Newbie Seller Seeking Gig-critique!

[ncserran]

Hello! I’m a newbie seller who’s determined to make a living on what I love best; draw. I’ve been on Fiverr for a couple of months. I haven’t made any sales yet, but I’m not letting that discourage me yet.

I’d like some input on my gigs, most especially this one: https://www.fiverr.com/ncserran/design-wacky-and-cute-cartoon-characters-using-vector-art-09335aa3-2178-4960-81c2-f2cddb220091?funnel=0bbe228e-f3af-4a1a-a420-aec093d12c20

So far, I’ve created a twitter, tumblr and instagram account for extra exposure. I’m asking friends and family if they want free ‘samples’ of my vector art so I can update the gallery and my portfolio too.

I’ve rewritten, revised and made newer/updated gigs to replace the stale ones I had before.

What else am I missing? I’d love to know!

Thanks in advance! Looking forward to reaching Level 1!

[obtainium]

Hi fellow newbie!

I’ve looked at your gig and it’s very lively and colourful, which is good. Your profile seems good too – nice and friendly and enthusiastic.

Some of your sentences could have better grammar…

“Dedicating her life as a Professional Freelance artist.” This grammar isn’t perfect – try saying you dedicate your life “to” something, like “being” a professional freelance artist.

"If you want a cartoon character from an animal? " … You have a question mark but it isn’t actually a question, so maybe say “Do you want a cartoon character (made) from an animal?”

and this needs an extra word: "1) Coloured, High resolution (300 dpi), 2000x2000 pixel of your character."
Try: “1) Coloured, High resolution (300 dpi), 2000x2000-pixel (image) of your character.”

This part might be putting buyers off: " FOR LIMITED TIME: Free commercial use, no extra charge! It’s up to you how you handle the copyrights! "

Buyers might not know what you mean by this. They might think it’s going to be complicated to handle the copyright or that their rights over the image will run out after a certain time.
You could say something more straightforward like “Can be used for commercial purposes!” (if you are just giving them permission to use the image commercially), or “You will own the copyright!” (if you are actually giving them copyright).

You offer to use other art styles in the notes on this gig – I think you’d make a better impression if you present this gig as a specialist thing with a strong style that is your own valuable skill. Don’t undermine that idea by offering to do something different – or if you want to offer other styles, do it in a different gig and keep this one separate. It will make you seem more confident.

The thing about the background is slightly confusing – you offer a “simple patterned” background as a basic, and a complex one as an extra, but patterns are complex things anyway, so perhaps just say “pattern background” and “scenery background” to differentiate between them without confusion.

I think you could also consider offering the image without background, so it can be used as a layer on top of any background. That might make your gig more attractive to buyers.

Also, be very precise in your wording. Your basic gig is to design one character, so change the title of your gig to “I will design a lovable and vibrant cartoon character”. Don’t say “characters” in your title because the title should refer to the basic gig and not the extras. You don’t want anyone complaining that they expected to get more than one for $5.

Hope something is useful.

Good luck!

[wordsfire]

Hello there,

As a copywriter, I’d say you are not hitting the right market. Just think who’d pay for a “unique” character?

1. Your friends and family members would never pay you for your creative skills. I write all the invitations and poems for free when it’s for a friend. They would never value your time, it just goes that way!

2. Parents? Probably not! Their kids like Pokemon and they don’t need a copyright at all. Of course, there are people who want the uniqueness, but quite a few I guess.

So first of all, DEFINE THAT “YOU”, your potential buyer!

Besides, your beginning is kinda off putting. The buyer comes first, not your $$$. So maybe, just remove that part “Starting with $5”.

Next, you don’t need to tell what you need to get started. There is another level for that part. Instead, have a conversation with your buyer that how you can help them!

Then, the technical details: Those aren’t of much interest of your buyers (until they have decided to buy your gig). Better put them under FAQs. And so are the gig extras, they too must be in their place. You have just 1200 chars to describe what you are offering, so make full use of it!

Again, “I’m willing to adapt” is a big NO! Make it about your buyers, not about yourself. “If you need something more complex, I’m always up for the challenge!” sounds much better, don’t you think so!?

Finally, “Thank you!” is the end of a conversation. That’s what I say when my buyers leave a 5-star review. Your gig description isn’t an end, but the beginning of a real conversation. Do ask questions or leave an invitation, whatever you like! But please, don’t say ‘thank you’, sounds like a “Goodbye!” to me.

P.S. Have you tried Buyer Requests? You can get a lot of insights of what buyers are actually looking for! I do not have any social media accounts, nor have I ever shared my gigs anywhere else. And I’m landing orders I guess! 🙂

P.P.S. Do I sound too harsh or overthinking on everything? Maybe! I’ve no idea, lol. Being a copywriter, I know words matter more when it comes to sell, no matter whether you’re selling online or offline. So THANKS to my mood, I’m writing such a long blurb…, just trying to help though!

Yet if it hurts, I’m so SORRY.

Feel free to reach out if you need anything else!

Jolly good,

Ash 🙂

[ncserran]

Thank you very much for your input!

Yes, buyers will be given the source file from my gig, so they can disable/hide the background (which is in another layer) if they wish. I’ll also save a PNG/JPG file of their character without a background if they want that as well, which is why the ‘patterned background’ is an optional choice for them.

Again, thank you so much for your advice!

[ncserran]

Thank you very much!

I don’t ever charge my work for my own friends and family! I don’t think I said that. I said I asked them if they want any requests and I use the art I made for them for my portfolio/gallery. Sometimes I even gift them with drawings (which a lot of my friends liked since we all studied animation together).

Actually, I thought there would be a big market for those who want character designs! I see a lot of people asking for this (monsters, super hero designs, animals, etc.) on other websites. There’s even people who’d pay for pre-made characters! These people are not parents, instead they’re people who make comics, video games, board games or just need a mascot for their product. So I thought I could try it here too on Fiverr.

I did tried Buyer Requests, and I’ve already sent my gig a lot to the Illustration category. Not much luck yet.

I’d make another gig, but I don’t know how to word it anymore or what else to offer that’s unique from the rest. I feel like I’m blending in too much with the other gigs. I read that other people hired writers to help write their gig description, but I’m saving that as a last resort if I really don’t have any buyers.

[obtainium]

I think it would be good to explain in your gig text about the options with disabling the background and using it as a layer – tell the potential buyer about all the ways they can put it on different backgrounds. It’ll start them thinking about all the fun they can have with the image.

I like your new gig about the colouring book page. Looks really good.

You could fix this typo:

“I got everything just for you!”

>>

“I’ve got everything just for you!”

[wordsfire]

Hey,

Most welcome! 🙂

Well, you said you are asking friends and family if they want free samples. And there’s no way you can offer someone a free sample on Fiverr to get a review or stars, so I don’t see why! Why not to just design something requested in Buyer requests? That’s something in demand, right?

Exactly. You “thought.” No one can read your mind, so your gig description must reveal what you’re thinking. I hope that explains much of it! 🙂

It’s no tough to make it unique! Try to target a small group of people (but the title should address the complete category!). Think of someone, like a small company, a theme, a product, and then just talk to that one. What would you say if s/he is sitting next to you and has no idea why s/he needs “your” service?

Also, your description misses some really important words: unique, customized, memorable, illustration, comics, video games, board games, picture books, mascot, products, sales, sell, etc.

P.S. It’s the universal strategy. And I too am not that experienced on Fiverr, so don’t just go for my words. But maybe, give it a try! 🙂

P.P.S. Bold that ‘Contact me!’ You can use ‘See you soon!’ or Tagalog variation of ‘Thank you!’, or just leave your name or handle at the end. Right now, it looks kinda unprofessional. And also, re-write your ‘about text’ in the first person only.

Jolly good,

Ash. 🙂

[eclectictllc]

Hi, Ash, ncserran,

Aside: Ash, we should network. 🙂

In regard to the character drawings I know MANY adults who are into Pokemon, and have MANY reasons they would love to have a character drawing for them. Book covers, as just one example – Avatars – mascots – etc.

These are people with paying jobs too. 🙂 I hang out with many people who have played video games since the Nintendo came out, who still play role-playing games, and video games, read sci-fi & fantasy books, etc.

So I can say for certain there’s a market for this amongst adults, millennials, and children.

ncserran:

Know your target market: These are original/unique fantasy characters or fantasy critters. Start there with the word “fantasy” in there somewhere.

I think you could have another gig doing book cover illustrations for fantasy stories. You’ll have to say whether you think that’s possible. Covers for fantasy books usually illustrate a scene in the book, so it could be multiple characters and a complex background right from the bat. It would need more time talking to the customer, and more revisions. You could charge more money for it eventually if this is something you can do. I know I can’t!

I’m going to favorite your gig – because I want to see your progress on Fiverr and I want to know whether you ever put up a cover illustration gig 🙂

Criss

[wordsfire]

Hello Criss,

Of course, I’d love to connect!

Well, I said she wasn’t hitting the right market, not that there’s no market. Plus I don’t know a single artist (except kids) whose parents or friends pay for their services, at least mine don’t.

Since joining Fiverr, I’ve worked with five different brands. And three of them have had hired an illustrator for different tasks, e.g. brand story, characters, mascot, blogs, etc., And they paid anything between $50 to $250 per design. So yes, there’s a big market out there!

But if you want to go for some online enthusiast who needs an avatar, fine! 🙂

Also, how does it affect to get likes on your gigs? I just found that I have 9 + 6 likes over there. And now, my head is spinning as I’ve only SIX clients so far!

Jolly good,

Ash 🙂