Contacting Fiverr Sellers: Should Fiverr Buyers Contact Sellers Before a Purchase

If you take a look at the Fiverr Forum right now, you may be surprised to hear that a lot of Fiverr Sellers are complaining about buyers purchasing their gigs.

Why would they complain about that?

Well, it’s not exactly the purchasing but the not reading descriptions and not contacting them beforehand. I’ve had problems with this in the past and I can see where many of them coming from. One thing that I don’t agree with though is a seller who said that all Fiverr buyers should contact their seller before buying a Fiverr gig.

There’s not always the need for a buyer to contact a seller first. It will depend on the gig and the needs from that gig.

There are times that I highly recommend a buyer contacting a seller – and I recommend this whenever you consider buying from someone.

When the Fiverr Gig Description Says So

Read the gig description before you buy! This is something ALL FIVERR BUYERS should do. No, you are not the exception!

The Fiverr gig description will tell you more about the gig, such as how many words will be written for $5, how much of a video will be created or the amount of your website that will be coded for you.

The description will also tell you if the seller has any specific needs – such as contacting them prior to ordering. That means they want you to contact them. Not place an order and then message them about it while the clock is ticking!

I have a very clear message at the start of all my gigs asking for a Fiverr buyer to contact me before ordering 4 or more gigs. And I want buyers to do just that! It’s the first line – reading that is the least you can do!

When You’re Not Sure About the Description

Some sellers don’t create very clear gig descriptions. The fact that you have read it though and aren’t sure is great.

But now what do you do?

You need to contact the Fiverr seller to clarify your questions. Find out more about the Fiverr gig or go through the parts that you do not understand. Clarification is the best way to determine whether a gig is for you or not.

Don’t order, assuming that what you think is right. You may find that the seller has to cancel and that damages the Fiverr seller’s reputation. Be considerate and ask first – you wouldn’t buy a computer without finding out more about it, would you?

To Find Out More About the Seller

How much do you really know about the person you’re considering buying from? Possibly their location, their screen name and previous buyers experience through the Fiverr feedback system. However, do you know about their experience? Their skills? What about their abilities to do the things you want?

It’s worth contacting the Fiverr seller to find out more about his or her experience and skill sets. If you’re looking for a writer, do they have samples or a blog? Have they written on your topic? Do they understand the style that you want?

If you want a web developer, there is nothing wrong with asking to see samples of other websites he or she has coded. You need to know about where the seller learnt the skill from and how much experience he or she has.

It may just be $5 now but think about the end product. You still want quality, right? You can only do that by finding out more about the seller.

So, should you contact a Fiverr seller? Not all the time but sometimes it is definitely worth it. Read the Fiverr gig description and find out from the seller whether he or she wants to be contacted first – that builds on your relationship instantly and means the seller wants to work with you.

What Should Fiverr Gig Descriptions Tell You?

I’ve just been let into the new Fiverr and been editing my Fiverr gig descriptions with the new system in mind.

Gig descriptions are extremely important – for a Fiverr seller and a Fiverr buyer. This details everything that a person will and will not do within their gig. It helps the buyer determine whether it is something worth spending their $5 on. It helps the seller explain more about the gig and limit the amount of cancellations.

But what should you actually see in a gig description on Fiverr? As a seller, what should you add to help protect yourself?

Here are a few considerations to make:

1.       What Your Gig Offers

What are you offering within your gig? If it is a writing gig, you need to clearly state the amount of words that you will write for that basic $5 price. If you offer a video gig, you need to state how much you will film for that base price.

You can then go into the gig extras and what you offer within them.

2.       What Your Gig Doesn’t Offer

This is just as important as what you offer. The Fiverr seller needs to clearly state the things that are not done for $5. This could be any adult content that you will not provide or if you don’t do homework assignments.

For example, my writing gig for up to 400 words clearly states that I will not do homework assignments/essays or anything similar. I do get people messaging me to ask about it and I lead them back to the description where I clearly state that.

3.       Your Revision Policy

Always make it clear how many revisions a Fiverr buyer gets within that base gig. Offering unlimited revisions or not clearly stating is never a good thing – there will be buyers who take sellers for a ride!

As a buyer, you want to know about the revision policy beforehand. I make it clear that I will only make revisions where the mistake was my own fault. I’ve had Fiverr buyers decide to change the instructions afterwards – that isn’t my fault and the buyer needs to pay the extra for that.

The revision policy helps to protect Fiverr sellers from many unscrupulous buyers. If one is constantly demanding more work, by showing your revision policy, it is possible to point them back to that and ask for more. If the buyer becomes threatening, you can send your proof of the messages and your revision policy to Fiverr Customer Support for help.

4.       Sell Your Gig!

For Fiverr sellers, the Fiverr gig description is the place to sell your gig! You can’t go into a lot of detail but go into more than just a couple of lines. Tell buyers why they should choose your gig over the many others on Fiverr.com.

Talk about your experience, the people you have helped or your previous jobs to help sell your work. You can include a link to a YouTube video or your Flickr account too so you can show off samples or explain things in more detail.

The Fiverr gig description should clearly state everything the seller is offering for the basic $5, along with the things that they won’t do. Some Fiverr sellers will also cover their gig extras and the revision policy.

As a Fiverr buyer, please READ THE GIG DESCRIPTION. This is a common complaint of sellers. Most of the time, your questions can be answered by reading the description. This will also inform you if the seller would like you to contact them first and whether your gig is possible for the base $5 or if you need to order more! If you can’t follow the seller’s instructions and take the time to read the description, why should the seller?

The Fiverr Feedback System: Can You Trust the Positive and Negative Feedback?

There has been a major change in the Fiverr feedback system lately. Those who receive negative feedback can have them removed through a mutual cancellation within 14 days of completion. What does that mean?

The feedback on Fiverr is no longer necessarily true!

There have been many cases of Top Rated Sellers having their negative feedback removed because they want to keep the customers coming in. The problem is they’re not doing it legitimately. Just check out this post from one of the Fiverr writers about his experience with Top Rated Sellers lying on their page and getting their negative feedback removed.

Leaving Negative Feedback

I’ve written in the past about thinking before you leave a negative remark. I did this after receiving unfair negative feedback – it was something about an order that I cancelled before working on and the buyer was annoyed that he had to pay more because he wanted more than my base gig.

I really believe that buyers need to think before they click the thumbs down button. Did the seller do everything stated in the gig description? If so, then is it legitimate to leave a thumbs down?

This is when negative feedback on Fiverr is okay (in my book). If the Fiverr seller didn’t do as stated or has misled buyers, feel free to leave that negative. But, if you’re going to leave the negative then keep it up there! If you opt for the mutual cancellation, how are you going to warn others about your experience?

Can You Trust the Fiverr Feedback System?

Not anymore.

There are users who are having negative feedback removed by a quick mutual cancellation. The system definitely has its flaws.

You also need to look more into the thumbs down – it’s not always fair and legitimate.

As a Fiverr buyer, you need to do more than checking the feedback. Look into the comments left in detail and check the gig description. You should also send the Fiverr seller a message about their gig and ask all the questions that you have.

If you’re really unsure, do a quick Google search. There are some who will have complaints on other peoples’ blogs.

What Can You Do to Help the Feedback on Fiverr?

If you have a great experience with a seller, share that with the community. You can praise them on the Fiverr forums or leave them feedback on their gig. Fiverr sellers love that you leave feedback on their gigs to say it was a job well done.

But what if you have a negative experience?

Determine why the experience was negative first. Did you expect more from the seller but aren’t willing to pay the extra? That’s not fair on the person doing the work for you. If the Fiverr seller did everything he said he would do in the gig, then you either need to accept the work or buy another gig for the extra work.

What if the seller doesn’t do everything in the gig and is demanding more? You have every right to:

1.       Ask for a full refund and go elsewhere

2.       Complete the job and give negative feedback

If you do give negative feedback, do it in detail and share your thoughts. If the money isn’t something that worries you, don’t give into the seller’s requests to cancel. You have every right to keep the negative feedback there and share your experience. That’s what it’s there for anyway.

But, please make sure your negative is fair and justified. If you’re leaving it for the sake of it or didn’t get everything you wanted when you knew you wouldn’t get it in the first place, that’s not fair on the person who did the hard work for you. They can have it removed – and rightly so.

The Fiverr feedback system definitely has its flaws. Talk to the seller before you buy and make sure you are happy with spending the money.

Fiverr.com Is Changing!

I just want to write a quick post to say that Fiverr.com is on the change. A new blog post has been released about their new Fiverr V2 and it definitely looks interesting.

I’ve not been let in yet – and I’m slightly disappointed since I love systems testing so much – but there are plenty of people out there who have and they all say that it looks great. Of course, there are a few things that they’d like to see changed but it’s better than the current version for tracking sales and seeing where the sales are coming from.

I’m not sure how great it is for buyers though – no one seems to mention anything about that!

I’m on the waiting list now to get the update and as soon as I do, I will be sure to let you all know. I’m looking forward to trying out something new, whether I like it or not.

I’m not going to write a lot about it since I don’t know much. But, you can click this link to find out more about it!

Have you had the chance to try out V2 of Fiverr.com? Feel free to share your thoughts right here!

Why You Need a Video on Your Fiverr Gigs

I’m guilty of not having this, even though I really should. It’s not that hard to add a video to Fiverr gigs and I do have them created, I just need the software to convert the file types to add the videos to the different gigs.

But why are videos so important? Do you really need a video to succeed?

I’m not sure about whether you need one to really succeed at being a Fiverr seller – I do alright and Fiverr is a great addition to my regular income – but I think you need one to do extremely well and become a Top Rated Seller.

Explain Things Easier to Your Fiverr Buyers

Fiverr buyers don’t read the gig descriptions. I’ve had some that don’t even read the title of my Fiverr gigs!

The Fiverr system doesn’t really help with this. Gig descriptions can’t be formatted into paragraphs so it is one block of text. It’s not appealing and definitely not easy to read. I have to use * and other characters to help space out text.

The video is an easier way to explain things to the buyer. You can add what you will and won’t do and anything about your extras, easily and quickly. You only have 30 seconds but people are more willing to watch and listen than bother with reading something.

Give Something for Buyers to Watch

Really, even if the text could be spaced out easily, people prefer to watch videos than read on the computer. By adding a video to your Fiverr gig, you’re giving people something to watch.

Play to the things that they prefer and you will increase the chance of getting sales. Videos allow people to sit back and listen to what you have to say. I can also show how passionate you are about your work, increasing your sales.

Helps with Search Results

Google likes videos. You can improve your search results by adding a video to your Fiverr gigs. There are a lot more people than you think coming in from searches.

You only have 30 seconds but you can add a longer video to YouTube. This is great. You will be able to link to the video in your profile so that people get the full idea of what you are willing to offer for $5 and what you will do for the extras.

Show Off Your Samples

There’s a problem with Fiverr gigs – showing samples. For videos and images, there is the Live Portfolio option but that doesn’t work so well for other types of gigs.

You can take screenshots of your work and add them to your Fiverr video to show off your skills. This creates a simple portfolio that shows off a range of skills, depending on your style of Fiverr gig, so that people want to spend their money.

They don’t feel like they’re risking as much.

So, get yourself out there and create a video. Don’t have the skills or don’t want to be on camera? There are options to create a video for your Fiverr gig through some of the Fiverr sellers. Check them out and start selling more!