Day 244: Success Score is still broken.

[jaden_barton]

Two hundred and forty-four days. That’s how long I’ve been waiting for Fiverr to fix its broken, irrational, downright frustrating success score system. Instead, I’m still watching my score drop, rise, and twist in mysterious ways that make no sense whatsoever. I am beyond tired of trying to figure out how to navigate this score because, quite frankly, it doesn’t work.

This System Doesn’t Reflect Real Success

The success score is supposedly a measure of how well sellers perform by combining metrics like timely deliveries, ratings, and client satisfaction. But in reality, it’s a random roulette. One day, my score might go up after a glowing review, and the next, it plummets without reason, leaving me wondering if there’s some invisible Fiverr force pulling strings behind the scenes.

Here’s the problem: this score doesn’t measure my success, effort, or dedication to delivering great work. It’s like Fiverr created a one-size-fits-all model and slapped it on every seller without any thought. My field is unique, my clients are unique, and so is every seller’s service. Fiverr’s rigid formula disregards the hard work I put in to maintain a stellar reputation and work history.

The Impact of High-Maintenance Clients Is Punishing

Let’s talk about clients—especially those who are unfamiliar with the Fiverr platform or have no clue what a ‘revision’ is. The current model means every client interaction feels like walking on eggshells. Some clients ask for changes and push timelines, and every little adjustment chips away at my success score. Even though I handle requests professionally, the system punishes sellers for bending over backward to keep clients happy. When did customer satisfaction mean anything if the platform metrics don’t reflect it?

I’m tired of a model that treats every revision as a failure and every delivery not within the exact hour as a black mark. This is an impossible standard, especially when clients don’t understand the service and need extra help. Instead of representing quality, this system encourages sellers to meet hollow metrics, reducing service to a ticking clock.

Lack of Communication? Really?

The most frustrating part? I constantly get dinged for “lack of communication” despite the fact that 99% of my client interactions are on video calls. I start the project with a video call, revise on a video call, and end the project with a video call. Clients regularly tell me, “I love that you were able to hop on video calls, it shows me that you care more than any other freelancer that I've worked with previously” They’re thrilled to have that level of interaction. But does it matter to Fiverr’s algorithm? Not one bit. Video calls don’t count in Fiverr’s metrics, so while my clients feel valued and taken care of, my success score makes it look like I’m ignoring them.

This isn’t just frustrating; it’s completely unfair. Fiverr’s system doesn’t capture real communication and doesn’t reflect the positive impact these calls have on client satisfaction. My score drops, and I’m left wondering why I’m being penalized for going above and beyond with my clients. (I wonder how video call centered niches are affected by this. Ie. consulting and advising)

Fiverr's Mystery Algorithm: A Black Box of Doom

What makes this worse is the utter lack of transparency. There’s no insight into how the score is actually calculated or what drives the fluctuations. You’d think Fiverr would want to help sellers improve their scores by providing some guidance, but no. Instead, we’re left guessing how our actions impact the score. Minor misunderstandings or clients who simply don’t read instructions end up reflecting on my score, and I’m just supposed to guess what caused it to drop.

How is this acceptable? How can I be “successful” on Fiverr when I don’t even know what success means on their terms? A broken, opaque system sets sellers up to fail, and we deserve better.

A Broken Model That Needs Fixing

I don’t want to just complain without offering a solution. Fiverr, if you’re listening, here’s what needs to change:

1. Weight the Metrics According to Service Type: Different services require different expectations. Not every seller delivers the same type of work or faces the same client expectations. Some service types are extremely straight forward, others require a lot of revisions and a lot of flexibility. 

2. Transparency: Sellers deserve to know what is driving the score up or down. Is this not a obvious decision to make? Vague guidelines and zero feedback do nothing to help us improve.

3. Recognition of Actual Communication: If video calls are a big part of how we do business, Fiverr should recognize that in the score. Video calls are infinitely valuable to clients, and they should be valuable in Fiverr’s metrics.

4. More Leeway with Clients: Real success isn’t a flawless journey; it’s about handling challenges with professionalism. Recognize that and cut sellers some slack when they’re dealing with demanding clients.

Fiverr has an opportunity to genuinely empower sellers, but until this success score system changes, it’s only hurting our businesses and misrepresenting our hard work.

This has gone on for 244 days, and it’s time for a change. The current success score system isn’t just broken; it’s a failure. If Fiverr wants to continue being a top platform, they need to fix this, and they need to fix it now.

[breals]

8 minutes ago, jaden_barton said:

The most frustrating part? I constantly get dinged for “lack of communication” despite the fact that 99% of my client interactions are on video calls. I start the project with a video call, revise on a video call, and end the project with a video call.

Sounds like you're having a really tough time Jaden.  Sorry to hear that. 

One thing that sticks out in your post is the quote above.  Like you, I always do video calls with my clients.  But I follow up each video call with a written section as I wasn't convinced that the video call was contrbuting to my success score.  Without this write up, I am not sure if Fiverr are able to deem your Zoom calls effective or not. 

Just something to think about?

Ian

 

[jaden_barton]

1 minute ago, breals said:

I am not sure if Fiverr are able to deem your Zoom calls effective or not. 

Fiverr records our video calls for safety reasons, it seems simple that they could easily extract the saved transcription and have their AI comb through it. I could probably figure this out with 48 hours and a 6 pack. 

[breals]

1 minute ago, jaden_barton said:

Fiverr records our video calls for safety reasons, it seems simple that they could easily extract the saved transcription and have their AI comb through it. I could probably figure this out with 48 hours and a 6 pack. 

Hey, I do some of my best web design with a 6 pack to hand 😀

I'm sure the calls are recorded.  But I didn't want to take the chance that AI wasn't analysing the transcript.  Plus, as we know. Transcripts are not alwasys accurate when it comes to accents and dialects. 

But you're right, the tech is there, I'm just not sure it is being utlised to the best of it's ability. Hence me putting in another teir of comms just in case! 

I hope things improve for you soon! 

[mandyzines]

@jaden_barton I agree with what @breals recommends in general, even if you have extensive conversations via inbox chat and everyone's on the same page before the order begins!

I have a newer gig with such little activity that I'm fairly certain I can see how not having an initial order chat response that is very lengthy negatively impacts its score. So, I've started adjusting things.

I have an order going right now with a repeat client who sends VERY detailed briefs with custom order requests via main inbox, where we cover any questions or details before the order begins. Then, for the custom offer I outline everything needed/offered because it's a contract. So, what I did this time for the first message in the order chat was regurgitate most of what was in the brief, literally stating: 

"Hello, __! Thank you for your order! I'll let you know if I have any questions after this message; feel free to disregard what's written next. AI reads order chats then grades our communication and determines our future gig exposure partly based on it, so I'm going to add some text...."

I know other freelancers that have done this and say it worked for them, so I thought I'd give it a try. In this case, the same information has been shared THREE TIMES.

Really, what we are doing is appeasing AI at the expense of the client--like anyone needs more freaking noise in their lives. Standards are one thing, but standardization is another.

 

Edited November 13 by mandyzines

[jaden_barton]

20 minutes ago, mandyzines said:

Really, what we are doing is appeasing AI at the expense of the client--like anyone needs more freaking noise in their lives. Standards are one thing, but standardization is another.

You are 1000% right. I have customers that literally have told me, I talk to much. And I get clients frustrations too many message are annoying.

As soon as I receive orders. I send a very detailed 'expectations' message, going over what we are going to do for the customer and what the customer needs to do for us. Then through every phase of the process, I have masterfully composed pre-written messages that explain in depth what has been accomplished, the exact next steps that are to be taken, and the timeline of such events. After being a fiverr buyer myself on dozens of orders, I can confidently say the service and communication that my team has provided consistently on 300+ orders in the last year is MILES better than most of the 'top rated' sellers on this platform.

We are not your average Freelance Agency, We have a customer success team in place to handle clients on an individual level every single time. We are no $5-$10 order volume. Our customers spend hundreds per order knowing that we are a premium option, and premium we are. It almost feels like the success score is mad that we aren't an individual person, that because we haven't done it fiverr's way, it's the wrong way. But i bet most of us would agree, fiverr's way is not the optimal way for client satisfaction. 

I am by no means struggling on fiverr. 
- My clients love us
- I love the service and care my team provides
- In my niche, we are changing Business Owners lives and were making a ton of profit in the process. 

But despite all that progress, success and immensely professional service we offer, the success score just doesn't evaluate my company the same way that a caring customer does. 

I have the benefit of fiverr being a very small part of what we do, but as you can imagine for someone who is a perfectionist, I really freaking want that top rated status. 

[mandyzines]

23 hours ago, jaden_barton said:

I have the benefit of fiverr being a very small part of what we do, but as you can imagine for someone who is a perfectionist, I really freaking want that top rated status. 

With a 9 overall score, 5 stars overall, and two gigs deemed Fiverr's choice, I was recently declined for my Top Rated evaluation. So, even if you get there, you may not make it in.