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At what point does getting buyer requirements become a gig in itself


capitalquality

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In the real world of proper and correct software development, there’s a fairly common process used for the type of situation we have on Fiverr, i.e. a buyer wants you to deliver something to their requirements, simplified here it is: Requirements, Design, Build, Test, Implement. This won’t apply to all but it applies to techies like me.

In the real world of proper and correct software development, requirements gathering is done by the buyer and can take as long as the build process. This still holds true on Fiverr. In some cases getting the requirements narrowed down can take longer than the build process.

I don’t often go through the requirements process with a buyer because if a buyer comes to me with bad requirements I opt out, but sometimes a buyer’s almost there with their requirements, they just need a little help, and they’re professional and polite and I want to work with them and help them out.

I’ve been thinking of having a gig that covers it, for bigger projects. After all, I’m taking on a risk that they don’t actually order in the end (by the way we’re talking about a few hundred dollars final order, not 5). I can’t find anything on Fiverr that anyone else has done similar. Has anyone tried this? Is there any advice about how to go about this? Is it a good idea or do I just write off that time?

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I have seen several sellers offer pre-work consultation gigs and I think those are similar. The most common have been ones like “schedule a 15 minute gig consultation for $5”. A lot of them seem to get permission for s***e but it could be done without.

In this context I think they use the consultation gig to create a project plan with requirements, scope, milestones, etc. It sounds useful for big gigs since buyer or seller can back away if needed, plus they can discuss timing and price which also might change the next step. I haven’t seen a gig that says it’s for requirements alone, so that’s my best answer. Interesting topic.

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Yes, really interesting topic. I have a case where I already spent more time on conversation with both buyer and CS than on the actual job, and the order is still stuck past being accepted and prior to requirements fulfilled. I’m not sure what else could be done at this point other than someone walking the buyer through the gig requirements via s***e or something similar. It’s not too bad in my case, and after following the final rec of CS to tell the buyer to contact them, I’ll just leave it be, as there really is no relation anymore between the time spent on it for both buyer and myself, CS too, and the time to do the gig cost me/the money I won’t receive like this. But obviously if we’re talking about hundreds of $, that’s a different thing altogether.
Something like you have in mind won´t work for 5 or 10$ gigs probably, but if a buyer is looking at spending a few hundred, they might be well interested in sorting the grounds first I guess.
I think it’s a good thing to offer. Try it maybe, nothing much to loose. Maybe some sellers with big volume orders will be interested to hint their customers to your gig for that, if it’s ‘generic’ enough to cover their own gigs.

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And I have done exactly that.
I have a consultation gig for “Web Services” and I offer to answer ANY question or maybe offer critique in pdf form for their issue.

It is $15 so that pretty much covers an hour’s rate and miscellaneous.

(NOTE: This is not an advertisement of my gig, simply explanation of solution in relation to this topic)

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Questionnaire! I built one a month or two ago and anyone who comes at me with vague requirements gets it. I’m sure some have stolen it for their own nefarious uses, but put it this way: I get a vague request, they get saddled with a set of questions that tells me what I need to know without having to go through the old back-and-forth of endless questions and they also have to put some work in, which indicates their level of seriousness.

So no gig there, but it’s another solution. It was worth it for me. It doesn’t quite weed out bad buyers, but it saves a ton of time.

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That is an excellent idea. I am going to steal it and start utilizing it asap. Vague messages do my nut in, especially when it comes to several requests just to discover what someone’s actual brief is.

What really grinds my gears though, is the people who send links to web pages asking me what they need to do to optimize them before placing measly $5 orders which then are accompanied by insane revision requests. One guy recently asked for a keyword search for a long distance haulage service. He then asked that I re-write the content to include the search term ‘credit collection agency’ because he’d found it himself and liked the higher ranking factor (100,000 monthly searches s opposed to 1000.

Ok - but you’re not a credit collections agency! Your a refrigerated goods transport service! You have to laugh but such idiocy does double the amount of time on orders.

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I did do this after you mentioned it in a recent post, actually, so thanks. I’m thinking of sending a vague request so I can see yours 🙂 Unfortunately a questionnaire only goes so far as there comes to a point (hopefully) when I need to get down to the details of an individual solution.

It’s also a fine balance between getting the information I need and scaring off genuine buyers that just need a little help and I’m not sure I’ve nailed that yet. What’s your questionnaire to buyer conversion rate?

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<<It’s also a fine balance between getting the information I need and scaring off genuine buyers that just need a little help and I’m not sure I’ve nailed that yet.>>

That´s really an important point in the whole thing I guess, and an iffy point for the gig requirements too. You can neither make them bombproof so really everything will be covered without making it a boringly long thing, that is annoying for people who know how it works, with the added confusion for those that don´t of having to use text fields that require no action while they look as if they might require action, nor can you tailor the whole thing to the palates of every kind of buyer who´ll see them.
I don´t think it´s possible to really nail it, not for lack of trying but because of the nature of the beast. Do what you think is best and maybe refine over time, as **** happens?
Of course with a self-made questionnaire you have an advantage over the gig requirements at least in so far that you don´t have to add fields that look like they require input, where you only want to tell something.

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<<Of course with a self-made questionnaire you have an advantage over the gig requirements at least in so far that you don´t have to add fields that look like they require input, where you only want to tell something>>

So true. I’ve tried adding THIS REQUIRES NO ANSWER, or THIS IS OPTIONAL in big bold letters but no joy. 😦

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I am going to be honest here and tell you that i havnt directed many of my potential clients to this gig because im still a up and coming seller. Also, i try to guage a buyer by the initial conversations we have, if i feel he/she is a professional, then i would guide them to this gig. They would find comfort it investing a smaller amount and get results. But most clients would stray away from gigs like this since it is an additional expense and we are in Fiverr so buyer expections are as such.

Personally i have this gig in foresight to future situations where i may or may not have time to take so much time in communicating with potential clients via inbox.

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lol yes, I have everywhere

(this is a mandatory field)
or

(optional field)

just above the field and with empty lines inbetween to make it pop,
wasting further precious maximum-signs space per requirement, and still I´m not sure if it makes a difference or not, or if I should spend some more signs on paraphrasing the words mandatory and optional too, but then there´d be no space left for the actual requirement 😃

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RE : In some cases getting the requirements narrowed down can take longer than the build process.

Sometimes, yes. But it is still better than getting a negative review because of unmanaged expectations. Putting more effort into consultation at least has the potential to lead to a custom order (assuming that complex requirements correspond to larger projects), but not doing so can lead to a bad review. Sometimes it is taxing, if one picks up individual orders, but as a system/habit, it is still worth it as it has a net positive effect on the revenues and overall happiness of the seller.

Consultation is not a curse, it is a boon, it allows you to upsell, plug your other services, expand the scope of the gig. I’ve tried putting a price tag on my consultation, it has resulted in zero conversions and resulted in a net revenue loss on my other gigs.

After that, I made a note to self : Hustle! hustling leads to revenue. Don’t charge for hustling, no matter how well versed you are in your tradecraft. By pricing your consultation, you are competing with people who are willing to offer consultation and expertise for free, you are competing with endless blogs, forums and podcasts which dish out free advice. Paid consultation as a revenue model for freelancers is not something that is going to work. There are different ways to monetize your expertise (by creating paid content for the masses to subscribe) but paid consultation for individual projects is a strict no for me.

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