Fiverr

THIS POST IS NOT SPONSORED

If you are getting started with your business it is easy to say that you want to do it all by yourself.  I say do not resist outside help and I will explain that in a moment.  For right now, I want to talk to you about a little service called Fiverr.

Photo by Sarah Pflug © 2019

First off, this is not a sponsored post because I have a love/hate relationship with the service.  Yes, I have posted some ads on it, I have not gained any revenue from it, but I keep it in the back of my mind. Confusing, right? Again, it will be all explained along the way.

What is Fiverr?

Fiverr is a task service.  It is a place for artists like me to list jobs they will do for $5, hence the name, Fiverr.  In addition to listing $5 gigs that we will do, we can also list bigger jobs for a lot higher.  For example, I am listed on the site as a freelance writer and a freelance graphic designer.  My products are not small in price.  I usually start at $10, not $5, with my highest package deal being $100.  So far I have not received anyone wanting my services since 2016.  At that time, I listed that I will do resumes, and I did one resume for a person, who paid $4.  Resume writing itself is worth more than $4, but that is why Fiverr is so cheap.

I have seen listings where a person will, “sing happy birthday in the resistor's favorite character for $5.  Voice impersonators make more than $5. 

Even though I am still on Fiverr, I have problems with it, and here are my top reasons for anyone to not make it your main source of income.

1. Cheap. 

They are cheap as I said.  They are cheap and the sequesters are cheap.  Cheap can be good or bad.  Good in if you are starting out in business, sometimes, you do not have a lot of money to spend.  If you are in the United States, depending on your state, you will be shelling out some money for registering your business, getting a business license, opening a business checking and Savings accounts, and hiring people to run your business.  You do not have a lot of money to create stunning advertisements, and purchasing software from companies such as Adobe and Microsoft, which can get a bit pricey.  You also do not have the time.  When you look at a listing on a site like Fiverr, paying $5 is like buying a candy bar.  It is a drop in your budget, which you can afford.  You go for the basic package, a little more if you can spare the change.

Likewise, If you are that person who puts up a listing, $5 is all you will get paid most of the time.  Yes, $5 does add up, but tell that to your utility companies.  If you do not go pro with your listings (a whole different animal than regular Fiverr), you may be eating Ramen noodles for the next month.

I am lucky that Fiverr is not the only place where I list my work. Plus, how do you think they make money on the website?  Yes, from what you earn.

2. Everyone is on Fiverr

When I mean everyone, I am talking Foreigners as well. You are not just seeing someone from the United States, Canada, or Mexico, I am talking someone from India, Saudi Arabia, England, France and Nigeria to name a few.  Fiverr does not discriminate, which is a good thing if you are from that country, but I wish that they would separate the countries. I do not like competing for your hard-earned dollars if you are the other countries I mentioned, I have to do that with my own country, which is in the US. 

Not only that, sometimes they tell you that they are from the United States, and they are really from Russia.

With that in mind, you do have to watch who your clients are.  This did not happen to me on Fiverr, but another popular website for gigs called Freelancer, which I will talk about in more detail at another time.  One of freelancer for potential customers is for them not to contact freelancers outside the site. The person who asked me to open several accounts for him did.  I ended the relationship because he wanted me to send the money to Nigeria.  I did, so I would get the stolen money out of my account.  This can also happen on Fiverr.

My recommendations for this stream of income:

Go with caution.  You never know.  This could work if you are not looking for a huge amount of payback from it (income).  It is also helpful if you are not familiar with having clients.  In other words, if you are new to freelancing.

However, as I said before, buyer beware, seller beware.  There are a lot of people out there who may not be what your ideal client should be. 

Most business people who come to Fiverr are getting started for the first time.  They do not have a ton of money, and if you can get them a simple graphic design, such as basic business card, print off no more than 50 cards is worth the $5.  If they want more, this is where you would give them your website if you have one.  Once there, the client can see more of your products, and they may not have to purchase on Fiverr.  If they still want the $5 product, at least they know what is out there on your site.  Now you have a repeat customer.

Once you are established in your niche, cut ties with Fiverr, but not before setting up your website, and not before you have gained some traffic and customers.

This is the same thing that I would recommend for Etsy, but I will get to that website as well.

Tips and Tricks (the new name for Takeaway):

In the meantime, proceed to Fiverr with caution. I cannot say it fast enough that if you want to go for it, OK, but it would be a little simpler if you open a website in either Blogger or WordPress, set your prices, and promoting your service or craft.  You will at least have all your money (until the IRS comes a-knocking), and you can screen your clients (there is a right way and a wrong way).  I would even go with Wix.

Be safe, work your business every day, even if you are checking emails, and God Bless You.

Sitting at a Sushi Restaurant…. Where to work

Photo by P, Lynne Designs

It is Blogmas, Day 3, and I am currently sitting in a sushi restaurant working, enjoying a bowl of Miso soup, and the waiter brought in my “any 3 rolls” combo.  Looks delicious. I ordered the spicy scallop crunch roll, a squid tempura roll, and an eel avocado roll.  For sushi haters, it is quite adventurous, and very delicious.  Ok, I have said delicious too many times already. Let me move on.

While I was waiting, I decided that I wanted to write a blog piece (this one), and before I could finish one sentence, the waiter came out with the meal.  I could have finished this post, but the food was so delicious (there’s that word again) until I wanted to finish every bit of that sushi and soup.

The point to this post is not to boast about my meal (as good as it was), but to mention about an important step in the life of a writer, you do not have to work at home.  This is what separates my handmade business from my writing business, and better still separates my writing business from my direct selling business.  Let me explain

In my handmade business, P. Lynne Designs-Handmade, I need my tools with me.  These tools are big, bulky, and require many trips from the car and back.  It is perfect for craft shows when I go. I can sit there, do my work, and attend to customers at the same time.  I cannot take the tools to a coffee shop or a library.  Too noisy and I would get kicked out.  Same thing with my direct selling company, Longaberger, where I am an independent home consultant, except the noise level is a little quieter, but again, it does not make a good idea situation.

With P. Lynne Designs-writing, all I need is a pen, a notebook, and/or my tablet (I have not owned a laptop in years), go upstairs, away from the cat, who likes my desktop keyboard, cuddle up in my bed, and compose. I can go to a restaurant like Fugu Sushi, get a table in the corner during lunch, and pen my thoughts.  I have even gone to the bathroom to write.  Try putting a 12-pound electronic die cutter next to you in the bathtub, I would not be sitting here typing.  But then again, I have not attempted that feat with the Ipad either.

I have a Microsoft subscription that accommodates all 3 of my devices (Phone, Ipad, and desktop), so When I am saving my posts, I am saving it to my OneDrive cloud, and then I can retrieve the post from my desktop.  Once that is done and edited, then I can upload it to my blog.

So, how do you write?

I am not talking about your writing style.  I want to know where do you like to write?  Is it on the shores of Lake George on a moon-lit night (stole that line from an episode from Star Trek Voyager, when Captain Katherine Janeway tells her commanding officer, Chakotay where she would like to take her leisure vacation after she cheated death)? How about in the tub?  In bed?  Sitting down while sipping coffee on a rainy day (where I am right now in front of the desktop screen with a kitten behind me-I left the restaurant) or a sushi restaurant?  No one will call the writing police on you and no one will know unless you tell them.  The important thing is:

A.   You are comfortable.  My most comfortable spot is in my bed, feet stretched out day or night.  I know sometimes that is not feasible nor does it make the most ideal situation, but it is my space, and I have my pillow and blanket around me (no food or drink, I am not starting that habit). When I am downstairs on the main floor (hence, the reason for the no food or drink rule for me), I am at my desktop, coffee in hand, lunch or dinner, and these days, a kitten to keep me warm (not my cat, Gizmo is my nephew’s girlfriend’s cat, but she has claimed me).  I like to sit forward, and she plops herself between my back and the back of the chair.  I also sit on a pillow for comfort, and she thinks the same way.  Why can’t Gizmo sleep on the floor like my nephew’s dog, Strype, A mini Huskey mix?

Again, it does not matter where you are as long as you are comfortable

B.    Have plenty to work with.    Sometimes, if you are like me, you have this great topic that you think will blow to roof off the Interwebs, and you think that there is plenty of material to support it.  You start researching it, and nothing comes up.  It is the same old stuff that a friend of yours wrote about months ago, and nothing new has been written about your “mind-blowing” topic.  Although I have covered research in a prior post, as well as, adding little sprinkles about it here and there, it is important that you do have plenty of support to cover it, or you are maybe writing something that no one has not written about in the last 6 months. 

C.    Connection.  I am not only talking about connecting with your readers. I am talking about what is your Wifi connection in the establishment or environment you are in.  Not all eating places, hotels, cruise ships, or even places of worship have the wifi capabilities of a mega wifi, and some even charge for that connection.  For instance. Next month is my cruise.  I already know that I will not be able to call family when not docked at a port of call, but that also means that my data rates will become very high too.  My phone and my tablet need to be in “Airplane” mode at all times, except when we embark and disembark at the U.S. port.  While at sea, I could get International charges, which is a US citizen and living in the states, is something that my family plan may not cover.  So, that means, no writing or vlogging, then uploading.  I can, but it must be saved to the tablet or phone.  Once I get back, I have one night at a hotel before flying home, then I can remotely upload to my computer at home, safely under US authority.  So, your connection may not be that extreme, and mine usually isn’t, but you may not want to pay $5 an hour to read an ebook on your tablet or phone, or even write a post, at a hotel, but what you can do is download it at home, and read it offline when you get there.  You can also check to see if there is a free connection where you are at.  Most places have that in place as well, but, you may be limited to what you use it for.

D.   Finally, make sure you are not in violation of the free stuff.  Yes, it is wonderful that technology is this vast thing, where you can hook up with a phone, tablet, or laptop, and cruise the internet (the legal name to what I call, the “interwebs”).  While in places like The United States and other countries in the western world have that capability, not everyone has it, and even here in the states, there are limitations to free access.  There is no free access to cruise ships to certain websites and social media unless you pay for a package. Even when free, there are certain restrictions, like no porn sites and no YouTube videos.  If you are caught, you may be banned for life.  Read all rules to your temporary package of internet access (even if you plan to pay for it).  Once you sign on the dotted line (or click “accept”, you are bonded until you leave the area.

I will have a trip report on what I could do with my family plan and Carnival Cruise line, as well as Delta Airlines.  Anything I do would be under my normal conditions and nothing out of the ordinary.   In the meantime, your takeaway is to be flexible with your writing conditions, even when away.  The best thing about having portable devices is they are portable.  Be careful with everything, including where you lay your device.   That is the last tip.  People are watching, and all they need is for you to misstep and you have a missing device, especially in a foreign country.  Be mindful of your surroundings.  I look up every 10 to 20 minutes, sometimes sooner than that, and sometimes I do not engage in my device at all.  Whatever you do, be safe, and know that you write anywhere.

I took a month off…

This is not my typical blog post.  I am usually the one who is encouraging the potential writer to go after their dreams, by writing what they know, be creative in their writing, and own it.  By owning it, I mean, use correct grammar, research when you are not familiar with a subject, and be consistent in everything you write about.    I hope show a person how to achieve this goal, in hopes the person will learn how to write effectively enough to gain readers, and maybe earn an extra income or even write full-time.

(c) 2015 P. Lynne Designs

It has been a month since I written anything.  The reason is quite simple: I had a car accident, and even though I spent all of 5 hours in ER, my beloved 1998 Honda Accord LX, the one I bought from my parents in 2006, and the same car, my sister named “Jessica” for me, was destroyed in a matter of seconds.  If it wasn’t for the fact I wore my seat belt, my parents would have been mourning my death today.  That was 3 weeks ago, and I thank God for that. 

What I got out of this and bear with me and my dry sense of humor, was dealing with a town with less than the regulated 2 traffic light minimum, Columbus has more than its share of traffic lights.  A town, where the mayor oversees everything.  Columbus has Franklin County Court to do that for them.  I was trying to make light out of the situation, so sorry for those who live in a small town. 

Healing takes a while, and it is even worst when you have a low tolerate of pain. I hurt my right shoulder, and today was the first day I was able to type this long.   Last November, I was helping my mother, because she barely could do anything, and 3 weeks ago, it was my turn.  I have only been at home twice for short periods, and this weekend, I hope I can stay by myself.  

I have a new car, a 2008 Dodge Contour Hatchback, I am hoping to graduate to a 2014 or 15 Honda CR-V or Accord (I love my Hondas), but would not be mad if I have to stick to the Dodge a little longer.  (Note: September 18, 2015- I stand corrected, it is a Dodge Caliber)

I am trying to reinvent the wheel while I am not fully entrepreneuring (not really a word, but a play on Entrepreneurship).  Rethinking some things, taking it easy, but I should be back in full swing by September.  I have some things planned that I hope will generate my income again.   I have found out something in my downtime, the difference between being out sick when work for someone versus self-employment. The difference is, in working for a company, you have someone breathing down your neck, and even if you apply and receive long-term disability, there is pressure for you to return to work, or be replaced.  This happened to me when I had surgery in 1993.  I took short-term leave of absence, then had to switch to long-term.  I was told by my employer that I had to return in two weeks, or risk being replaced.  When you are self-employed, you just have to put on your big girl panties, and suck it up for a while.  In either case, you do not receive any money, unless you do what some experts ask entrepreneurs to do, and that is to have some kind of automatic income come in, even when you have a lean month.  August is my lean month, due to injury.

Well, it is now time to charge up the IPad, but I will have a regular post next time, and I will not take so long writing it.  If I have not taught you anything today (or whenever you read this), always remember to take some time out for you and your family.  It is great to be able to freelance write, create, or whatever your self-employed business is, but what good is it if you are not here to enjoy the moment and the fruits of your labor.  Take care of yourself.