authoreva

As a longtime writer and editor here on fiverr, I second that!!! Thank you for this post.

Thanks for the comment, Emmaki. You make several solid points and your sense of humor is highly appreciated. The thieves very well may swoop in and try to steal these quasi-original tips and tricks. I suppose there’s nothing I can do about that. But really, I don’t mind freely sharing these tidbits of advice. And who knows, maybe a few people who need to read this will AND they’ll go past “the intellectualize stage.” Have a little faith. 😛 As for the micro-keyboards… I see your point! But sometimes emergency situations come up and it’s better to have a not-so-great (or even terrible) option as opposed to no option at all. Using that notes app is my last resort for these particular instances: My computer wonks out or my internet poofs out of existence. OR I can’t get home on time to complete and deliver an order. To determine the word count, I just paste the text into an in-browser word counter. It obviously takes more time, but still.

I love that! Thanks, Blaise. 😃 Next time someone utters the word “don’t” to me, I’ll use your line on them. My experience is more so with sharing one’s gigs on social media. I don’t know buyers who have shared the work they had done on fiverr, but I’m sure that would be helpful in some way.

✔️Do refer to your client by their first name. Sometimes, that will be included in their bio on their fiverr profile. Other times, you just have to ask them. It’s just like meeting someone for the first time in real life—you just skip the clammy-handed handshake. Personability and professionalism go hand-in-hand. (I’ll stop with the hand talk now… just had to get that pun out of my system). This makes you appear attentive and less “robotic.” ✖️DON’T call them by their username (unless it actually happens to be their name) or avoid addressing them by a name at all. “Hi there (or Hi username123). Thank you for the order.” is less personal (and could potentially seem like an automated message). As most of you know, there are some message templates available that you can simply click on and they’ll autofill the text box. The problem with this is it automatically fills in the text with the client’s username. There is actual psychology behind this… It is said that one’s favorite word to hear is their first name. ✔️Do make sure your standard turnaround reflects your workload. Workload can fluctuate from week to week so you should adjust your turnaround time accordingly. I remember one week, my queue was flooded with over a dozen orders (most of which were rather big projects). The 3-day turnaround I had worked for me the week before when I only had about 4-6 orders. Needless to say, I felt stressed out and rushed. It’s more of a challenge (not impossible) to create top-quality work that way. There’s no need to make things more difficult. Also, if you’re neck-deep in orders and have various personal obligations at the same time, it would be a good idea to temporarily remove the express delivery option if you have it. ✖️DON’T consider yourself the best mult-itasker on earth who can work at lightning speeds and still produce your very best work… even if there’s a prestigious award for it. ✔️Do utilize The Ranting Pot here on the forums when you’re upset with something that happened with a client. Fellow sellers are always here around the clock to provide words of encouragement or simply serve as your sounding board. 🙂 ✖️DON’T blow up at your buyer. Once you’ve vented and cleared your head, you can then level-headedly speak with them about the issue. You want to be calm and objective. When you’re still in “I can’t believe how ridiculous this person is being” mode, you’re bound to be more subjective and on the defense. That could potentially lead to customer complaints sent straight to customer support. No one wants that. :X ✔️Do read through the Seller Tips section of this forum when you’re at a freelancing stand-still. (We all go through it at one point or another. And no—this actually isn’t a blatant attempt at advertising my seller tips posts). It’s better to continue learning and refining your craft during your down time as opposed to playing the worrying and waiting game. ✖️DON’T sit around twiddling your thumbs and dwelling on destructive thoughts like “I’m never going to get another sale ever again.” “I’m a failure!” or “Well, I better start looking for a new job and quit this one.” This doesn’t serve you in the long run. Having a little break never hurt anybody. (Not literally, of course.) Just look at it as a thank you gift. You’ve been working hard and now it’s time to sit back and reflect on what you’ve been doing up until now and make it even better. ✔️Do utilize the fiverr app. I have a feeling that most of you do, but this is important. On-the-go freelancing is an incredible luxury, if you ask me. As a writer, I prefer to work from my computer in Microsoft Word, but sometimes, a computer can randomly decide to be wonky or you simply can’t get immediate access to one. That’s where the app comes in. I know this won’t work for every kind of freelancer, but I’m able to type up my client’s order in my phone’s Notes app and then copy and paste it into the delivery box. At the very least, you can still communicate with your clients and prospective buyers no matter where you are and what you’re doing. ✖️DON’T over-use the fiverr app. While you’re out with friends or family, texting would be considered rude. Being on the app checking messages and responding to them is just as rude. You should never allow your work to intrude into your social life. I get that there are exceptions, but still. You are not always obligated to answer every message you get within seconds or even an hour of receiving them! ✔️Do keep a folder on your computer with your achievements here on fiverr. Whenever you’re feeling down or incompetent, look through that folder. Allow it to serve as a reminder that you’ve come a long way, and while there are downs, there will be inevitable ups. For example, my folder on my desktop contains a subfolder titled “Over 1k” and it includes screenshots of when I made over $1,000 in a single month. I have another one with first-page search result placement screenshots for specific keywords. Then there’s one that contains screen shots of when I achieved Level 1 and Level 2 (and hopefully Top Rated Seller someday XD). Doing this isn’t about building up your ego, it’s specifically for those “dark periods.” Basically, it’s a pick-me-up. ✖️DON’T forget about your successes altogether and mostly focus on your failures. ✔️Do include recent samples of your work. This can be achieved through turning your portfolio on, providing some excerpts in your photo gallery, or simply stating “Samples available upon request” in your gig description. For the latter option, I suggest creating a PDF file with various excerpts that you can simply attach to the message box. I get that there’s copyright issues for some people and if it’s text, someone can just take you work and easily pass it off as their own. That’s why, for the most part, I provide brief excerpts of previous work to clients who directly ask me and seem genuinely interested in my services. ✖️DON’T keep prospective clients in the dark all the time. Put yourself in a buyer’s shoes really quick (or perhaps, like me, you’ve also played the buyer role on here): If someone is considering your services but has no proof that you actually provide the quality work you say you do, then it’s easy to be skeptical. It’s hard to tell, even with thousands of raving reviews and a killer seller profile these days. The actual work you have created is far more telling and it helps them know what to expect. This has saved me quite the hassle on numerous occasions. While I’m an experienced writer and people tend to be very happy with my work, I’m well aware that my writing style isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. You’re better off if your potential buyer realizes this BEFORE placing an order with you. Not making the sale versus a mountain of revisions and unsatisfied buyers. Your choice! ✔️Do take the occasional break. “But I’m too busy for that,” you say. “But you will lose your sanity if you don’t,” I say. Replace the word “break” with “fuel.” Time away from work (even 5 minutes) recharges your batteries so when you get your head back into the game, you’re not on ‘E’ (empty) expecting to work at your full potential. Back when I didn’t follow my own advice, I’d end up making careless mistakes with client’s orders. It’s because I was so drained and didn’t allow myself to have time for play. Serious workaholic mode 24/7 is just asking for trouble. ✖️DON’T work so hard that you lose your sense of self and become friendless. Also don’t work so hard around the clock that you begin resenting your job/career. ✔️Do tweet about your services in a compelling way. If you don’t have a twitter account, get one! I can’t tell you how many new clients I received from posting the occasional tweet. Make sure to use up to two pertinent hashtags, brief captivating copy, a minified link (you can use bitly) to your gig, and an eye-catching photo or GIF image. ✖️DON’T avoid posting your fiverr stuff on social media because you feel like it probably won’t work anyway or feel like you’re not social media savvy. ✔️And to pay homage to the “In Doers We Trust” movement, DO be a doer. Reading and intellectualizing tips, FAQs, articles, videos, etc. is all great and dandy. But it’s not when you stay stuck at “the intellectualization phase.” Doers don’t let things simmer in their minds for too long. They DO, even if that means failing. Failure’s a scary thing, I know. But more often than not, that’s the prerequisite to monumental success. Trust me, I’ve worn the hat of momentary failure countless times, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Before you tell me I’m crazy, please allow me to explain myself: I know for a fact that I wouldn’t be where I’m at right now without all those road blocks I faced along the way and risks I took that didn’t exactly yield desirable results. These no outlet signs actually became fast lanes to success. ✔️You’re waiting for the “don’t,” aren’t you? Tip #10 has no “don’t.” 😛 Focus on doing, achieving, and learning, my friend. For those of you who haven’t read the first two parts of the trilogy: BONUS! Also check out my seller tips post specifically tailored for the writers of fiverr: *Feel free to share any other useful tips you may have on here.