Etcetera spring 2024 in numbers
Spring flew by so fast! Last week, we had our seasonal meeting to discuss Upwork news and our agency's results and achievements for the spring period. Here's a recap for you
Upwork Highlights
We didn’t mention this in our winter report, but Upwork's profitability has likely increased due to the new CEO and some policy changes on the platform. In Q4 2023, Upwork turned a profit for the first time.
Upwork forecasted to increase its profit by 43% in 2024. Starting in December, all payments for freelancers and clients from which Upwork can earn income have gradually increased in several steps.
For example, one of the recent changes is in Direct Contracts. Previously, freelancers paid a 3.4% transaction fee, which has been canceled. Now, they will pay a 5% service fee on the earnings from those contracts. Read more
Another change is the increased number of connects required per proposal, now 8-23 connects instead of 4-16. The cost per connect remains $0.15 USD.
Upwork has introduced its own AI - UMA (Upwork’s Mindful AI), which also helps clients find the right freelancer and draft job posts.
Freelancers with the Plus package can now use Chat GPT-4 within Upwork, which is also part of UMA.
The Boosted Profile feature has been improved with better ad display algorithms and includes reputation signals like "Skills Match" and "JSS" (Job Success Score).
What's Happening at Etcetera
We celebrated 6 birthdays 🎉
In May, we welcomed Alex (read about it here) – who perfectly embodies our team’s spirit of “freelancer to the core.” Our team was created with people like him in mind!
We are now a team of 36!
To be honest, this was probably the toughest spring our agency has ever faced, likely due to platform changes. Adjustments are necessary with any change. By June, we found our footing and are ready to work hard. In the first weeks of summer, we opened as many contracts as we did throughout the entire spring. Despite the upcoming vacation season for many clients, we are expecting a very productive summer.
Our Summer Plans - same as spring: survive this turbulent period
We are still searching for our ideal Head of Sales Department and aim to improve our conversion rate next season.
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