"extend review time" - Test

[mart_gart]

I am a buyer.

Many comments indicate sellers' impatience for late money due to review extensions. Come on! I worked in performing arts in Central and Western Europe; it was rare to be paid earlier than 14 days after full project completion and closure. Fiverr pays you right after your project's marked done. You want salary? - don't freelance.

Once the review period was insufficient. I order long before my own deadlines, so I don't hurry. BUT: I submitted a minor correction just to postpone my full review of a large project. Feels unfair towards seller. I was once a creative maker, too, for 10+ years.

Once a seller (4.9 star from 15,000+ reviews) replied to a wrong section of my order. We had to clarify and start over. The delivery didn't meet my lowest expectations. I ended up sketching what I wanted, so the guy could put it in his software. That was supposed to be his creative work, and I paid for that 100% UPFRONT + service charge. Frustrating or what?

I don't mind limitations on review extensions, for example 1 free review extension, 2nd for a small add-on fee, 3rd++ reviews extension for more money. But sellers have to make their money, not be rewarded for throwing anything, and feel entitled to be paid the same day.

[fastcopywriter]

How about this? If the buyer gets extra time to review the order, the order should clear in 7 days instead of 14, or maybe in 3 days. 

[fabiorevo]

@mart_gart 

On 1/25/2023 at 2:17 AM, mart_gart said:

Many comments indicate sellers' impatience for late money due to review extensions. Come on! I worked in performing arts in Central and Western Europe; it was rare to be paid earlier than 14 days after full project completion and closure. Fiverr pays you right after your project's marked done. You want salary? - don't freelance.

Fiverr doesn't pay us right after a project is marked done. Level 0 to 2 Sellers can withdraw their money after 14 days, Top Seller tier after 7 days. 

[catwriter]

On 1/25/2023 at 8:17 AM, mart_gart said:

Fiverr pays you right after your project's marked done.

Not really.

Top rated sellers, pro sellers, and Seller Plus members get paid 7 days after the project was marked as complete. Levels 0, 1 and 2 who are not in the Seller Plus program have to wait for 14 days after the order was marked as complete to be able to withdraw their funds.

Members of the Seller Plus program technically can withdraw their funds immediately after the order gets marked as complete, but only if the buyer closed the order (it doesn't work with the orders that were left to autocomplete, and there are many buyers who rarely or never close the orders themselves), and they have to pay a fee in order to do it.

And some buyers keep requesting an extension after extension, making it impossible for sellers to know when they will finally get paid, or when they'll be able to go on a vacation (or, say, schedule a surgery) without worrying that a revision request is going to pop up while they're unavailable, and that they will return to an account in ruins.

It's not just about the money. It's also about the ability to organize our time and our lives.

On 1/25/2023 at 8:17 AM, mart_gart said:

I paid for that 100% UPFRONT + service charge

Sellers get 80% of the order price. Fiverr keeps 20%. Service charge is pretty small compared to those 20%.

On 1/25/2023 at 8:17 AM, mart_gart said:

sellers have to make their money, not be rewarded for throwing anything,

Agreed.

[shohagsheqder]

On 12/14/2022 at 3:20 PM, prosperkalu said:

I think review time feature should be moved to resolution center as buyers are abusing it..
The seller shouldn't imposed to accept a long review time..We are humans also..
It should be a mutual agreement between the 2 parties...

8 days after submitting the work, an order was completed today which was supposed to be done earlier.

Another esteemed client 35 days past revision for a job, no news of where he went.

So I think these beautiful features sometimes cause trouble for sellers.

[sethdmeyers]

4 hours ago, shohagsheqder said:

8 days after submitting the work, an order was completed today which was supposed to be done earlier.

Another esteemed client 35 days past revision for a job, no news of where he went.

So I think these beautiful features sometimes cause trouble for sellers.

Judging by the vast majority of comments on this thread, as well as my own experience, you are not alone.

It feels as though nearly every decision Fiverr has been making lately is for the benefit of the customer, at the cost of the freelancer. I'm worried, and I don't understand why they feel the need to punish freelancers to this extent.

Edited February 1, 2023 by sethdmeyers

[shae23]

After two and a half years on the platform, my first experience of this happened and I must say it left a sour taste in my mouth. A buyer placed an order to have an audio 90 minutes in length with 7 speakers transcribed. The delivery period of  3-5 days was agreed upon. 

After the offer was accepted, the buyer returned and stated they needed it within 48 hours as it was urgent. That was the first red flag. But I've learned to take my losses and move on when it comes to certain buyers. In any case, the transcript was delivered within 24 hours. The buyer extends the review period by 5 days, bringing the total to eight days.

How do need it within 48 hours as it is urgent, but need up to 8 days to review it?

[tme2012]

How much longer is this trial phase going to last? Is it ever even going to reach a point when sellers are notified that a buyer has extended the review time? That's probably the worst for me, I don't even get a simple notification saying "The buyer has added x days to the review period." Is it so hard to send me a notification letting me know that?

[dusuacangmon]

On 2/16/2023 at 10:05 PM, shae23 said:

After two and a half years on the platform, my first experience of this happened and I must say it left a sour taste in my mouth. A buyer placed an order to have an audio 90 minutes in length with 7 speakers transcribed. The delivery period of  3-5 days was agreed upon. 

After the offer was accepted, the buyer returned and stated they needed it within 48 hours as it was urgent. That was the first red flag. But I've learned to take my losses and move on when it comes to certain buyers. In any case, the transcript was delivered within 24 hours. The buyer extends the review period by 5 days, bringing the total to eight days.

How do need it within 48 hours as it is urgent, but need up to 8 days to review it?

I feel your pain, bro. 

This feature even don't have any notification, it went silently. Why seller need more time to delivery, we need to ask the buyer, but buyer need more time to review, they don't have to ask????

[lenasemenkova]

I just got the first notification about the review period extension and I hope Fiverr reconsiders adding this feature. Or at least adds it to certain categories and/or price ranges where extensive careful reviewing would make sense. 

 

It will take me a month+ to get paid for a Basic package at this rate, with this particular order. I never once refused to revise the files if the order was autocompleted. All of this is pretty discouraging. 

Edited March 18, 2023 by lenasemenkova

[andresrosales]

Just had this happen to me completely by surprise, I didn't receive a notification from Fiverr or even a message from the buyer, even when I requested an update from him. This is terribly one-sided on the client's favor and it mounts to the particular depression of having to deal with unprofessional clients. 

It also makes no sense when dealing with lower-cost orders of $20 or less. Do we really have to wait close to a month to receive $4, $8 or $12? It really makes no sense. As a seller, it feels like a move made against the stability of my business. 

[james_topseller]

There should be at least a limit to it. Had a buyer extend it multiple times, dragging it along without requesting changes or anything, just for the fun of it I guess. It'd be rude to ask them to stop doing it as they're just using their "right". Revenue clearance being deferred. Frustrating. I'm not saying it shouldn't be there but at least put a limit to it, like 2-3 times. 

[donnovan86]

@james_topseller Well it depends on the buyer. Some people just lack time to check. Or maybe you have a reseller here and they didn't receive the greenlight for the stuff you provided. Who knows. 

[arethasmith]

Is Fiverr actually serious with this nonsense? This is right up there with Fiverr enabling a buyer to ask for a refund after receiving the delivery. The buyer walks away with their delivery AND their money and the seller literally walks away with nothing. Now THIS foolishness...the buyer gets to extend delivery review times at their leisure, leaving the seller hanging in the balance for days on end. But hey, as long as the buyers are happy...doesn't matter how the sellers feel. Fiverr views us as chopped liver after all. This place is a joke.  

[tme2012]

When is this abomination going to end? The buyer gets to extend the time to review and Fiverr doesn't even bother sending us a notification????? I'm planning my budget week to week contingent on when jobs will be marked complete. I think that one will be finished today, but when I go check on it, I see the buyer has extended it from 3/29 to 4/3. Do I get a a heads up? Even a little beep on my profile? NOPE! NO WARNING AT ALL FROM FIVERR. Why do we get treated like such total garbage by a platform that we make so much money for? 

[sherminakter]

This is an excellent idea. If this order doesn't mark automatically after 3 days, Fiverr will charge 20% from the buyer for every order. The seller will be interested to work. Otherwise, I think this is oppression for the seller.

[hugobass83]

It's awesome how fiverr ignored all the protests, even the more sensible ones (like who said to receive a simple notification whenever a client asked for an extension on review time). I don't think that all this is respectful for sellers.

[ncbrazelton]

On 10/3/2022 at 2:29 PM, vickieito said:

@visualstudios -   I didn't expect my client to review all of that within 3 days.

 

I think in your case, and for some sellers, the seller could add in an extra review time for weekends and such. Most of my orders are custom so I make sure delivery dates do not fall on Sundays or holidays. I also consider my schedule when giving delivery estimates. 

I know some buyers just book gigs, but I try to deal with this in the resolution center even before the job gets going. 

[amonratpwtn]

Very bad idea! -- I am learning the hard way now. -- Client extends just to keep asking me for customer support that is beyond the gig. The gig is worth 20usd. It's a tiny gig.

I write blog content and the client extended review AND demands help about link strategies and how to make link building. -- I never offered this. And if I don't reply then what? I risk getting a bad review because client was not able to extort more help for free.

Edited April 3, 2023 by amonratpwtn

[amonratpwtn]

On 1/25/2023 at 2:17 PM, mart_gart said:

I am a buyer.

Many comments indicate sellers' impatience for late money due to review extensions. Come on! I worked in performing arts in Central and Western Europe; it was rare to be paid earlier than 14 days after full project completion and closure. Fiverr pays you right after your project's marked done. You want salary? - don't freelance.

Your bad experiences in other situations have no relevance. If you live in a town where you get mugged daily does not mean everyone across the world have to suffer the same fate and just accept it. 

Edited April 3, 2023 by amonratpwtn

[irishguy1]

Since the buyer has this power to extend the review as many times as they wish, would it be fair to say that the buyer would not have use of the delivery until such time as they've accepted the delivery? Fiverr is paid immediately when the buyer places the order. However, the seller must wait until the order is completed. So from a seller's standpoint the buyer has free use of the voiceover, video, script, whatever until the seller is paid.

[maezma85]

It seems to me that this is a preposterous idea and a complete injustice towards the seller's working time in relation to the wait. The delays in the review process should be the responsibility of the buyer. Furthermore, there are irresponsible buyers who may engage in all kinds of abuses with this. Three days is more than sufficient to review a task.

[grayprogrammerz]

Buyer waited for 3 days after delivery and as soon it was about to autocomplete extended to 3 days, again 3 days and now 2 days.

So 11 days went out on reviewing. Client said "I'm awaiting my client's response...". Probably reseller outsourcing.

Even its get completed, after fiverr amazing 14 day pending clearance is awaiting... and then payoneer 3-5 days.

 

Means I would get my salary of work after a month ?

Isn't there any limit ? or atleast if client already took time to review, then there shouldn't be pending clearance, as already client insured whether they got valid results.

[whildebrand]

Regarding the "extended review" test phase and possible long-term integration into the system, I would like to suggest a compromise, that could work well for Fiverr, for buyers and sellers alike. I would like to post it here for general discussion to my fellow sellers (who I dearly respect and cheerish, given the fact that our common work enviroment is becoming more challenging by the day)!  

From my experience, revision abuse, revision violation or prolonged revisions are more likely to occur in basic gigs. 

My suggestion (based on my experience only):

1.) Fiverr should offer "extended review time" in the premium version of our gigs only! This will motivate buyers to "up the ante". It will also minimize abuse where it occurs more frequently, which is (from my experience) most likely to occur in the lower tier and basic gig versions (Fiverr should be able to verifiy this easily). Should buyers that spend less, get the same features as premium buyers? Propably not. Two benefits: More incentive for revenues, less for abuse.

2.) The "extended review time" should be limited to a one-time affair, as sellers need to be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel and also uphold some time management standards. Buyers can then buy an optional "review extension" if they need it.

3.) Opt-out: Sellers need to have the chance to opt-out of the "extended review" plan entirely, especially for larger and time-consuming gigs. Fiverr can decide if they want to rank them differently, but we need to have this opt-out for high-end gigs. Fiverr will risks becoming a 5-dollar gig platform again, as the current system incentivizes low-tier gigs, as they carry less risk for sellers. I'm currently assessing to drop my high-end gigs completly for that reason. Extension of the review period for a 15 USD gig is not the same as a review period extended for a 1000 USD gig. High-end gigs will start to become a serious liability for sellers. Let's not forget, it takes a lot more time to complete large orders, and those large chunks of unpaid days can prevent sellers from meeting their own financial obligations at the end of the month - no electricity bill paid, no work for Fiverr! In comparison, Amazon's treatment of its merchants hasn't really turned out well for them - see below). Fiverr shouldn't repeat such costly mistakes for minute short-term gains. 

4.) Quid Pro Quo: If buyers get an "extended review time" without requiring mutual consent, then Sellers should be able to receive a free "delivery extension" as well. Fairness is the best guarantor for loyalty. The opposite is true as well!  

There is a negative precedent: Amazon's treatment of merchants has resultied in a big backlash for the company, as merchants are leaving their platform and regulators are spilling out large fines.

I truly hope Fiverr does'nt makesimilar mistakes. This is not a sustainable way forward. There has to be a fair balance. Future backlash is something that metrics and AI cannot properly measure or predict. To look at short-term numbers only, without seeing long-term relationships, most likely will be a big mistake.

Most of Fiverr's revenues come from the 20% deducted from the Seller's income. Buyer's only pay a small fee. They are also attracted to the platform, because of the services sellers offer. The important revenue stream Fiverr receives, it receives from the sellers. We sellers are in fact the juice, that makes this place work, and we are the actual clients of Fiverr. You need to treat your clients well. 

I also doubt that over-engineering a platform, one that has worked well so far, is a very good idea. The negative risks far outweigh the minute surplus Fiverr's management may be able to squeeze out of the system. You milk a cow to hard, it will get sick or die. In the case of sellers, a life outside of Fiverr could start to become a lot more attractive again! Is this really in Fiverr's interest?

PS: As Sellers, we should also be concerned how our data is currently being used. For instance: is our creative work currently being used in datasets to train new Fiverr A.I. models? Models which could eventually be used to replace us? A big elephant in the Fiverr room I know, but one that also needs to be discussed (;

Edited April 9, 2023 by whildebrand

[rockitbat]

As a seller we have to get approval from the buyer to extend the order contract but why buyers can extend the review period without asking the seller as they like? Isn't this unfair for sellers who've pre-planned their work and the payments? I am a pro-vetted seller and recently I did a project where the buyer used all the free revisions that I offered but keep extending his review time period. I did the entire project within 14 days but because of his lack of responsibilities, I had to wait over a month to get the project completed. If is a fair reason like having a bunch of holidays in a row or something then that's okay but I think people keep misusing this feature. 

Again I don't mind having this feature for buyers but there should be some rules for them as well. Like the first extension is free and they have to pay for the 2nd extension and onward. (not to the seller but to Fiverr) or allow a limited number of days to extend the time period. I think in that case buyers won't misuse this. 

Edited April 9, 2023 by rockitbat