 3 pushy emails within 20 minutes with basically the same copy-pasted stuff about how great they are (really?!)
DUUUUUUUUDE…………
Are you freakin’ kidding me?????!!!
After ALL the quality trainings and resources on freelancing that are available nowadays, people STILL think this “oh look at me, I’m so professional”-style attitude works?
I was baffled!
And sure…
I’m probably biased since I also worked as a freelance copywriter for 5+ years…
But still, their lack of effort is pretty impressive.
Oh, and the other big thing: I received around 50 proposals for this gig in that first stretch…
And sorting through those needs A LOT of work.
Which is pretty much the opposite of
“I just wanna hire someone reliable who can fix this problem for me”
So PLEASE… for the Love of God…
If you’re a freelancer or you work with clients in any way…
DO try to make their life easier by following their instructions in the job post and delivering what they actually want.
What do clients look for before they hire you?
In fact, here’s a simple “cheat sheet” you can use from now on:
Introducing…
The 3 critical questions you MUST answer in your client’s mind before they happily hire YOU over anybody else:
Question #1 – Are you capable of doing this job properly?
Question #2 – Can you deliver what you actually promised in a timely manner?
Question #3 – Are you easy to work with who won’t create extra hassle?
Simply make sure your proposal answers these questions…
And you’ll automatically be ahead of 95% of your competition.
Makes sense?
Good.
Cuz this is REALLY important.
And I hope you implement this into your approach right away.
What did the bad proposals look like?
So I created a job post…
Published it…
And within just a few hours, I had 40+ proposals waiting for me to review…
PLUS dozens of cold emails sent directly to my Gmail account!
And almost immediately, it was 100% clear why 90% of these proposals were really bad:
They all used typical canned response templates
Here’s a specific example:
Hello
I will optimize your website and give you 90+ on both mobile and desktop (GOOGLE PAGE INSIGHT) (A Grade on GT Metrix less than 3 sec load time)
I will do my whole work on the staging site so that it will not affect functionality and design.
Generally, it will take 2 to 3 days to optimize the WordPress website
I will help you to improve your website speed Every second counts, The average user has no patience for a page that takes too long to load.
Here are my recently optimized websites:-
Project 1 = {LINK}
Project 2 = {LINK}
Project 3 = {LINK}
Your Website Speed can have a huge impact on your SEO rankings. Slow loading sites can actually increase your website bounce rate.
Optimizing your website speed will not only make the user experience better, but it also improves your rankings in search engines.
Here is how I will optimize your WordPress website
-Compress all images
-Configure a caching plugin
-Minify HTML, CSS, and Javascript files
-Disabling unnecessary features that slow your site down
-Image Optimization
-Fixing Bad Requests
-Minimizing the number of total requests.
After Optimization, you will see a huge difference in speed loading times. I will provide you Before and After Gtmetrix Speed Optimization reports.
I can start your project immediately and look forward to working with you.
Warm Regards
But at least this one had some useful information in it… so I give it a 3 for effort.
On the other hand, here’s another example that’s basically equivalent to shooting yourself in the foot with a shotgun (shortened – the original went on for a LOT longer):
Hi,
My name is [name], SEO/Social media/Paid ads expert and Certified from Google having more than 13 years of experience. I have great skills and can bring traffic/leads/sales for any small start-up to large organizations. I am good at doing: SEO, Social Media, PPC, Google Adwords, FB Ads, Email Marketing, Conversion rate optimization, User experience optimization, Content copywriting marketing, Amazon ads marketing, Website design and development
My recent project [website] has over: 5 MILLION VISITS per month, over 4 MILLION USER BASE, over 100,000 PREMIUM CUSTOMERS
[…a long list of on-page SEO, off-page SEO and social media “activities”…]
About Results: I can achieve top positions in Google in just 6 to 12 weeks time. And for social media, I can bring large number of shares/likes and followers.
Please let me if you have any queries, so that we can schedule a call or communicate via messages.
Looking forward to hear from you soon
I seriously can’t believe anyone would hire you from a cold email like that.
Now…
There were a few variations to these pitches, of course…
But 90% of proposals I received all used a similar structure…
Which is actually TERRIBLE for standing out and getting the job!
Why?
Let’s see…
#1 – Yes, yes, I KNOW you’re the hottest thing since sliced bread… but I don’t care about your accomplishments… I care about how YOU can help ME
#2 – I created a very specific job description… with some VERY simple but specific instructions… and yet, the VAST majority of applicants neglected those instructions.
#3 – As I said, most clients only care about 3 things:
– Are you capable of doing this job properly?
– Can you deliver what you actually promised in a timely manner?
– Are you easy to work with who won’t create extra hassle?
That’s it.
It’s not rocket science :)
And yet again, most proposals never really answered those questions.
Now, I could go on and on about the lack of effort these freelancers (or agencies) demonstrated…
But before you start hating me for “being condescending with these poor souls who are just trying to make a living”…
Please understand this:
I have nothing against these freelancers personally.
In fact, I’m sure most of them are wonderful people.
HOWEVER…
They HAVE to realize that this way of doing business ain’t cuttin’ it anymore
It just doesn’t work in my experience.
You MUST do something differently to stand out… because otherwise, you have no chance of making it.
(or you’re gonna keep struggling much more than you have to)
The ONLY way to get better and reach your goals is to discover your mistakes… and take practical steps to solve them.
That’s why I wanted to share these thoughts with you.
Who got the job (and why)?
So who did I end up hiring in the end?
A freelancer from India.
And wanna know why?
Because he stood out with a proposal that:
– Talked about my specific situation (and not his skills)
– Included the key details I was looking for (problem, timeframe, price)
– And – IMPORTANTLY – he was the ONLY ONE who proposed to have a call with me in an easy-to-do way.
(later, I got another proposal with a book a call CTA… but it was already too late)
Here’s what he wrote me:
GTftW 👋
Hello Csaba!
Thank you for inviting me to your project.
I have checked your website, I will improve your website performance and will bring down its load time to get loaded under 2.5 seconds with a 90+/100 on Google Page Speed Insights and GTMetrix test results.
Here are the latest Google PageSpeed Insights and GTMetrix test results:
– {LINK}
– {LINK}
The main cause of the slow speed is unoptimized JS/CSS and Youtube videos.
Screenshot: {LINK}
Screenshot: {LINK}
As per the standard procedure, I will take a complete backup of the production website and will create a staging website (a cloned version of the live website) to work with.
Once the staging website gets optimized and approved from your end then only the optimization changes will be updated on the production website.
The estimated time to optimize the website will be 2-4 days and the budget will be ${PRICE}
How about jumping over a quick call? I’d love to learn more about your project and how I can help you.
Here is my calendar: {CALENDAR LINK}
I’m looking forward to hearing from you!
Kind regards,
[Name]
Nothing fancy… but it hit the mark for me.
So we actually got on a call that afternoon…
Had a great chat…
He answered the 3 “magic” questions clients look for in a freelancer…
And within 20 minutes, I knew I was gonna hire him.
Simple as that.
How to write a proposal that gets you hired
1. Follow the instructions. If the client asks for a codeword, a format or specific details, give them exactly that. It’s the first test.
2. Talk about their situation, not your skills. “I have checked your website… the main cause is…” beats a list of qualifications.
3. Include what they asked for. Problem, what you’ll do, timeframe, price.
4. Answer the 3 questions. Capable? Will you deliver on time? Easy to work with?
5. Make the next step easy. A simple, low-effort way to get on a call.
And don’t send 3 pushy emails in 20 minutes.
If you want your proposals and copy to speak to what your dream clients actually care about, my Voice & Market X-Ray builds your Dream Client Profile + Voice DNA profile – so the AI writes in your voice, for the right people.
Free book + AI assistant
Turn the Leads Already Joining Your List Into Buyers – Faster
The Rapid Lead Activator reveals the psychology-based framework I use to write welcome sequences that sell – without hype. Normally $9.99 on Amazon, yours free. Plus a bonus AI assistant that writes your first 5 welcome emails for you – in minutes, not days.
Send Me the Rapid Lead Activator →-Csaba
