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Here's how to avoid rip-off Buyers


matureactress

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… a Buyer asks you for a “butt-load” of work…you invest considerable time, skill and energy,…then the Buyer tries to pull a fast one on you! It’s so easy for Buyers to do this. They know everything about you… you know zilch about them. If you’re dumb enough to do business with a total stranger online, then you’re dumb enough to be ripped-off.

Firstly, I suggest only offering gigs that involve minimal investment, but offer A+ work on time, and cya (cover your ass) with a clear and detailed gig description. You will still get ripped off occassionally but the injury won’t be as severe. And you should develop your pricing to cover your percentage of losses. Consider that major retailers work their losses from theft into their pricing.

BUT, if you must offer more involved gigs, then qualify your Buyer before accepting an order (yes, you don’t have to accept every order thrown at you). Any Buyer who orders a “butt-load” of work without discussing the project with you first has the propensity for ripping you off. Even in the event the Buyer messages you before ordering, it’s perfectly fine to ask their name, their company name, and their budget.

Ok, I know I’m going to get a “butt-load” of negative replies for suggesting qualifying Buyers. However, in the professional world discussing all details of a HIGHLY INVOLVED PROJECT (even the budget) is the norm!!!

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I find that when I start to ask questions at the start of the order I can weed out the rip-offs quite early on. Phrases like “you’re the expert, you work it out” are a giveaway in my experience.

It is best to start small with a buyer and then build up.If they want 20,000 words then I suggest we start at 1,000 to make sure we are compatible.

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This was something I was thinking about this week. It is possible I get a $800 order I will have to work almost exclusively one month for this. What if there is any problem? Sometimes you read stories about buyers canceling the order through Paypal and you lose all your money and Fiverr doesn’t help with this.

I personally haven’t had this bad luck, but what if…

So I was thinking about being cautious and dividing the work in packages of $25 or $50. I suppose the buyer could also scam me this way.

It would be good if Fiverr qualified customers more thoroughly. Not only if they have bought in Fiverr or to you, it would be a great help to know they don’t cancel orders or open disputes in Paypal. This doesn’t mean they won’t do it in the future but it would give the buyer some security.

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I am completely on board with what @matureactress is saying as I personally in fact veto my buyers. On my gig description, there’s a warning where I state failure to message me before ordering my gig will have it automatically cancelled. Of course, buyer’s do not know this is possible, but it creates a first response safeguard against unwanted buyers.

Ensuring your buyer’s the real deal may in fact also make you lose potential income, but it provides a layer of security where you do not have to wonder, whether all the work you have done will become a freebie in the near future.

Fiverr’s an established system currently, the marketing department is it’s engine, and we, the sellers, are its fuel. There’s an unlimited supply of it, so they are not bothered too much when there’s a spill of gasoline here and there. The engine is running just fine and the customers are being served and the entire system is profitable.

They want to ensure they get better gas mileage out of the engine, so they are currently focusing on making the engine more efficient by using better gas and offering more privileges to customers.

So hold on for the ride, as it will be a bumpy one! 🙂

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Methinks it is harder for newbies like me because the temptation of accepting every new offer is very high. I recently rejected an offer from a client that sounded too harsh in the DMs she sent. I was too afraid to see her characteristic harsh remarks on my reviews. A day later, another offer came through from a client that was very pleasant but he wanted to pay peanuts for too much work. I again had to reject the offer. Now that left me wondering if there were any good buyers on Fiverr. Luckily, I got a good client today and the client left me a good review. I guess it pays to be “too careful”

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Yep, Fiverr wants more mileage for sure. Every Buyer that Fiverr brings to the site costs them money and it’s important that Sellers turn “qualified” Buyers into “profitable” orders. It’s impossible for Fiverr to qualify the Buyers they send us, so that responsibility is on us. Many Sellers fear that cancelling orders will affect their status. I speak from my own experience that that hasn’t been the case, but I cancel within a few hours of receiving the dubious order (or message). As much as I love to up-sell, I’ve refrained from doing so because the time spent was not profitable and increased the chances of Buyer remorse. I now keep my gigs simple/stupid/profitable. A bumpy ride indeed!

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Hi @ronhi85, I just saw this post (I know I’m a little late), but I just wanted to also welcome you to Fiverr, and to encourage you to keep at it! The first 2 months were also very difficult for me (and I also had to cancel the 2nd order I ever received because it was completely unrealistic), but if you can persevere and hang in there for a while, it will slowly start to build.

I wish you great success! 🙂
-DonnyVoice

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