Caleb Ulku teaches a specific Upwork strategy for finding 'desperate clients' — those who can't attract freelancers because they posted jobs in the wrong category or used unclear/missing keywords. He draws an analogy to early eBay arbitrage, where misspelled listings sold below market value. The core tactic is using Upwork's 'number of proposals' filter (set to fewer than 5) to surface overlooked jobs that are either miscategorized (e.g., web dev jobs posted under SEO) or posted by brand-new clients who don't know industry terminology. He walks through real examples showing high-budget jobs with zero competition, arguing these are ideal entry points for newer freelancers to build reviews and expand into larger ongoing work.
A strategy on Upwork where freelancers target clients who are struggling to find help, either because the job is unusual/esoteric or because it was posted in the wrong category, resulting in very few competing proposals.
View concept page →An Upwork search filter that limits job results to listings with fewer than five proposals, helping freelancers identify underserved opportunities with less competition.
View concept page →The Upwork success principle of accepting small or unusual jobs as entry points to build relationships with clients, leading to larger ongoing work and positive reviews.
View concept page →A situation where a client posts a job in an incorrect Upwork category, causing it to be missed by the most qualified freelancers and resulting in very few proposals.
View concept page →Unusual or niche jobs on Upwork that don't fit established freelancer workflows, making them less competitive and ideal for newer freelancers willing to tackle non-standard tasks.
View concept page →The primary guest and SEO expert featured in the video, founder of an AI SEO agency that developed the Core 30 local SEO methodology and scaled to 97 plumber clients using AI-driven content and local link-building strategies.
View concept page →The common misconception that 'payment unverified' on Upwork signals a scam or risky client, when in reality Upwork encourages new clients to post jobs before completing payment verification.
View concept page →The observation that Upwork's job search algorithm is poor, meaning miscategorized or oddly-titled jobs receive very little visibility, creating opportunities for attentive freelancers.
View concept page →The practice of estimating a client's true willingness to spend based on Upwork's suggested rate ranges and the scope of work described, even when the client's listed budget seems low or unclear.
View concept page →A historical example used to illustrate the concept of finding mispriced or mislisted opportunities — buying eBay items listed in wrong categories or with typos at below-market prices and relisting them correctly for profit.
View concept page →A paid feature on Upwork where clients pay extra to have their job shown to more freelancers, which when combined with few proposals signals a particularly desperate and high-value client.
View concept page →The strategy involves focusing on jobs that have fewer than five proposals instead of competing with hundreds of freelancers for popular jobs. Desperate clients can't find freelancers for two main reasons: (1) the job is weird, esoteric, or has strange requirements that don't fit established freelancer processes, or (2) the client posted the job in the wrong category or used typos/missing keywords in their job posting, making it hard for relevant freelancers to find. You can filter for these opportunities using Upwork's 'number of proposals' filter to surface jobs with fewer than five applicants.
Upwork has added a 'number of proposals' filter in the job search section. By selecting 'fewer than five proposals,' you can immediately narrow down job listings to only those with very few applicants. For example, filtering SEO jobs this way reduced 461 active listings down to just 74, many of which had been posted hours ago with almost no competition. This filter is especially useful if you're struggling to get your proposals noticed or can't find good jobs to apply to.
There are two main reasons: First, the job may be unusual, esoteric, or have strange requirements that don't fit neatly into what most established freelancers offer. Second — and more commonly — the client may have posted the job in the wrong category or failed to use standard industry keywords. For example, a client needing web development work might post in the SEO category, or a client needing local SEO might not use the term 'SEO' at all in their posting. This means relevant freelancers searching in the correct categories never see the job, leaving it with very few proposals.
No, you should not be scared away by an unverified payment status. When a new client creates an Upwork account, Upwork actually encourages them to post a job before verifying their payment information. So an unverified payment simply means the client is brand new to the platform and hasn't completed that step yet — it doesn't mean they are fraudulent or unwilling to pay. Many of the best low-competition opportunities come from brand-new clients who created their account specifically to post that one job.
Clients who post unusual or esoteric jobs often have broader needs beyond that one specific task. For example, a client dealing with a strange Facebook issue likely needs ongoing help with other related problems. By solving their immediate weird problem, you get your foot in the door, earn a positive review, and position yourself as their go-to freelancer for larger, ongoing work. The strategy is to take those small, odd jobs and use them as a springboard to build a relationship and expand the scope of work over time.
The presenter compares it to an early eBay arbitrage strategy from about 20 years ago. On early eBay, items listed in the wrong categories or with typos in the brand name or description would sell far below market value because buyers couldn't find them through normal searches. Savvy buyers would find these undervalued listings, purchase them, relist them with correct information, and pocket the difference. Similarly, on Upwork, jobs posted in the wrong category or with missing keywords get very few proposals, giving sharp freelancers a major competitive advantage — just like that eBay arbitrage opportunity.
One example shown was a real estate client looking for directory submission and local SEO help. The client never used the word 'SEO' in their job title or description — they simply described wanting their services in front of local clients. The client had created their Upwork account exclusively to post this job after a friend recommended Upwork. Because the standard SEO keyword was absent, the posting received fewer than five proposals despite being three hours old. The job had a three-to-six month timeline at expert-level rates ($35–$65/hour minimum per Upwork's guidance), potentially worth $5,000 or more in total.
Upwork's search algorithm is described as 'absolutely terrible.' This means that when clients post jobs with incorrect category selections or missing keywords, those jobs don't surface in the searches of relevant freelancers. While this is a problem for clients who can't find help, it's an advantage for freelancers who know to use the 'number of proposals' filter and browse manually. These misposted jobs have very little competition, allowing a skilled freelancer to stand out easily and potentially land high-paying work with almost no competition.
Several types of jobs are commonly misposted in the SEO category when they actually belong elsewhere: (1) Web development jobs — such as improving website load speed and technical fixes, which belong in web dev; (2) Coding jobs — such as work requiring expertise in tools like HAProxy; (3) Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) jobs — such as optimizing Etsy conversion rates; and (4) Local SEO/directory submission jobs where the client doesn't know the right terminology. These mispostings result in very few proposals from qualified freelancers who are searching in the correct categories.
When a client pays extra to boost their job listing (indicated by a '+' symbol on Upwork), it signals they are highly motivated to find a freelancer — they're investing additional money to get more visibility. If such a job still has fewer than five proposals despite being boosted, it represents an exceptional opportunity. The client is clearly desperate, has money to spend, and has a proven track record on the platform. For example, a client who spent $60,000 on Upwork with a 4.5-star rating was paying to boost a simple Yoast settings update job that still had under five proposals — a quick, easy task that could also lead to a long-term relationship with a high-value client.
Yes, it's still worth applying. Many clients who post jobs with seemingly low budgets simply don't know the market rate for the service they need — they created their Upwork account specifically to post that job and have no frame of reference for pricing. Upwork itself will inform them of typical rates during the process. The key is that their willingness to spend is often much higher than what they initially listed, and getting your proposal in front of them with fewer than five competitors gives you the opportunity to educate them on proper pricing and potentially land a significant contract.
For new freelancers especially, the 'number of proposals' filter is invaluable. Instead of competing against hundreds of established freelancers with strong profiles and reviews, you're competing against fewer than five people — sometimes zero. This dramatically increases the chance that a client will actually read your profile and cover letter. The jobs found this way are often from brand-new clients who are unfamiliar with Upwork norms, making them more open to working with newer freelancers. Winning even one or two of these jobs builds your review history, which is the foundation for long-term success on the platform.
A 'desperate client' on Upwork is defined by two characteristics: (1) They cannot find a freelancer willing or able to do their job — either because the job is unusual, esoteric, or has strange requirements outside typical freelancer workflows, or because the job was posted in the wrong category or without standard keywords, making it invisible to the right freelancers. (2) They have a genuine need and often the budget to pay for it — they're not low-quality clients, they're simply clients who, through no fault of their own, have been unable to connect with the right freelancer through normal platform dynamics.
The Etsy CRO job was posted in the SEO category, but it was actually a Conversion Rate Optimization job — a different discipline. The client was offering $40–$60 per hour for 10–30 hours per week. Even at the low end (10 hours/week at $50/hour), that's $500/week or roughly $2,000/month, with the client indicating a budget of up to $4,300 to solve the problem. Despite being three hours old and offering strong pay, it had fewer than five proposals — purely because CRO specialists searching in the correct category never saw it, and SEO freelancers didn't recognize it as their area.
The mindset shift is to stop chasing the most visible, popular jobs and instead actively seek out overlooked opportunities. Most freelancers default to searching for jobs with the most activity and best descriptions, which also means the most competition. This strategy requires thinking like an arbitrageur — looking for market inefficiencies where a client's need exists but hasn't been properly matched with the right freelancers due to categorization errors, missing keywords, or unusual job requirements. It also requires seeing 'weird' or 'misposted' jobs not as red flags but as hidden gems with less competition and often significant earning potential.