anniejenkinson

I agree with you on everything. take these products when you are young and healthy; I have found I cannot get life insurance or income protection now, in my fifties. The only thing about getting lots of life insurance is the need to know implicitly that nobody who may benefit might assist you to die sooner, ha, if they know they will gain a massive 'bonus'! 🙂

I think that depends on which 'stuff' you mean. 🙂 There has been plenty of 'stuff' Fiverr hasn't been taking seriously enough! I'm glad the platform seems to be intent on upping its game. Did you perhaps mean 'takes stuff like this'?

My post went into hiding for some reason, but @williambryan392, it's fee free to bring our own clients under the BYOB system. I would have done it except that whereas I get a 90-day turnaround facility for Fiverr clients, if I bring my own buyers, then I have to complete their jobs under a 30-day turnaround. 🙂 Fiverr, this is kind of silly. Why would I bring them in just to have my schedule squeezed when outside of Fiverr, these clients are happy to join a 90-day waiting list?

When you introduce your own clients under BYOB, it's free of the 20% commission. I would have done this many times except that it only gives a maximum turnaround of 30 days, whereas usually, I get 90 days for my Fiverr clients. It's more than shortsighted to only give a third of the completion time for those buyers we bring in ourselves. Quite a few of my clients wanted to come into the platform but couldn't due to that short turnaround as I would have been unable to fit them in.

The Togetherr site only gets me as far as onboarding/talent/intro before it grinds to a halt just after saying, 'we're ready for you, are you ready for us?' That's not very together at all! The 'Get Started' button is... well, not starting.

Absolutely. I keep seeing copy editors who offer 'profreading' and 'proffesional' services. I don't want to share a platform with these numpties. Let us pay to escape the creche. I can't agree more with what you say too, about getting rid of those who habitually just post one-word replies. I felt quite nauseous when in response to Frank's post about 'let's welcome new mods', this post also inspired a long following of 'congratulations' messages. Kind of ironic. So now, by having more mods, we get more junk posts! I mean, for goodness' sake, what do those contribute? When even a post about welcoming mods inspires numpties to leave one-word replies, all is lost. I keep trying to take part in this forum but it's like a kiddies' playground sometimes. And remove all those who just say 'congratulations'. These useless posts make me want to smash a brick through my screen now. They're definitely keeping me away from the forum.

Hi @wordpress2017 I am managing to make changes to Promoted Gigs via my mouse so the page itself seems fine. I presume you were thinking that the Promoted Gigs page had a problem that stopped the user changing things (whether via mouse or otherwise). It's all working fine at my end. Best, Annie.

This is almost certainly caused by you receiving a private review (that was not a very good one) from a client. Although your public reviews may have all been positive, a negative-oriented private review direct to Fiverr after a job completion will render gigs 'unable to be promoted' until you have improved your delivery standard in the eyes of the buyers. It's likely to have been withdrawn on an automated basis after a client sent in a negatively oriented service review. Perceived quality issues with the product deliveries will always result in the removal of promoted ads. Of course, there could also be other perceived failings that will cause Fiverr to temporarily remove the ability for a seller to promote gigs until the service standard has elevated again. It does make sense that the service has been removed again even though you barely had it back since a poor review can hit you at any time. The thing to focus on is the quality of your deliveries and communications with buyers, ensuring every buyer is happy with your service and communications as far as possible. Best wishes! I hope you get your promos back! Annie.

That is clearly the same client on two different accounts. Respond to this client that you cannot work on this project and block both accounts immediately. It is also worth flagging this issue to the Customer Support team as this is the same person, I believe. The pattern of word usage, sentence structure and content, even capitalisation is the same. Definitely do not click links from that person.

I'm confused. The title of your post is 'Account Banned' but that isn't the topic of the actual post.

Fantastic reply, Vickie. You've provided a lot of help here. I feel that the stats probably do calculate correctly, @soosmooth, if you sit and work it out percentage wise. It always does feel as if the system is against you when the order level is low (probably because the value is high and there are only so many we can complete in 60 days) and when there are cancellations. You have to keep the completions above 90%, as you know. If you turned over 25 completed jobs in 60 days, and three (say) got cancelled, that's 88% completion. Remember: you have to track it back across 60 days exactly. Not 61... 🙂 So, 'without doing anything', of course your completion rate can drop since you need to keep calculating how many cancellations have occurred in the *last 60 days on a rolling basis*. If one of your completions that was previously counted falls outside 60 days, that will deliver a further ding to your completion stats. I could go to bed tonight with 90% score but wake tomorrow with below 90% if one of my completed jobs now occurred 61 days ago, not 60 because I've dared to sleep instead of deliver another job, ha. You're likely thinking 'but I only had one cancellation' (or whatever) because you're not sitting down and working out what was the exact date 60 days ago and which jobs have been cancelled since then. I had the same issue way back... it was hellishly frustrating. But once I got to grips with the 60-days' rolling cycle, then it made sense. Since then, I haven't had the problem as I am always a step ahead. What I do if I have seen any cancellations at all, is start to offer edits of smaller pieces as well as my usual large edits. I don't offer small edits very often as I am too busy. But if it means working 18 hours a day for two days to fit a few small ones in alongside, thus bumping up my deliveries by one or two jobs in the 60-day slot, it's worth it.

Well, it should do. I have a client who set up two new profiles after I blocked him, 'so I could find you because your profile disappeared'. 🙂

I did not notice a change. I was already fully booked when I was Level 2, and this simply carried on after becoming TRS. I book as far ahead as the system allows, usually being fully booked ninety days ahead.

Well, no. They are only being compensated for half their time which in my eyes is not being 'compensated for your time'. That's extra work for no reward unless you exaggerate what you tell the buyer you usually charge, with a view to receiving the same funds as usual (which would be dishonest). If a builder comes and builds me a wall, I expect to pay him for the whole wall. If I only pay him for half, how is that remunerating him? In the world of commerce, we calculate what our hours are worth. If I am not being remunerated, then I expect to be eating, travelling, watching cat videos on YouTube or sleeping, not working!

I always detail the 5.5% fee at the same time as advising buyers about the project price. I give my calculations, then detail the fees I pay, explaining that 'although I will input exactly X as the fee (of which I receive 80% and Fiverr retains 20%), please be aware that due to the exchange rate and your buyer's fee of 5.5%, the total will be slightly more but the extra goes to the Fiverr platform and I have no control over this'. Buyers have never had a problem or queried it. Most projects are $1800-$3200. I would not cover the 5.5% if requested to do so as that fee has nothing to do with me.

You surely don't need @lloydsolutionsto hand-feed you this information? She was kind enough to post it; is it so difficult to read it instead of asking 'what is that I need to read'? 🙂 This is why sellers get in trouble--because they won't do their research and instead, copy what everyone else is doing. As for why there are other sellers who offer the same sort of gigs... Think about it this way. When I drive my car, there are tens of thousands of uninsured drivers on the roads too. Is it a good legal argument that I then decide not to insure my car on the basis that 'a lot of other people aren't insured?' Just because people do it, that's not an indicator that it's fine. In other words, other sellers have similar gigs because they haven't been caught yet. You were the unlucky one.

$5 gigs cannot 'destroy the market' for any service. There are just as many buyers who wouldn't touch a $5 gig with a very long pole, preferring to seek a higher quality output, something generally unobtainable by paying peanuts. We could equally argue that all those cheapos who charge $5 are doing a great favour to those of us whose fees are much higher. It makes us look good, ha. In short, we should each charge what we feel our services, time, and expertise warrant. What does that say about someone's skill and self-esteem if they bill $5 unless it's a job taking only a minute to perform? But even then, they spend time communicating with the buyer. I wouldn't even respond for a $5 sale... Well, if it weren't for getting a dent in my response stats! It costs me far more than $5 just to answer an enquiry before I even pitch for the work. I want the funds to flow inward, not the other way.

Hi, I am not sure why you're creating new accounts; what is the reasoning behind this? This is all irrelevant to your question but I'm concerned for you. Please note that it's against Fiverr's Terms of Service to operate more than one account so if you still have more than one, you need to write to Customer Support immediately and ensure they fully eradicate all but one account for you--otherwise, you'll eventually end up losing all of them since Fiverr will close them all and then ban you from opening others. Just explain it was a mistake and you now understand you may operate only one account. That should be fine. Make clear which account you wish to keep. In terms of why you're not getting business, this is a tough question. I cannot locate your profile under the same user name as the forum name, so without seeing the quality of your work and gigs, it's impossible to comment. However, it does sound as if you could be putting way too much emphasis on buyer requests and perhaps insufficient thought and time into other areas of your profile, gigs or product development to be competitive. Note that a lot of people here are Level-2 sellers, Top-Rated, or even Pro, and have never sent any buyer request proposals. I wouldn't be surprised if you would see business pick up if you stopped putting time into buyer requests and spending that commensurate time on other business areas. 🙂 Best wishes! Annie.

I perceive it's about experience and expertise, whereas you're getting fixated on price. Price does not stand alone. If you sound like the only seller to whom the buyer can go for that large product safely, he's going to accept and expect a higher price point and come to you. Similarly, if you give him some aspect of a service no one else offers (or no one else does well). You're then offering him something that marks you out above the other sellers. Then, the buyer will say to you, 'you are more expensive but nobody else offers X and Y'. You can even invite him to look to see if anyone else offers X and Y, knowing they do not. Then, he's done his research and come to the conclusion that only you offer what he requires. Conversely, if you sound as though you offer similar to everyone else with no material differentiators, the buyer won't understand how the inflated price equals added value. They wouldn't buy from you then as you have not differentiated yourself and given a reason for the higher prices. They feel they can get that same service for half the fee. Think of your USPs (unique selling points) and state them matter-of-fact, not in any boastful way and do not over-inflate your qualities and skills. I even find that inviting buyers to try out other sellers before they come to me is a good way of demonstrating my output quality and ensuring they'll return requesting the job after trialling some competitors on a fee-paying, small-job basis. It may be that you're losing out just based on odds, i.e. not every seller they approached can win the job and the offerings appear too similar. If that's happening, sharpen your product to make it stand out and elevate the price further. Similar prices often mean similar work. What can you offer that's worth the extra you wish to charge? Charge it, offer it, and don't bend. No discounts, no desperation. That's your offer, and this is your price. I also cannot over-stress the importance of professional communications. It's a big leap from selling to an independent buyer and (say) selling to a high-net worth with an entrepreneurial venture or a director of a larger brand. Tailor your communications per buyer and ensure the language and style you're using are appropriate, also discussing fully what the buyer is looking for and being honest about what you can and can't do. I often say 'I can do X but unfortunately, Y isn't my area of work' and they still choose me. Also, be clear about your quality standards and that you aim to deliver something of superior quality for your superior fee. And make sure it's true! Let the buyer consider options, and don't sound in a rush to get him to sign up. I invite clients to 'go away and think about it for as long as you need'. Then don't start asking them the next day, 'have you decided yet?' Ha.

Is it clear that the part you 'tried to do' and could not do since you were new to it, is something added, extra to the original service? It may be that the buyer tried to trap you by asking you to do something over and above the original job specification. Therefore, he thinks he can now proclaim you did not complete the job--even though you did complete the job but he requested extra. This point--that you completed the job but tried to give the extra to please the buyer--may be something you can push with customer support. Keep trying since you get a different CS person each time. (Do not send multiple complaints--stay with the one open case and continue responding). Ideally, your messages to the buyer show that "in requesting X when I offered and we agreed Y, you requested extra. I said I would give it a try but I didn't know if I could do it". It's even better if you wrote that before the dispute began! 😄 or words to that effect. If you have these, write again to customer support, attaching this as a screenshot and adding: - you completed the order in full (show your message screenshot and state in what terms you met the desired deliverables); - you were asked to add on something else free, to which you were new; - you attempted to do it and couldn't. You tried to please the buyer by adding extra while not knowing if it would work but forewarned the buyer you may not be able to do it. Invite customer support to agree with you that you completed the work per the brief, even if the buyer won't accept. In that case, I'd cancel the job to preserve your reputation and avoid a bad review. However, that does not mean the buyer gets to use your work. Read on... If customer support has agreed that you did complete the job, in writing (WAIT and keep trying to get this agreement--don't rush any communication stage) then they may well compensate you for the loss. They must agree that you completed the job and that the buyer asked for more work beyond the job scope; therefore, you need to be paid for the original project. If the buyer won't pay, Fiverr might do. It all depends on how clear it is that the work you could not deliver was an extra. Either way, you cannot force the buyer to accept, just as Mike says and as customer support says. However, it's a major loss in my view if you spend a lot of time arguing about it and pushing the job back and forth to the buyer and then having it rejected again. You could invest that time in the next job instead! This buyer won't accept your work so why waste time on him further? Make very clear to the buyer that if you cancel, they must use none of your work and that you will keep searching for it; state that Fiverr will pursue this if they do use it since Fiverr also loses when they cancel. They need to agree in writing that they will use none of your delivered work. Sometimes, a buyer may think twice about stealing work if they see there's a consequence. I just wouldn't keep sending the same delivery or offering the same because it only eats all your time and energy.

All sellers get a certain amount of torture from clients. We don't all explode at the buyer. 🙂 It's down to us to keep our tempers in check and to make the point wthout being rude and to explain in depth why we cannot help further. If we are rude, who do we hurt but ourselves? It's pointless. It can really backfire on you. So, the seller's injured their future here. The TRS badge wont be easy since communications are taken into account when deciding which Level-2 sellers to promote to TRS. It's not all based on metrics; it's a decision by Fiverr after looking at everything the sellers offers, including communications. Fiverr won't promote someone who cannot control their temper in responses to buyers. I perceive this is often why some sellers complain they're reached the metrics to become a TRS but never achieve it. It's likely (in part, not wholly) because their communications are sub-standard, abrupt, and impolite.

I agree with @vickiespencer. I'm a book editor and declining way more work than I can take on, also with several people waiting to go in my 90-day queue! It's not at all quiet for me.

That's so nice! I am going to dedicate the next one to you, in that case! As well as tagging you, of course. What is your Fiverr pet peeve, Sabine?

Thank you. And a happy, complaint-free day to you!

Thank you so much, Sabine! And you were gracious not to point out that I used petulance/petulant so I'll swap one out! 😄 I especially appreciate praise from you. 💚 The green heart is for you as well as my 'online' light, ha. Oh, I have used up my edits so I cannot swap out 'petulant' for 'difficult' in the penultimate line. Damn!