Same story: "let's try" and see what happens

[manuelmarino]

I was hoping things were different after few months but what I feel from the Forum today is the same old story: dozens of threads about "let's try and see what happens".

There are so many ones that still need to learn the lesson: freelancing is not "let's try", it's something to be considered inside a career path. Means you have studied, you have experience, you have skills, you are talented, you have testimonials and so on. It's just a branch in a complete career tree. Approaching it in a different way will ruin the experience of anyone in general, not just the veteran ones but the entire marketplace. Your ideas?

 

[shalock]

Well, it's an open market and everyone has the change to get a shot.

I think the real problem is when people that have no clue tries to pass as experts and then get in trouble because they don't really know how to handle their orders or what the buyers expect form then.

Obviously nobody will write in his/her profile, I'm a noob, but you should be humble enough to provide just the services you can do and do them good.

Also, people should have their expectations in check, as someone who has never freelanced may think that this is easy money and then you read a lot of posts of people that doesn't understand why they aren't swimming in money.

[manuelmarino]

exactly, I mean the risk is that the "let's try" philosophy attracts amateurs, ruining the marketplace and the reputation of specific roles. It's an open market but when you destroy the composers role (as example) giving your customers crap and they begin to think that it's fault of the entire category that works remotely, then it's a big problem.

[mehran_hussain]

You are correct that freelancing, including on Fiverr, should be considered as part of a career path rather than just a "let's try" approach.

One way to address this issue is to encourage and promote a culture of professionalism and skill-building within the Fiverr community. This could include encouraging new freelancers to invest in their education and skills development, highlighting successful and professional freelancers as examples to emulate, and providing resources and guidance for freelancers to improve their craft.

Another way is to help new freelancers to understand the importance of creating a comprehensive portfolio, highlighting testimonials, and showcasing their skills and talents. This can be achieved by creating tutorials, sharing best practices and providing them with resources.

Additionally, Fiverr could consider implementing stricter guidelines and policies for freelancers to ensure that only those who are serious and committed to their craft are allowed to participate in the marketplace.

Overall, it's important to foster a culture of professionalism and skill-building within the Fiverr community, and to provide resources and guidance to help freelancers succeed.

[manuelmarino]

Yes, consider that remote working will become more important in the next months, for different reasons (maybe also the pandemic situation). I believe that sooner or later this evolution of the jobs marketplace was destined to appear. It's linked also to new technologies, internet speed and multimedia companies needs. We have the honour to be in this wonderful transition moment 😊 

[vickieito]

On 1/12/2023 at 10:21 PM, manuelmarino said:

"let's try and see what happens".

This was the mindset that I had when I posted my first gig!

I thought I had missed the boat joining the online community of remote workers so late, so I didn't expect much. My first gig was in November 2021 and I only planned on it being a part-time side gig for supplemental income (so I wasn't pursuing this as a career path). However, I was able to quit my day job and offer my services on Fiverr full-time within 3 months, so I kept on going!

On 1/12/2023 at 10:21 PM, manuelmarino said:

Means you have studied, you have experience, you have skills, you are talented, you have testimonials and so on.

Fiverr has so many talented sellers with years of experience to back them up. Unfortunately I'm not one of them (although I wish it were true)!

I did have 23 years of professional experience, but that experience isn't directly related to any of the gigs I offer.

For me, a lot of the studying, experience, skills, talents, and testimonials I have are from my time on Fiverr, as my Fiverr business evolved.

4 hours ago, shalock said:

it's an open market and everyone has the change to get a shot.

I'm grateful for this - that I was able to experiment, set up multiple gigs, learn where I could create the most value for my customers, and develop my skills when I had zero experience, zero customers, and zero reviews.

I set up unrelated gigs in different categories because I didn't know what skills people would actually buy or if I was good enough to compete with other sellers offering the same services. I spent a lot of time creating my portfolio (which I'm now embarrassed about because my skills weren't very good when I  started). However, my portfolio showed my buyers exactly what I was capable of doing so they knew what quality I could offer.

The skills that worked for me, I kept and developed. The skills that didn't, I got rid of.

On 1/12/2023 at 10:21 PM, manuelmarino said:

Approaching it in a different way will ruin the experience of anyone in general, not just the veteran ones but the entire marketplace. Your ideas?

I really hope my approach didn't ruin anyone's experience!

I think what makes a difference is that I approached the platform with a business mentality, even if it was a side gig. It took me 2 1/2 years to post my first gig. I didn't see Fiverr as a faucet that you turn on and orders just start flowing (without any effort on my part). I knew it was going to be hard work and that continuous effort, progress tracking, and improvement was necessary.

I think it's wonderful that Fiverr allows sellers to work as much (or as little) as they want. However, it's important that sellers see their Fiverr business as a business that exists to serve real customers (not as a quick way to make extra money for them - as in "Make me rich.").