Freelancer Paul Maplesden is a Fiverr Pro who writes business, finance, and technology content that builds trust with your customers and presents your business in the best possible way. He loves the challenge of taking complex subjects and breaking them down so they are easy to understand. Most importantly, he knows a Princess Bride quote for every occasion. Inconceivable! Hire him for your next copywriting or content project on Fiverr Pro.
Every freelancer and Fiverr seller wants to be more successful, and while there’s no guaranteed way to increase sales, there are several techniques that will significantly improve your chances of earning more.
I know because I’ve made these changes myself. Since starting on Fiverr in June 2017, I’ve tweaked my Gigs to help them be as good as they can, and it’s worked. I’ve seen Fiverr sales steadily improve, have more repeat orders, and ultimately work with buyers who have a much clearer idea of what I offer and are confident in ordering from me.
Buoyed by early success, I wrote a popular forum post in the Fiverr community on how to optimize Gigs to maximize sales. I’ve had some more experience since then, so thought this would be a good time to revisit those tips here on the blog, and help other sellers to maximize their sales as well.
Fiverr lends itself well to trying out new ways to improve Ggigs. The idea of commoditizing freelancing services as a product and offering those services as a package means you can try one or two of these changes and see how that impacts on performance.
Anyway, I know you want to get to the good stuff, so here are some suggestions on how to optimize your Gigs for better performance.
Choose the Right Title for Your Gig
The title is one of the most vital aspects of your Gig. It’s your first chance, together with your Gig image, to tell buyers exactly the services you offer. Think about what a buyer is looking for, and write titles that indicate you can meet that need.
- Consider going a little more focussed and niche with your Gigs — rather than just saying “I will design your logo,” say “I will design a logo for your business consulting service.”
- Use evocative language in your title — don’t say “I will write blog posts” say “I will write beautiful, powerful blog posts.”
- Use the terms your potential buyers are searching for. Google Trends and the Google Adwords Keyword Tool let you type in certain terms to compare them and see which are most popular.
Use an Eye-Catching Image for Your Gig
Next to your title, the image is the most important part of grabbing a reader’s attention. Use imagery that reflects you as a seller — if you’re a logo designer, create an eye-catching logo for your Gig image. Use variations on a theme to create consistency and show the various services you offer. Think of your Gig images as a great way to “brand” yourself as a specific Fiverr seller.
Choose Your Gig Metadata Carefully
Gig metadata is another way to make your Gig standout. Depending on the category you’re selling in, you can select certain types of metadata to make easier for buyers to filter Gigs. This is another good reason to go niche, as you can tailor the metadata to the focus of your Gig, Experiment with different metadata and see how that affects your impressions, views, and orders.
Optimize Your Gig Search Tags
Search tags are a great way for buyers to find your Gig. Because your Gig has a specific focus, you can use Google Trends and Google Keyword Planner to find out what people are searching for in that area and tailor your tags appropriately.
Make the Most of Packages
Every Gig can have one or three “packages” associated with it. If you choose to use three packages, you give will give your buyers more options.
- Create a basic, standard, and luxury package, all with different levels of service, options, and pricing.
- Be very clear and straightforward in your descriptions of each package. This helps your buyer understand exactly what they’re getting.
- Use Gig extras to add to each level, buyers can then tailor your services to their needs, plus you’ll get a revenue boost. Bundle your offerings into three different packages to give your buyers more options.
Create a Compelling Description
Your Gig title, image, metadata and search tags will help your Gig appear in the marketplace, but it’s the description where you really make the sale. The best descriptions share some common features, they:
- Speak directly to the buyer and use terms like “you” and “your business.”
- Share what is unique about your services and tell them why they should choose you above your competitors.
- Demonstrate your experience, insight, and expertise.
- Tell the buyer how your service will benefit them.
Here’s the description from my bestselling Gig:
There’s just one issue with descriptions – you only have 1,200 characters to make your point, which means you’ll need to optimize the writing. Fortunately, you can partially deal with that issue through FAQs.
Make the Most of Frequently Asked Questions
One of the most overlooked parts of a Gig is the FAQ section. You can add up to ten questions to each Gig, and have up to 300 characters to answer each question. That’s 3,000 characters in all — two and a half times as many as allowed in the gig description.
Think about what your buyer would want to know about the Gig and create a good response. It’s another opportunity to show you understand their needs and can deliver a result that will meet them. I have “standardized” FAQs that I use for most of my Gigs, but reserve a couple of FAQs in each one to address questions about that particular Gig.
Essentially, you’re sharing information here to build trust with your buyer. A little time spent on your description and FAQ will yield better results over time.
Create the Requirements You Need
The requirements screen is your best friend when it comes to completing work. Think about exactly what information you need from buyers to deliver a high-quality output — if they love what you have created, they are more likely to become repeat buyers.
Ask as many questions as you need to, choose which fields should be mandatory, and add context where it makes sense.
Add a Video to Your Gig
Fiverr says that videos increase engagement by up to 40%. They also do something else that’s really important – they create trust. Trust is one of the most vital aspects of selling online, and on Fiverr, you are selling yourself. Videos allow you to talk directly to your customer, detail what you will do, and build a connection.
Here are some of the key areas you should cover in your video:
- Introduce yourself and thank the person for watching.
- Address your viewer directly, with “You” statements.
- Tell them how this specific Gig will help them and the benefits.
- List your experience, expertise, and approach.
- Finish by asking them to order.
All of this is designed to create a connection and get them to take the desired action — ordering from you.
Link to an Allowed Portfolio
Fiverr allows you to use certain URLs in your Gig description. If you have a portfolio on one of these services, it might make sense to link your work:
- ammyy.com
- blogspot.com
- dafont.com
- dailymotion.com
- flickr.com
- mixcloud.com
- reverbnation.com
- soundcloud.com
- teamviewer.com
- tumblr.com
- vimeo.com
- wetransfer.com
- wikipedia.org
- wordcounter.net
- Youtube.com
Proofread Your Work
If you’re selling to buyers in your native language, that’s awesome. Just be sure to get your copy proofread and to use correct wording, grammar, spelling, and punctuation. If English (for example) is your second or third language, you might want to get it checked by a native speaker – small errors in language use can put buyers off. When you’re competing with so many other sellers, it’s vital to ensure everything is perfect.
Use Analytics and Tweak Your Gigs
Finally, use analytics on your Gigs to track impressions, views, and orders. See how the changes you make affect your metrics. You can then identify the improvements that have the greatest beneficial impact and use those learnings to enhance your future Gigs.
That’s it — some practical tips to help you maximize your chances of getting sales. Although there are no guarantees, if you read and implement these changes, you’re likely to have better Gigs than many other sellers on the platform, and that could be great for your bank balance!
You can find more useful hints and tips on improving how you sell on Fiverr in this forum thread that gathers together some of the best advice from regular sellers on the forum. Enjoy!