Disappointed in buying Fiverr gigs? Here's what you are doing wrong

32 replies
Maybe you have been burned by Fiverr sellers that didn't deliver. I've got my hand raised as one of this group.

Over time I have discovered you can get good work done by Fiverr sellers for ridiculously cheap prices.

Currently, I split my time between working with offline clients and maintaining a handful of quality Amazon product review sites that I've developed.

If I tried to do everything on my own, I would be pulling out my remaining hair. It's easy to slip into the trap of trying to do everything yourself.

Maybe you prefer doing everything yourself. Learning new skills such as CSS and HTML coding may be part of the lure for you. After all, these will be skills you can use over and over once you have buckled down and applied yourself.

Or perhaps your budget is really tight. That's understandable.

Chances are though, you will spend a day doing something that could have been outsourced easily on Fiverr.

The tradeoff with Fiverr is the seller turnover. Here today, gone tomorrow.

Also, sometimes a Fiverr seller will not do a quality job for you. In general, I have been pleased with the vast majority of work done for me by Fiverr sellers. Over the last 3 months I've purchased 105 Fiverr gigs.

The key to finding the best Fiverr sellers is utilizing a Hiring a Fiverr gameplan and adjusting your expectations.

For all those who have been disappointed with buying Fiverr gigs in the past, here's my simple 6 step Hiring a Fiverr system.

------------
1. Never consider Fiverr for a soup-to-nuts solutions (all comprehensive).

For example, do not expect to find a comprehensive SEO backlinking solution for only $5.00, or even $10.00, or $15.00 on Fiverr. Set your expectations accordingly.

2. Specific task completion is where Fiverr excels.

Is Fiverr a solution for all tasks? No, but you will be surprised how many time consuming tasks you can outsource to a Fiverr seller.

3. Play around with different keywords when searching for a Fiverr seller.

Example:
I needed a Facebook fan page done for a client. My initial search was:
facebook fan page

Too many results to sort through! Then I tried a few other searches:
create facebook fan page
make facebook fan page
design facebook fan page

Each of the above searches yielded a much smaller set of sellers. The lower quantity made my job of choosing a Fiverr seller much easier.

4. Sort by Ratings
This puts the higher rated gigs at the top. Of course, be sure to scan through the positive reviews and see if a seller has an overly high number of gushing reviews from one buyer!

5. If you are under a time deadline, give the job to multiple Fiverr sellers.

I've done this and it has saved my bacon. One seller didn't deliver at all, another delivered terrible work, and a third seller did a fantastic job.

6. The first time you use a Fiverr seller, only give one job.

Only after the seller delivers a quality job should you buy more. No buying of multiple gigs upfront!
#buying #disappointed #fiverr #fiverr tips #gigs #new offline customers #odesk #offline clients #wrong
  • Profile picture of the author Tadresources
    I think the number one way to get good results on Fiverr is to be choosy with who you hire. I read all their reviews, and take everything into consideration, both good and bad. I like your advice about hiring more than one person with the same task though. I will definitely try that in the future when I have something untried to hire out.

    Thanks for the great post!
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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Lagarde
      Originally Posted by Tadresources View Post

      I think the number one way to get good results on Fiverr is to be choosy with who you hire. I read all their reviews, and take everything into consideration, both good and bad. I like your advice about hiring more than one person with the same task though. I will definitely try that in the future when I have something untried to hire out.

      Thanks for the great post!
      I should have emphasized reading the reviews. Definitely part of the due diligence. Thanks for your input Tadresources.
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  • Profile picture of the author dsouravs
    Hire me and everything will be fine
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    I can convert your Non-Responsive website to Responsive website ... How sweet is that? :)

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  • Profile picture of the author Manoj V
    After sorting gigs by rating and going through reviews there's one last thing I do before buying a Fiverr gig - contact a few of them and ask them questions related to the gig. When they reply you can figure out which amongst them is the most professional. If any of them don't reply I don't bother looking them up again, no matter how good the feedback.
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  • Profile picture of the author likeabird70
    I just got today 4 articles that I had a fiverr chick write for me. She has tons of good reviews like "excellent", I will come back, da, da...

    Out of 4 articles, 3 were unusable, not even for spinning, they just did not make any sense. On the fourth one, I had to modify, add, etc., only to get a decent 500 words blog post out of it.

    The gig was for "seo optimized articles"...not even one of them had a decent keyword density. Some of them had only the title - the keyword I gave her. It was just ridiculous. I think I will stick with my own for the future.

    And about the reviews: I said "thanks" and gave her a thumb up. Should I leave a negative? Just felt sorry for her, but also feel sorry for the new customers. Oh, well...
    Signature
    Nothing to see here...
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    • Profile picture of the author LarryC
      I don't use Fiverr that often, but overall I've had good results from the times I have used it. You have to be realistic in your expectations. As you say, don't expect comprehensive solutions. How can anyone even think that someone is going to do something like get their website ranked #1 in Google for $5?

      The most common problem with Fiverr is people who simply don't do the work. And in that case you get a refund, so you don't even lose the $5. Even this has only happened to me once or twice. Still, I wouldn't recommend it for a job that has an urgent deadline, unless you've used the person before and know you can trust him or her.
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      Content Writing, Ghostwriting, eBooks, editing, research.
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    • Profile picture of the author dardar
      Thank you Chris,I have not had much luck with Fiverr,so will give it a try 'again'.
      Some of them,say Yes,to the Gig,when really,they should have said No.
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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Lagarde
      Originally Posted by likeabird70 View Post

      I just got today 4 articles that I had a fiverr chick write for me. She has tons of good reviews like "excellent", I will come back, da, da...

      Out of 4 articles, 3 were unusable, not even for spinning, they just did not make any sense. On the fourth one, I had to modify, add, etc., only to get a decent 500 words blog post out of it.

      The gig was for "seo optimized articles"...not even one of them had a decent keyword density. Some of them had only the title - the keyword I gave her. It was just ridiculous. I think I will stick with my own for the future.

      And about the reviews: I said "thanks" and gave her a thumb up. Should I leave a negative? Just felt sorry for her, but also feel sorry for the new customers. Oh, well...
      With all the good feedback coming in on this thread, already I know an update is needed!

      I would never order articles using a Fiverr gig. It would be expecting way too much from Fiverr. Typically, I order article writing from Odesk, or the Warriors for Hire forum here. A decent (not great) article typically costs me $10.00. I am picky about style and tone. It's easier to pay a bit extra up front to save me editing time.

      A great article will run $15 - $20 (avg 1000 words). More specialized articles cost more than this. Examples include rewriting a medical study into an easily readable consumer level article.

      Yet there are exceptions to most rules.

      I have found a couple of good Google Places review writers. At the same time, to make their job easier, I drew up a detailed outline of what I was looking for. To find these two good writers I wasted money on 6 others.

      Would I have given a thumbs up with no comment, like you did? No. If I were in your shoes, I would have given thumbs down with a straightforward explanation why.

      I know a lot of sellers are a bit desperate on Fiverr. That's why I tip the good ones, or buy extra gigs and not require any work (in case they haven't setup a "Tip Me" gig).

      Every Fiverr seller should setup a "Tip Me" gig to make it easy for a buyer to tip. Not sure why most sellers don't do this.
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      • Profile picture of the author likeabird70
        Originally Posted by Chris Lagarde View Post

        With all the good feedback coming in on this thread, already I know an update is needed!

        I would never order articles using a Fiverr gig. It would be expecting way too much from Fiverr. Typically, I order article writing from Odesk, or the Warriors for Hire forum here. A decent (not great) article typically costs me $10.00. I am picky about style and tone. It's easier to pay a bit extra up front to save me editing time.

        A great article will run $15 - $20 (avg 1000 words). More specialized articles cost more than this. Examples include rewriting a medical study into an easily readable consumer level article.

        Yet there are exceptions to most rules.

        I have found a couple of good Google Places review writers. At the same time, to make their job easier, I drew up a detailed outline of what I was looking for. To find these two good writers I wasted money on 6 others.

        Would I have given a thumbs up with no comment, like you did? No. If I were in your shoes, I would have given thumbs down with a straightforward explanation why.

        I know a lot of sellers are a bit desperate on Fiverr. That's why I tip the good ones, or buy extra gigs and not require any work (in case they haven't setup a "Tip Me" gig).

        Every Fiverr seller should setup a "Tip Me" gig to make it easy for a buyer to tip. Not sure why most sellers don't do this.
        It was my first Fiverr experience. Now I know better. Thanks for the advice. This happened to me today and it just bothered me and I jumped on this thread, as it was right up my alley! LOL
        But also, I wanted to make a point: the reviews do not reflect the true value of the service. Unless you bought from someone a gig before, you never know what you are getting for the money.
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        Nothing to see here...
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  • Profile picture of the author LennyMauricio
    I love Fiverr - I have an SEO Guy and a Banner Graphics Designer -
    and have found some very intelligent people on there, sharing great information -
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  • Profile picture of the author Exel
    I believe the biggest problem with Fiverr is that people expect too much. Of course,
    part of the fault goes to the sellers as well, as they advertize "thousands" of fans, backlinks,
    visitors etc. It doesn't work that way.

    Knowing what you can get for $5 and managing your expectations can make Fiverr useful tool.
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    • Profile picture of the author cashp0wer
      I have not used Fiverr that much but I have some. I was happy with the work that I got. I checked the reviews before I hired someone.
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      My Internet Marketing Blog - Warts And All!
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    • Profile picture of the author Mr Oranje
      Hey Everyone,

      Mr Oranje here from Fiverr

      This thread is great and I completely agree with what has been said. Fiverr is a great tool if you want to off load your current to do list on to some great sellers.

      For example we offer Testimonials, Script Writing, Proof Reading, Transcribing, Audio Recording and much more. All these things are very time consuming to other people and a mere $5 can really be worth spending.

      Just think of it like this, if it takes you an hour to proof read your website you could be earning more money by investing your time into adding more content. Delegation in key

      But make sure you use the Top Rated Sellers as they are there for a reason!
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    • Profile picture of the author ShellC
      Originally Posted by Exel View Post

      I believe the biggest problem with Fiverr is that people expect too much. Of course,
      part of the fault goes to the sellers as well, as they advertize "thousands" of fans, backlinks,
      visitors etc. It doesn't work that way.

      Knowing what you can get for $5 and managing your expectations can make Fiverr useful tool.
      I do agree that people expect too much for $5. I had a customer order 5 craigslist image ads. She wasn't specific about what she wanted--just gave me an affiliate link and said she wanted her ad to be like that but not exactly like that.

      What does that mean?? I asked her to clarify and she says, "I know you do a great job, just be creative." I create the ads and then she complains that she wanted a different color.

      It's people like that that make me wonder is it worth my time for $3.92. :confused:
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      • Profile picture of the author successproducts
        @Shellc hohoho -- she isn't worth it. But I know what you mean! People want you to be creative because realistically they have no idea what they want ... but they are damn sure know WHAT THEY DON'T WANT.

        It's life -- I guess. We always almost know what we don't want though and not ever know for sure what we want --
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  • Profile picture of the author Randall Magwood
    I dont know about you, but i had a great fiverr seller create me a niche ebook cover for my basketball site for 5 bucks. Will definitely be going back to him.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dr Mukherjee
    Originally Posted by Chris Lagarde View Post

    Maybe you have been burned by Fiverr sellers that didn't deliver. I've got my hand raised as one of this group.

    Over time I have discovered you can get good work done by Fiverr sellers for ridiculously cheap prices.

    Currently, I split my time between working with offline clients and maintaining a handful of quality Amazon product review sites that I've developed.

    If I tried to do everything on my own, I would be pulling out my remaining hair. It's easy to slip into the trap of trying to do everything yourself.

    Maybe you prefer doing everything yourself. Learning new skills such as CSS and HTML coding may be part of the lure for you. After all, these will be skills you can use over and over once you have buckled down and applied yourself.

    Or perhaps your budget is really tight. That's understandable.

    Chances are though, you will spend a day doing something that could have been outsourced easily on Fiverr.

    The tradeoff with Fiverr is the seller turnover. Here today, gone tomorrow.

    Also, sometimes a Fiverr seller will not do a quality job for you. In general, I have been pleased with the vast majority of work done for me by Fiverr sellers. Over the last 3 months I've purchased 105 Fiverr gigs.

    The key to finding the best Fiverr sellers is utilizing a Hiring a Fiverr gameplan and adjusting your expectations.

    For all those who have been disappointed with buying Fiverr gigs in the past, here's my simple 6 step Hiring a Fiverr system.

    ------------
    1. Never consider Fiverr for a soup-to-nuts solutions (all comprehensive).

    For example, do not expect to find a comprehensive SEO backlinking solution for only $5.00, or even $10.00, or $15.00 on Fiverr. Set your expectations accordingly.

    2. Specific task completion is where Fiverr excels.

    Is Fiverr a solution for all tasks? No, but you will be surprised how many time consuming tasks you can outsource to a Fiverr seller.

    3. Play around with different keywords when searching for a Fiverr seller.

    Example:
    I needed a Facebook fan page done for a client. My initial search was:
    facebook fan page

    Too many results to sort through! Then I tried a few other searches:
    create facebook fan page
    make facebook fan page
    design facebook fan page

    Each of the above searches yielded a much smaller set of sellers. The lower quantity made my job of choosing a Fiverr seller much easier.

    4. Sort by Ratings
    This puts the higher rated gigs at the top. Of course, be sure to scan through the positive reviews and see if a seller has an overly high number of gushing reviews from one buyer!

    5. If you are under a time deadline, give the job to multiple Fiverr sellers.

    I've done this and it has saved my bacon. One seller didn't deliver at all, another delivered terrible work, and a third seller did a fantastic job.

    6. The first time you use a Fiverr seller, only give one job.

    Only after the seller delivers a quality job should you buy more. No buying of multiple gigs upfront!

    Same steps I follow all the time while outsource my jobs on fiverr. I first search using many different keywords. Than use rating and go to the top rated to upto 10 gigs and read their reviews, time they take to deliver and the quality. next I contact few of them and see how fast they communicate. I don't like them who don't care to reply or reply fast. I go after the gigs who reply within 1-2 days and make sure they will give any revision or not. Then I order and I generally have good result except one Logo design that was awful. I then learned and designed the same logo much better than that gig and my client loved that.
    Also try to find specific gig, gigs which will give specific service but with very high quality.
    Researching and contacting them are the must steps for best Fiverr service.
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  • Profile picture of the author YasirYar
    Great guide on how to use Fiverr effectively. One finds an abundance of people complaining about how the site is terrible etc, but at the end of the day, if you use it right, there is a lot of talent on there just waiting to make your life easier for a very reasonable price.

    You should copy paste this post on every 'I hate Fivverr' thread that ever emerges! Thanks for sharing.
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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Lagarde
      Originally Posted by YasirYar View Post

      You should copy paste this post on every 'I hate Fivverr' thread that ever emerges! Thanks for sharing.
      You made me laugh
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  • Profile picture of the author jacksonlin
    Yeah, some people really ask the world for for $5!
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  • Profile picture of the author Wolster
    Thanks Chris
    My response with Fiverr is about 50-50 in getting good jobs done, but I liked your point about using multiple Fiverrs when there is a rush job on.
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  • Profile picture of the author Onora Oz
    What a refreshing thread. Thanks Chris.

    Most Fiverr related threads on WF are full of whining. Well maybe I shouldn't blame people. I've been hearing lots of horror stories about gig owners. Fortunately, I haven't had any bad experience with Fiverr people I've been working with.

    What do I do to locate Fiverr gems? Careful research, reading lots of reviews on Fiverr and out of Fiverr (there are tons of related blogs), communication, giving the sellers full instructions on the job, again communication. I also take the time and write a real review if I'm happy with the job done. Most reviews are one liners like "A++ excellent" and they don't really offer any value.

    By the way, I don't outsource writing and SEO related tasks on Fiverr. I mostly buy graphics like simple logos, cartoons, or trailer videos.
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  • Profile picture of the author breex
    I've had very good results on fiver with graphics. Received just waht I needed and it was way better than anything I could Of doneLOL, But with writing you need to check any articles on copyscape. I had some trouble with some of the content being scraped. I like odesk better for writers.
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  • Profile picture of the author Andyhenry
    Hey Chris,

    Good post - I get a lot of stuff done on Fiverr - things that would take me hours to do manually.

    The one warning I would give to people is not about Fiverr per se, but about thinking about what you actually want.

    It's easy to go to Fiverr and get drawn in to some gigs because they're so cheap and people think "hey it's only $5 - what have I got to lose?". The answer to that is - possibly a lot.

    I do a LOT of testing of seo strategies and I try new link building tools and services all the time so that I continually update my own methods and always have good resources to referr to. What I've found is that there are a LOT of Fiverr seo gigs that will get your site Google slapped. I test all these things on sandbox domains so I don't get the negative affects on any proper sites, but if people are using these gigs on their own (or their clients) sites they could stand to lose a lot by thinking cheap and getting Fiverr linking gigs.

    I use Fiverr for a lot of stuff and most of it is zero risk (well $5 if it sucks), but people who do not understand SEO need to be very careful exactly what they're buying.

    Google aren't stupid and can easily keep track of who is selling links of Fiverr and just penalise any site that has links from link sellers.

    It's dodgy ground and easy to avoid just by understanding what you need and knowing what you're buying.

    With all the post-panda hype around at the moment there are a lot of people praying on vulnerable newbies who don't understand the problem or the solution.

    Andy
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    nothing to see here.

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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Lagarde
      Originally Posted by Andyhenry View Post

      What I've found is that there are a LOT of Fiverr seo gigs that will get your site Google slapped.
      Andy, I'm honored you took the time to post a reply! Thank you for drilling down on using Fiverr for SEO work. I agree with you completely.
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  • Profile picture of the author Pinterest
    I have never used fiverr, I think I am going to start soon, people seem to really get stuff out of it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Pinterest
    What do you view as the best gig to provide to fiverr users?
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  • Profile picture of the author greenowl123
    I have used Fiverr for about 2 years now, and rarely have issues with any providers there. I also am a level 2 seller on Fiverr.

    Most SEO gigs on Fiverr, about 9 out of 10, are either worthless or will get you slapped by the Big G as mentioned.

    Having said that there are some REALLY good SEO gigs that when used in combination with each other in the right way, timed properly, etc. will get you on the first page of SERPs (providing you are not trying for a super competitive keyword).

    To find the best Fiverr gigs, sort them by rating, then look over the feedback for the gig you are interested in. Sometimes it does not mean much if they have dozens of positive reviews if none of those reviewers came back to order the gig again.

    If you see a gig with lots of positive reviews AND lots of REPEAT buyers, then you most likely have a winner.
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    • Profile picture of the author successproducts
      I agree about SEO gig on Fiverr is no good at all or at least from my limited opinion. But correct grammar and sentences are great with them though. I got great help from this one gal. Graphic is also great item to hire a Fiverr to do it.
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  • Profile picture of the author saiidah
    This is such a great topic. I learnt alot that didn't occur to me, even though it seems like common sense. I've used Fiverr before and have had bad experiences. But I let it go, cos it wasn't worth it.
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  • Profile picture of the author huester
    fiverr combined with the warrior forum for hire section can truley become a great asset for you and your websites. its just realising which ones work well together.
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  • Profile picture of the author brownmarketing1
    I have to say I have been for the most part very pleased with Fiverr. Except one instance couldn't get the work done at all and eventually Fiverr even asked me to cancel the gig because of no response. I have to say the best approach for me has been to pick about 3 (more than enough) that after you read the reviews and see the ratings, days to deliver work then send a quick question to them. You will find out quickly by the response time and their interest level in completing the work for you. Sometimes I can tell by the short (I don't really want to be bothered response) this is someone I do not want to have them doing work for me. The one that gets back quickly, asks the right questions of me about the gig, seems interested and lets you know a delivery time gets my work and I think that is why I have been satisfied.

    Definitely worht a try if you have not tried them on small projects to start.
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