- Are you thinking of hiring freelance writers,
graphic designer or marketing experts?
Than you may have heard of Fiverr, the global
online marketplace offering tasks and services
beginning at five bucks per job.
But is Fiverr worth it?
Do you actually know how it works?
Today, I'm going to give you my thoughts
on the freelance marketplace
in the 100% honest Fiverr review.
Stick around.
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Welcome to Self Publishing with Dale.
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Have you purchased any Fiverr gigs?
If so, what do you think?
Is Fiverr worth it?
Or are the low cost of Fiverr freelance professionals
really all that and a bag of potato chips?
Leave your thoughts in the comments.
Fiverr is a global online marketplace offering
tasks and services beginning at a cost of five dollars
plus fees for every job performed,
hence, where Fiverr gets its name,
the cheap five dollar cost.
But before you click away from this video
to order your next eBook cover,
book trailer video, or eBook marketing campaign,
I think you should know a few things first
that can make or break your experience on this platform.
Fiverr is primarily used by freelancers
to offer services to customers worldwide.
Some sources share that Fiverr currently lists
more than three million services on the site
that range between five and $500.
That's the catch.
Not every service comes at the bargain basement cost
of five bucks.
Let it be known, though, that some Fiverr gigs
do come at a higher cost per purchase, but for good reason.
Here's what Fiverr currently offers:
Graphics and design, digital marketing,
writing and translation, video and animation,
music and video, programming and tech,
business, fun and lifestyle
and a miscellaneous category that opens up
a treasure trove of niche content,
fetish requests and too much for me mention
on this family-friendly YouTube channel.
Here's the deal, Fiverr can be a lot of fun.
In fact, a few years ago, when I first
got into self-publishing books,
I would spend hours just scouring the possibilities.
It reminded me a lot of the days when I was a kid
browsing the Sears Roebuck catalog
where I wished I could have most everything,
even if it served me no good.
That's the real danger of Fiverr,
especially when it comes to choosing
the right Fiverr gig for you business needs.
First, I think it should be noted
that if you are very cash-strapped
and need a way to make a few extra bucks,
then Fiverr freelance work is your solution.
When I first started self-publishing books,
I set up a Fiverr seller account
and offered a variety of services that helped me fund
my book covers and marketing needs.
Heck, my first few books I hardly invested a dime
since I fulfilled a lot of Fiverr service requests.
I simply took care of some entrepreneurs needs,
got paid, then used the funds to bootstrap my book projects.
On the flip side of things, I found that
not all gigs are great.
Truthfully, anyone can become a seller on Fiverr
and that opens up a host of issues.
Ultimately, it has you asking, "Is Fiverr really worth it?"
Well, let's discuss the pros and cons of Fiverr.
The pros of Fiverr include,
one, a simple interface.
There's nothing too complex
about searching for what you need.
The Fiverr search window is fairly intuitive
and it makes it even easier by narrowing down your search
to how much you can spend to the level of experience
of a Fiverr freelance professional.
Two, project management.
If you order a gig that requires downloading a file,
such as marketing reports, eBook cover designs
or graphic design images,
then you can always come back to your account
to download over and again.
This makes Fiverr kind of like a cloud storage device.
You don't always have to keep a soft copy
of all your ordered gigs on your computer
or on another cloud storage location.
The nice thing is you could always come back
to your Fiverr account, nab a file you already paid for
and order another from the same Fiverr seller if you want.
Three, post requests.
Can't find what you're looking for?
That's okay, because Fiverr has a Post a Request feature
where you can state exactly what you want
at the cost you can afford.
Then, Fiverr freelance professionals
can offer you the opportunity to work with them.
The cons of Fiverr include,
one, the fees.
Yeah, they're quick to promote their low-cost option
of five bucks per gig.
But they fail to mention their one dollar
service fee per gig.
Add to that, Fiverr takes an additional dollar
from your initial five dollar investment.
So Fiverr freelance pros only get four
out of every five dollars.
Boo, Fiverr!
Charge one of us, not both of us.
Two, scammers.
It's no surprise that scammers are gonna hang out on Fiverr.
I mean, they're everywhere.
Some claim to have extensive backgrounds
in their given profession,
but if you dig deeper,
you'll find they are full of (bleeping).
My wife, Kelly, was listening to a recent interview
with a Fiverr professional on an unnamed podcast.
In the interview, Kelly learned the Fiverr freelance pro
was someone she'd hired before.
Here's the kicker, the Fiverr pro openly admitted
to falsifying their credentials
and actually bragged about that getting them more orders.
Her excitement about hearing her Fiverr pro
on podcast waned and she vowed to never order
from him again.
With that being said, you need to do a little research
before you order any gig on Fiverr.
And make sure you scour reviews
for all positive and negative remarks.
The good news is if you find a Fiverr gig go south,
you could always order a refund, but,
three, refund policy.
I'm not gonna mince words here.
Fiverr's refund policy sucks.
If you order a Fiverr gig and for whatever reason
the gig doesn't get fulfilled as you'd liked,
then you can request a refund.
The problem is if the Fiverr freelancer
doesn't agree or pushes back,
the dispute can go to arbitration.
Now those are in extreme cases.
Most times you'll get your refund
but not in the way you expect.
They credit your account while still keeping
their one dollar processing fee.
If you want the money back,
you can always get it drafted to a PayPal account,
but then you have to pay the PayPal fees.
Essentially, you're left with less money
than you started with.
This policy is garbage and one I believe hinders
Fiverr's overall ability to grow as a business.
With all that being said, I truly believe
Fiverr has many redeeming qualities,
especially for the newbie self publisher
who does not have much discretionary expense.
Despite the few hangups I mentioned,
I still give Fiverr my hearty endorsement
in the DIY publishing stamp of approval.
To get more information,
head to selfpublishingwithdale.com/fiverr, with two Rs.
And, heck, while you're there, check out the crazy
funny gigs you can order like the overweight man
pouring chocolate sauce on his upper body
while singing Happy Birthday to you.
That's it for today.
Hey, if you enjoyed today's content
then share it with at least one other person
into DIY publishing, too.
'Til later, it's been Self Publishing with Dale.
And I'll see you soon.