Buyer gives me 5 stars and now wants changes or refund

[Guest pedromleitao]

Ok, so this buyer hires me for a lyric video. I receive the lyrics file (full of typos and ghetto style talking, typical of certain hip hop artists hiring here on fiverr), and do the video. He asks for a revision, saying that the background should be different. Says nothing about the lyrics or text. I do the requested changes. He finishes the order, and rates me 5 stars. So far so good, typical experience for me.

But then… He comes back all pissed and says that the lyrics are missing words and have typos. I say that the lyrics are, word for word, what he sent me. He confirms, and accuses me of lack of professionalism because I didn’t “check and made sure they were correct”. Now he says I have to make changes (after the order is completed and rated) or he wants a refund.

What do?

[smashradio]

I would try to explain to him that your gig does not include proofreading service and that it is his responsibility to make sure the script is edited and correct before he sends it to you.

I always try to be helpful for my buyers. If a buyer leaves a five-star review and comes back a few weeks later with some changes (minor changes), I will be happy to help them out. If it’s more than a 5-minute job, I will explain why I have to charge extra for the changes. The buyer can choose to accept or move on.

For me, 100 % satisfaction is more important than losing 5 minutes of my life working for free to make some changes that will make the buyer happy, and this is sure to make them repeat customers.

But if a buyer comes in with an unreasonable request, after rating the order, because of mistakes they did, I will charge them extra to fix it.

It all comes down to whether or not this is major changes, and if you’re willing to go the extra mile for the buyer. During my time as a freelancer, I’ve learned that people are stupid, and it’s too bad stupidity isn’t painful - but normally they are good people who make mistakes, and need a helping hand.

[misscrystal]

Tell him that you completed the gig exactly as he requested and put a lot of work into it and he was happy with the results. Tell him it will require a second order if he needs changes made after the order is completed and approved by him as it was.

[Guest pedromleitao]

I would try to explain to him that your gig does not include proofreading service and that it is his responsibility to make sure the script is edited and correct before he sends it to you.

I always try to be helpful for my buyers. If a buyer leaves a five-star review and comes back a few weeks later with some changes (minor changes), I will be happy to help them out. If it’s more than a 5-minute job, I will explain why I have to charge extra for the changes. The buyer can choose to accept or move on.

For me, 100 % satisfaction is more important than losing 5 minutes of my life working for free to make some changes that will make the buyer happy, and this is sure to make them repeat customers.

But if a buyer comes in with an unreasonable request, after rating the order, because of mistakes they did, I will charge them extra to fix it.

It all comes down to whether or not this is major changes, and if you’re willing to go the extra mile for the buyer. During my time as a freelancer, I’ve learned that people are stupid, and it’s too bad stupidity isn’t painful - but normally they are good people who make mistakes, and need a helping hand.

Exactly, I’m just afraid because I’ve seen some horror stories of clients being able to refund gigs even after receiving the agreed on product.

Usually I don’t mind doing small tweaks even after delivery, the problem is that, as I work with video, 5 minutes of work turn into 1 hour of rendering / exporting / uploading, and by the way this buyer was talking he did not seem open to pay for that time (and I, honestly, wouldn’t even offer that option, not worth it for the risk of receiving a retaliatory bad review for not doing it for free).

[Guest pedromleitao]

Tell him that you completed the gig exactly as he requested and put a lot of work into it and he was happy with the results. Tell him it will require a second order if he needs changes made after the order is completed and approved by him as it was.

I’ll not do that, offer a paid revision - why work again with a client with this attitude, special given the high chances of getting a bad review back no matter the quality of the work.

[misscrystal]

I’ll not do that, offer a paid revision - why work again with a client with this attitude, special given the high chances of getting a bad review back no matter the quality of the work.

Then tell him no, the order was completed and approved. Then ignore him.

[Guest pedromleitao]

I just wanted to make sure that he couldn’t just refund the order, I’ve heard some pretty nasty stories about that…

[misscrystal]

I just wanted to make sure that he couldn’t just refund the order, I’ve heard some pretty nasty stories about that…

I don’t see how that could happen.

[smashradio]

Exactly, I’m just afraid because I’ve seen some horror stories of clients being able to refund gigs even after receiving the agreed on product.

Usually I don’t mind doing small tweaks even after delivery, the problem is that, as I work with video, 5 minutes of work turn into 1 hour of rendering / exporting / uploading, and by the way this buyer was talking he did not seem open to pay for that time (and I, honestly, wouldn’t even offer that option, not worth it for the risk of receiving a retaliatory bad review for not doing it for free).

I would be careful about having this buyer place another order, based on what you’re telling me. He could get exactly what he wants and then leave a bad review anyway, just because you charged him for the changes.

It’s true that sometimes people will get refunded even though the order is completed, but this is up to customer support. If this happens, it’s been a bad experience for you, but you’ll move on to greater things.

If he is a bad buyer with bad behavior, I would move on without making the changes, and leave it to customer support if he decides to take it that far.

[Guest pedromleitao]

Then tell him no, the order was completed and approved. Then ignore him.

This really bums me out, it’s a pain to have worked on something that, weren’t it for the mistakes of the buyer, would be really appreciated. But working with video revisions are really a pain. The thing is, the guy saw the lyrics twice, and never said anything until after completing the order. I suspect he’s subcontracting.

[Guest pedromleitao]

I would be careful about having this buyer place another order, based on what you’re telling me. He could get exactly what he wants and then leave a bad review anyway, just because you charged him for the changes.

It’s true that sometimes people will get refunded even though the order is completed, but this is up to customer support. If this happens, it’s been a bad experience for you, but you’ll move on to greater things.

If he is a bad buyer with bad behavior, I would move on without making the changes, and leave it to customer support if he decides to take it that far.

But that’s the point. There should be no way in hell for him to get his money back, I delivered PRECISELY what was asked, and he reviewed it with full 5 stars! How can it even be a possibility to refund?

And yes, that’s precisely my view on offering a paid revision. Not worth the risk. So my options are basically to work for free or accept the risk (however low it may be) of losing a good chunk of my week’s revenue?

[misscrystal]

But that’s the point. There should be no way in hell for him to get his money back, I delivered PRECISELY what was asked, and he reviewed it with full 5 stars! How can it even be a possibility to refund?

And yes, that’s precisely my view on offering a paid revision. Not worth the risk. So my options are basically to work for free or accept the risk (however low it may be) of losing a good chunk of my week’s revenue?

There is no way in hell he can get a refund so stop worrying.

[Guest pedromleitao]

There is no way in hell he can get a refund so stop worrying.

Ok, thanks, I’m a bit calmer now. But still leaves a bad taste in my mouth, I want my clients to be happy. But damn, 2 revisions and you don’t notice a major mistake? Something’s wrong here…

[smashradio]

The thing is, in my experience, Fiverr puts buyers above sellers. In addition to the interest they make by holding your money for 14 days after completion, they also do this in order to be able to refund the money if a customer support case is opened about the order. I’ve never experienced this myself, but I know sellers who did.

It’s annoying, indeed, but in this particular case, it seems as you have delivered exactly what you were supposed to deliver, based on the script and instructions, and the buyer was happy with the result. I think this is a slam dunk, and I don’t think your buyers will get a refund.

It’s not the end of the world, no matter what happens, but it sure is annoying!

[Guest pedromleitao]

The thing is, in my experience, Fiverr puts buyers above sellers. In addition to the interest they make by holding your money for 14 days after completion, they also do this in order to be able to refund the money if a customer support case is opened about the order. I’ve never experienced this myself, but I know sellers who did.

It’s annoying, indeed, but in this particular case, it seems as you have delivered exactly what you were supposed to deliver, based on the script and instructions, and the buyer was happy with the result. I think this is a slam dunk, and I don’t think your buyers will get a refund.

It’s not the end of the world, no matter what happens, but it sure is annoying!

I feel uneasy about it, because it was quite clear that the lyrics were a bit fishy, but due to the nature of the content, I never know what to do (you know, street talking, writing that as “dat”, etc.), so I always leave it exactly as the file sent. Am I not being professional enough by not correcting it? I could do it easily, it’s just I’m not sure if I should…

[Anna]

Open a ticket with CS. That way you can make sure they are aware and won’t refund him if he ends up contacting them.

I am sorry this happened to you.

I cannot tell you how often I have to point out mistakes in scripts I receive.

[smashradio]

Whenever I receive a script, I will read through it. If there are any noticeable mistakes, I will point them out to the buyer.