The $5 composers! Really?

[raphawizz]

You have consider everything to analise something, for example, but reality still…
I am from a third world country, and $5 is kind a good money here.
A new seller have to low your offer, because a buyer will not buy something from a non rating new seller, if the seller has a 5.0 rating at least. Of course, some buyer will buy something from a new seller, i am not generalizing that, but you must have a good reputation after all.
So then, not always a composer is charging $5 because he is does not know the time which takes to compose something and his hard work.

[cc_animation]

You have consider everything to analise something, for example, but reality still…

I am from a third world country, and $5 is kind a good money here.

A new seller have to low your offer, because a buyer will not buy something from a non rating new seller, if the seller has a 5.0 rating at least. Of course, some buyer will buy something from a new seller, i am not generalizing that, but you must have a good reputation after all.

So then, not always a composer is charging $5 because he is does not know the time which takes to compose something and his hard work.

But that’s what I said, either a seller is from a third world country (where cost of living is lower) or pricing themselves lower in order to get that first 5* rating.

[damooch916]

Purely from the perspective of music, there’s not a single environment in which this battle doesn’t rage.

In my moments of madness, tearing through my memories, high marks, woe is me’s and lost opportunities - it’s easy to blame low balling, pseudo musicians. It happens in every corner of the in person and online musical world. Studios, session players, live performers, teachers, agents, residency gigs, showrooms, road work… on and on…

Firstly, to be upset with price slashing we have to ask, “but isn’t the point that they aren’t worth a professional sum?”

Regardless of this falsified idea that subjectivity can validate all art (especially art that isn’t labored for), the truth is that someone who is just learning to drag and drop sounds doesn’t deserve the same monetary compensation as someone who delivers instrumentally crafted, expert musicianship.

Just as someone with an iPhone doesn’t deserve a pro photographers salary to shoot your wedding.

On the other hand … it literally requires someone’s spot to teach another musician. For every open mic night, jam session and “for the door” band in the world, some venue was given free entertainment and some career musician lost another room and a chance to feed their family. Yet, it takes these very endeavors to create a qualified artist. People have to start somewhere. Sometimes, a person’s starting point comes at the expense of a qualified players spot.

I learned my craft as a child performer. In front of records and tapes. In front of crowds on the road. I cut my teeth by studying, working with pros and playing five nights a week. From one point of view, this is right and exactly the way it works. From another point of view, I was some kid… easily not worthy of taking work away from much more seasoned, much better musicians than I was at eleven.

I’m torn. From one perspective you shouldn’t even be in a market place until you’ve actually learned your standards, understand the basic functionality of the work and can deduce the fundamentals of all eras into patterns.

But In another light, how can one throw themselves into the realm of professionalism without drenching themself in the job? Many aspects of music don’t have a scholastic route. This is especially true for pro songwriting, pro road work and career Freelance musicianship.

And to be honest, the vast majority of gifted players I’ve ever worked with in the studio or on the road were absolutely unschooled (we use a road variation of theory that combines numbers, chords, modes and charts). The vast majority of Master degree musicians I’ve ever performed with were soulless. It requires a hybrid. The school is “to slip in, listen to your elders, develop your ear and get to work.”

All this against a backdrop of today’s flippant attitude. We live in a world where all music has the humanity of a bubblegum commercial. Except those were catchy. Some trivia night emcee is worth as much as a jazz trio. Drum machines are viewed with the same prestige as drummers.

Who can account for the worth of anything musically today without hosting a purely philosophical conversation?

Thing is… it’s never been any different.

To some degree this market place serves as an open mic for some folks. It’s on the job learning for young musicians who can’t get bar gigs because they’d rather have trivia night. It’s another place where the fee wars rage on.

It’s both things.

No. Musicians and the like shouldn’t decimate the market value.
On the other hand, No, they aren’t worth more than they’re asking anyway.

I’m not defending it. I’m not advocating for unionization either. I’m recognizing that it sucks and that it’s part of the growing process that leads professionals to expand into eventual living wages (whilst simultaneously harming those wages).

[benedictrm]

You have consider everything to analise something, for example, but reality still…

I am from a third world country, and $5 is kind a good money here.

A new seller have to low your offer, because a buyer will not buy something from a non rating new seller, if the seller has a 5.0 rating at least. Of course, some buyer will buy something from a new seller, i am not generalizing that, but you must have a good reputation after all.

So then, not always a composer is charging $5 because he is does not know the time which takes to compose something and his hard work.

consider everything to analise something

You assume that these things have not already been considered. Maybe you are letting your fear guide you, rather than what will help you long-term. I wrote on this already above.

If you dug up a diamond that is worth $10,000, how much would you sell it for? The sane answer is ~$10,000. Would you sell it for $5 because you have never sold a diamond before? You may end up with that outcome, but only because you let some unscrupulous dealer tell you lies.

@damooch916 has interesting points. I have no issue at all with beginners. I often reach out to help them, as I am here - an attitude rarely returned I will say 😦

If some kid arrives and lands a film layering loops, good on him (her/it - not discussing gender). The moment they claim to be delivering the same (or better) quality as me for the $5 they stupidly charged, I am not impressed. I don’t claim to be Zimmer. Matter of fact I lose work because I decline to do clone work from people who want Zimmer but are unwilling to a) pay, b) be open to what I could really do for them.

It is that narrow-mindedness that I want to see addressed. It is hard to do that with filmmakers, but if musicians (of any stripe) keep perpetuating the mindsets that we have had over the last 20-30 years, it cannot do much more than get worse and the whole business will be nothing but Artgrope, Spotifry and $5 for 10 hours work from people too silly to realize they are shanking themselves.

🙂

[pirateman]

So, now that I’ve been on here as a pro seller for a few weeks, I’m really interested to hear from other pro sellers in the same field.

I was accepted as a pro seller (without Fiverr reviews) on Fiverr based upon my ‘real’ work portfolio but I’ve not had a single enquiry, job or anything on this forum. Compared to other “competitive” platforms where I’m seeing a few genuine requests / enquiries on a daily basis, Fiverr seems completely dead when it comes to pro customers looking for pro sellers in Music…or may be it’s just me 🙂

I’d love to know how many enquiries other music pro sellers genuinely get on Fiverr at professional rates.

I’ve noticed that most pro competitors don’t seem to be increasing in number of reviews, and one has had a job pending for three weeks - which looks to me like some pro sellers are playing the game to look busy. Or may be they genuinely are busy on here?! Of course if you transfer from non-pro to pro, you can take a number of your reviews with you - but that doesn’t necessarily transfer into fresh work on the platform.

It all seems quite bizarre compared to the real world of music!

[alyanna_s]

On Fiverr you’re competing with sellers from third world countries, hobbyists or beginning freelancers who don’t know how to value themselves.

Some deliberately undersell themselves in order to get gigs and reviews, knowing full well that $5 is unsustainable.

I’d stick to your own pricing. There are buyers looking for quality and who are willing to pay normal prices.

Good points, I agree.

Personally, I’m just a random kid from a 3rd world country, and $5 is actually a decent amount of money for me.

[genuineguidance]

Good points, I agree.

Personally, I’m just a random kid from a 3rd world country, and $5 is actually a decent amount of money for me.

Personally, I’m just a random kid from a 3rd world country, and $5 is actually a decent amount of money for me.

NEVER settle for mediocrity.

GG

[alyanna_s]

Personally, I’m just a random kid from a 3rd world country, and $5 is actually a decent amount of money for me.

NEVER settle for mediocrity.

GG

YAS!

It’s just my starting point to test my skills, so $5 suits my needs fine. I’ve raised some to $10, which is pretty a large amount of money for me.

[benedictrm]

YAS!

It’s just my starting point to test my skills, so $5 suits my needs fine. I’ve raised some to $10, which is pretty a large amount of money for me.

See it this way. If you found a diamond in the mud in the poorest of African nations and you know that particular size and quality of diamond sells internationally for $10,000, what do you offer it for sale for? Sanity says about $10,000.

Maybe you allow for the costs for some DeBeers guy to drive over to get it from you but that is only a few hundred dollars, not $9,995 in petrol for a sale price of $5.

Putting your $10,000 diamond on the market for $5 because you have not sold diamonds before and want to be seen as a Playa is totally mental. If you want to be seen as a professional in the diamond game, you sell for as close to real market value as possible. Otherwise you say that you are a chump.

Even if your diamonds are a bit brown and have inclusions, you still work out their real value and trade at that or you are simply being a sucker for some kind of nasty numpty and no one decent will work with you.

The reason I choose diamonds is because they are an international trade. They are valued internationally, as in, it matters not where the diamond was found, how, or by whom, it is the quality of the rock itself that determines its value to the market. Music is exactly the same. White people, black people, brown and yellow people can all make equally great music.

• If your music is cracked and broken, $5 may be its true value. Accept that and be that kind of composer - call it Retrowave 😮
• If your music is quality, no matter how unique, price in a way that makes it clear that it is real work.

Sure those nasty numpties will come tell you all their machete mania stories to make you bend to their nasty numpty ways but remember good traders never deal with bad traders as they are too dangerous and unreliable.

🙂

[salem_flowers1]

I can’t imagine being up at 1 in the morning stressing over the due date for a song I was payed only 5 dollars to get completed by the end of the week. Seriously producers/composers, stop underselling yourself, it’s how you get taken advantage of.

[teramangala]

There is still a possibility to sell quality songs at $5, with a Royalty-free non-exclusive license, the same song is sold several times. In 6 months, there are certain pieces that I have sold 20 times already! This is clearly said to the buyer, not all of them need exclusive pieces.

[arimouratides]

If someone thinks their work is worth $5…then they get bypassed…why would I hire someone who sells themselves so short? If they aren’t any good, then it’s a waste of $5 and time…why not just set your rates at what you think you are worth? If you fall into the trap of trying to compete, then you are going to make your life miserable, taking on people who only think you are worth $5…they will treat you like garbage…if you have real talent, charge what your time is worth, and be firm about your retention of your IP…why cave into the misery that someone selling themselves short creates?

[wantsometrack]

15$ guy here. Personally I always loved to compose and produce music and since I’m here since 6 hours this is a way for me to get inspiration and practice. Maybe I’m selling my work short but my production level would maybe fit a little indie game with no budget. At the moment this is for the love of making music, which might change after a few gigs. Great to meet you by the way, I’m happy to be a part of this community!

[pirateman]

Great to meet you too.

The only thing I’d say is that, should you ever wish to make a living out of Music, only then may you realise the fashion in which music has been devalued by those fulfilling the wishes of others by working flat out for a day or more for $5!

But in the meantime, I wish you the very best with your composition practice 🙂

Be safe!
Danny

[wantsometrack]

Great to meet you too.

The only thing I’d say is that, should you ever wish to make a living out of Music, only then may you realise the fashion in which music has been devalued by those fulfilling the wishes of others by working flat out for a day or more for $5!

But in the meantime, I wish you the very best with your composition practice 🙂

Be safe!

Danny

Yeah, I see. Let’s say I try to reach the border where I can (and am self confident enough to) demand more as quick as possible. I guess, this will happen after a few good gigs. But still, as a total newcomer in the composing/producing business, that’s something to think about. :I

Thank you very much! And great “portfolio” in your current gig, the audio examples are amazing work!

Cheers, Jannis

[the_mad_duck]

I was once that $5 man. Now I’m the $20 base price man with double price 1 day delivery and $10 separated stems, etc.
My point is, there’s a thin chance you’ll find something good because people put their prices low to see how it goes.

[marcosgomes343]

I won't say I will keep my original price for now for too long, since I need too reviews to keep my business about fiverr ($30 converted to my currency is a very nice value for a mastering service for now). I would do $ 5? Now I don't think so, because the courses I have, the books I read and my mindset about music being not only science, but also style, art, makes me feel that ok, a lot of people think about better vs worse, but some perspectives are: they're different! Why some engineers charge $ 200 and some $ 500? Some $ 30, some $ 150? All cases with clientele, the question you should ask is not if you have to do for $ 5, but if your service worths $ 5 or more to you. To me not because my service worths $ 30, but because I am comfortable with this value for now, but things can change. Again, "I won't say I will keep my original prices", I mean, can I do for $ 5 for increase rating? Yes, but I really wish to at least wait the time for some proposals, perhaps, for $ 30, for now. My opinion by now.

[marcosgomes343]

If not allowed second post after doing one sorry... I was this $ 5 guy, but after some time jumped to a newer stage. I believe that for a start is ok $ 5, but after some time you should value your work accordingly. Since you can deliver a pro service that deserves $ 40 or more, for example.

[giworks]

On 3/2/2021 at 1:07 PM, pirateman said:

Hi, I’m new to Fiverr as a pro seller - our company has been working professionally in Music for 30 years and whilst we’re grateful not to be short of work, we thought we’d embrace the 21C and explore the wider network. However, I can’t get over the pricing situation on Fiverr - people offering to sell their mothers for the price of a coffee! I’m really interested to know what other professional composers and arrangers think about the pricing on here and whether there are any ‘real’ clients looking for proper professional services for a reasonable price…or whether it’s mostly people looking for you to compose a whole track, mix and master etc. for $7.39. I honestly can’t imagine what they are getting for their money - it takes us typically 2-3 days to write a piece to picture (and we’re very quick, often working 20hr days where needed!) May be this isn’t the right place for pros to pitch - and we’re certainly not prepared to lower our prices to the lowest common denominator - but maybe we’re out on a limb here. Any thoughts people???

I wouldn't be surprised that much really.

The reason is the $5 guy is probably not worthed more than that but there are some exception.

The funny thing is that I just released a new gig where I offer game music for $10 but certainly not because I think my tracks are worth $10 ... for me it is an opportunity to work with new people, but also a growth strategy and not only.

There is a good reason why I charge $10 on a specific gig and $35 for 30 sec. of music on others and this has mainly to do with the rights I am giving away in a specific gig and the strategy I have in mind to recover the loss.

I also limit orders in the queue, delivery time, so I'm sure I don't get a lot of orders there.

I am also facing a big problem at the moment, I have been a good seller on Fiverr in the past but I have stopped using it for a long time and now I have not been delivering orders for more than 7 years, so i am also trying to push hard to allow people to buy my gigs in order to fix the problem.

In short, it might sometimes make sense to have such a price ... 😉

[arafat_28]

Actually There are some seller who has no skills nothing. They are making the market unstable by offering very low price. 

[evp_productions]

On 6/4/2022 at 8:37 AM, arafat_28 said:

Actually There are some seller who has no skills nothing. They are making the market unstable by offering very low price. 

Exactly, I have crossed paths with this problems in the graphics area. Lots of people just using some software filters with no skill at all.

[eldiiarasn]

    Mixing is like building a ladder on which sounds and melodies go . And I will say at once it is not so easy to do especially if the staircase is not made of straw and sticks but of iron.

let us highlight the main elements : 

• Sounds . Dfinitely a high-quality selection of sounds plays an important role in the arrangement in general . And if you ask a freelancer to pick up the sounds well he will certainly choose the first liked, pumped . And it’s pretty unusual, because this Pumped sound will be all exactly quality.🙂
• Melody and main idea . I don’t know how other freelancers of Mixing do but in my case the idea comes after the melody. First in first , I do the chords and melody and then the idea comes to me and I already imagine how it sounds. 
• Turn this thought into a song . The most important thing is to fulfill the idea and do not abandon the project . The longest and most difficult part. It is at this stage that I give up my projects