jcmcbride

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. You will be happier in the long run if you have multiple options for getting work and generating income.

Thank you for that detailed account. I am especially interested in how people select writing gigs. I am going to further optimizing my gigs and this has helped me get a better idea of what I can improve on.

Let’s please remember to be professional and civil to each other. I am a copywriter and spend a lot of time thinking and learning about buyer motivation. I love to learn about how people make decisions. It makes me a better writer and a better businessperson. I was once a new seller on Fiverr. It was hard to get my first order. But, the best advice I ever found to breakthrough on Fiverr is to start by offering something someone would be crazy to turn down. I had a lot of skills and experience before I came to this platform. But, no buyers knew anything about me. I needed the social proof that reviews provide. I also wanted to rank up to take advantage of different features. For the first couple of months I offered to write 2 500 word articles for $5 in 24 hours. That was a ridiculously low price. Too low to make a profit. But, at that stage my goal was to get reviews because even a few reviews would lead to more sales. It worked. I worked long hours and did amazing work. I quickly leveled up and raised my prices. I kept that same pattern. Every Fiverr seller starts from zero. Getting your first few sales is tough… But, it is up to you to put in the work to get the sales. Fiverr isn’t a magic lamp. Today I would charge $400 for the same offer I started out with…and buyers pay it. The reason is I have put in the work to build a reputation. Nobody is going to give you anything. You have to give them a reason to give your services a try. This post is about discovering what reasons are most attractive to buyers. So far it sounds like reviews are the biggest factor.

Thank you for your thoughts. I first came here as a buyer myself, but I only buy a few gigs each year. It’s great to hear how others go through the buying process. What impressed you about the reviews? Did you like the ratio of 5-star reviews to more negative reviews? Were you impressed with the actual content of the reviews? I’m really curious about the buying process on Fiverr. It feels like a black box to me. Thanks for your comments. It makes sense to me that buyers look at reviews/reputation as one of the primary factors in their decision making process. I suspect that most buyers have no idea what the badges mean and don’t care much about them. Even though I have some nice badges, I’m not really sure that they impact my revenues much, if at all. But, I figured I would try and get as much data as possible as I realize my personal habits and instincts may not reflect what most buyers behaviors are.

I am interested in learning how buyers find sellers on Fiverr and what makes them click the buy button. I am especially keen to know if badges like “Top Rated Seller” or “Pro” factor into your decisions at all. How often do you look at a seller’s profile before buying or do you just buy once you find a gig you like in search?

Coming up with names is tricky. Often, clients don’t understand how much time and effort goes into finding names. Many also don’t understand the role SEO, domain availability, and trademak have in the process. I just activated my own naming gig after having paused it for months because of the same issues you had. I raised the price on it. I have found with my other services that when I charge more I generally attract better clients who are easier to please. Of course, I also make sure the quality of my work is worth the prices I charge. I’m curious to see what happens.

I woke up to a notification that a new-to-me buyer had requested a revision. No big deal. Because of the nature of copywriting, it isn’t unusual that I need to tweak a few things for a buyer I’ve never worked with before. But, when I read the feedback I was stunned. The client had called me a fraud. They insulted my work and my character. I was furious. I have been a self-employed professional service provider for 15 years. I have one rule when it comes to dealing with angry, unreasonable clients–never respond when I’m also angry. I closed the message and tried to calm down. I went back and read the message again. Two things became clear. One, the client had not looked carefully at my delivery. They had not read my delivery message and probably had not read past the first two lines of the copy I had written. Two, they had specific feedback about the image I had provided. The feedback could have been worded nicer, but I understood their dissatisfaction. I found a new image that I felt would be a better fit given the feedback. Then I clicked deliver modified work and wrote a short message. I told the buyer I had never received a single complaint about my work like the ones he was making. I explained my process and my delivery. I told the client I stood behind my work. I also explained I was delivering a new image, but that since I had been given no specific feedback about the copy, I would not be modifying it. Half an hour later the client left a kind five-star review and a tip. This client has since purchased from me again and we have a solid working relationship. I turned this situation around by being calm, firm, and professional. It is critical to never respond in anger, especially when the client is already upset. By being calm I was able to see something I could do to make the client happy. However, I was firm. I didn’t rush to cancel the order. I did not let the client push me around. I knew I had delivered quality work. I was also professional. I responded quickly. I explained the misunderstanding without blaming the client and without apologizing when I had done nothing wrong. Not every rough customer service experience will have a happy ending. In this case the client was open to listening to my response. However, if you remain calm, firm, and professional you will have much more success on Fiverr and in any service based business.