Doing a sample read.

[kendal1747]

Is there anything in Fiverr's TOS or anywhere that they recommend not doing a sample read? I looked, but couldn't find anything. If anyone knows of any violation or suggestion not to do this, could you please let me know? 

Thank you.

[imagination7413]

From Fiverr, officially?

Quote

3. Know your value

Fiverr’s services start at $5.00. While it can be tempting to offer promotions or discounts to start your orders rolling in, offering your work for free is not a recommended approach to connect with or entice potential buyers. Set your potential buyers' expectations and set the precedent that your work can’t be obtained for free. It’s essential to know your worth as a seller and not to compromise it to attempt to attract buyers.

Source: https://www.fiverr.com/support/articles/360010949038-4-Things-to-Do-Before-Creating-Your-Gig?segment=seller

And (indirectly):

Quote

Buyers, as discussed above, employ a strong price-quality heuristic (i.e., they hold strong beliefs that the price and quality are highly correlated).

Source: https://blog.fiverr.com/post/how-to-price-your-products-effectively-on-fiverr

Supporting arguments from the community, though:
https://community.fiverr.com/forums/topic/168855-so-you-want-to-hire-a-writer-should-you-ask-for-samples/
https://community.fiverr.com/forums/topic/222069-stand-your-ground-setting-boundaries-as-a-seller/
https://community.fiverr.com/forums/topic/220973-top-5-tips-to-protect-yourself-from-badly-behaved-buyers/
https://community.fiverr.com/forums/topic/136314-the-power-of-saying-no/
https://community.fiverr.com/forums/topic/121718-buyers-asking-for-sample-and-never-return/?do=findComment&comment=620990

 

[looseink]

I'll answer your question for $5.

Yah, sample reads are a good way to give work away and not get paid for it.

Sort of how I gave you this answer for free, although I suggested you give me five bucks for it.

[newsmike]

On 10/11/2021 at 12:49 PM, kendal1747 said:

Is there anything in Fiverr's TOS or anywhere that they recommend not doing a sample read?

It is not prohibited, but it is a sure fire way to get ripped off.  Say I need 2 sentences read, I message you and say, "Please record these two sentences as a sample, if the client likes it, we'll send the whole script."  So you send the 2 sentences, they steal it and disappear. And you worked for free.  Oldest trick in the book. Just refer them to your samples. If they can't decide from those, huge red flag. 

[catwriter]

Fiverr strongly recommends never to start working until the order is placed. I don't remember where this recommendations is, though.

[leannelrivers]

If I would like to work with a particular client I will offer a free demo of 2 lines max if I can make sure that it makes no sense without the context of the rest of the script, or I'll add in an audible watermark so they can't use it. But most of the time I say no, twice this week already actually. One buyer who was polite but clearly trying to rip me off and another who was cocky AND wanted a free demo and a free revision on the demo if it wasn't suitable. Absolute p*ss take. Block is a beautiful thing. 

It should be enough to provide them with demo's you already have.