Last updated on November 7th, 2020 at 04:32 pm
For me, the most frustrating part of freelance work is getting paid for my work. Some clients are great with paying in a timely fashion but in my experience, especially when I first started my freelance career, some drag their feet when it comes to paying their bill.
Setting up an independent website, marketing that website, and taking care of all aspects of terms, conditions, and invoicing is how a lot of freelancers make their living. That’s how I started. But, after a lot of hustling to find new clients and the huge amount of time and effort it took chasing some clients for payment I knew I had to do something differently. I needed to find a marketplace for my skills that could help me get paid quicker.
Don’t get me wrong, having an independent website is paramount to success as a freelancer. But, when it’s a struggle to find clients or get payment from clients for work you’ve already done it’s important to have some consistent supplemental income. Freelancing platforms are a great way to do that. Signing up to work on one or some can also be a way to promote your own site and grow your repeat customer base. But, not all global freelancing platforms are great places to sell services.
I researched and tried a few different freelancing sites in my quest to get paid for my services faster, including Freelancer and Upwork (formerly Odesk, or Elance). A few things became glaringly clear during my first year on these platforms- competition for jobs was fierce and the race to the bottom for pay was even fiercer. The whole experience left me feeling violated- for lack of a better word.
The bottom line, I was working way too hard (completing huge projects) for way too little pay.
One site I had avoided when I was searching reliable paying freelance platforms was Fiverr. I thought it would be the same or even worse for huge effort for little money. I did some research to find the opinions of freelancers who had experience on Fiverr and learned many loved the platform. Their glowing reviews motivated me to give it a try and I’m happy to say, now I love selling on Fiverr too!
Here’s what I think makes Fiverr the best freelancing website.
It’s Quick, Easy, and Free to Set up a Fiverr Account
You can set up an account on Fiverr in as little as an hour. A lot faster (and cheaper) than building a website to market your work! You can sell any service you like as long as it meets Fiverr’s terms of service. There are hundreds of categories of services offered on the site that you can peruse to get ideas for what you could sell.
It’s free to set up an account on Fiverr, absolutely no fees to list services on the site. Fiverr takes a portion of your profits when you sell something- there is no outlaying of money until you’re already earning.
There are lots of ways to represent your service- the key is maximizing the gallery and your profile. Here are a few helpful articles to give you some inspiration on what you can offer and how to set up your Fiverr profile to woo clients.
15 ways to make money on Fiverr https://www.forbes.com/sites/gingerdean/2016/08/29/15-ways-to-make-money-on-fiverr/#248d219c5cda
Getting Started https://www.fiverr.com/academy/getting-started
Setting up Gigs for success http://blog.fiverr.com/setting-gigs-successful-seller-fiverr-part-1/
The Market Place is Huge AND it’s Not Hard to Get Your First Client
There are thousands of customers hunting for services on Fiverr daily. New start-ups and seasoned business owners that are looking for a wide variety of services at varying degrees.
The thing I love about Fiverr is it’s not that hard to break into that market.
Take a look at the top performers in whatever category you’re service falls under. What are they doing to be so successful? Emulate their offering and improve on it a bit.
The key to landing clients is getting a few stellar reviews to your name. Could friends, family, or coworkers benefit from your service? Promote your Gig (service) to them to get feedback on your service. Also, including a video in your profile is one sure way to get more exposure for your Gig on Fiverr. Doing so increases your chances of closing a client by over 100%!
Pricing Your Work is Simple and There is No Negotiating with Clients about Costs
Pricing is simple; check out the competition within the Fiverr marketplace for the service you want to provide. Click on similar Gigs and look at their gallery to see how their quality of work compares to yours and check out their pricing. Make sure you look at Gigs that have had some sales. Price your Gig the same or a bit better to attract buyers. Pricing goes in increments of $5. This made it easier for me to scale my pricing quickly.
The best part is terms and pricing are agreed upon before you begin work. There is little or no negotiation on pricing. Clients get a menu like list of requirements (things you need from them to complete the Gig) and some choices for extras (additional services clients can buy to accompany your Gig offering) if you’ve included any. Then they buy and you start the work.
You’re Not Limited to Charging Only $5
The coolest thing is you’re not limited to charging $5. You have the freedom to offer 3 different packages with your Gigs. You can price them anywhere from $5- $945 with 3 different varieties (tiers) of your service at 3 graduating prices. I sell more of my top tier Gig than any other.
If Done Right, Projects are Small and Quick to Complete
What do you excel at? The key is narrowing down a service that you’re skilled at (a job that takes you very little time to complete well). If you design your Gigs right, focusing on small, valuable tasks you’re good at, the work will be fast, fun, and plentiful.
Payment is Quick with No Hassles
Once the Gig is complete, you’ve delivered the work and the client has accepted your work Fiverr takes care of the payment. The money is transferred to your account. No haggling or hounding on your part. Payment is quick no more waiting months to receive payment for services rendered!
The Bottom Line on Why I think Fiverr is the Best Freelancing Website
Fiverr is great for leveraging skills you already have. Alternatively, it’s also a perfect place to practice and perfect a new skill. You can scale your Gigs (services) to offer clients great value and make more than $5 a job. It’s free and quick to set up an account. There is no haggling over the price for your work and, most importantly, payment is quick.
I don’t make enough to live off my earnings from Fiverr but a lot of freelancers do! This article has some great tips if you’re interested in making a full-time living on Fiverr- 6 Secrets to Making a Full Time Living on Fiverr.
I use Fiverr to supplement my online income. It is a great place for me to continue to develop my skills and gain insight and inspiration for building my online businesses. I wrote this article, “5 Awesome Websites That Can Help You Earn Money From Home” that highlights a few more specialized freelancing platforms if you’d like to market your skills a few different places.
These are the top reasons I think Fiverr is the best freelancing website. How about you? What’s your experience on global freelancing platforms? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
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