Upcoming Changes to Forum Ranks and Badges

[Kesha]

As part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the forum, we are planning updates to ranks and badges and would love your feedback before we start this next change. 

First off, we will be condensing the ranks to enhance their significance and manageability. The new ranking system will include five ranks: Newbie, Rising Star, Experienced, Mentor, and Veteran.

The exact amount of points required for each rank is still being determined, but we would like to note that after we implement the changes, you will notice your ranking adjust accordingly.

Additionally, we plan to simplify the amount of available badges, so that users will be able to earn the following badges: 

• First Post- Awarded upon a user's first thread creation. 
• Well Followed- Awarded when a user gains at least 15 followers.
• Conversation Starter- Awarded to users who start five or more threads. 
• Dedicated- Awarded to users who start at least 20 threads.
• Posting Machine- Awarded to users who start at least 50 threads.
• Very Popular- Awarded to users who receive 25 comments or more on a thread they've started.
• Active Contributor- Awarded to users who post at least 30 comments.

These badges will be automatically granted when users meet the specified requirements. Additionally, moderators will be able to manually award badges such as Community Champion, Best Answer, and Most Valuable Feedback.

Plus, to ensure only factual information is being disseminated throughout the forum, moderators will begin correcting inaccurate posts and then marking them with a “Fiverr Official Edit” icon. 

These changes aim to create a more enjoyable and user-friendly forum. We welcome your thoughts on these upcoming adjustments!
 

[vickieito]

Hi @Kesha -

Why not get rid of forum ranks and make them all 'Badges' (Since we can see these badges attached to our pictures)? And then we can call the current badges 'Awards.' I also like the labels of "Seller Plus Premium Member" and "Fiverr Staff." but am afraid if we add labels for seller levels, then it would make buyers easy targets for unscrupulous sellers.

7 hours ago, Kesha said:

Additionally, we plan to simplify the amount of available badges, so that users will be able to earn the following badges: 

• First Post- Awarded upon a user's first thread creation. 
• Conversation Starter- Awarded to users who start five or more threads. 
• Dedicated- Awarded to users who start at least 20 threads.
• Posting Machine- Awarded to users who start at least 50 threads.
• Very Popular- Awarded to users who receive 25 comments or more on a thread they've started.

I wonder if these automatic badges/awards should be eliminated - they appear to promote spammy behavior. Most of the regular forum members that I follow, and who contribute the most quality content, have less than 25 or 30 threads (even if they've been on the forum for years). Most of the spammers can get the "Dedicated" and "Posting Machine" badges within a few weeks on the forum. The posts these sellers make are usually on topics that get regurgitated over and over again on the forum.  I also sometimes request that my thread be closed (before getting to 25 comments) so that I can keep the thread clean of spammy replies.

I think these badges/awards are okay:

7 hours ago, Kesha said:

• Well Followed- Awarded when a user gains at least 15 followers.
• Active Contributor- Awarded to users who post at least 30 comments.

We might also want to add back (I'm not sure why these were taken off the list, but they are better than rewarding people for making spammy posts):

Quote

• Problem Solver- Solved 10 topics.
• Week One Done- A week since joining.
• One Month Later- A month since joining.
• One Year In- A year since joining.

We might also want badges/awards that encourage engagement, such as:

Quote

• Consistent- Visited daily for a week.
• Joined A Club- Awarded to users who join their first club.
• Community Leader- Awarded to users who start/lead a club.

I'm curious to see what manual badges/awards will be given to encourage good forum behavior... 🤔

7 hours ago, Kesha said:

Additionally, moderators will be able to manually award badges such as Community Champion, Best Answer, and Most Valuable Feedback.

These are the manual badges I'm aware of...what others are there?

Quote

• Community Champion
• Best Answer
• Most Valuable Feedback
• Great Content for a post in a topic
• Great Support for a post in a topic
• Helpful for a post in a topic

If there's any way we can reward users for read time, that would be great as well.

Will we still have "Community Answers" and will there be stricter posting limits/restrictions or changes for Newbies/Rising Stars?

Edited January 13 by vickieito

[wp_ustaad]

What would be effect changes on fiverr seller profile

 

[donnovan86]

7 hours ago, vickieito said:

Most of the regular forum members that I follow, and who contribute the most quality content, have less than 25 or 30 threads

I agree, I rarely start any topics, I mostly assist others, I think I might have under 10 topics in 10 years. 

[developerlikhon]

Waiting for the update, but before releasing this update, please work on the Fiverr forum UI because it still looks so old and not very professional.

[catwriter]

17 hours ago, Kesha said:

Well Followed- Awarded when a user gains at least 15 followers.

This might encourage follower exchange. Let's follow each other to get the badge, that sort of thing.

17 hours ago, Kesha said:

Conversation Starter- Awarded to users who start five or more threads. 

There are already too many users who start "how do I rank my gig?" and similar threads. And keep creating more pointless threads, including duplicates.

17 hours ago, Kesha said:

• Dedicated- Awarded to users who start at least 20 threads.
• Posting Machine- Awarded to users who start at least 50 threads.

These might encourage starting even more nonsense threads.

17 hours ago, Kesha said:

Very Popular- Awarded to users who receive 25 comments or more on a thread they've started.

What if those comments are "thanks", "congratulations", and others that could have been emojis?

17 hours ago, Kesha said:

Active Contributor- Awarded to users who post at least 30 comments.

Posting "congratulations" (whether it has something to do with the topic or not) on 30 random threads would achieve this.

I understand the need for gamification, but on this forum, it keeps getting misused as a "secret sauce that will get them orders". Perhaps it would be for the best to get rid of the forum badges completely? One of those "This is why we can't have nice things"?

[vickiespencer]

On 1/13/2024 at 1:40 AM, wp_ustaad said:

What would be effect changes on fiverr seller profile

Your Fiverr seller profile is not affected in any way by the Fiverr Forum. One does not influence the other. 

[breals]

@Kesha  Can I recommend something like an 'outstanding contribution/contributor badge'. ?

Someone who actively takes the time to post a well researched and well written post that impacts on the forum in a positive way. weather this is an idea/initiative or giving clarity on a difficult topic. 

This will be awarded by Fiverr moderators, and will instill trust to the newer forum members that this person is providing factual and trusted information. 

[vickieito]

2 hours ago, catwriter said:

Perhaps it would be for the best to get rid of the forum badges completely?

I would support that decision, at least for the automatic badges (but keep all the manual badges, like the one @breals suggested below). ⬇️

1 hour ago, breals said:

Can I recommend something like an 'outstanding contribution/contributor badge'.

When setting up rewards, badges, and ranks, we should really consider how we want users to behave (and not behave). Good behavior should be rewarded. We want users to visit the forum, keep coming back, read through threads, connect with other members of the forum, help members find answers, report forum violations, and engage in meaningful conversations.

We don't need to reward users simply for posting. We don't need more spam, duplicate posts on the same topic, threads of meaningless conversations that start with, "Say yes if you are..." (which could be handled through polls), or users posting the same questions over and over again (and not searching for their own answers). I love that we have more Fiverr Staff on the forum, but I don't want them to spend more time cleaning up the forum.

[hedayetsaadi556]

On 1/13/2024 at 5:39 PM, donnovan86 said:

I rarely start any topics

Perhaps this is the reason why Fiverr decided to launch the new badge. It'll encourage experienced forum members to start a conversation, share thoughts, and let the community grow. As to spammers, moderators will take care of them.

[hdhiren]

I appreciate that step and also I suggest adding that batch on their Fiverr profile to get more trust from their buyer so that buyers can understand he/she has extra knowledge on that platform and as well as that there field. Thanks, Hiren......

[imagination7413]

On 1/13/2024 at 7:04 AM, developerlikhon said:

Waiting for the update, but before releasing this update, please work on the Fiverr forum UI because it still looks so old and not very professional.

This is an improvement. This is what it used to look like:

Quote

Source: 
https://community.fiverr.com/forums/topic/134255-❓🛠️-common-forum-questions-❓-extra-tools-editing-flagging-badges-and-more/

---

23 hours ago, hedayetsaadi556 said:

Perhaps this is the reason why Fiverr decided to launch the new badge. It'll encourage experienced forum members to start a conversation, share thoughts, and let the community grow.

Motivation. It's either intrinsic or extrinsic.

I have made one help topic. I made it from the desire to help people, NOT for a badge. The topic was time-consuming to do: research, write, verify, modify, rewrite, simplify, format, cite, and tweak. Most of the comments were zero-content bumps from people who clearly hadn't read it. Some of it was outdated within months of posting. When the forum migrated, the formatting was wrecked.

I have no interest in writing for the sake of a pointless badge.

I have posted some conversation starter topics, and even made an attempt to start a game; they failed to garner enough interest to persist. 

I have no interest in doing so again.

And if you point out the topic I started for the most recent holiday season, the sole purpose for that was so that I had a place to merge redundant celebration threads to prevent the topics list from being clogged up.

That topic was not for the purpose of conversation. That was preventive measures.

The problem isn't that the experienced Regulars of the forum don't post threads. It's that we already have, and the people who who would most benefit from reading them don't, because they think making their own topics asking for help is more beneficial. 

[developerlikhon]

2 hours ago, imagination7413 said:

This is an improvement. This is what it used to look like:

---

Motivation. It's either intrinsic or extrinsic.

I have made one help topic. I made it from the desire to help people, NOT for a badge. The topic was time-consuming to do: research, write, verify, modify, rewrite, simplify, format, cite, and tweak. Most of the comments were zero-content bumps from people who clearly hadn't read it. Some of it was outdated within months of posting. When the forum migrated, the formatting was wrecked.

I have no interest in writing for the sake of a pointless badge.

I have posted some conversation starter topics, and even made an attempt to start a game; they failed to garner enough interest to persist. 

I have no interest in doing so again.

And if you point out the topic I started for the most recent holiday season, the sole purpose for that was so that I had a place to merge redundant celebration threads to prevent the topics list from being clogged up.

That topic was not for the purpose of conversation. That was preventive measures.

The problem isn't that the experienced Regulars of the forum don't post threads. It's that we already have, and the people who who would most benefit from reading them don't, because they think making their own topics asking for help is more beneficial. 

You might be interpreting my words incorrectly; I am not disrespecting the forum. I believe that having a new look is important, especially considering the current web trends focused on better user experience (UX). I'm not saying that the Fiverr forum's UX is bad; it's actually good. My point is that we should update things to align with the current web trends. This is entirely my personal opinion, so please don't take it too seriously.

[vickiespencer]

On 1/15/2024 at 12:04 AM, hdhiren said:

I suggest adding that batch on their Fiverr profile to get more trust from their buyer so that buyers can understand he/she has extra knowledge on that platform and as well as that there field. Thanks, Hiren......

Posting the Fiverr Forum badges on a seller profile would mislead buyers. 🤨

For Forum users who understand how Fiverr works, the badges indicate their knowledge.

However, for others, the badges indicate the user was excellent only at giving a ❤️ to every post they encountered.  Or they are zealot thread creators who make posts that are not beneficial to anyone asking the same question that has been asked ad nauseam before. 

Therefore, I do not support placing Forum badges on a seller's profile on the main platform. 

[catwriter]

13 hours ago, hdhiren said:

I suggest adding that batch on their Fiverr profile to get more trust from their buyer

Why would a buyer care what kind of a badge has a service provider received on some forum?

13 hours ago, hdhiren said:

buyers can understand he/she has extra knowledge on that platform

There are people with the Grand Master ranking on the forum who understand nothing (and because they understand nothing, they still have zero sales). Why should a buyer be deceived to trust such a person?

[Kesha]

On 1/13/2024 at 1:40 AM, wp_ustaad said:

What would be effect changes on fiverr seller profile

 

Hi! This change will not have any effect on your Fiverr profile on the marketplace.

[Kesha]

On 1/13/2024 at 1:02 PM, breals said:

@Kesha  Can I recommend something like an 'outstanding contribution/contributor badge'. ?

Someone who actively takes the time to post a well researched and well written post that impacts on the forum in a positive way. weather this is an idea/initiative or giving clarity on a difficult topic. 

This will be awarded by Fiverr moderators, and will instill trust to the newer forum members that this person is providing factual and trusted information. 

That's a great idea. We have been in talks about having something like that so you'll likely see us rolling something similar soon. ☺️

[Kesha]

On 1/15/2024 at 12:56 PM, developerlikhon said:

You might be interpreting my words incorrectly; I am not disrespecting the forum. I believe that having a new look is important, especially considering the current web trends focused on better user experience (UX). I'm not saying that the Fiverr forum's UX is bad; it's actually good. My point is that we should update things to align with the current web trends. This is entirely my personal opinion, so please don't take it too seriously.

We are always hoping to making incremental strides in updating and improving the forum so your feedback is valuable to us. Thank you!

[rabihumakhan]

I think for some of us, the badges don't matter. There are a few members who actively participate and help fellow members who I can count on my fingertips. However, there is a bunch of uninformed members who know nothing about this forum or the main site but still managed to be the 'grand masters'....

[Kesha]

On 1/12/2024 at 11:28 PM, vickieito said:

Why not get rid of forum ranks and make them all 'Badges' (Since we can see these badges attached to our pictures)? And then we can call the current badges 'Awards.' I also like the labels of "Seller Plus Premium Member" and "Fiverr Staff." but am afraid if we add labels for seller levels, then it would make buyers easy targets for unscrupulous sellers.

Sure! We can look into that. We would have to see if it is possible to rename these things on the back end.

 

On 1/12/2024 at 11:28 PM, vickieito said:

I wonder if these automatic badges/awards should be eliminated - they appear to promote spammy behavior. Most of the regular forum members that I follow, and who contribute the most quality content, have less than 25 or 30 threads (even if they've been on the forum for years). Most of the spammers can get the "Dedicated" and "Posting Machine" badges within a few weeks on the forum. The posts these sellers make are usually on topics that get regurgitated over and over again on the forum.  I also sometimes request that my thread be closed (before getting to 25 comments) so that I can keep the thread clean of spammy replies.

I think these badges/awards are okay:

I appreciate this perspective. It's something worth considering since we don't want to reward spammy behavior. 

 

On 1/12/2024 at 11:28 PM, vickieito said:

Hi @Kesha 

Will we still have "Community Answers" and will there be stricter posting limits/restrictions or changes for Newbies/Rising Stars?

No, we won't implement anything that prohibits users from posting, as our goal is to boost engagement and make every user feel welcome to post. We are, however, working with our moderators to key in on spammy behavior and unnecessary conversation mitigation. In regards to your question about "Community Answers", can you expand on what you mean by this? If you are wondering if the entire community will continue to have the ability to answer questions then yes, this feature will remain. Let me know if I can help provide any additional clarity. 

[Kesha]

Thanks for all the valuable feedback, everyone. Of course, our goal is to make badges valuable to all users and it's not in our intention to promote or reward spammy content. Before launching, we will make adjustments based on your suggestions.

[uk1000]

On 1/12/2024 at 10:41 PM, Kesha said:

Very Popular- Awarded to users who receive 25 comments or more on a thread they've started.

People posting 25 comments on someone's thread doesn't necessarily mean they like or agree with what was said or agree with the poster.

A poster could create a thread saying with something incorrect (or offensive), get 25 people posting in reply, correcting them etc. then the original poster would get a "very popular" badge, even for posting a thread with incorrect statements that 25 people disagreed with but commented on. Maybe it should take likes into account.

Edited January 16 by uk1000

[catwriter]

9 minutes ago, uk1000 said:

Maybe it should take likes into account.

With serial likers who like everything?

[uk1000]

8 minutes ago, catwriter said:

With serial likers who like everything?

It could be a combination. How else can you tell they are commenting on the thread because they liked/agreed with the original post in a thread (or some of the contents of it) and that it was popular enough with them to award the "Very Popular" badge to the original poster.  eg. they could award it if the thread contains at least x replies with at least y likes on their original post in that thread.

It's a shame the system can't detect what is written in the post though (or how much, eg. number of words), but there is an invision extension that can check a post has a minimum amount of words so in that they must be doing some word count, and that could be used to help check that people are posting some sort of valuable content too (though it would really need more checks than just word count).

Edited January 16 by uk1000

[catwriter]

On 1/16/2024 at 3:51 PM, uk1000 said:

How else can you tell they are commenting on the thread because they liked/agreed with the original post in a thread (or some of the contents of it) and that it was popular enough with them to award the "Very Popular" badge to the original poster.  eg. they could award it if the thread contains at least x replies with at least y likes on their original post in that thread.

We both know all too well that likes can come from serial likers, and that comments can be rubbish (or be things that should have been emojis, like "congratulations" or "thank you").

Considering the community we have here, the only way I see for the "Very Popular" badge to have any meaning would be for a m0d or a staff member to award it manually.