Don't Take Chances With Your Fiverr Account

[eoinfinnegan]

I am writing this simply because I have seen quite a few accounts of established users being warned, suspended or permanently banned in the past couple of months. I am reliably informed that this does not happen on a whim or without Fiverr doing due investigation into seller’s accounts.

Whether Fiverr are becoming more vigilant in terms of how sellers behave or if it has always been like this but people are more aware of the forum now, I do not know. What I do know is that in many of the cases we have seen on the forum, in one way or another, after some discussion there does seem to be valid reasons for the action taken. Often it seems like the sellers in question had been doing something that wasn’t allowed, even though it seemed like a good idea at the time.

The thing is, it only takes one person to complain about an issue for you to be investigated and if a pattern is seen then it is likely action will be taken immediately. So, even if you may have good intentions such as delivering to alert a buyer that you need their input or sending them an email because they did not respond to Fiverr messages, these actions are not ok. You need to stick to the rules. Going outside the rules puts your account at risk and a simple misunderstanding could lead to you being reported.

I recently had a $250 order which was placed without enough info and with a phone number to get more details. Obviously, I could have called the buyer and it is likely that they would have given me the info, however that is against ToS. After 2 weeks of sending reminders and disputes, the order was near end time. So I contacted CS, explained the situation and they then tried contacting the buyer. There was still no response so CS cancelled the order as a mutual cancellation which had no actual effect on my account as it was not my fault.
That is a big lost order but that is the best way I could deal with the situation. Sure I lost money but it had no negative effect on me or my account.

So, what I am begging people to do is be vigilant about how you operate:

• Read the Fiverr ToS regularly (as a mod I have to check things there all the time so I have got very familiar with them but I suggest everyone do this too)
• If you feel the need to do something “off standard” then contact customer support and post the question on the forum. Other sellers can advise you and when you get a response from CS, post it on the thread so we can all learn.
• If you offer a service that could be seen as controversial, ask customer support BEFORE you post a gig or add new things to a gig.
• Never offer any contact details unless you have explicit permission from CS first. Trust and Safety staff are willing to give permission if the details are necessary for the order (not just easier), just ask and if this causes a delay then explain to the buyer. If you need to do this often, ask CS how you can change your gig to make it ok to do without asking each time.
• If you think you have a “unique idea”, ask CS first. There may be a reason why nobody else is doing it.
• If there is a problem, go to CS, don’t just hope that it will be resolved on its own. It is your account at stake, you need to be the one who takes action.

In every communication you have with Customer Support, be clear and concise - don’t ramble on. They have jobs to do so make it easy for them to understand.
If you get “permission” to do something, take a screenshot of the response to have as proof, just in case.

PS. When a user’s Fiverr account is disabled, their Forum account will be blocked soon afterwards as only Fiverr users are allowed use the Forum. In general, we try to allow some time for those users to ask questions or rant etc before being blocked.

[eoinfinnegan]

Pinned because the info is important

And the author is really, really, ridiculously good looking

[misscrystal]

In all cases that I’ve seen on the forum people know they are breaking the rules but do it anyway, aside from a recent one possibly. Usually it takes some questioning before all the facts come out.

The one I wonder about if he knew it was wrong was the one who was getting contacted on facebook from old clients and accepting work from them.

[youssefkamel]

Great post as usual Mr.Eoin!
I want to know if doing so will affect me or i’m on the safe side.

Some of the buyers I worked with usually ask for a contact form to be added in their website and when the user fill out the form, the info should be sent to the E-mail they mentioned.

Is doing so totally fine and I shouldn’t even bother? Or should I contact CS telling them that my work requires getting buyers’ Email addresses? (Not all of them)

[misscrystal]

Great post as usual Mr.Eoin!

I want to know if doing so will affect me or i’m on the safe side.

Some of the buyers I worked with usually ask for a contact form to be added in their website and when the user fill out the form, the info should be sent to the E-mail they mentioned.

Is doing so totally fine and I shouldn’t even bother? Or should I contact CS telling them that my work requires getting buyers’ Email addresses? (Not all of them)

Is doing so totally fine and I shouldn’t even bother?

Yes of course you need to ask customer support before doing this.

[eoinfinnegan]

Great post as usual Mr.Eoin!

I want to know if doing so will affect me or i’m on the safe side.

Some of the buyers I worked with usually ask for a contact form to be added in their website and when the user fill out the form, the info should be sent to the E-mail they mentioned.

Is doing so totally fine and I shouldn’t even bother? Or should I contact CS telling them that my work requires getting buyers’ Email addresses? (Not all of them)

I have similar situations very often too.

What I have been told is that the reason for them giving an email address needs to be clear and written in the order page. I would suggest telling customer support that this is an ongoing requirement in the gig and the reasons why it is necessary to complete the order.

This is a common need and based on how I read the ToS, it should actually be ok but it is better to be safe about it.

The following extract from the Buyer section in the ToS makes it seem like it is ok to do but it is better to be sure and to be up front with customer support anyway.

To protect our users’ privacy, user identities are kept anonymous. Requesting or providing Email addresses, s***e/IM usernames, telephone numbers or any other personal contact details to communicate outside of Fiverr in order to circumvent or abuse the Fiverr messaging system or Fiverr platform is not permitted.

Any necessary exchange of personal information required to continue a service may be exchanged within the order page.

Edit: Whenever I have to send my email to clients (for logins to sites etc) I include the following message:

This email is to be used for the reason given in the message only.

I will not respond to or act on any messages sent to this email address.

[paulmaplesden]

“And the author is really, really, ridiculously good looking”

I’m more a fan of the puppers!

[eoinfinnegan]

“And the author is really, really, ridiculously good looking”

I’m more a fan of the puppers!

While we are being honest, I don’t like your hat - there, I said it.

[paulmaplesden]

While we are being honest, I don’t like your hat - there, I said it.

While we are being honest, I don’t like your hat - there, I said it.

I don’t like it either - it’s a parasite that feeds off my hair and smile…

[youssefkamel]

@misscrystal 😨 Well when I mention the word “Email” while talking with the buyer, this sentence usually comes out.

Terms of Service reminder: Providing email, s***e, or phone number is only allowed if it is needed as part of the service. Otherwise, all communication must go through Fiverr.

So I had to just read it & since getting their Email address is part of the service as it says, I never thought that it might be a problem at all & I just complete whatever i’m doing.

Thank you @misscrystal & @eoinfinnegan for your help, I’m gonna Email them right away and inform them about it.

[paulmaplesden]

In all seriousness though, a thousand times yes to what you posted. It does baffle me that people would take any risk at all with an income stream, especially if that income stream is crucial to your livelihood.

I think I know (partly) what prompted this post, and I am sad to see that person leave Fiverr - but it wasn’t through lack of advice from others here and a genuine desire to help him. But, people need to realize that if you take risks that go against terms of services, it’s very likely you will be found out, and actions will be taken.

You can’t claim ignorance either, everyone agrees to the TOS when they sign up, so when you get account restricted for breaching them, well, there’s only so much gnashing of teeth you can do.

Ultimately, it comes down to acting in good faith. With any interaction, ask yourself: “If someone else were to do this, would Fiverr CS have an issue with it?” if the answer is yes, don’t do it!

Also, as the ravishingly-handsome Eoin said, always ask for advice on the forums. We don’t always get it right, but we can certainly point you in the right direction. Fiverr works best when all of us are successful - don’t try and game the system, and you won’t end up regretting it.

Case in point - My Fiverr Pro CS Manager said early on it was OK for me to s***e with customers when they request it, mainly because I am dealing with big, expensive orders. Even after that though, the number of times I have Skyped with Fiverr customers? Once. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should, and if you shouldn’t, then definitely don’t!

[eoinfinnegan]

In all seriousness though, a thousand times yes to what you posted. It does baffle me that people would take any risk at all with an income stream, especially if that income stream is crucial to your livelihood.

I think I know (partly) what prompted this post, and I am sad to see that person leave Fiverr - but it wasn’t through lack of advice from others here and a genuine desire to help him. But, people need to realize that if you take risks that go against terms of services, it’s very likely you will be found out, and actions will be taken.

You can’t claim ignorance either, everyone agrees to the TOS when they sign up, so when you get account restricted for breaching them, well, there’s only so much gnashing of teeth you can do.

Ultimately, it comes down to acting in good faith. With any interaction, ask yourself: “If someone else were to do this, would Fiverr CS have an issue with it?” if the answer is yes, don’t do it!

Also, as the ravishingly-handsome Eoin said, always ask for advice on the forums. We don’t always get it right, but we can certainly point you in the right direction. Fiverr works best when all of us are successful - don’t try and game the system, and you won’t end up regretting it.

Case in point - My Fiverr Pro CS Manager said early on it was OK for me to s***e with customers when they request it, mainly because I am dealing with big, expensive orders. Even after that though, the number of times I have Skyped with Fiverr customers? Once. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should, and if you shouldn’t, then definitely don’t!

a thousand times yes to what you posted

So you would take your hat off to me?

I have said it before, the Forum has an average response time of 2 minutes - they might not always be right and ANY answer on the forum is not permission but it will generally give you an idea of whether it is ok or at least how to handle it.

I have also been pushed to add s***e calls as an extra to my consultation gigs and I may at some point but before I do - I will be having a frank conversation with CS about how it is to work.

[misscrystal]

If someone is getting $300 a week on facebook from previous fiverr clients it probably means that not all of them found you innocently that way. That had a shocking ending ❗

[cyaxrex]

I agree with everything which you have said. However, I have had problems with buyers whom I have never worked with complaining to CS about things like my tone in a message or something I have said here on the forum. What is more, in both of these cases, I wasn’t made aware of this by Fiverr in an official capacity.

In the last case, I got a message in August from someone I had replied to in June, saying they didn’t think the tone of my message was helpful and they were reporting me. This being the case, it is simply not okay for anyone to not receive a warning or be asked to explain their side of a story if there are no serious things like identity fraud going on.

I have had 2 people from this forum try to contact me via social media. What’s more, I keep a very low social media profile most of which doesn’t connect to Fiverr at all. In this case, I actually find it a bit creepy how these people went to lengths to contact me for absolutely no logical reason. - I blocked them obviously. But what if they now complain to Fiverr and make something up about me? Or, could I if I felt like it, complain to Fiverr and get them blocked?

It’s all fine banning people. Really, though, it’s not okay for Fiverr to take the stance that it does on no warnings or communications, especially when Fiverr allows some sellers to operate 100% illegally on this platform and knows full well that it does.

It’s not professional. It just makes you think… “mmhh, that’s a bit dodgy.” Before then thinking, “mmhh, that’s probably not what Fiverr wants a doer to say. Quick! Away with us to the anti-paranoia medication cupboard!”

[misscrystal]

I agree with everything which you have said. However, I have had problems with buyers whom I have never worked with complaining to CS about things like my tone in a message or something I have said here on the forum. What is more, in both of these cases, I wasn’t made aware of this by Fiverr in an official capacity.

In the last case, I got a message in August from someone I had replied to in June, saying they didn’t think the tone of my message was helpful and they were reporting me. This being the case, it is simply not okay for anyone to not receive a warning or be asked to explain their side of a story if there are no serious things like identity fraud going on.

I have had 2 people from this forum try to contact me via social media. What’s more, I keep a very low social media profile most of which doesn’t connect to Fiverr at all. In this case, I actually find it a bit creepy how these people went to lengths to contact me for absolutely no logical reason. - I blocked them obviously. But what if they now complain to Fiverr and make something up about me? Or, could I if I felt like it, complain to Fiverr and get them blocked?

It’s all fine banning people. Really, though, it’s not okay for Fiverr to take the stance that it does on no warnings or communications, especially when Fiverr allows some sellers to operate 100% illegally on this platform and knows full well that it does.

It’s not professional. It just makes you think… “mmhh, that’s a bit dodgy.” Before then thinking, “mmhh, that’s probably not what Fiverr wants a doer to say. Quick! Away with us to the anti-paranoia medication cupboard!”

I actually find it a bit creepy how these people went to lengths to contact me for absolutely no logical reason. - I blocked them obviously. But what if they now complain to Fiverr and make something up about me

It’s very creepy.

Summary

I HAVE NO ONLINE PRESENCE ANYWHERE ON THE INTERNET NOR CAN I BE CONTACTED ANYWHERE BUT ON FIVERR. THIS IS AN OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT. --I forgot I do have an unused twitter account with a link to my fiverr profile but have not had any contacts from that at all.

[damisco87]

Good write up friend…

[paulonome1996]

Thanks for this information. 💡

[Guest excelassist]

Thats really helpful for me.
I just take a screenshot of this

Thanks

[kha1ed]

Very important topic, and I agree with others! fiverr should contact the seller first before blocking the account.

For those who are looking for the ToS you can find it here:

Fiverr.com

Fiverr's Terms of Service

One marketplace, millions of professional services. Browse. Buy. Done.

[ssj1236]

Just one question is it Ok if I bring clients that I talk on Social Media (Facebook or Twitter) to Fiverr? We basically discuss all the details there. They contact me on Social Media before my Fiverr due to advertising and stuff. is that ok?

[misscrystal]

Just one question is it Ok if I bring clients that I talk on Social Media (Facebook or Twitter) to Fiverr? We basically discuss all the details there. They contact me on Social Media before my Fiverr due to advertising and stuff. is that ok?

I think that is what they (fiverr) want you to do. 🙂

Once they hire you on fiverr, you can never have them hire you off fiverr.

[ssj1236]

I think that is what they (fiverr) want you to do. 🙂

Once they hire you on fiverr, you can never have them hire you off fiverr.

Well, looking at people being banned left and right I’d like some confirmation about this stuff.

@eoinfinnegan great post mate, all the “My Account Got Banned For No Reason” posts were really starting to get me paranoid.

[misscrystal]

Well, looking at people being banned left and right I’d like some confirmation about this stuff.

@eoinfinnegan great post mate, all the “My Account Got Banned For No Reason” posts were really starting to get me paranoid.

If someone knows you from fiverr you can’t then do work for them any place else even if they find you rather than you telling them where to find you. But fiverr encourages us to find clients to bring to fiverr on social media.

It is up to you to know if you did work for them on fiverr before in case they don’t tell you … the details of this are not spelled out. I mention this due to a recent ban from something like this someone was talking about.

[asadkhalid88]

OMG i just receive my buyer email and password into inbox as i did complete his whole mobile app now need to upload to ios store so now i request him make new order for uplaoding the app to ios store and share your email and password there is it ok am i safe? now my buyer create new order and share his email and password there

[ssj1236]

If someone knows you from fiverr you can’t then do work for them any place else even if they find you rather than you telling them where to find you. But fiverr encourages us to find clients to bring to fiverr on social media.

It is up to you to know if you did work for them on fiverr before in case they don’t tell you … the details of this are not spelled out. I mention this due to a recent ban from something like this someone was talking about.

I can’t even if I want to. I live in Pakistan and trust me, the number of options we have to accept payment from international customers is very limited and convoluted as the plot of Supernatural.