Success Score is a bad thing for Fiverr.

[dereck_s]

I use to be invested heavily into my account and spent a lot of my time working on improving my account and the relationships I had with the people I worked with on it. Now with this new level system I feel vulnerable and bitter. I want orders but I also don't want orders because if it's a bad customer or if anything is less than ideal my account gets screwed.

I had been a level 2 seller on this site for longer than most people have been on the site period and business was good. Now with this new system I went from level 2 to level 0 to level 1 to level 2 and literally less than a month after I regained level 2 I received a warning that I was in danger of becoming level 1 again. In the span of just a few months my levels went 2>0>1>2>1 after having a level 2 account for 10+ years. You know what the crazy thing is? I haven't completed a new client order in months! When I try to figure out what the hell is going on with my gig I get literally no information (see attached image).

My gig is a 4 and when I look up why it's a 4 it doesn't list a single reason why my gig is one of the lowest on the entire platform.

You know where all of this has left me? I just don't give a shit anymore. I couldn't care less if I had just stayed at level 0 and I certainly wouldn't put in any effort to get to level 1 and beyond. None of the scores make any sense and what I do understand is really concerning about how little protections we get.

 

It's a shame really, Fiverr use to be a really cool platform.

 

[filipdevaere]

I also have gigs that look like your picture. They do have a score of 8.
They are gigs that sell very little. I suspect that is why they say "There are no specific areas significantly impacting your Gig's score". Is your gig also a gig that has very few sales, or was the last sale for that gig a long time ago?

[dereck_s]

2 hours ago, filipdevaere said:

I also have gigs that look like your picture. They do have a score of 8.
They are gigs that sell very little. I suspect that is why they say "There are no specific areas significantly impacting your Gig's score". Is your gig also a gig that has very few sales, or was the last sale for that gig a long time ago?

So the last sale on that gig was about 4 months. I wish that wasn't the case of course but short of staying my usual bowl of sunshine I don't know what to do. I don't think the gig is even being counted because my main gig was a 7 and my success score was a 7, now that gig was made a 6 and my success score was downranked to 6 at the same time.

[filipdevaere]

8 minutes ago, dereck_s said:

So the last sale on that gig was about 4 months. I wish that wasn't the case of course but short of staying my usual bowl of sunshine I don't know what to do. I don't think the gig is even being counted because my main gig was a 7 and my success score was a 7, now that gig was made a 6 and my success score was downranked to 6 at the same time.

I think my top-selling gigs aren't allowing me to increase my score.

None of my top-selling gigs have a score of 10. They have an 8 or 9. I've been working on selling more orders from my other gigs for months now. That way, the number of reviews for my less popular gigs increases and the gap between my popular gigs and the less popular gigs becomes smaller.

Unfortunately, this is going to take a long time before I know if it has any effect.

[krisnh_o]

5 hours ago, dereck_s said:

I use to be invested heavily into my account and spent a lot of my time working on improving my account and the relationships I had with the people I worked with on it. Now with this new level system I feel vulnerable and bitter. I want orders but I also don't want orders because if it's a bad customer or if anything is less than ideal my account gets screwed.

I had been a level 2 seller on this site for longer than most people have been on the site period and business was good. Now with this new system I went from level 2 to level 0 to level 1 to level 2 and literally less than a month after I regained level 2 I received a warning that I was in danger of becoming level 1 again. In the span of just a few months my levels went 2>0>1>2>1 after having a level 2 account for 10+ years. You know what the crazy thing is? I haven't completed a new client order in months! When I try to figure out what the hell is going on with my gig I get literally no information (see attached image).

My gig is a 4 and when I look up why it's a 4 it doesn't list a single reason why my gig is one of the lowest on the entire platform.

You know where all of this has left me? I just don't give a shit anymore. I couldn't care less if I had just stayed at level 0 and I certainly wouldn't put in any effort to get to level 1 and beyond. None of the scores make any sense and what I do understand is really concerning about how little protections we get.

 

It's a shame really, Fiverr use to be a really cool platform.

 

I had the same problem as you, when I got level 1 my score was 10. I am completing many orders with clients and reviews and good 5 stars even after that the success score is coming to 5. How can I increase it now?

[katakatica]

I've said this before and will continue to say it - the success score doesn't take us and our clients being humans into account. 

Clients don't want us to send them prewritten messages (I've seen several people complain about that here before!) they want human connection. However, human connection isn't necessarily what effective communication seems to be. 

I refuse to remind my clients to leave reviews (or ask them why they left X once they've left a ',bad' one. I also often work with people who can't explain what they want to start with and I need to make major modifications to cater to them. This means that my inboxes have 'this is bad / not what I want' in them more often than I'd like. 

Not my fault- but I do bend over backwards to make sure people get what they want (within reasonable limits.) And yet, apparently, my clients who come back often are dissatisfied. 

I'm not saying I'm perfect because misunderstandings happen from my side as well (if people purchase X but want Y understanding that is tricky for me sometimes, etc.) but isn't it the end product that matters?

While I think the success score is a good idea in theory I feel like it's not... great? Like there's still a lot of things to iron out with it (which is a concern when, you know - some people's livelihoods depend on it.

My score is a 9 - but I have a hunch that it might dip a bit (or on some gigs) after some orders from my current batch will be finished so... we'll see what happens. 

[majidshowghi]

I see you're currently at Level 2, which means your success score average should now be above 7.

So, if one of your gigs is around 4 and another is around 8, but the average comes out to 7, it says they consider a factor that I call 'density of gigs'.

If you notice that number changing throughout the month without any activity, it likely means the only variable at play; is 'time'. This might be due to the '2-year window' they account for. For example, if your success score dropped, a well-rated order from earlier may have fallen out of that window.

There could be another factor too—I've seen speculation on the forums that the new Fiverr algorithm also considers your competition's activity.

I don't like the new algorithm either. But when I think about it, I remember how certain accounts from specific countries used to manipulate the system and mess up the market. Some are still around, but with this new system, they're dwindling over time, and that gives me some hope.

I mean... I'm starting to think I just need to give it some time before I make a desicion. 

 

[ch6k0r]

6 hours ago, katakatica said:

I've said this before and will continue to say it - the success score doesn't take us and our clients being humans into account. 

Clients don't want us to send them prewritten messages (I've seen several people complain about that here before!) they want human connection. However, human connection isn't necessarily what effective communication seems to be. 

This right here is why Effective Communication seems to be the most unrealistic aspect of success score, it's monitored by Ai while the clients themselves are praising our communication and attentivness often, nobody is complaining but yet we get punished for not following the Ai's format of communication, no room for our own character or the nature of our own gig (small projects and simple clear deliveries shouldn't take lots of back and forth)

[dereck_s]

7 hours ago, majidshowghi said:

I see you're currently at Level 2, which means your success score average should now be above 7.

So, if one of your gigs is around 4 and another is around 8, but the average comes out to 7, it says they consider a factor that I call 'density of gigs'.

If you notice that number changing throughout the month without any activity, it likely means the only variable at play; is 'time'. This might be due to the '2-year window' they account for. For example, if your success score dropped, a well-rated order from earlier may have fallen out of that window.

There could be another factor too—I've seen speculation on the forums that the new Fiverr algorithm also considers your competition's activity.

I don't like the new algorithm either. But when I think about it, I remember how certain accounts from specific countries used to manipulate the system and mess up the market. Some are still around, but with this new system, they're dwindling over time, and that gives me some hope.

I mean... I'm starting to think I just need to give it some time before I make a desicion. 

 

So I'm in that weird probation period where my score was a 7 but it dropped to a 6 so I'm being warned that it's going to drop to level 1 if I can't bring my score back up ....... however the hell one does that now a days. That's why it currently shows me at level 2 (I did mention that in my post).

[litcornerbooks]

I have to say that the new system makes me just sad and frustrated. I had more orders when I was level 0 than when I became level 1. In the last few weeks, I had no orders at all and I see very low impressions. My level is still on 1 but I keep getting warnings about "stats slipping" and then it goes back to safe level 1 again... I am sick of this "harassment". I like what I can do on Fiverr but my main income comes from my established and stable job (book editor and English teacher) far away from Fiverr. I recently got two new bigger projects to work on and it will keep me busy for weeks. So I paused my Fiverr gigs in a case of a surprise order that would just mess with my time. And I realized pausing the gigs felt like a relief and I am not sure whether I will unapuse them this years. Or the next year... Unless something changes.

Fiverr has become a strange place with the last update. This is my new Fiverr profile from last year. But I had another profile with the same gigs years ago and I worked for about two years here. It was very different. I was doing exactly the same and I had no problems with clients or number of orders. I was even often overbooked. It was a very nice income during a maternity leave. Then I deleted the old account because of the inability to change the name of the profile. Because I started a bigger business for authors and English students in my home and it was growing. And I wanted my Fiverr name to also match the official business name. So I started over again on Fiverr and everything was getting well again. Until I hit level 1 😄 

[desmond_aubery]

Is there a way to request Fiverr to drop status back to Level 0?

[ch6k0r]

9 minutes ago, desmond_aubery said:

Is there a way to request Fiverr to drop status back to Level 0?

Hold up, why do you need to do that? 😂

[desmond_aubery]

14 minutes ago, ch6k0r said:

Hold up, why do you need to do that? 😂

Well, I'm a lot happier there. Less pressure to retain level status that is tied to the whims of poor recent Fiverr philosophy and software. Their rating system and level pressure expose the Seller to unnecessary rejection, manipulation and control.

In practice, one of my Gigs dominates, so I don't need the additional Gigs above 4.

In the Engineering consulting business, some Jeckyl & Hyde clients really only surface after an initial online consultation - then leave a nasty review. This is the nature of the game and will require pre-Gig pruning in future. In real life, during face-to-face consultations, these clients are avoided during early due diligence review - dreamers without pockets - 'Well-Healed El-Cheapo' clients. With anonymous monikers, this is difficult to do.

After what I experienced last week at the hands of Fiverr CS, I have a great deal of thinking to do. Lost USD 800 to a combination of 'Well-Healed El-Cheapo' scammer client, non-existent Escrow protection and CS ineptitude. 

Post this event, I rejected their sell-up offers of Pro, advertising, etc. Bare bones has been fine for me.

Edited October 20 by desmond_aubery

[uk1000]

1 hour ago, desmond_aubery said:

Is there a way to request Fiverr to drop status back to Level 0?

You could contact the helpdesk and ask them if they could do that for your account if you wanted.

Otherwise you could lower your response rate/completion rate (completion rate isn't one of the main stats now but it might affect success score, which then might affect level)/on time delivery rate etc. and that would drop your level if those stats are low enough (not sure if it's immediate), but then you'll get quite low in search position if those go low enough. Dropping level to 0 will probably prevent you having the "promote gig" option too. So it might be harder to get orders if your stats are low/level lower.

What you could do is try applying for Fiverr Pro at some point. If you get it you'll probably appear higher in search results and probably CS will take your side more in disputes. And you can show them you're pro level at what you do. If you haven't got a success manager if you can get seller plus (the higher package that comes with one) the success manager would back you up in disputes probably. Though it would be expensive for that seller plus.

Edited October 20 by uk1000

[desmond_aubery]

2 hours ago, uk1000 said:

You could contact the helpdesk and ask them if they could do that for your account if you wanted.

Otherwise you could lower your response rate/completion rate (completion rate isn't one of the main stats now but it might affect success score, which then might affect level)/on time delivery rate etc. and that would drop your level if those stats are low enough (not sure if it's immediate), but then you'll get quite low in search position if those go low enough. Dropping level to 0 will probably prevent you having the "promote gig" option too. So it might be harder to get orders if your stats are low/level lower.

What you could do is try applying for Fiverr Pro at some point. If you get it you'll probably appear higher in search results and probably CS will take your side more in disputes. And you can show them you're pro level at what you do. If you haven't got a success manager if you can get seller plus (the higher package that comes with one) the success manager would back you up in disputes probably. Though it would be expensive for that seller plus.

Thank you very much for your interesting ideas. Much obliged.  🙏

So, we pay 20% for what, exactly? 🤔

CS has showed themselves to be absolutely clueless in arbitrating Engineering projects. So, it would be unwise to fuel their ineptitude yet further by paying an extra amount.

Edited October 21 by desmond_aubery

[dereck_s]

On 10/20/2024 at 8:19 PM, desmond_aubery said:

Thank you very much for your interesting ideas. Much obliged.  🙏

So, we pay 20% for what, exactly? 🤔

CS has showed themselves to be absolutely clueless in arbitrating Engineering projects. So, it would be unwise to fuel their ineptitude yet further by paying an extra amount.

Yeah I totally stopped caring about levels, success scores, and whatever other corporate speak alphabet soup. I'm just numb and over it now because you can do everything right and still just lose everything and have no way to defend yourself or even really understand what happened.

When I was a seller plus premium member I can't think of a single issue I had that was fixed or even helped my CS or my Success Manager. Not to mention that my cost per click (gig promotion) was insanely high normally hovering between $1-2 dollars per click. When business was good Fiverr normally took around 40% of my total earnings. When the new system was introduced and I lost my levels I had to pay Fiverr for 2 months before I turned it all off.

[priyank_mod]

On 10/21/2024 at 5:49 AM, desmond_aubery said:

So, we pay 20% for what, exactly? 🤔

CS has showed themselves to be absolutely clueless in arbitrating Engineering projects.

But is it a fair assessment to call everything on a platform bad because support lacks ability to understand a very particular niche?? 

For example, voicing is a big vertical here but a support staff doing her/his 8 hour shift cannot understand the nuances of quality of voice, depth, recording environment, breathing etc.

[desmond_aubery]

1 hour ago, priyank_mod said:

But is it a fair assessment to call everything on a platform bad because support lacks ability to understand a very particular niche?? 

For example, voicing is a big vertical here but a support staff doing her/his 8 hour shift cannot understand the nuances of quality of voice, depth, recording environment, breathing etc.

Thank you. Very fair comment. Well taken.  🙏

Now, should not Fiverr have a fair arbitration process, where the arbitrator engages both buyer and seller - individually at first - then in a common room? This emulates the real-world arbitration process. An arbitration expert is generally not part of the standard CS and can be called in - as required - on a case-by-case basis. 

In terms of full disclosure, I decided today to test the Seller Plus program. In other words, to take to heart earlier advice on this thread and see where it ends up.

[filipdevaere]

8 minutes ago, desmond_aubery said:

I decided today to test the Seller Plus program.

Seller Plus Premium is the best one. Unfortunately, this is the most expensive version.

In the premium version, the RTO feature can save you a lot of problems. This feature is worth paying for.
The priority support is also great.

The rest of the features are not very useful for me.

[desmond_aubery]

20 minutes ago, filipdevaere said:

Seller Plus Premium is the best one. Unfortunately, this is the most expensive version.

In the premium version, the RTO feature can save you a lot of problems. This feature is worth paying for.
The priority support is also great.

The rest of the features are not very useful for me.

Thank you very much. I'm not sure that Seller Plus Premium is available to me at this stage. 🙏

[agonza1101]

In my opinion, Fiverr's Success Score algorithm perfectly illustrates how companies integrate AI into scenarios where it is not even necessarily needed

At the very least, if it is here to stay – which seems likely – certain aspects should be addressed more quickly, as it is causing a lot of issues

[alexonjourney]

On 10/20/2024 at 11:53 PM, desmond_aubery said:

Is there a way to request Fiverr to drop status back to Level 0?

My tip for getting to level 0: Continue to do a very good job. I've dropped from Success Score 6 to 4 in the last 1.5 months. My two gigs have a Success Score of 6 and 5. Only the extremely competent programmers at Fiverr know how that fits together. Incidentally, I could improve on “Customer Satisfaction”, which is of course completely understandable if my ratings are 5 stars and I regularly receive tips.

[ceilingeyes]

Changing their system has absolutely afected everyone negatively. I used to get at least half a dozen orders a month (which is plenty for me), now I dont get anything. Used to be Level 2, now stuck at 1 despite all my reviews being 5 star. I dont care anymore either. Id love to know how many people have packed it in on Fiverr and moved elsewhere. I certainly have.