Creative services are a must for any business or brand, and getting those services taken care of can be a real challenge. Not only does it take a talented professional to execute them, but it also typically takes more than one. After all, a skilled video editor likely won’t be able to write your content.
So, when you need someone to design your logo or build your website, where do you go? There are several options out there. Today, we’ll cover two- Project Catalog through Upwork and Unlimited Creative Services with Flocksy.
With the Project Catalog option, you’ll still be working with a freelancer, and it plays out in a similar model to Fiverr.
Unlike using a freelancer, an unlimited creative service allows you to get the content you need for your business with no monthly cap and a faster turnaround time for one flat monthly rate.
Here, we’ll discuss the best option for ongoing creative asset demands. You’ll see that while we both offer creative services, you’ll get so much more with Flocksy and have a reliable monthly payment to help keep your budget in order.
In this Upwork vs Flocksy review, we’ll cover:
Let’s dive in.
An Upwork vs Flocksy Comparison Table
To begin, here’s a side-by-side comparison:
| Features | Upwork Project Catalog | Flocksy |
| Pay Structure | Pay-Per-Project | Flat-Rate Monthly |
| Unlimited Revisions? | Not usually, set by the creative | Yes |
| Graphic Design (yes/no) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Development (yes/no) | Yes | Yes, on higher tier |
| Video Editing (yes/no) | Yes | Yes, on higher tier |
| Voiceovers (yes/no) | Yes | Yes |
| Copywriting (yes/no) | Yes | Yes |
| Custom Illustrations (yes/no) | Yes | Yes |
| Motion Graphics (yes/no) | Yes | Yes, on higher tier |
| Average Turnaround Time | Depends on the Project & Set By the Creative | 24 to 48 hours |
| Money Back Guarantee? | Payment Protection | 14 days |
| Project Managers? | No | Yes |
Cost- One-Time Fee vs. Monthly Rate
Cost varies wildly on Upwork through the Project Catalog. The freelancers set the amount they charge to complete the task and the turnaround time. There are tiers that you can choose from on each project that allow you to pick from Starter, Standard, and Advanced. Typically, these tiers affect the scope of the work, such as how many social graphics they can complete or the complexity of the image created. It can also change depending on how many words you’re getting written if it’s a copywriting project.
Additionally, with copywriting projects, there’s also a breakdown for the number of words per day you can get, the research the writer will do, and how many different pieces of content they’ll write as a part of a single project. It seems common that 500 words of SEO website content can take anywhere from two to four or more days. For something like a 500-word blog, it can take anywhere from one to four days, but again it varies significantly because the freelancer determines the rates and turnaround time.
The unique pricing and turnaround time are the same for all the project categories across the Upwork Project Catalog. You’ll pay that fee upfront, and the funds will be placed in escrow. Once the work is complete and you approve the results, the funds are released to the creative.
If you don’t approve the work but only need a revision, you can release a partial payment and have the creative perform the necessary updates. How many times you can request a revision is determined by the creative.
You can dispute an amount or reject work. However, this process gets a little tricky, but Upwork can provide mediation services or final escalation to arbitration.
At Flocksy, we offer three plans that include unlimited copywriting, design services, video editing, web dev, voiceovers, and more. No matter which plan you choose, you’ll always get a project manager to guide you, unlimited requests and revisions, access to our native platform for easy project management, source files, and the various file types you need for the large distribution of your assets. You’ll also have total ownership of the designs and get a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Our plans look like this:
- Silver– $499 monthly includes a design project queue, where a team of designers works on your projects on a first-come, first-served basis. You’ll have a creative team for all your requests that can design any graphics or custom illustrations you need. The team is US-daytime based and provides a 24 to 48-hour turnaround time, with many projects returning in as little as 12 hours. You’ll also get a dedicated project manager and advanced communication and update capabilities with the Zapier integration, which connects Flocksy to Trello, Slack, Asana, Google Drive, email, & more. You’ll also be able to use the internal dashboard’s Message Center to leave comments and revisions in the project thread or ask questions in the general thread.
- Gold– $995 monthly includes everything above in addition to copywriting, video editing, motion graphics, logos & brand guides, and voice-over work. You also get double the output with faster turnarounds. Revisions requests can also be made through video and audio with Loom Video Messaging.
- Platinum– $1,495 monthly includes everything above and triple the output. You’ll also have web development projects, which include PSD/Figma/Sketch to HTML, PSD/Figma/Sketch to Elementor, PSD/Figma/Sketch to Drag-and-Drop Builders, and PSD/Figma/Sketch to Divi.
The Zapier integration and Loom video messaging services make a significant difference, too. Communicating and revisions are that much easier when you’re communicating in a place you’re familiar with and can even dictate your needs into a recording. All that and more is possible with the Flocksy + Zapier integration.
Getting Started & Platform Guidance
Because the Project Catalog on Upwork isn’t a comprehensive service, there isn’t an onboarding process. The Upwork community provides the domain where individual projects can be posted. They do provide a help and support section that can answer questions you may have, but there isn’t a demo or walkthrough available.
Flocksy works differently. You aren’t choosing to work with a single freelancer who determines the price and turnaround time. You’ll be part of a monthly subscription that covers various creative needs with one upfront, unchanging monthly rate. You’ll have access to a team of creatives who’ll tackle all your requests with several people available at any one time.
We provide demos of our all-in-one platform before sign-up as well. However, you’ll also receive a demo once you’ve signed up, too. Your project manager can also help answer questions through a video or phone call. Plus, you can always reach out to them through the Message Center chat or Slack via Zapier whenever you need.
Our project managers are one of our most loved features because they’re there for you right from the get-go. They’ll always be there to guide you through another demo as a refresher or provide a walkthrough for new sub-users. Your PM helps you to keep things running smoothly at every turn.
Also, you can peruse the dashboard as you run projects, send video messages, or just start requesting projects right away. You’ll get responses from talented creatives within hours. You can also use our Message Center to discuss projects with your creatives, including pre-vetted graphic artists, video editors, writers, and voice-over performers.
How It Works
The Project Catalog on Upwork is a collection of the most popular services on the platform pre-set as a one-time job you can buy. They offer three tiers of service throughout the many categories. You’ll first browse through the options to find the type of work you need. Each project comes with a description of the job and the tiers, and you can look at the portfolio for each freelancer behind the project.
From there, you can choose the tier you want and buy the project from the creative. They’ll begin work as soon as you purchase and provide the necessary project requirements and references.
Last, you’ll approve the project results once the creative sends proofs to you to review. Once approved, the professional will receive the fixed amount you paid that has been waiting in escrow. Each project will likely have a number of possible revisions listed among the tier options should you need some updates before approval.
Starting a project on Flocksy is completely different from Upwork, but it is very simple and straightforward.
When you sign up for our service, it all begins with choosing the plan that’s right for your business needs. We have the three mentioned above that cover unlimited requests and revisions for various creative services. Once you’ve chosen a plan, you’ll create a login for the online dashboard and be able to start requesting projects immediately.
No matter what type of request you start, the process is easy. The intelligent briefs will walk you through the info you need to provide and give you several fields where you can include the necessary details and references. You’ll also have unlimited brand buckets that store your brand guides, colors, logos, and all types of relevant files. Attaching them to your briefs is a simple point-and-click. These are especially useful when you’re serving multiple brands or have several of your own businesses.
Flocksy creatives can also look at previously approved designs for reference and inspiration, showing them the styles you like.
Once you submit your request, a creative from your Flocksy team will take on the task and begin work. They’ll get results back to you quickly, which you can then approve or submit revisions. You can request as many revisions as you want to ensure the final result is perfect. When you approve the project, you’ll get all the necessary files to use your assets immediately. As soon as one project finishes, the next one in the queue will move up and be assigned to a team member.
You can also invite team members to a project. That way, if you find someone who you love to work with and who provides great results, they can keep working on all your projects.
If you even have questions about projects, deadlines, or the platform in general, you’ll have a dedicated project manager who will be there to help. You can contact them over the phone, through email, chat, or even video messaging. They’ll also provide a platform demo when you first sign up to help you familiarize yourself with how it works.
Turnaround Time
The turnaround times on Upwork vary greatly depending on what type of project you’re asking for and the creative who you book for the work. It can range from one to five days and sometimes even longer.
Here, we’ll get your graphics and content back in roughly 24 to 48 hours.
Flocksy can also deliver projects in less than 24 hours for simple designs and projects. You’ll also see a timer on each project, which indicates when to expect your first drafts. When you’ve approved your designs, you’ll immediately be able to download them and start using them.
Quality & Talent
Quality also varies when you’re working with several different freelancers who are providing services through Upwork. While they do receive ratings, and you can choose to avoid those with lower stars, it’s uncertain if Upwork vets the creatives. They also use Job Success Scores to indicate how well a freelancer meets or exceeds client expectations. When you become a client on Upwork, you’ll also receive a Job Success Score, which shows that you uphold your end of the bargain when working with freelancers.
You can also check out the individual freelancer’s portfolio of work.
At Flocksy, you won’t be working with a new freelancer whenever you need a job, and inviting a team member back to projects is more manageable. We can also ensure that you’ll work with a pre-vetted professional who has been through rigorous screenings and is held to the highest quality standard. You’ll be working with an experienced creative who understands current trends and can provide quality work that suits your brand and message.
You’ll also build a long-term relationship with your team, making it that much easier to get quality results because your team members will get to know you and your brand exceptionally well.
Here are some examples of our work.
To see examples of the work you can get from Upwork freelancers, you can view their profiles individually.
Communication
Upwork communication is done on their native platform. They have a messaging system as well as direct messages. You can also schedule a Zoom meeting with your freelancer and use the Loom video messaging service to send a quick recording of you, your screen, or both to your freelancer if you have questions or need revisions.
At Flocksy, we also offer an in-platform messaging center. You can reach out to your project manager via email, video message, Message Center chat, or Slack with the Zapier integration. You can even give them a call.
Messaging your team in the Message Center is easy with the chat’s general and project threads, which, again, you can sink up with your favorite app like Slack with Zapier. All your conversations will be stored in unique threads, so comments, updates, and questions are all organized by project or general use.
We also provide Loom video messaging for providing comments, asking questions, detailing your needs, and providing revisions. In whatever way you communicate best, that’s what we want you to be able to do.
We also pride ourselves on the client-writer relationships you build here. When you start with us, you’ll start building your team of trusted team members who truly “get” your brand. These creative professionals can provide even better results and faster because they’ve taken the time to get to know you.
And if you’re looking for something a little different, you can open up your request to the entire Flocksy team to get new perspectives.
Even better, your deadline won’t suffer if your Project Catalog freelancer suddenly gets sick or has an emergency because you’ll have a team at your disposal.
Wrapping Up
If you only need one job and are not in a rush, a Project Catalog request could be the way to go. You’ll have dozens and dozens to choose from, so chances are you’ll find something you can work with to accomplish your goals.
However, Flocksy offers graphic design, custom illustrations, copywriting, video editing, motion graphics, web dev, and more, taking care of all your creative needs under one roof. You’ll get unlimited requests for all your ongoing needs and unlimited revisions. Plus, you get a dedicated project manager, quicker turnaround times, and enhanced communication options. We’ll also be there throughout the project to ensure everything is going smoothly, you get your results on time, and the quality meets expectations.
We can handle all your ongoing creative needs, from copy to video to coding, and we can do it on a streamlined platform where you can easily organize your projects and communicate with your team. When you need consistent work, you’re better off with an all-inclusive option. For the highest quality in multiple creative services, Flocksy is the right choice.
To learn more about starting a project with Flocksy for yourself, be sure to check out the Services and Pricing pages. You can also shoot us an email through the contact form or reach out over the phone at (877) 263-7389.