Don't be afraid to walk away

[thetruemelissa]

This message is for those who have been treated badly by Fiverr but stay here because it’s hard to get started somewhere else. The TL;DR is that it’s not as hard as you might think.

Back in February, I told the tale of Fiverr making me the star of a Kafka story. My account was permanently flagged for a crime Fiverr refused to name. Here’s the thread from the time:

https://forum.fiverr.com/t/account-flagged-in-error-fiverr-wont-discuss-it/414657

Fiverr CS remained a dismissive and condescending stone wall, and I went into vacation mode while I considered whether I could continue to work here.

On April 9th, I reviewed the entire affair, and I realized that I both couldn’t and shouldn’t continue to earn money for people who treat those earners badly. Though it sounded difficult to reestablish myself on another site, it was the only path consistent with self-respect.

So I took the plunge. I paused my gigs and wrote to seven regular clients to inform them that I no longer did business on Fiverr … and only about a week later, two of them had already tracked me down elsewhere. New clients followed shortly. Now, less than three weeks after moving, I have two months of work in my queue.

In other words, I’m doing fine, and Fiverr is losing about $320 so far.

If you’re worried about the difficulty of leaving, don’t be. If you’re doing well here, it’s because you’re good at what you do. The Fiverr TOS won’t let you send alternate contact information, but if your clients value your services, they’ll exert a few moments of effort to seek you.

Without sellers, Fiverr has nothing to market to buyers. At the end of the day, Fiverr needs us more than we need them. If they’re treating you badly, don’t be afraid to walk away.