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neidertmike

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  1. It may sound off-topic, but I always try to meet increasing demand (and message/buyer volume) with higher prices. Typically, that reduces the volume of buyers/messages I need to deal with while allowing me to earn more. Fewer projects but higher earnings means less work for more money.
  2. One of the most unexpected realizations I’ve had as a freelancer and Fiverr Seller is this: It’s not so much who you work with, it’s who you don’t work with that really matters. In plainer terms: avoiding bad clients is important because they suck up your time, energy, capacity, ability to take on other clients and, in general, they make life miserable. Plus, in the context of Fiverr, bad clients are common sources of bad reviews and cancellations, which hurt your success. But don’t despair. You can learn how to spot problematic Buyers before you work with them. If you spot one (or more) of these 8 red flags, proceed with caution—or don’t move forward at all: They ask for steep, unreasonable discounts. Not every client has a big budget, but the way in which they ask for a discount (and how much of a discount) does matter. In my experience, asking for unreasonable discounts (let’s say 30-50%+) usually means they don’t value your skills, time or deliverables. If they can’t pay, they’re not a Buyer. They demand tons of pre-project investment. They require 4 Zoom calls, a chat with their CEO and dozens of portfolio pieces before they even think about discussing an offer. If you have to invest this much time on the front end, what’s it going to be like during edits or feedback? Good luck. I’ve consistently found the best Buyers are fairly quick to hire and respect my time. Oh, and pre-project tests to “prove” you can take on the job? Any Buyer asking you for an unpaid test is not only going against Fiverr terms, they’re waving one of the biggest red flags of all. Good Buyers don’t ask you to invest your time and skills in unpaid work. They don’t know what they want or need. This is often an innocent red flag, but a red flag nonetheless. If the Buyer is unclear about what they’re trying to achieve, cannot speak to critical details, show confusion about your role/skills or clearly has no experience hiring someone with your skills, you’re setting yourself up for wasted time and a mismatch between your delivery and the Buyer’s expectations. They needed everything done yesterday. Last minute requests happen, but I’ve never had a good client come to me in a panic with a last-minute, dire need. Or demand a call on the spot. Or impatiently ask why I can’t just work through the weekend to get it done. Disorganized, impatient clients are almost guaranteed to be challenging to work with. If they’re frantic now, they’re not going to calm down as the deadline closes in. They’re not sold on you. If you’ve answered questions, provided samples, referred them to your reviews and adequately proven you can handle the job, a good Buyer should be ready to start. However, if you’ve done all this and they’re still hesitating—saying they’re not sure, needling about discounts, expressing their concerns about your abilities—then move on. I don’t spend any time convincing clients to hire me if they show abnormal levels of reluctance because they’re usually people who don’t buy anyway—or they purchase and have buyer’s remorse once after the delivery. They’ve only had bad experiences with freelancers or Fiverr Sellers. While not every freelancer or Fiverr Seller will be a perfect fit every time, a Buyer saying they’ve never made a good hire is a serious red flag. What is it about this Buyer’s ability to communicate, manage or collaborate that has only generated bad results? They’ve hired others to do this project before—and they all failed. If a Buyer tells you that you’re the fifth writer they’re thinking of hiring or the ninth designer they’ll trust with the project, you have to wonder: why has this failed so many times? They’re hoping you’re the magic ingredient for a project that has failed and failed. What’s the constant variable here? The Buyer. Your Spidey-Senses tell you to move on. This final red flag may seem non-specific, but it’s not. Sometimes I get a feeling about a client—one who has shown no specific red flags—and I choose not to work with them simply because something feels off. However, when I (rarely and stupidly!) ignore this feeling, I pay for it later; the red flags popped up after the purchase. If there’s something about a project or Buyer you find unappealing or it doesn’t feel right, trust instincts and move on. Particularly if you’ve spent quite a bit of time discussing a project with a Buyer, you may feel pressured to just move on and start anyway. You don’t want to let them down—or feel like you’ve wasted your time. However, it’s easier to send an uncomfortable breakup message now than it is to suffer through a project. Cut your losses and move on. There’s no need to tell the Buyer it’s because they’re a walking, talking potential disaster. Typically, I tell them my availability has changed and I’m no longer able to take on the project and, so far, I’ve never had a Buyer say much other than: thanks anyway! If you want to build your red flag identification skills, look through some of your past projects, particularly ones that may not have gone as well as you’d liked. Which red flag (or flags!) did the Buyer show before you worked together? Learn from past mistakes to avoid future problems. What red flags do you look for in Buyers? What happens when you’ve missed or ignored them in the past? I want to hear your experience.
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