The Smartest Proposal I’ve Ever Received as a Client!

A few days ago, I hired a video editor for my channel, and something stood out to me in the process that anyone who is struggling to find clients can learn from and use to really make a difference in their client search.

I posted the job on Upwork and received many proposals. I have the habit of looking at every single application anytime I post a job anywhere, so I went through all the proposals. But even before I finished reviewing them, I had a good idea of who I was going to hire.

I didn’t look at anyone’s job history on Upwork. Instead, the very first thing I looked at was whether the person provided a link to samples of the videos they had edited. Some people said things like “Let me know if you want to see samples of my work,” and some didn’t even mention work samples at all; they only talked about what they could do.

And immediately, I archived all the ones who asked if I needed to see their work samples and the ones who didn’t even mention work samples.

The main reason is this: in the job description, I clearly mentioned, “Include some samples of the videos you edited,” because I was looking for someone with experience. So, anyone who didn’t provide a link to work samples either doesn’t have work samples or doesn’t like following instructions.

This is the first thing I want you to understand: Failure to follow instructions in a job application is a big red flag for clients. No matter what, before you apply for a job, make sure you read the job description, understand the job description, can do the job, and follow the instructions in the job description.

Remember I said I had already decided to hire someone even before I finished going through the proposals?

I’ll tell you why. When I decided I was going to hire that person, I hadn’t even looked through their Upwork profile. I didn’t know if that person was a beginner on Upwork. I didn’t know if they had any credibility or reviews. I decided to hire the person entirely based on their proposal.

That person managed to convince me they were the right fit entirely from their proposal, and I’ll tell you what they did.

That person did what none of the other freelancers did: they recorded a Loom video, shared their screen, and started with “Hey Sadiq…” They explained and showed me their editing process, along with samples of videos they had edited in their personal portfolio. By the time I finished watching the Loom video, I was convinced they were the right person for the job.

This is the key point of this post: It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner; if you’re willing to do more than what others are doing, you’re going to stand out.

Very few people are willing to go the extra mile in a proposal, and that gives anyone who is willing an advantage over all the others.

I know putting this kind of effort into each proposal takes a lot of time and work, but remember: the reward you’re after is life-changing. So I’m not surprised it takes that much effort.

I’ll end this by asking you this:

Are you willing to do what most people are not willing to do to stand out?