Last Updated on December 20, 2022 by Andrew Shih
Getting help on Fiverr?
Are you looking for help getting a job done but still unsure if Fiverr is the right platform? Or maybe you need help with finding a Fiverr seller?
At Wisdom Depot, we have gotten plenty of help from freelancers on Fiverr, such as setup & troubleshooting websites, creating intro videos, designing logos, creating Pinterest pins, and writing blog posts.
In this Fiverr Review, we will share what we like and don’t like about Fiverr, teach you how to read between the lines for seller reviews, and share with you useful tips to help you hire the ideal seller for your job.
Disclaimer: Some of the links below are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to register or make a purchase, we may earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please review the full affiliate disclaimer.
What I like about Fiverr
Fiverr is affordable
Chances are you have a limited budget, and you want to make sure you are spending the money wisely. Hiring freelancers are more affordable on Fiverr compared to other freelance platforms. You can get many of the basic work completed for $5 (plus $2 Fiverr fee). Depending on the amount of work and expertise required, some gigs are more expensive than others. Overall, the cost will be lower for the same task done on Fiverr than on other freelance platforms.
Easy to know the total cost of completing a task
For the sellers to provide their service, they must set up a gig that defines the work they will perform and the fixed cost. By default, most other freelance platforms are determined by hourly rates. Having the fixed cost gives you a good idea of how much the work will cost, which is hard to do based on the hourly rate.
For most people just getting started looking for freelancers, you need help completing a task (ex. set up a website) rather than ongoing operational support (ex. provide customer service).
For buyers, a fixed cost for a task will avoid surprises. You can still negotiate with the seller to define a custom order if you have a custom request.
Fiverr sellers work hard to earn 5-star reviews
Getting a 5-star review is crucial and means a lot for a seller. The seller will work hard and do his or her best to earn your satisfaction. A bad review is very damaging for the seller to promote a gig. As a buyer, you have the advantage, and many sellers will compete for your business.
What I do not like about Fiverr
Fiverr sellers can be mixed quality
Any Fiverr seller can create a gig, start selling, and bid on your project. While there are reviews and seller levels, picking the best seller for the job will still take some effort. There are tricks and tips that I share below on how I spot and filter out poor candidates more quickly.
Sensitive words can get your comment held for review
Certain keywords will alarm Fiverr when you communicate with the seller. Words such as Upwork, email, money, or pay could result in your comment being put on hold for review by Fiverr. Fiverr wants to make sure the communication does not violate Fiverr’s terms of service and make sure you are not trying to do business deals outside of Fiverr.
Only communicate on Fiverr
It’s a violation to ask for each other’s email addresses because Fiverr wants all the communication and transactions done on Fiverr. It can be annoying sometimes when your comment is put on hold because it contains some sensitive words, even though you are not trying to violate the term of service.
Fiverr Reviews for sellers and buyers
Are Fiverr reviews real?
It’s not as easy to find a seller on Fiver that has poor reviews. Naturally, you may wonder if the Fiverr reviews are real. The short answer is the reviews are real. However, you need to understand how it works.
Only the buyer and sellers who have completed the business can rate each other. Therefore, these are genuine ratings by buyers and sellers who have done work together.
It is, however, possible that a seller can become a buyer for each other’s gig and give each other a good review. Sometimes the seller may need help getting work done as well, so it is not necessarily to “game the system.”
There is also the survival of the fittest. If a seller has a terrible rating, the seller will not be able to get business and compete on Fiverr. Only the ones with higher ratings and reviews will survive.
How do Fiverr Reviews work for sellers and buyers?
Once the buyer approves the completion of the job, the buyer will complete the payment, and both the seller and the buyer are allowed to review each other using the 5-star system. Both the seller and the buyer know this, so generally, you don’t want to give and get bad reviews whether you are a buyer or seller.
However, Fiverr’s seller reviews and ratings have a much more significant impact on the seller. If you are a seller and get bad reviews, it will become harder for the seller to get new business.
Some sellers will explicitly mention they are looking for your 5-star review and make all the revisions necessary to earn your satisfaction.
How to read Fiverr Reviews for sellers?
Here are a few more tips to help you read between the lines and analyze the Fiverr reviews.
- Don’t choose a seller based on a single score. Don’t simply hire a seller because he or she has a perfect 5-star rating. Read the detail of the reviews, ask questions, and communicate with the seller to make sure it’s the right fit.
- Read the bad reviews. Typically, bad reviews will be more details and why the buyer gave a bad review.
- Ignore 5-star reviews with little or no comments. Ignore 5-star reviews where the buyer doesn’t make the extra effort to write a useful review. It’s more likely the seller just meets the expectation and provides mediocre service.
- Read good reviews with longer comments. If the buyer is willing to take extra time and consideration to write a good review, it’s an indication that the buyer is pleased with the seller.
- Spot multiple purchases from the same buyers. If a buyer enjoys working with a seller, the buyer will likely order from the same seller again and give 5-star reviews.
How to hire a Fiverr seller
There are two methods of hiring a seller on Fiverr – Contact the seller directly or post a request.
Find and contact a seller directly
It’s possible that during your search process you come across one or more sellers’ gig that catches your attention. You will read through the gig description, check the reviews, and check the offer is within your budget. If you like what you see or have questions, you can contact the seller to discuss further detail and determine if the seller is a good fit for the job.
Pros for contacting the Fiverr seller directly?
- Many of the great sellers are busy, have loyal buyers, and will not be actively bidding for more business. You will need to actively search and find those sellers that you want to work together. You can find excellent sellers by contacting them directly that you won’t find otherwise.
- Keep your work private. If you don’t want to announce your project publically and post your job, the best way is to contact the seller directly and keep the conversation private.
- Work at your own pace. You can take your time until you find a skilled seller and won’t be bothered by less qualified sellers who are bidding for your job.
Cons for contacting the Fiverr seller directly?
- You don’t know what you are missing out on. Because you only focus on a specific and limited search, you could be missing out on a great seller who may be interested in your job.
Post a job request and have sellers bid on your project
Creating and sending out a job request is a quick way of reaching out to sellers who are interested in working for you. It is not unusual to receive about a dozen sellers applying to your request. You will need to review the sellers and narrow them down to the best one(s) you want to work together.
Pros for creating a Fiverr job post
- Reach out to a broad audience quickly. You can quickly receive over a dozen sellers who are interested in your job within the first two days after you post the job.
- Finding a surprising talent. You may find a great seller that you otherwise would have overlooked. The seller who applies to your job should have the skill set to complete the job, although not always. Some of the best hires I have made are from sellers who applied to my job post.
- Get the job done for a lower price. Because sellers know they are competing for a job post, some will be willing to submit a lower bid to get your job. You can get your job done cheaper by having sellers compete for your job.
Cons for creating a Fiverr job post
- Take time to filter out unqualified sellers. A seller can bid on up to 10 jobs per day, and there is no cost to submit a bid, regardless of the experience level. Therefore some sellers will submit a bid anyway, even though it’s a long shot. For example, you may specify in your requirement that you are only looking for a U.S. seller. Don’t be surprised that you will still receive bids from non-U.S. sellers.
Which hiring method should I use?
Each hiring method on Fiverr has its pros and cons. If you have a specific keyword, seller profile, or characteristics in mind, it makes sense to begin by using the search filter and contact the sellers directly that matches your criteria.
If your job is open to all sellers, looking to keep the cost low, and you don’t mind taking the time to filter out unqualified sellers, using the job post method is likely a better approach.
If you are looking to hire multiple sellers for a role, you may want to leverage both approaches to find qualified sellers.
Should I hire a seller with a higher-level rating?
New sellers typically do not have enough track records and little review for reference. While you have to take a leap of faith with a new seller, some new sellers can still be good at what they do.
A seller with a higher level is a more experienced seller and more active on Fiverr. They tend to be a bit more expensive, but you pay for their expertise. Seller level is one decision factoring in hiring a seller, but certainly not the only one.
Being an excellent communicator is more important than a higher level. Regardless of the seller level, always contact the seller and make sure the seller understands your requirements and you are comfortable with the seller’s communication style.
Creating and posting an amazing job request on Fiverr
Why posting an amazing job request is important
A good hire starts with a good job posting. A good job post should provide a high-level overview and detail of the scope of the job. A seller should be able to have a good idea of what needs to be done and the amount of work that is involved in providing you a quote. A better job post can even inspire sellers who are eager to work with you and attracts talents.
How to post an amazing job request
If you are new to creating a job post for a new role you are hiring, you should start by researching and take a look at a few gigs for the role you are hiring. How do the sellers define their gig basic/standard/premium offerings? What are the common gig extras? How much does it cost?
Once you read through a few gigs, you will have a much better idea of how to write up a job post and be able to create a job request that sellers can understand and respond to.
Elements of an amazing job request
- Detail the scope of the work and requirements. Provide enough detail about the task and the role you are hiring. What is the deliverable? The seller should have a good idea of how much he or she is willing to do the job.
- Seller’s Qualification. Specify the qualification you are looking for. Are you only looking for U.S. based seller? Or are you only looking to hire a pro or top seller?
- Ask for references (if applicable).
- Ask sellers to respond 2 or 3 questions with their submission. One of the questions will ask the seller to provide a quote to let the seller know that you are flexible. I will also throw in at least another question as a curveball to see which seller will not only take time to read through the job request and take time to answer the question. The answer to your question will help you prioritize and filter out sellers. If you don’t have any questions, ask the seller to include a secret word to indicate the seller has read your post carefully.
- Keep it concise. Keep your job request brief and to the point. You should offer just the right amount of information.
10 Tips for hiring a freelancer on Fiverr
#1: Decide if you are hiring a local freelancer or offshore
When you hire a seller, you must have your target audience in mind. For tasks such as content writing, voice-over, and proofreading that are consumed directly by your audience, it will be wise to spend a little extra so that your message can resonate with your audience.
#2: Research how much your job cost
When you post a job request, you will need to include your budget. You should set a reasonable amount so that the job post will attract more qualified sellers. If you are only looking for U.S. based sellers, take a look at their gigs and find out how much it costs.
#3: Set a realistic budget
If you want to have quality sellers bid on your project, you should state a realistic budget. Otherwise, you may just end up with mostly new sellers who are just hungry for getting your business. While you may be lucky to get a good seller, but you will be taking a chance and taking more time or delay your project getting started. It is ok to set the budget slightly lower, but don’t just set the minimum $5.
#4: Draft up a good job post and post the job request
Hiring a good seller starts with creating a good job post. A good job post will provide enough information about the task, your requirements, your questions for sellers to respond, and a reasonable budget. It will give the seller a good idea if he or she is the right person for the job.
#5: Ask for reference
The new seller may not be able to provide references, but you should still ask. For online digital products, an experienced seller should be able to give a reference. Check out the quality of the work and find out if it meets your standard.
#6: Look for sellers that answer your questions
Don’t be surprised that only a handful of sellers’ responses with bids will also answer your questions. Quite often, a seller will say he or she has read the job post in detail. However, instead of answering the questions, those sellers simply self-promote why they are the best for the job. Look for sellers that put your interest first, answer your questions, and acknowledge your concerns.
#7: Always communicate with the seller first before buying the gig
Whether you find the seller or the seller applied to your job request, always communicate with the seller before you buy a gig. Make sure the seller is available and interested in completing the job.
#8: Find a seller you are comfortable with the communication style
One of the most critical factors in choosing a seller is communication. A good seller should be able to communicate in proper English and be able to carry out the business casually with open and honest discussion.
Sometimes, because of the language barrier and cultural differences, you can just feel that communication is not always the best. Generally, you will likely be pleased with the work if you enjoy the conversation and the seller’s communication style.
#9: Have a realistic expectation
Fiverr sellers are typically working hard for not much pay. You probably have an idea of how many hours or days it will take to complete the task. Convert the fixed amount into an hourly wage, and most likely, you will agree that you are not paying a lot for the service. Expect that the amount you pay will probably reflect the quality of the work.
#10: You need to do your due diligence
The graphic designer you hire isn’t an intellectual property (IP) lawyer, and they are not going to do a patent or trademark search. It’s possible that the graphic designer created a logo from scratch, but it is similar to an existing logo already trademarked. You should not expect a graphic designer to fill in an IP lawyer’s role, which can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. It is up to you to make sure your work doesn’t infringe on other’s trademarks and copyright.
Tipping on Fiverr
You don’t have to pay a tip to the seller, although it is recommended that the seller go the extra mile and exceed your expectations. Tipping a generous gesture that the seller will genuinely appreciate. If you really enjoy working with the seller and looking for a long-term working relationship, it will be a good idea to tip the seller.
For a buyer, Fiverr does charge $2 or 5% (whichever is higher) for the tip. For the seller, Fiverr will take another 20% from the tip. For example, if you pay a $5 tip. Fiverr will charge you $7 ($5 + $2), and the seller will only get $4. Fiverr will pocket an extra $3.
Conclusion of Fiverr Review
There are great talents on Fiverr, just like any other freelance platform. You may have to put in a bit more effort to find a seller you can rely on and build a long-term working relationship with. However, the same talent you can find on Fiverr will cost you more on other freelance platforms to complete the same job.
If you have a limited budget and do not mind taking a bit of time to sift through sellers, Fiverr can be a great platform where you can find talents. Once you find sellers with whom you can work for the long term and start building a team, you will set yourself up for long-term success.
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