Suggestion : Seller Option to Accept / Reject Orders

[rizwan14321]

Hi Fellows!

I think Sellers should have some options of Accepting / Rejecting orders after discussion with buyer, because sometimes buyers directly order without reading full description of the gig & ask for something different then scope of gig, & if seller cancel the order, it will affect Order completion rate.

For example, I get sometimes clients which ask me to design a website in Wix, even my gigs are for WordPress & i have no knowledge about WIX, so I have no other option except canceling the order. 

What you guys think ?

[ahmedz502]

I agree. 

[texvox]

Do you have access to the "Request to order" function Fiverr recently rolled out? I'm not sure if it's available to all sellers, but it allows you to require buyers to reach out to you before placing an order to discuss the project (it replaces the "order now" button with a "request to order" button). You can choose to have it on only for new buyers, or for all buyers. 

If you do have access to the feature I'd highly recommend it. You could set it up so that first-time buyers would have to reach out to you to discuss their project first. That way you can go over your specialities and the types of projects you don't do. Then once they become a "repeat buyer" they would just be able to order whenever they wanted to. 

To set the feature up just go to the "edit" page for your gig, and the "Advanced Options" tab. If you have access to the feature you'll see it there. 

[rizwan14321]

9 hours ago, texvox said:

Do you have access to the "Request to order" function Fiverr recently rolled out? I'm not sure if it's available to all sellers, but it allows you to require buyers to reach out to you before placing an order to discuss the project (it replaces the "order now" button with a "request to order" button). You can choose to have it on only for new buyers, or for all buyers. 

If you do have access to the feature I'd highly recommend it. You could set it up so that first-time buyers would have to reach out to you to discuss their project first. That way you can go over your specialities and the types of projects you don't do. Then once they become a "repeat buyer" they would just be able to order whenever they wanted to. 

To set the feature up just go to the "edit" page for your gig, and the "Advanced Options" tab. If you have access to the feature you'll see it there. 

Thanks for this! but i don't have access to that. may be @Yoav.M can help . i guess it might be available only for seller plus program, which cost around $39 / month. not sure though

[williambryan392]

16 minutes ago, rizwan14321 said:

i guess it might be available only for seller plus program

Yes, that's correct.

[Yoav.M]

@williambryan392 - thanks again !

@rizwan14321 - this is indeed correct, this feature is available only for seller plus program...

[jordimeije]

@Yoav.M@rizwan14321 @williambryan392 
I have seller plus and I still don't have that option. (see image)

[Yoav.M]

@jordimeije - I suggest you to check this with your dedicated Customer Success Manager, he or she can elaborate to you about it properly. 

[gregling]

I like the Request to Order idea, but too bad it is only available to sellers at additional cost.

I definitely have issues with people placing orders completely inappropriate for the gig and without prior contact (even though my gig descriptions ask them to contact me before ordering)

[Yoav.M]

@gregling - Thanks for sharing, it is important to emphasize that the feature is only open to members of the premium plan of Seller Plus

Edited May 29, 2023 by Yoav.M

[nickkold]

I would also love it if "Request to Order" became a free feature. Would help so many sellers out. I personally buy Seller Plus Premium every month (so US$39) and I only buy it for that single feature. It's a lot of money, just for that. I got all the other features through either Pro or don't use the benefits. 

[rawque_gulia]

On 5/18/2023 at 5:32 PM, nickkold said:

"Request to Order" became a free feature

Then it will be overused too badly. Everyone is going to lock their gigs and remove the direct buy button. From the buyers perspective (who are new to the platform), it doesn't look too good. To new buyers, it may sound like a complicated process to buy any service. 

So, make your gig description as clear as possible, so that buyers can immediately judge whether you are a good fit for their project or not. But nowadays, sellers use the description field for keyword and SEO purposes (basically spam) and not to describe their service (for which that field is created), and then they complain that buyers automatically place orders.

I am a Seller Plus: Premium member and have access to that feature, but still my gigs are open for direct purchase as the description and tier of my gigs are very clear and I don't have to worry too much about these things.

[nickkold]

1 hour ago, rawque_gulia said:

Then it will be overused too badly. Everyone is going to lock their gigs and remove the direct buy button. From the buyers perspective (who are new to the platform), it doesn't look too good. To new buyers, it may sound like a complicated process to buy any service. 

So, make your gig description as clear as possible, so that buyers can immediately judge whether you are a good fit for their project or not. But nowadays, sellers use the description field for keyword and SEO purposes (basically spam) and not to describe their service (for which that field is created), and then they complain that buyers automatically place orders.

I am a Seller Plus: Premium member and have access to that feature, but still my gigs are open for direct purchase as the description and tier of my gigs are very clear and I don't have to worry too much about these things.

I'm sorry, it's not as easy as "Make your gig description as clear as possible so that buyers can immediately judge whether you are a good fit for their project or not". I don't know your field, but in my field - expectations and examples before entering into an agreement - need to be discussed/shown beforehand. I'm sure a lot of Audio Editors will agree with this. This applies to musical compositions as well. It's a very subjective field, so a conversation beforehand is needed to realise expectations. I can write a super informative and precise order page (And I do) - but in my field every project is different and you will never get to cover it ALL neither can I promise to fix certain audio issues every time - so I need to talk with the client beforehand and discuss issues. 

My point is - for some tasks - sure you can probably write a description to make sure the right fit places the order. But for the more advanced orders - no gig description is gonna be enough. It's also important to take price into account. The more expensive the gig, the more expectation will come - this is where RTO is important. You don't see agencies in the industry with a direct buy button for a reason. These things can take multiple directions - which is great to discuss beforehand. You're speaking a bit from your own point of view here and not really having a full perspective on the subjective.

Edited August 7, 2023 by nickkold

[rawque_gulia]

18 minutes ago, nickkold said:

I'm sorry, it's not as easy as "Make your gig description as clear as possible so that buyers can immediately judge whether you are a good fit for their project or not". I don't know your field, but in my field - expectations and examples before entering into an agreement - need to be discussed/shown beforehand. I'm sure a lot of Audio Editors will agree with this. This applies to musical compositions as well. It's a very subjective field, so a conversation beforehand is needed to realise expectations. I can write a super informative and precise order page (And I do) - but in my field every project is different and you will never get to cover it ALL neither can I promise to fix certain audio issues every time - so I need to talk with the client beforehand and discuss issues. 

My point is - for some tasks - sure you can probably write a description to make sure the right fit places the order. But for the more advanced orders - no gig description is gonna be enough. It's also important to take price into account. The more expensive the gig, the more expectation will come - this is where RTO is important. You don't see agencies in the industry with a direct buy button for a reason. These things can take multiple directions - which is great to discuss beforehand. You're speaking a bit from your own point of view here and not really having a full perspective on the subjective.

Of course, this may differ from category-to-category. But the question is, is it a big issue and do we face these issues on a regular basis? Personally, I can barely remember when anyone ordered one order outright. My clients (even new buyers) first come to inbox for discussions and then place an order through custom offers.

But again, that too depends person-to-person and category-by-category. I do not have the collective data of all sellers as I am not a staff, so we can only point out things from our personal point of view. What is the percentage of orders you get directly (if you want to share with other members like me)?

 

[nickkold]

46 minutes ago, rawque_gulia said:

Of course, this may differ from category-to-category. But the question is, is it a big issue and do we face these issues on a regular basis? Personally, I can barely remember when anyone ordered one order outright. My clients (even new buyers) first come to inbox for discussions and then place an order through custom offers.

But again, that too depends person-to-person and category-by-category. I do not have the collective data of all sellers as I am not a staff, so we can only point out things from our personal point of view. What is the percentage of orders you get directly (if you want to share with other members like me)?

 

Right now? 0 - because I use RTO. In the past before RTO - it happened once a week. So maybe every 10th order was a direct purchase. For me, it takes a lot of stress off my shoulders - making sure that every order I do - I know I can deliver and have time as well. This wasn't the case for me before RTO. We are all different and tackle a lot of orders or difficult orders differently - for me, RTO is much needed and a big part of why I decided to stay on Fiverr. The other way of working is not for me.

For the actual question, is it a big issue? To some it's a big issue - to some, it's not. It's a hard question to answer. Again, it depends on the industry you work in. I know Fiverr is really focusing on getting businesses involved and "doubling-down" on their Pro members (as they said it themselves). I know, from my experience, and the industry that I work in - that agencies and colleagues - work within similar systems as RTO - where you make a request and you have a talk with the client first. So if they are interested in getting more "Pro's" from that industry - they are probably more likely to join - if things like RTO exists. Again, I'm speaking from my own personal and professional experiences. So, in my opinion, it doesn't matter how many actually use the direct buy feature, it's the safety the seller has in having full control over your business and always making sure you can deliver + control your schedule. This way I'm ensuring to give the client the time and care their project needs. It's also an easier way of pricing your services - as quotes differ from need to need.

Losing me as a seller is not a big issue at all for Fiverr - but why not have the option available for those who work better this way - and increase chances of keeping or attracting the sellers that work better this way. I know a lot of my colleagues are starting to show interest in Fiverr after they announced the big platform change towards "Pro" and RTO is a standard way for part of that seller segment to run a business.

Edited August 7, 2023 by nickkold

[solangeriff]

I became a seller PLUS just yesterday and I enabled the option for new customers to request orders. A new customer requested an order today, and when everything was set, I sent them a custom offer. However, my customer could not pay because it said "Error: Something went wrong with this purchase." I'm not sure why it's not working properly as it should.

I had to go back to settings and enable the default option "Instant Order." Hopefully, that will allow my customer to place the order. Any thoughts?

[Yoav.M]

Thanks for elaborating about this issue - @solangeriff - I will forward this to the relevant team within Fiverr.

[Yoav.M]

@solangeriff - The issue is not on your side. Please instruct the buyer to reach out to Fiverr's support (via a ticket) so that they will assist accordingly.

[solangeriff]

Thank you @Yoav.M for your reply.

I will certainly consider doing that with another new customer if this situation arises again, although it can be a bit uncomfortable as the first impression is crucial.

Currently, I'm facing another issue. Despite having set my profile to "request to order," that option is not functioning today. I've checked the settings, and "request order" is turned ON, but it's not being displayed on my profile. This is causing quite a bit of stress...

 

 

[Yoav.M]

Hi again @solangeriff, thanks for this update. 

Did anything changed since yesterday?