newspoet

Is it bad if I never even saw or noticed emoji ratings? But as a recent buyer, I think I've figured out one of the reasons we're getting blasted in the private reviews. The whole approach is conspiratorial. "Just between us how did things [REALLY] go?" You know, "just between you and me...nobody else has to know..." It almost makes you want to question your initial 5-star review you left for the seller, as if they don't believe you or they believe that if you think about it again, your answer will be different. Then they asking you to rate the gig from 1-5 stars, WITH 5 BEING "PERFECT." So, yeah it was great, exceptional, over-delivered, more than I expected..... but was it PERFECT? It was good enough that I was going to leave my Seller a tip, but the platform wanted to tack on a $2.78 fee to a $5 tip. That's after they tacked on $3.88 to the $25 order. And then they are going to take 20% of the original $25 ($5) from the seller on top of that. I can see how a lot of Sellers are getting a 4 where they probably deserve a 5 and how buyers are duped into leaving what they believe is constructive feedback, when what they are really doing is sabatoging the same sellers they in many cases are returning to time and time again for repeat orders, totally unaware they are unintentionally stabbing their favorite sellers in the back every time they respond to these bizzare conspiratorial private requests. As someone with a Masters degree in English, the whole private feedback soliciation reads to me like the platform is wanting you to reconsider the public ratings you gave and lowball the ratings you give sellers in private. A lot of people might not have received exactly what they wanted because THEY didn't communicate their needs well, and who knowing this did not leave a public review that could be refuted, are now being encouraged to unload the blame on sellers who have no way of explaning or defending what they cannot see. I don't understand the ethics of a platform that starting out being paid a percentage to simply provide a platform for freelancers now sabatoging freelancers' livelihoods with these shenanigans, or even worse exploiting sellers by tanking their exposure with algorithms based on secret data only to promise better exposure to those sellers who purchase extra services such as "promoted gigs." I don't want to be negative, but it sucks as a seller when a plaform that overcharges for their "services" stacks the deck against the very people they were supposed to be serving in the first place. If I can't rise to top in Content Writing after 10 years on the platform, when I am a native speaker and have two degrees in the field, then who can?

Update: I was compensated for the order and the cancellation no longer affects my stats.

Update: I am magically eligible for Seller Plus again... I wish I understood how these eligible/not-eligible switches were toggled on Seller Plus, Promotions, etc.

I doubt writing an appeal letter is considered providing an academic service. It's not a homework assignment. It's not for a grade in a class. I have a professional letter writing gig. I'm not writing class essays or reports. I'm a teacher, and I don't think helping someone craft a letter of appeal is unethical.

I'm really discouraged and disappointed with the whole thing. The buyer placed the order, I followed the order. I followed my gig requirements. I write professional letters. This buyer wanted an appeal letter to take an exam over. She provided a narrative of the extenuating circumstances. I wrote a concise letter within the scope of my gig description, delivered on-time and over word count. She immediately complains the letter isn't good, doesn't have enough details, she doesn't have time for a revision and it wouldn't be good anyway, etc. I explain that according to my gig description, I am happy to revise to satisfaction, but I don't offer refunds, because the client can just ask for a refund and steal my letter. I add more details from her narrative to the letter, even though I was already well over word count. Keep in mind this letter is supposed to be from her detailing her experience, so I am adhering pretty closely to her facts and her narrative style. Of course she decides to contact Customer Service immediately when I wouldn't refund. I contact Customer Service and they claim to have reviewed my order and understand my point, and encourage me to keep conversing with the buyer. I send one revision in good faith and ask if that is closer to what she wants. She responds that she doesn't like that one either because "the English wasn't good." I am a native English speaker who has two degrees in English and has lived in the Midwest my entire life. There is nothing wrong with my English. She contacts Customer Service and tells them that it was poor quality and I copy pasted most of the letter (which is not true). She also lies that I have sent her two revisions when I only sent one (my gig offers 2 free revisions up front). Customer Service cancels the order and refunds the buyer. When I contact them to complain, they state that the buyer complained and provided evidence that I copy pasted the letter and that the relevant team decided to refund since the work was poor quality. I have a Master's Degree in English. I have been nominated for a Pushcart Prize in Poetry. This was a letter I would have proudly submitted were I in her situation. No reasonable person could claim this letter was poor quality. I did not copy and paste anything, but I was trying to include her details in her voice in the letter...that was the assignment. I am so pissed I can hardly concentrate on anything else. I have had lousy experiences with CS until I joined Seller Plus and then had wonderful experiences with CS. I cancel Seller Plus after I decide it is not worth it and CS is immediately lousy again! Now my completion rate is 83%. My orders have dried up, but they want me to remove the cap on my promotions so I can pay for more impressions that have been denied me with their other hand/algorithm. I have taken several Fiverr Learn classes and seen no change in impressions or anything else. I apparently am not eligible for Seller Plus anymore, even though my personal coach told me to sign back up if I decided to use it again. The buyer claimed to be in a time crunch, and I'm 90% sure she'll use my letter anyway. Fiverr CS just potentially facilitated theft on behalf of the buyer, and I feel the exploitation of Sellers borders on the criminal...

I think I may be wrong about the CS changing the ticket. I had the impression I was strongly supported by CS on this one, and then when I went back, it seemed more like a canned response. I do feel extremely wronged. This buyer can easily take their refund and go use my letter anyway, which is why I state no refunds in my description.

It's not even "content" persay, it's a personal letter. They are accusing me of copy pasting from the inbox conversation, but I merely included details (not word for word) after they said the first letter didn't contain enough of the details they sent me. They told customer service I copy pasted; they didn't accuse me directly. They told me my English wasn't good. I have a master's degree in English and was born in and have lived in the middle of the US my entire life. There is nothing wrong with my English...

So I had an order and finished the order. The buyer decides after I complete my order that they don't want to pay for it and they want a refund. I tell the buyer I don't offer refunds, but I am happy to revise the letter I wrote as stated in the gig description. The buyer contacts CS, I contact CS. CS sends me a message stating that they have reviewed the order and I followed the gig description and of course they won't force a refund as long as I followed the description. Next day, CS has cancelled the order and refunded the buyer. (I thought that CS had changed their initial response, but perhaps not; however the initial response gave me the impression they were going to support me on this one.) The buyer outright lied to CS to get the order cancelled. They stated I had sent them two revisions when I only sent one. They stated I had copy and pasted text when I did not copy and paste anything. Seriously...