session musician Updated pricing factors for session musicians' gigs

[trombonhero]

Quote

Here are some tips to optimize your Gig:
Update the pricing factors for your Gig to increase clarity and sales.
We’ve updated the pricing factors available for your Gig, which means we’ve added new options and have removed others.
We suggest you evaluate the pricing factors in your Gig and ensure they’re accurate and up-to-date.
Doing so will make your Gig clearer for potential buyers. - Fiverr (Music & Audio/Session Musician/Pricing)

Mandatory on the basic package:
- Recording Length (in seconds) - 30;
- Mixing & Mastering - shouldn't be included;
- Record video - shouldn't be included;
- Number of tracks - 1;
- Sheet Music/MIDI - should be included.

What do you think about this new update?
I really hope that the new mandatory add-on for delivering Sheet Music/MIDI on the basic package is just a mistake.
I also think that having the "Number of tracks" on the basic package set to 1 is a restriction that it could avoided.
For example, my gig for recording trumpet and trombone lines provides 2 tracks on the basic package, one is the trombone one is the trumpet. It's not helpful...

If you have in mind to update your services, keep in mind that you will face these limitations at the moment.

[lrm5195]

I log into Fiverr to find I'm being forced to update my gig requirements when it comes to recording time, tracks, price, and also I'm expected to deliver sheet music / MIDI files? WTF!?! 

I have ZERO knowledge when it comes sheet music / MIDI files. I've always learned and played by ear. This is completely unreasonable and ridiculous. Mucisians who are not in favor of these forced requirements should be complaining as much as possible on Fiverr's customer support and wherever else they will be heard (maybe social media?)

[tobywilson664]

I’m sure that this decision will need to be reconsidered. I do sometimes offer scores as a custom extra but the requirement to provide midi files of real audio recordings is unreasonable in my opinion. I also cannot think of a single client who would actually find any value in having a midi file replication of a real instrument recording. 

[tobywilson664]

I’m assuming that it means that sheet music OR midi files should be included. Either way, this represents a lot of additional work for musicians that work with real instruments. In order to comply with this ‘update’ I would need to drastically increase my prices in order to reflect the additional work involved. All for something that would offer little, if any, additional value to the majority of my clients who just want to drop my audio stems into their DAW. I do wonder if Fiverr have got midi files confused with audio stems? I have already emailed my Fiverr Customer Success Manager and I will be scheduling a meeting with her to get to the bottom of this. 

[trombonhero]

2 hours ago, tobywilson664 said:

I have already emailed my Fiverr Customer Success Manager and I will be scheduling a meeting with her to get to the bottom of this. 

Update from Fiverr Customer Support:

Quote

I do understand your point of view, and as someone who's not an expert in that area, I believe that you are right.
 
On my end, I will make sure to follow up with our development team, and let them know your explanation, so we can look into this. Rest assured if our team approves this suggestion, there will be a notification for sure. Since this is related to another team, we, unfortunately, do not have a timeline for review.
 
In the meantime, please make sure to follow updates, and if any update is mandatory, please make sure to use the update for the sake of your Gigs, this will only make them better!

I really hope it will be fixed soon!

[studioarmadillo]

I'm a TRS on Fiverr, and I absolutely agree that this decision is completely ridiculous. Especially given that most of the time, the parts I provide are composed and improvised on the spot, and to transcribe every part I come up with in MIDI is an absolutely wild requirement.

[studioarmadillo]

It seems that they've reverted their decision, the Sheet Music/MIDI extra is no longer mandatory with the basic gig. 🙂

[tobywilson664]

That's great - Thank you Fiverr support for helping us out with that and for resolving it so quickly. Please can I ask that you reconsider the 'Recording length (in seconds)' requirement to be only 30 seconds for the basic gig. It just makes it more complicated for the customer I think. I like many other session musicians, offer packages of full song length but with additional tracks being added as part of the higher priced packages. It works really well this way. 

Thanks for considering this too.

[tobywilson664]

Another snag with the 30 second only option on the basic gig package - as a pro seller my minimum fee on any gig should be $100. This means that I'd have to charge $600 for a single track of a 3 minute duration. I'm currently charging $300 for a full song with 3 instruments on my platinum package. I can't see how I can make that work.

[visualstudios]

2 minutes ago, tobywilson664 said:

Another snag with the 30 second only option on the basic gig package - as a pro seller my minimum fee on any gig should be $100. This means that I'd have to charge $600 for a single track of a 3 minute duration. I'm currently charging $300 for a full song with 3 instruments on my platinum package. I can't see how I can make that work.

Not necessarily, since you can charge $100 for 30 seconds, but $300 for 3 minutes. The increase in price usually isn't linear with time, the more minutes you buy the less each minute should cost.

[tobywilson664]

31 minutes ago, visualstudios said:

Not necessarily, since you can charge $100 for 30 seconds, but $300 for 3 minutes. The increase in price usually isn't linear with time, the more minutes you buy the less each minute should cost.

I understand what you mean but my packages escalate in terms of the number of tracks and not by the duration of the track. This approach just doesn't seem logical to me. Plus there's a risk of a buyer not realising that in order to buy a 3 minute track they should just order 1 x platinum gig costing $300 and not 6 x basic gigs costing $600.

[visualstudios]

1 hour ago, tobywilson664 said:

I understand what you mean but my packages escalate in terms of the number of tracks and not by the duration of the track. This approach just doesn't seem logical to me.

Sure, that also applies to me for video, I don't quote for duration. But that's irrelevant to the point being made about charging x for y seconds. Fiverr wants to push that, but that pricing strategy doesn't apply to all gigs, so I just have request to order on everything, and every order I make is a custom offer. I have to set the gig to display x for y, but the price will be discussed with the client according to the project details, the display prices are just ballpark values for typical projects.

1 hour ago, tobywilson664 said:

Plus there's a risk of a buyer not realising that in order to buy a 3 minute track they should just order 1 x platinum gig costing $300 and not 6 x basic gigs costing $600.

There's no downside for you in that case. The buyer can either look at the gig, read everything, and purchase what makes sense and is the best deal for them, or they can overpay because they didn't even take the time to understand what they were buying. If, as a buyer, I go to a gig that sells 30 seconds for $100 as the basic package, and 3 minutes for $300 as the premium, if I purchase 6 basic packages for a 3 minute song instead of 1 premium package for the exact same thing, that's entirely my fault and responsibility. I'm just paying the tax for not reading things properly (which is quite fair, since buyers that don't read things are way more risky in several ways, so they should indeed pay more).

This also doesn't apply if you have request to order on and sell through custom offers. Buyer checks your gig, sends you a message saying "I want a 3 minute song", and you send them a $300 custom offer.

Edited September 10, 2023 by visualstudios

[lrm5195]

Agreed, I want the 30 second concept gone as well. I shouldn’t be forced to sell my basic package at a “30 second at the most” requirement. Who is making 30 second songs? Come on Fiverr 🤦🏻‍♂️

[trombonhero]

On 9/9/2023 at 9:27 AM, studioarmadillo said:

It seems that they've reverted their decision, the Sheet Music/MIDI extra is no longer mandatory with the basic gig. 🙂

That is awesome! As @tobywilson664 said, quick and professional resolution, thumbs up to the Support and all the other Fiverr Teams involved! 👍

Mandatory on the basic package:
- Recording Length (in seconds) - 30;
- Mixing & Mastering - shouldn't be included;
- Record video - shouldn't be included;
- Number of tracks - 1;
- Sheet Music/MIDI - shouldn't be included.

I was thinking today about the "Number of tracks". If I sell "trumpet and trombone" recordings, the number of tracks involved on the basic package should be 2 (at least). What about if Fiverr is thinking about "tracks" as "takes"?
 

As @barriteau said in another related topic here in the Forum, if we think about a drummer/percussionist there is no use in having a mandatory 1 track for the basic package. But if we think about "1 take" it makes sense; what do you think? If you agree with this, we can try to contact the Support once more and explain our concerns about this terminology. 

About the recording length (30 seconds), it's okay for me because it can be enough sometimes for recording brass instruments (a solo, a small line...).
As @visualstudios said:

7 hours ago, visualstudios said:

the display prices are just ballpark values for typical projects.

Probably, in your case @lrm5195, Fiverr is forcing you to change the basic package to a short demo version of what a buyer could get through the standard package. This way, customers could try your recordings, compare them with another musician/seller and choose which will be better for their project. 

[barriteau]

19 hours ago, trombonhero said:

As @barriteau said in another related topic here in the Forum, if we think about a drummer/percussionist there is no use in having a mandatory 1 track for the basic package. But if we think about "1 take" it makes sense; what do you think? If you agree with this, we can try to contact the Support once more and explain our concerns about this terminology. 

Absolutely agree, in fact, my gig description has something like "one take when possible" because I have the idea that a minimal number of takes could simplify the mixing tasks for the non-experts (like me).

A possible "1 take" offering equally fits as an additional check in the packages options or in the "Add extra services" section.

It's a cool idea, @trombonhero hope it to be heard.

Edited September 11, 2023 by barriteau

[lrm5195]

They finally removed the sheet music / midi file requirement but the fact that we still have the 30 second value requirement along with the number of tracks delivered is still ridiculous. I've never had a buyer come to me with a 30 second song. Come on Fiverr, who is making these requirements mandatory for sellers? I feel like they don't know anything about music. I don't need bootlicking Fiverr users coming to me with their best guess on why they're making these decisions, I just need the requirements removed so I can run my own gig how it makes sense to me. Please change these things!

[lrm5195]

On 9/10/2023 at 1:52 PM, trombonhero said:

That is awesome! As @tobywilson664 said, quick and professional resolution, thumbs up to the Support and all the other Fiverr Teams involved! 👍

Mandatory on the basic package:
- Recording Length (in seconds) - 30;
- Mixing & Mastering - shouldn't be included;
- Record video - shouldn't be included;
- Number of tracks - 1;
- Sheet Music/MIDI - shouldn't be included.

I was thinking today about the "Number of tracks". If I sell "trumpet and trombone" recordings, the number of tracks involved on the basic package should be 2 (at least). What about if Fiverr is thinking about "tracks" as "takes"?
 

As @barriteau said in another related topic here in the Forum, if we think about a drummer/percussionist there is no use in having a mandatory 1 track for the basic package. But if we think about "1 take" it makes sense; what do you think? If you agree with this, we can try to contact the Support once more and explain our concerns about this terminology. 

About the recording length (30 seconds), it's okay for me because it can be enough sometimes for recording brass instruments (a solo, a small line...).
As @visualstudios said:

Probably, in your case @lrm5195, Fiverr is forcing you to change the basic package to a short demo version of what a buyer could get through the standard package. This way, customers could try your recordings, compare them with another musician/seller and choose which will be better for their project. 

I already offer free samples to potential buyers, so Fiverr making me charge for a 30 second demo is just a bad idea imo.

[trombonhero]

11 minutes ago, lrm5195 said:

I already offer free samples

I prefer to send potential buyers to my gigs pages, to my portfolio and to other available online sources (i.e. YouTube). 

There are plenty of options to showcase ourselves as musicians and sellers. 

What if this is Fiverr forcing us to avoid to work for free? 🤔

[tobywilson664]

Hey folks,

Has anyone had an update on the 30 second issue yet? We are being forced down the route of only offering 30 seconds of audio on our basic gig packages. This doesn't work at all well as a pro seller as I have to charge a minimum of $100. It just won't work for me.

Also - I updated one of my gig videos five days ago and am still waiting for it to be approved.

On a similar note - it seems that I am not allowed to add more than one YouTube link in my gig description. Come on Fiverr folks - treat me like an adult and trust me. I'm just trying to make more money for the both of us through sharing examples of my professional activity (A performance at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville).

Sometimes feel like obstacles are being put in the way without much thought being given to the impact....

Toby

[evp_productions]

On 9/7/2023 at 9:08 AM, trombonhero said:

Mandatory on the basic package:
- Recording Length (in seconds) - 30;
- Mixing & Mastering - shouldn't be included;
- Record video - shouldn't be included;
- Number of tracks - 1;
- Sheet Music/MIDI - should be included.

What do you think about this new update?
I really hope that the new mandatory add-on for delivering Sheet Music/MIDI on the basic package is just a mistake.
I also think that having the "Number of tracks" on the basic package set to 1 is a restriction that it could avoided.
For example, my gig for recording trumpet and trombone lines provides 2 tracks on the basic package, one is the trombone one is the trumpet. It's not helpful...

If you have in mind to update your services, keep in mind that you will face these limitations at the moment.

This is totally a mistake. One of my main services is Guitar Recording. Sheet Music/MIDI should be add-ons. Also MIDI is mandatory but Guitar doesn't produce MIDI files but itself so it complicates the complete process. It's obiously an update so wrong, no professional was consulted. Another wrong step (the bigger one was Buyers Request elimination) 

[atakan81]

I think relevant to this topic, here's my authentic, true and real, new user experience.
The registration is nice and easy, but the Gig is something I didn't expect at all. For years I thought Fiverr is this light hearted platform where people have fun and make some copper coins along the way, by offering their valuable skills. Also a place to get an affordable access to real life seasoned Pros.
Instead the Gig asks me to create an entire business plan that I have no knowledge about. It makes sense but its too much professional for someone like me who have no idea or practical experience with something like the "Gig". Too detailed, too serious, too unfun. As a result I have paused my Gig until.. IDK when.
I want to communicate and create, I'm curious to get feedback, I want to improve, I'm up for the challenge and I'll love to secure a cup of coffee and a burger while its happening. While I really like and don't disrespect in any way the top profiles on the platform, I think the Gig process with it's parameters and mandatory requirements just took all that by the collar and repeatedly slammed it into a lamp post. Maybe it could have been implemented differently. Like more enjoyable and not so overly formal. To be fun, and not laughable.
Ok... 1 day on, already ranting 😆
Peace!

[trombonhero]

Hi @atakan81, Fiverr is an eCommerce. Keeping up with the demands of the platform is a challenge, and I'm sure it's just as challenging for us as it is for them (to be competitive as an eCommerce). On the other hand, it's not that hard to create a gig and if Fiverr is asking you all those details it's because they want us to start great each time. Fiverr Learn can assist you in creating your business plan: https://learn.fiverr.com/courses/online-freelancing-essentials-be-a-successful-fiverr-seller. Additionally, this forum offers a variety of useful tips and the opportunity to ask your own questions!

If you are searching for fun and if you're up for the challenge for a cup of coffee and a burger, I think that a social platform like BandLab can help you with that. It's not an eCommerce, you're not selling anything but you can challenge yourself as much as you want, having fun with other musicians and producers (and get tips for that burger).

Michele

Edited December 3, 2023 by trombonhero