mark_sgp

At the most rudimentary level, success on this platform will mean actual profitability -- whether the profit comes from gig engagements and/or affiliate commissions is not of any concern to me. Of course, I'm not here to just "make a few dollars". Hopefully, this will over the longer term be a source of significant sustainable income. I have one eye on retirement in a few years and it would be nice to have a relatively low maintenance income stream that provides additional money on a monthly basis, that is "like a bonus" but not something upon which I am dependent for "survival".

In Singapore, I have had to deal with GDPR from various perspectives when I worked for MNCs in the past. I am admittedly not particularly familiar with the requirements of the DSA, but I do have concerns that freelancers - who in many cases are not associated with nor protected by a formal business registration - could have their personal details revealed to potential scammers posing as "buyers" - who may in turn use that personal data maliciously -- identity theft, further spam and scam operations, etc. (I used to experience a lot of these scammers on Fiverr, but in recent weeks, things seem to have gone quiet. Not sure what to make of that, but not complaining as such).

I will assert that AI is a facilitator for completing work more efficiently, if used correctly. Whether it is more effective than a human in undertaking the same tasks, with the same objectives, in the same required timeframe remains a matter of debate in many situations, and is limited by the sophistication of the (human-created) algorithm which drives the AI. I think AI has proven its worth in repetitive, mundane, and/or dangerous tasks -- such as floor cleaning, product transportation/delivery, assembly line and warehousing automation, skyscraper window washing, nuclear facilities maintenance and monitoring, diagnostic heuristics in the medical field, etc. It also has potential in graphic design, and research documentation. However, there is still need for human oversight and review of outcomes produced by AI. AI can be prone to malfunction -- deliberate or accidental -- and requires periodic maintenance and calibration checking. Of course, Hollywood and the media are among the first to sensationalize AI as something potentially sinister that will take over the world, subjugate the human race, destroy jobs and livelihoods, and/or cause the destruction of the planet and the human race...or in the sense of cockeyed optimism, pass it off as a revolutionary cure and panacea for the world's problems. Like any other technological advancement, there will always be skeptics, late adopters, and "Luddites"...and "cheerleaders". Old jobs and careers may in fact disappear, but new ones will arise. New market demands will arise, new practical applications of once only theoretical musings will come to reality.

The presumption is that by exceeding customer expectations, there will be greater customer satisfaction, hence resulting in more customer spending in the future/more repeat business, better customer reviews, and increased trust/reputation (which in itself improves the probability of more customers and more business).

In terms of professional interests, I do affiliate marketing for a number of products and services and have a Facebook page with the affiliate links for those. I also have core experience in IT risk, audit, governance, compliance and security. On a personal note, most of the sites I frequent will deal with one or more of these topics (usually not combined together) 😉: -Music and pop culture from the mid-1960s to mid-1980s -Travelling (global) -World history - especially ancient civilizations and archeology -Paleontology, astronomy, and various other sciences -Coins and stamps -Australian Rules Football (it's the season now)

I lost my sanity years ago -- never missed it. 🙂 (channeling Salvador Dali a bit here) I try to keep work activities organized, finite, and separate from the "rest of my life" as such. Work is often a necessity, but recreation is important for overall well-being. Even over the course of a busy day, I take time out in small intervals to go for a walk, listen to music, or just find a quiet place to sit and relax. On off days, I may briefly check messages, but unless something is critically urgent, they can wait for normal business hours to get my responses. Same goes for "late night/early morning" messages. I don't work 24x7x365.

There is a reference link for this, which I quickly googled: https://www.savvynewcanadians.com/best-small-business-accounting-software-in-canada/ Hope it helps. If you need specific advice on tax treatment and accounting standards relevant to Canada, better seek the guidance from relevant professionals, as accounting software packages tend to be generic and may not be updated to reflect changes in tax law, accounting standards, etc.

Something in the medical field - medical doctor or some sort of Ph.D. level research. My undergrad degree is in biology, but during the dot-com boom of the 1990s, I got my MBA in management science/MIS and went into IT consulting...rarely touching the healthcare industry again except for the occasional client of Big 4 (then Big 6) firms. Haven't looked back very often...my decision to go into IT took me on a very different and unexpected road for my career, and life in general - in a very positive way.

I started as an affiliate in January 2024 -- as of right now, I have 566 registrations under my account (actively increasing daily); 1 FTB registering a commission (from Namibia) but expecting a lot more over time. I have found it very interesting that the overwhelming majority of new signups are from Africa and spanning the entire Asian continent. I am prospecting everywhere globally, except for a few markets restricted by international sanctions. So far, 58 countries and territories are represented in these signups. It is my understanding that about 50% of Fiverr's business has traditionally been from North America, but if my experience is typical, that face looks to be changing quickly. The Top 10 countries, representing 70% of my signups are: Pakistan Nepal Bangladesh Ethiopia Sri Lanka Egypt United Arab Emirates Afghanistan India Israel As a buyer, I have dealt successfully with sellers from Sri Lanka and France. As a seller, well - just started marketing my gigs seriously toward the end of February -- so it remains to be seen where the genuine interest comes from. 😉

A few more, from W.C. Fields: "Start every day off with a smile and get it over with" "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There's no point in being a damn fool about it." "I used to be indecisive, now I'm not so sure." "Hollywood is the gold cap on a tooth that should have been pulled out years ago."

A few attached...too many to list here. 🙂

Title: Tomorrow Never Knows (inspired by the Beatles song of the same name) An informative and somewhat humourous autobiographical sketch of my travels and explorations across the entire US (excluding Alaska), and 50+ other countries and territories across 6 continents, having worked and resided long term in 3 countries across 3 continents. (Of course, this list will keep growing). Lessons learned, a bit of philosophical musing, a bit of practical (and perhaps not-so-practical) advice about cultural and business interactions around the world - reality vs. expectation. The plot loosely inspired by a book called "No Shitting In The Toilet", by Peter Moore (an Australian backpacker who wrote about his adventures - and misadventures - in a sometimes hysterically funny style), and the commentary of Anthony Bourdain's travel shows - without the culinary aspect.

Sometimes, it's cultural. There may be reluctance to say "no", openly express disapproval or be perceived as causing conflict -- seen as taboo in some areas of the world. The buyer may like it, but may not be "overjoyed" by it; they may not like it at all but don't want to say anything; or they may like it at lot and think that no further conversation or explanation is required. I agree with a point made by collinsconsult earlier in this thread -- don't try to force a rating. However, if a response is needed to proceed with completing work, and the client is not responding appropriately or in a timely manner, that's a different issue entirely.

In case anyone is wondering, I am a buyer, seller and affiliate for Fiverr. I have only joined this past January, but I see scams from all directions, posing from various countries of origin (which are likely bogus locations from bogus accounts). On a more positive note: 1. The interactions I have had purchasing services from legitimate sellers have been very positive. 2. As an affiliate, I have amassed just under 500 new registrations; one FTB commission so far (from Africa) but I expect a lot more, since the tracking cookie lasts one year from the point of registration. 3. 75+% of my new registrations have been from Africa-Middle East-Indian Subcontinent-Pacific Rim regions - and I have not specifically been excluding the Americas nor Europe. 4. I expect to have legitimate buyers for my gigs in the near future -- and I don't care where they originate, as long as they are indeed genuine.

I have received so many overt scam e-mails since I joined in early Q1 this year, that they are becoming more entertainment than nuisance. For the small percentage that isn't already blocked by the time I read it, I just have to roll my eyes. Either the scammers are amateurs, or there are enough people that are paralyzingly stupid enough to fall for their nonsense. This time: "Hello, I am looking for someone to get a mobile phone at home. This mobile phone will be our proxy 4G in SG. You will just have to have the phone at home and keep it on charge and insert a SIM card in it. We will pay the internet monthly subscription as well. Are you interested regarding this offer ?" Yeahhh riiiiight....you want me to sign up for a phone service/SIM card that you can use without limit and without any accountability regarding who is being contacted, for what purpose and for how long, then promise to "pay the monthly subscription cost" (and what about the call and messaging charges?) --- another nonsense contact screaming "SCAM" in my ear with a megaphone. 🙂 Go away...I can't genuinely speak my mind here, or I might get banned LOL.

I recently received an odd, suspicious request from a buyer that has apparently been on Fiverr since November 2023; profile states he is from "United States". I have reported the user. Unlike other scammers from which I receive messages, this is not a brand new account created within the past couple of months. However, several red flags are evident from this request: (message was sent to me split into 6 individual messages, to my Fiverr e-mail account) "Do you think you can deliver an order by" ---> but then lists no specific date Numerous grammatical and spelling errors: HI How are you I hope you will be Fine I will Promote your gigs on Social media Are you interested Do you want to promote your gigs on social media ? I will promote your gigs on social media platforms and biggest groups like UK Canada USA I have done succefully 123+ Order -> There is no evidence of this at all from the profile name of the user who contacted me; also the "123+" reference is suspicious https://www.fiverr.com/s/klLv4w that is my gig link -> This gig link is for a completely different user -- not even remotely close to the user name that contacted me You can see my profile and check the reviews of my happy clients -> no such evidence of this from the user account that contacted me

AI-generated content is not necessarily a bad thing, if it is used for outlining or driving the overall structure of a document, or providing key points for further embellishment, if the AI content is correct and relevant to the purpose of the document. AI content detectors seem to me to be a glorified use of AI to detect AI. If AI has shortcomings in the first place, AI content detectors will also have shortcomings. I think part of the issue is that AI has become a buzzword around the global business community, and it creates further problems: 1. People use the AI to generate content without actually doing any manual review of grammar, facts or relevance in the content, which can produce results that are irrelevant or unsatisfactory in meeting client needs. 2. Clients hear a bit about AI and fancy themselves experts in it - they heard on the news or read an article about something AI and now it's stuck in their head without specific context. 3. Some clients, particularly those with more traditional corporate mindsets, don't trust AI at all and consider it a "lazy man" approach to working (see my point #1). 4. What is the expectation if AI generates useful, relevant and valid content to meet the client's needs? Are we expected to reinvent the wheel and paraphrase potentially large volumes of content - wasting time and costing the client more money in the process? 5. For certain tasks and aspects of business, templates are widely available in the public domain, as free downloads and as paid subscriptions. These templates may very well have been created at least in part by AI, and depending on the AI detector algorithm, will trigger detections if used even for part of a 1 page document. I find it difficult to believe that any successful company today is completely free of AI usage in their operations, or that AI is intrinsically detrimental to those operations...but then again, see my point #2.

I have one gig where I was automatically prompted to setup a milestone plan, and I did so without any issues. However, I have another gig for which I would ideally like to set up milestone plan -- and the system doesn't automatically prompt me for it. Furthermore, I don't see any way to create one in the case of this gig. Does anyone have any experience with creating a milestone for a gig that doesn't automatically prompt you to create one?

Thank you for your insights. I have some decent templates for NDAs, so in principle, it should not be an issue. Governing law can be a sticking point, however. If buyer and seller are in different countries, there is nothing compelling one or the other to accept any document with governing law outside their home country (excluding EU constituent countries). Hopefully, the relatively small scale of most Fiverr gigs will not create any major business complications in this regard.

Does anyone have any experience with Fiverr gigs where a non-disclosure agreement was required between buyer and seller? For example, some types of consulting gigs, or any gigs involving exchange of proprietary or confidential information between parties. The NDA could be one-way (targeting buyer or seller) or mutual (covering both). The context would also depend on governing law of the agreement, and since most of us work with buyers/sellers across national boundaries, this could get complicated, especially when legal counsel is not readily available on retainer to review such agreements before they are signed off.

One of my greatest lessons over the years is not to offer discounts too quickly or liberally, especially for an untested, first-time buyer of my services. Lesson #2 is to be able to identify potential problem buyers proactively -- know when to say say "no" before committing, if certain red flags are evident, no matter how friendly the buyer behaves or how lucrative the deal sounds. Lesson #3 is to value my own services fairly. There will always be others who promise to do the same work for a lower price, but do you really want to settle in the "discount rack"? My experiences with competitive bidding in industry reinforce this -- whether public sector or private sector -- how cheap do you want to be? Do you want to develop your reputation around that? Most buyers are willing to pay a premium for real, demonstrated quality and professionalism - if they know you and trust you well enough.

Good advice, but need to be careful how you respond. Most of the time, such "buyer" accounts are blocked before I even get a chance to respond and for the rare ones that I answer, I usually make a basic statement along the lines of "Thank you for your interest. If you would like to engage my services, please do so through my gigs on Fiverr". To date, none have ever done so, which reinforces the scam nature of the requests...and every one of the offending accounts has been blocked, with a message from Fiverr stating that it won't affect my response rate.

I get these types of requests frequently, but they are a violation of Fiverr's Terms of Service. https://www.fiverr.com/legal-portal/legal-terms/terms-of-service I have never had a legitimate buyer demand or even request communication or business discussion off the Fiverr platform -- but every scammer I have encountered here has done that.

I've only joined Fiverr recently, earlier this year, but it has already been my experience that presumptive buyers offering "large quantities of work" -- either present or future, and demanding deep discounts at the onset of initial discussions - are not genuine. Most are outright scam artists who wound up getting blocked before I even had a chance to respond at all -- which is fine with me 🙂

As a followup to the message from donnovan86, I concur with his comments. Personally, I use a Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 5, with 16GB RAM, with Windows 11 Home OS, and AMD Ryzen 7 7730U with Radeon Graphics (2.00 GHz). I find it more than adequate for handling the Microsoft suite of products, including .doc and .docx extensions.