How to Make Money on Fiverr if You Are a WordPress Expert
If you are reading this, you likely have already heard of Fiverr, an online labour market conceived around one-off jobs or temporary work for freelancers. Basically, Fiverr users, be they individuals or companies, sell a broad range of services and get paid the price they agree per task.
WordPress is designed to be easy for the end user, with the central tenet of everybody being able to create their own website. Still, that doesn‘t mean that all websites are equally good, equally beautiful or equally functional. If you are an intermediate to advanced WordPress user, you are bound to possess knowledge and practical skills a novice doesn‘t have. Fiverr is a place you could monetize these skills at, and this article is all about how you could do that.
Here‘s what we‘ll be talking about:
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Before you even begin to offer your skills on Fiverr, you need to create an account on the platform. The process is very straightforward, but let us walk you through it anyway. To create a Fiverr account, go to the Fiverr website and click the Join button in the upper right hand-side corner.
Choose a preferred login method, and follow the prompts on the screen to create an account.
Choose a user name and a password and click the Join button again.
And that‘s all there is to it. Your account is now created, as evident from the status message at the top of the screen. You can now offer and shop for gigs.
As you have seen, setting up a profile is easy enough. However, the first thing you need to consider is what it is that you are selling. A good place to start working on a concept for a job (or Gig, in Fiverr parlance) is to take a look at Fiverr‘s other sellers. There is a whole page dedicated to WordPress-related Fiverr gigs, for instance, but it is again subdivided into sections which offer specialized services, such as website creation, bug fixes, SEO and others.
You shouldn‘t limit yourself to WordPress services exclusively, especially if you have other strengths. Gigs such as blog post writing, logo design, and social media copy are not WordPress-specific, but it is reasonable to assume a client requiring WordPress-related services might also need some of those.
If you are feeling tempted to offer a gig which is not on the platform at all, think again. You may be an early entrant into a market about to boom, but how likely is that? If a gig is not on the market, chances are not a lot of people are looking to hire someone for them. Still, if you are confident you can offer a good deal and make a sale, there is nothing stopping you.
Note also that Fiverr ranks sellers, and you need to work hard to get those first few gigs before a client can rate you, which will in turn lead to better placement in Fiverr‘s own seller rankings and more gigs, as confidence in your skills and knowledge rises. Our suggestion is to start small, by catering to clients on a lower budget and work your way up as you grow your reputation.
Once you have a plan, you need to start selling gigs. Fiverr limits new users both in the number of gigs they can set up and the extras and multiples of gigs, so as to avoid spammers. To start offering gigs, you need to become a seller on Fiverr.
Click on your profile picture and Become a Seller from the drop-down menu.
Next, click on the Become a Seller button. The next couple of screens will show you some useful Fiverr tips and notifications about Fiverr rules, but we have or will cover all of that in this tutorial, too.
Click Continue until you reach the profile screen. You will need to create a full profile before continuing.
Fill out your profile with relevant data. You have to use your full name and a real profile picture, so do your best to look presentable and professional. Your personal description should reflect your background and experience, and the languages field is paramount for making any future contacts: you will be rated based on your approach to communication, and you really need to be forward about how you wish to be contacted. Click Continue.
Next, you need to fill out your professional info. Your Occupation and Skills are mandatory (you need at least one occupation and at least one skill), and that‘s it, but we do suggest you fill out your entire profile, especially if you own a certificate or if your education is relevant to your work. This is also where you should add your personal portfolio website, if you have one. Scroll down and click Continue.
On the next screen, you can link your social accounts to your Fiverr account. This only serves to establish your credibility with Fiverr, and other users will not see them. You can, of course, provide links to your social media on your profile. For credibility‘s sake, though, we suggest you add your social media links and then click Continue.
Finally, you can add some security features to your Fiverr profile. Your email address should already be verified, but you could provide a mobile phone, too. Once you have done that, click the Continue & Create Your First Gig button.
Some of your profile fields are mandatory, while some aren‘t. You will need at least a 65% complete profile in order to continue on to the gigs. Oh, and just in case somebody decides to look up a person matching your skills, make sure you optimize your profile for SEO.
Fiverr has a really neat system for creating gigs using prompts and tooltips, so we will only go over the basics.
On the first screen, you need to name your gig in the Gig Title field. You only get 80 characters after the mandatory I will.
Once you add a title, you will be suggested some categories and subcategories. Their purpose is to make your gigs easier to find. You will then need to provide some metadata for your gig, depending on the type of service you offer. You can (and most definitely should) use tags to make your gig easier to find. Once done, scroll down, check to confirm having read the terms of service, and click Save & Continue.
Next, on the Scope & Pricing screen, you need to define exactly what your service is. You can offer a simple gig or a package deal, and include optional extras for your service. You will also need to cost your service.
You alone know what you do best, but, as you are beginning, you need to be competitive in terms of time you take to get the job done, the services you offer, and pricing. However, setting too low a price might also make you seem unprofessional. Analyze your competitors and figure out a way to pitch a reasonably priced gig you can deliver on without overstretching yourself.
This is not to say you can afford to offer sub-par services. There are many free tools and resources you can use to provide professional services at no cost but your time and effort. For instance, we guarantee that a skilled designer can make beautiful, functional and original websites using only our free Qi Theme and the Qi Addons For Elementor plugin.
Once you are satisfied with the pricing of your gig, scroll down and click Save & Continue.
On the next screen (Description & FAQ) you need to describe your gig in detail. You have 1200 characters: make them count. Be very clear about what it is you are offering, and, of course, consider SEO. You also have the option of adding an FAQ, and you should do it. Do all you can to manage expectations and avoid customer dissatisfaction. Save your changes, and continue.
On the Requirements screen, you can set up some questions your prospects need to meet in order for you to accept working for them. This is again a great place to avoid any misunderstandings and make your gig details clear. You must add at least one requirement.
Finally, you can add video, images, or .pdf documents to your gig, the better to showcase it. We strongly suggest you do so, as it makes your gig look more attractive and informative. Choose your images and video well, and make them relevant. You may, of course, only use content you own or have permission to use.
If you are a WordPress designer, showcase your work. If you are a theme or plugin developer, you could ask permission to use screenshots from websites created using your software. Name your images correctly, too: Fiverr‘s SEO takes it into account. Fiverr requires one image at the very least to be used as representative of your gig.
Finally, you may be required to take some skill assessment tests based on the type of services you offer, as a means of quality control on the part of Fiverr. Other than that, as Fiverr takes a cut of every gig payment, you need to fill out the W-9 form for tax purposes.
Simply complete all the tests required (you will only need to do it once), scroll down, and click the Publish Gig button.
And that‘s it! All you need to do now is watch the offers trickle in.
Fiverr has a search function for gigs, and you need to rank well. To do that, you need to achieve good metrics: five-star reviews from your customers, a high number of completed orders, a high seller level, keywords, and so on.
Seller level is a Fiverr function used for measuring seller reputation. It is dependent on your review average over time, and leveling up on Fiverr is incredibly difficult: you need an average of 4.7 out of five stars, and one bad review can ruin a lot of hard work.
To rank better in gig searches, the best a beginner can do is leverage Fiverr‘s functionalities. Your gig titles need to be clear and optimized for keywords specific to your service. You should also categorize them correctly.
Be mindful of SEO when describing your gigs, too: use the keywords you want your gig to appear for whenever you have the chance, and don‘t neglect the image and document file names: make them relevant to your gig.
Another thing you should be doing is investing in your communication skills. A beginner at any sort of job often overlooks just how important professional conduct is.
We have said this before, but it bears reiterating: always be very clear about what you are offering. When someone reaches out, offer all information they may be after, and update them regularly on your work once you are hired.
When you are not in a position to accept gigs, use Fiverr‘s vacation mode rather than simply ignoring queries. Your prospects will appreciate it, and your Fiverr reputation will improve.
Note that not all buyers are created equal. While you will ideally be employed to use your skills to the best of your abilities and be paid promptly, that doesn‘t always happen.
For instance, some unscrupulous prospects may attempt to solicit you to do actual work before hiring you (i. e. accepting the terms of your gig). While it is advisable to be approachable and personable, you should avoid doing actual consulting work.
Others may still require details of your gig even though they are available in the description and pricing sections, for instance. This is why you should have a handle on the details of your gigs and answer them through Fiverr‘s messaging system rather than referring them to a section of your gig.
You should also avoid any attempts to make deals with your Fiverr contacts outside of Fiverr. Fiverr‘s whole business model is based on commissions from gigs – you may be penalized.
Finally, a general tip: it is always better to underpromise and overdeliver than otherwise. Don‘t stretch yourself to the point that it affects the quality of your work.
In Conclusion
While there is no recipe for success, there are things you should and shouldn‘t do if you want to establish yourself as a skilled expert, on Fiverr or in general. With this tutorial, we feel we have set you on the right track. On Fiverr, a gig is sold every four seconds. One of those could be yours.
