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Bad experience, should I Quit now? No! *Never Give Up*


davidmcneal28

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Hi guys I’m David. I’m new to Fiverr and have really enjoyed my time here. Until now, I have had a great experience talking to potential clients and finally getting my first gig.

After weeks of reading, watching trends, and learning so many great qualities in myself that I never knew I had. I finally landed a $10 gig! I was so exciting, I fet a huge relief take over, I could finally breathe.

My first gigs was a logo design, I designed a car decal logo for a clients daughters cheer team. My client great, he provided me with good information describing the design he envisioned, and checked in frequently to provide feedback. In the end he was happy with the final product and gave me a 5 star review!

I couldn’t believe it, I did it, I started off with 5 stars. I could see myself one day being like some of the great sellers that I’ve observed over time. It was them best $10 I had ever earned, I swear I was so proud.

Then can a 29 day drought. I was quite confused after reading all the talk about the first sale being so much harder to get than the second.i tried variations of adding, removing, and updating gigs. I watched my impressions, and clicks bounce up and down with no sales and no consistency.all kinds of stuff, I kept reading, kept practicing and kept learning more HTML/css and javascript to stay busy.

Then I began to discover the importance of the user experience, and realized that Ive seen it mentioned here and there but never actually delved into the details. It didn’t take long before I recognizrd my love and need for it.

You see, I’ve been using the internet for over 29 years now, regularly. I built a MIDI based website when I was 11 years old, I’m 30 now. I’ve always been near a computer and always loved to the web.

Im getting to the point but want you to understand, that the user experience is how I’ve lived my life without even knowing it. I have a deep connection with it that I haven’t even know was there. If ive ever had a dream to be something amazing, this would be it. Now, at 30, after struggling through my adulthood, with many personal issues that I won’t get into today, bt will share if I find audience.

Anyway back to where I left my last client, happy and 5 star rated. Oh and don’t forget the 20 day drought. I finally found UX design, so I stripped my Fiverr of all the gigs I had been offering. I can do alot of good thingsin Web design, but nothing in particular that I am the best at really ust to be clear. Now you may see what attracted me to Fiverr.

I’m going to sum this up now quickly. That day I devoted myself to UX. That day I new client came to me. He asked me for 4 wireframes with 3 days an offered $100. I accepted the challenge.

I’m still amazed at this experience. He did not have a computer at all. I slept maybe 4 hours during those days. I updated him, he gave feedback, back and forth like tennis. The first two that wireframes was like that, and it went smoothly and professionaly. On the second day I had already created two stunning User Experiences in his opinion, I was skeptical, but then I sent over the last two for review. I was speechless when his reply was “Thank you so much, I’m good to go” as he finalized the project and went on to give me another 5 star! 24 hours before the deadline! Holy cow! Unbelievable I thought, I can really make this happen, I can do this!

The next day, Yesterday…I received a message from a new client asking for some HTML fixses, some new content, and a logo. I looked over the website and noticed alot of issues with the site right away, I wasn’t sure where to begin with the offer, I tried probing to get enough details to provide one quote to cover all his needs. He was short, to vague, and slow to respond. So isn’t an offer over with what I had so far.

I offered to fix his social links, update the footer, remove unrelevant partners from the site, and fix some typos throughout it. In addition I said I would design his logo as he’d requested, and that we could discuss content later. Feeling good about the huge leaps in progress and confidence I had with 2 five star ratings, I offered to help him out, I cut him a deal for $40, knowing that the services were going to be more work that what I was asking for in pay.

Of course he accepted, then sent over the username/pw to his cpanel. I climbed into the data and found a mess beyond belief. I don’t 4-5 hours sifting through more files dating back to 1999. Most of the files were not being used at all. I finally got all the fixes done. I sent him the update and began probing for more info on the what kind of logo he wanted. He said “Powerful” “fast”" “agility” “timeiiness” all one word descriptions. Then said the just wanted it changed, for me to lead tway. So I began, 3 hours in I had designed 3 logos matching that description. When he finally come back later that day he immediateltt shot down my dedigns and directly insulted me. So I kept y calm and designed a fourth, again denied. The initial design offered only one logo. This went in for nearly 24 hours until about an hour ago.i even offered a full refund at one point he declined and continued insulting me and denting my logos. He finally release the line and gave me a very low review. My rating is now in the mid 70’s. I feel like it’s all ruined, I did everything I could and he still bashed me as if it were intentional.

I don’t know what to do now, I feel like the last few months of progress have been ripped away and I don’t know if buyers will still consider me with this unfair review.

Please help

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It might not be relevant, but why are you designing logos when your speciality seems to be website development?

It would be like me offering golf tuition - I enjoy playing, but I’m not good enough to teach somebody else!

Could it be that the logo design did spoil the whole gig for your buyer?

Well I have been practicing logo design since I’ve joined. My first gig was a logo design, and I received 5 stars. You see I wouldn’t call meself a master of any one skill. Rather a jack of all trades. That’s one thing that attracted me to Fiverr, I could offer my services at a lower rate. I may not always provide the very best logo, or design Everytime. Isnt that realistic? what should be expected when comparing a $10 logo to a $200 logo?

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Well I have been practicing logo design since I’ve joined. My first gig was a logo design, and I received 5 stars. You see I wouldn’t call meself a master of any one skill. Rather a jack of all trades. That’s one thing that attracted me to Fiverr, I could offer my services at a lower rate. I may not always provide the very best logo, or design Everytime. Isnt that realistic? what should be expected when comparing a $10 logo to a $200 logo?

I may not always provide the very best logo, or design or any kind

When buyers are spending their hard earned cash, they are looking for the best they can get. Your gig price is comparatively high, so expectations increase with the gig price. Sounds like they were disappointed.

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I did empathize with him, he refused to provide me with any feedback other than insults. After 4 attempts I offered a full refund and he declined. So I kept trying, I made 3 more, each shot down 1by1. Then he finally accepted one and left a 1 star review. The custom offer was for $40. $25 was to fix his website. Fixing the responsiveness, updating the footer copyright, removing out of date content, fixing social links, it took 3-4 hours at least to diagnose and fix all the issues .

So $15 was for the logo, this was his request for an extra so I agreed to give it a shot.

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I may not always provide the very best logo, or design or any kind

When buyers are spending their hard earned cash, they are looking for the best they can get. Your gig price is comparatively high, so expectations increase with the gig price. Sounds like they were disappointed.

Man, you are you trying to imply? That a race to the bottom is Fiverr’s goal? From what I read here, and if it’s all true (which we cannot know), the client was an ***hole, especially as the seller offered a full refund (the client would get a lot of GOOD work for free even if he didn’t like the logo), and he gets insults and a low review? Fiverr should look into this, buyers are definitely NOT ALWAYS right.

Of course, there’s always the chance of OP being simply a liar. Oh well.

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Hi guys I’m David. I’m new to Fiverr and have really enjoyed my time here. Until now, I have had a great experience talking to potential clients and finally getting my first gig.

After weeks of reading, watching trends, and learning so many great qualities in myself that I never knew I had. I finally landed a $10 gig! I was so exciting, I fet a huge relief take over, I could finally breathe.

My first gigs was a logo design, I designed a car decal logo for a clients daughters cheer team. My client great, he provided me with good information describing the design he envisioned, and checked in frequently to provide feedback. In the end he was happy with the final product and gave me a 5 star review!

I couldn’t believe it, I did it, I started off with 5 stars. I could see myself one day being like some of the great sellers that I’ve observed over time. It was them best $10 I had ever earned, I swear I was so proud.

Then can a 29 day drought. I was quite confused after reading all the talk about the first sale being so much harder to get than the second.i tried variations of adding, removing, and updating gigs. I watched my impressions, and clicks bounce up and down with no sales and no consistency.all kinds of stuff, I kept reading, kept practicing and kept learning more HTML/css and javascript to stay busy.

Then I began to discover the importance of the user experience, and realized that Ive seen it mentioned here and there but never actually delved into the details. It didn’t take long before I recognizrd my love and need for it.

You see, I’ve been using the internet for over 29 years now, regularly. I built a MIDI based website when I was 11 years old, I’m 30 now. I’ve always been near a computer and always loved to the web.

Im getting to the point but want you to understand, that the user experience is how I’ve lived my life without even knowing it. I have a deep connection with it that I haven’t even know was there. If ive ever had a dream to be something amazing, this would be it. Now, at 30, after struggling through my adulthood, with many personal issues that I won’t get into today, bt will share if I find audience.

Anyway back to where I left my last client, happy and 5 star rated. Oh and don’t forget the 20 day drought. I finally found UX design, so I stripped my Fiverr of all the gigs I had been offering. I can do alot of good thingsin Web design, but nothing in particular that I am the best at really ust to be clear. Now you may see what attracted me to Fiverr.

I’m going to sum this up now quickly. That day I devoted myself to UX. That day I new client came to me. He asked me for 4 wireframes with 3 days an offered $100. I accepted the challenge.

I’m still amazed at this experience. He did not have a computer at all. I slept maybe 4 hours during those days. I updated him, he gave feedback, back and forth like tennis. The first two that wireframes was like that, and it went smoothly and professionaly. On the second day I had already created two stunning User Experiences in his opinion, I was skeptical, but then I sent over the last two for review. I was speechless when his reply was “Thank you so much, I’m good to go” as he finalized the project and went on to give me another 5 star! 24 hours before the deadline! Holy cow! Unbelievable I thought, I can really make this happen, I can do this!

The next day, Yesterday…I received a message from a new client asking for some HTML fixses, some new content, and a logo. I looked over the website and noticed alot of issues with the site right away, I wasn’t sure where to begin with the offer, I tried probing to get enough details to provide one quote to cover all his needs. He was short, to vague, and slow to respond. So isn’t an offer over with what I had so far.

I offered to fix his social links, update the footer, remove unrelevant partners from the site, and fix some typos throughout it. In addition I said I would design his logo as he’d requested, and that we could discuss content later. Feeling good about the huge leaps in progress and confidence I had with 2 five star ratings, I offered to help him out, I cut him a deal for $40, knowing that the services were going to be more work that what I was asking for in pay.

Of course he accepted, then sent over the username/pw to his cpanel. I climbed into the data and found a mess beyond belief. I don’t 4-5 hours sifting through more files dating back to 1999. Most of the files were not being used at all. I finally got all the fixes done. I sent him the update and began probing for more info on the what kind of logo he wanted. He said “Powerful” “fast”" “agility” “timeiiness” all one word descriptions. Then said the just wanted it changed, for me to lead tway. So I began, 3 hours in I had designed 3 logos matching that description. When he finally come back later that day he immediateltt shot down my dedigns and directly insulted me. So I kept y calm and designed a fourth, again denied. The initial design offered only one logo. This went in for nearly 24 hours until about an hour ago.i even offered a full refund at one point he declined and continued insulting me and denting my logos. He finally release the line and gave me a very low review. My rating is now in the mid 70’s. I feel like it’s all ruined, I did everything I could and he still bashed me as if it were intentional.

I don’t know what to do now, I feel like the last few months of progress have been ripped away and I don’t know if buyers will still consider me with this unfair review.

Please help

I don’t know if buyers will still consider me with this lie if a rating.

Considering lots of related posts, and by buyers/sellers who also are buyers too, that might depend even more on your reply to that review than on the review itself.

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I don’t know if buyers will still consider me with this lie if a rating.

Considering lots of related posts, and by buyers/sellers who also are buyers too, that might depend even more on your reply to that review than on the review itself.

Thanks for the response. You’re right, every seller is responsible for their words as well as their work. I’ll admit that when I saw my rating drop to 73%, it hurt. I got upset, but I still maintainedvmy integrety, I didn’t stoop to slanderiziing him to the degree he deserved. I did call him a jerk and a bad person though.

In my defense, around 36 hours into the project, I put around 10 hours of work in, and he sat online waiting for my update, only to dismiss and insult. It was degrading, but Everytime I still responded with an apology, and more probing questions that he would either not answer, or with things like. “Web design just isn’t for you” and “those designs are bad, you suck rookie”.

In the end when I called him a jerk, I made it a point to address how this issue can really effect a person’s livelihood. That people are putting alot if time and energy into this and that he should consider paying more for higher value services, or picking a level 2 seller. That in my at cases new sellers have to work alot of hours for little pay. that almost anyone else would say it not worth it, but it is to us! I have an end goal for myself, and many dreams!

So he went on to say that my work wasn’t even worth the $3/hour it averaged out to paying. I think it’s really hard for some buyers to appreciate the effort it takes to get good at any skill here in Fiverr. They come here for the price the value of service is rarely noticed.

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Thanks for the response. You’re right, every seller is responsible for their words as well as their work. I’ll admit that when I saw my rating drop to 73%, it hurt. I got upset, but I still maintainedvmy integrety, I didn’t stoop to slanderiziing him to the degree he deserved. I did call him a jerk and a bad person though.

In my defense, around 36 hours into the project, I put around 10 hours of work in, and he sat online waiting for my update, only to dismiss and insult. It was degrading, but Everytime I still responded with an apology, and more probing questions that he would either not answer, or with things like. “Web design just isn’t for you” and “those designs are bad, you suck rookie”.

In the end when I called him a jerk, I made it a point to address how this issue can really effect a person’s livelihood. That people are putting alot if time and energy into this and that he should consider paying more for higher value services, or picking a level 2 seller. That in my at cases new sellers have to work alot of hours for little pay. that almost anyone else would say it not worth it, but it is to us! I have an end goal for myself, and many dreams!

So he went on to say that my work wasn’t even worth the $3/hour it averaged out to paying. I think it’s really hard for some buyers to appreciate the effort it takes to get good at any skill here in Fiverr. They come here for the price the value of service is rarely noticed.

Look at that review with the eyes of a buyer and then reply to it in a calm and professional way that will make buyers see your side of the story.

One single bad review, especially if your reply to it will make potential buyers disregard it, wouldn´t be that bad, but if you only have so few reviews that it makes your rating drop that much, you have the problem of not being able to send offers to BR until you can get your rating up again. I don´t know the threshold but I fear it´s higher than 73%.

You might have had tried asking CS to see your point and consider taking down the rating if the buyer really had been misbehaving, but I fear with things like “I did call him a jerk and a bad person though.” that wouldn´t go down very well. Always stay professional, no matter what a buyer does or says.

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Thanks for the response. You’re right, every seller is responsible for their words as well as their work. I’ll admit that when I saw my rating drop to 73%, it hurt. I got upset, but I still maintainedvmy integrety, I didn’t stoop to slanderiziing him to the degree he deserved. I did call him a jerk and a bad person though.

In my defense, around 36 hours into the project, I put around 10 hours of work in, and he sat online waiting for my update, only to dismiss and insult. It was degrading, but Everytime I still responded with an apology, and more probing questions that he would either not answer, or with things like. “Web design just isn’t for you” and “those designs are bad, you suck rookie”.

In the end when I called him a jerk, I made it a point to address how this issue can really effect a person’s livelihood. That people are putting alot if time and energy into this and that he should consider paying more for higher value services, or picking a level 2 seller. That in my at cases new sellers have to work alot of hours for little pay. that almost anyone else would say it not worth it, but it is to us! I have an end goal for myself, and many dreams!

So he went on to say that my work wasn’t even worth the $3/hour it averaged out to paying. I think it’s really hard for some buyers to appreciate the effort it takes to get good at any skill here in Fiverr. They come here for the price the value of service is rarely noticed.

If you’d called me a jerk and a bad person as a buyer, you’d have got 1 star and been reported to CS.

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Also I’d like to add a point. Now that Fiverr is advertising Fiverr pro, the abuse new to new sellers will most likely increase.

The client was a new buyer as well, so yes I can understand that it’s possible he felt it was a bad experience for him as well. I don’t believe this to be the case though.

Considering i bit my tongue and swallowed my pride throughout those 36 hours and he refused to provide any specific feedback, I can only scratch my head and wonder why he was logged in for nearly the entire time, and the resposnse time ranged from 5 minutes to 2 hours logged in
or not.

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Also I’d like to add a point. Now that Fiverr is advertising Fiverr pro, the abuse new to new sellers will most likely increase.

The client was a new buyer as well, so yes I can understand that it’s possible he felt it was a bad experience for him as well. I don’t believe this to be the case though.

Considering i bit my tongue and swallowed my pride throughout those 36 hours and he refused to provide any specific feedback, I can only scratch my head and wonder why he was logged in for nearly the entire time, and the resposnse time ranged from 5 minutes to 2 hours logged in

or not.

Also I’d like to add a point. Now that Fiverr is advertising Fiverr pro, the abuse new to new sellers will most likely increase.

Why?



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If you’d called me a jerk and a bad person as a buyer, you’d have got 1 star and been reported to CS.

I agree, but if you look again, you’ll understand. I called him a jerk after the rating, after the entire hellish nightmare of a project. I may suffer from flashbacks due to this in the future…not really

In all seriousness, I was more than cooperative and willing to provide the best service possible, but with no initial preferences or requirements set by the client, and no feedback as to what he did or didn’t like specifically, how could anyone satisfy his request.

Another thing to point out is his current logo design. It was nice, neat, minimalistic, and his response to why he wanted a new one was that it wasnt clean. If you would like I could provide these to see and compare to mine

But I really don’t think I’ll be offering anyone a logo design even if they ask or are in need, not after this experience.

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I agree, but if you look again, you’ll understand. I called him a jerk after the rating, after the entire hellish nightmare of a project. I may suffer from flashbacks due to this in the future…not really

In all seriousness, I was more than cooperative and willing to provide the best service possible, but with no initial preferences or requirements set by the client, and no feedback as to what he did or didn’t like specifically, how could anyone satisfy his request.

Another thing to point out is his current logo design. It was nice, neat, minimalistic, and his response to why he wanted a new one was that it wasnt clean. If you would like I could provide these to see and compare to mine

But I really don’t think I’ll be offering anyone a logo design even if they ask or are in need, not after this experience.

If you would like I could provide these to see and compare to mine

Thank you, but I’m no logo expert.

I think it’s time to put this all behind you and start afresh - good luck! ☀️

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Also I’d like to add a point. Now that Fiverr is advertising Fiverr pro, the abuse new to new sellers will most likely increase.

Why?



I feel that new sellers are treated as if we have no value. If you search in any category for the latest gigs, you may find 3-5 gigs in the first 15-20 Pages that have a rating at all.

There should be a stronger support for new sellers. Not to say that the community isn’t awesome and very nice and helpful, but we need to be represented in a more trusting way. Provide some kind if incentive for buyers to go to new sellersor rewards for those who are putting in the time but haven’t got their first 10 sales.

It’s just some suggestions and only my opinion that’s others share as well I’m sure.

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Sometimes the greatest struggles bring the greatest rewards, take a good look at what the original request was for and ask yourself if that need was met? Some of items done in “cleaning up the site” he may not have looked at yet, this may be a simple fix if you asking the best questions to meet that need, ask yourself if you were the customer would you be satisfied? and move on from there, this is a learning moment.

Thought for today: “Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” - Mark Twain

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The way you replied to him, I’d suggest you should QUIT ( sarcasm alert )

As a freelancer, you need to be cool minded as you never know who you are going to deal with and its all matter of just texting/chat unlike the daily clients we deal in our daily life/job.

You are worried about new buyers giving you a chance, some might give you a miss after seeing how you replied to him. We all have negative reviews, even TRS’s. All that matters is, how YOU respond to it.
Take this from a regular buyer.
🍀

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Thank you all for your valuable feedback. This post was intended to address a general issue that many new sellers have been expressing as well. As you may have noticed, no names or specifics were mentioned as I do respect the privacy and reputation of the buyer, even if I felt he was wrong.

I am glad to hear everyone’s honest opinion of what they understood from the long story. I am not angry nor do I hold any grudge against the buyer from the story. I asolutely can see things from his point of view as well.

Of course as you all have your opinion, I gave you mine based on my side of the story. It is likely that my side and the buyers side vary to an extent, as we both see how t from our own biased viewpoints.

I hope anyone who reads this topic keeps an open mind so that you might gain insight into a situation that happens more fequedlntly than it should. Hopefully by sharing ideas and being understanding to both sides we can discover solutions that will help both new sellers and buyers in the future.

As for me, I will still be around, I’m not a quitter. I don’t go down that easily but if I did Its good to know that a great community is ready to show necessary tough love, of course it’s only to help one grow in their personal journey.

Even better are those that are willing to each out and offer a hand to those in need. They are selfless in that even though they may be helping their future competor, they remember when they too needed help or guidance.

Keep in mind this is a community, and we should always be welcoming to new sellers like we are to new buyers. Fiverr needs both to continue to prosper!

Thank you all very much, now I’ve got some logos to go design. 🙂

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Thank you all for your valuable feedback. This post was intended to address a general issue that many new sellers have been expressing as well. As you may have noticed, no names or specifics were mentioned as I do respect the privacy and reputation of the buyer, even if I felt he was wrong.

I am glad to hear everyone’s honest opinion of what they understood from the long story. I am not angry nor do I hold any grudge against the buyer from the story. I asolutely can see things from his point of view as well.

Of course as you all have your opinion, I gave you mine based on my side of the story. It is likely that my side and the buyers side vary to an extent, as we both see how t from our own biased viewpoints.

I hope anyone who reads this topic keeps an open mind so that you might gain insight into a situation that happens more fequedlntly than it should. Hopefully by sharing ideas and being understanding to both sides we can discover solutions that will help both new sellers and buyers in the future.

As for me, I will still be around, I’m not a quitter. I don’t go down that easily but if I did Its good to know that a great community is ready to show necessary tough love, of course it’s only to help one grow in their personal journey.

Even better are those that are willing to each out and offer a hand to those in need. They are selfless in that even though they may be helping their future competor, they remember when they too needed help or guidance.

Keep in mind this is a community, and we should always be welcoming to new sellers like we are to new buyers. Fiverr needs both to continue to prosper!

Thank you all very much, now I’ve got some logos to go design. 🙂

Errr… Btw what about the title of this thread? That needs to be changed as well after knowing your final decision. 😉

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Look at that review with the eyes of a buyer and then reply to it in a calm and professional way that will make buyers see your side of the story.

One single bad review, especially if your reply to it will make potential buyers disregard it, wouldn´t be that bad, but if you only have so few reviews that it makes your rating drop that much, you have the problem of not being able to send offers to BR until you can get your rating up again. I don´t know the threshold but I fear it´s higher than 73%.

You might have had tried asking CS to see your point and consider taking down the rating if the buyer really had been misbehaving, but I fear with things like “I did call him a jerk and a bad person though.” that wouldn´t go down very well. Always stay professional, no matter what a buyer does or says.

Just passing through @miiila but I had to thank you for this beautiful professional post. ✌️

I’m sorry about this @davidmcneal28 have you lodged a complaint to CS? Don’t get discouraged. I figure out from your post that you’re a fighter. 💪

You’ll pull through!

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You sound like a jerk in this thread. If the buyer is a jerk and is called one, that’s only fair. Buyers are not always right, stop defending the indefensible.

That shows how Professional you are. Very Impressive. 😒

Guess I needed a logo but now will look for someone else. I know another buyer as well here on forum, searching for a logo designer. Tsk Tsk, there goes your future buyers, gone with wind.

QUIT

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You sound like a jerk in this thread. If the buyer is a jerk and is called one, that’s only fair. Buyers are not always right, stop defending the indefensible.

@pedromleitao

Name-calling is not the solution. If a buyer or a seller is disrespectful then you report it to CS and if you don’t like the experience you had then you have the right to give it a rating. I’d probably do the same as @offlinehelpers

@davidmcneal28 you should set the right expectations with the client.

  • if your gig includes 1 revision then stick to it. If the buyer requests more then you can offer an extra and if they don’t like it then stand your ground or cancel the entire order. I would not waste my time on multiple revisions if it’s not part of the deal. I simply won’t have time for it.
  • after the first insult you should have reported this to CS and stopped right there.

It is what it is. Move on and learn from this 😉

PS. You should definitely reply to that rating, but in a professional manner. No name-calling.

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