Fiverr, 20% commission and 18th century payment terms!


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  • Platforms like Fiverr aspire to be the spearhead of the gig economy. Which is characterized by mobility and speed, but their mode of operation resembles a bank dating from the 18th century.


    Fiverr is a platform that allows you to sell services. Started with services at 5 dollars, today, it has improved and you can put the prices you want on its services. Of course, don’t expect to earn a fortune, because I always say it, Freelance, it’s 30 odd jobs a month and you’ll barely have enough not to starve.

    This gig economy is characterized by absolute flexibility and speed. But processing times and behind-the-scenes commissions are real racketeering at this level. Thus, Fiverr takes a 20% commission on your price. This means that if you achieve a benefit of 150 dollars, you only recover 120 dollars. And if we count the commissions to reach your bank or Paypal account, count 50 dollars which will go into the pocket of the intermediaries when they have contributed nothing to the production of your work.

    Yes, it is certain that the platform offers protections and that Fiverr gives pride of place to sellers since payment is made in advance. Unlike this damn Upwork where the conditions for Freelancers have nothing to envy to the slave trade. It’s just slavery 2.0. In a world of flexibility and mobility, processing times must be instantaneous. If the service is delivered and the customer has already paid, there is no reason for Fiverr to keep the money.

    But no, this bastard will keep the money for 14 days if you are a normal seller and you will have the chance to have your money in 7 days if you are a Top Seller. This is where we see that the managers of the platform have never worked freelance in their entire lives and that they only know about precariousness through the novels of Charles Dickens. 2 weeks to get his money? It’s worse than the slowest banks of the 18th century. Today, a bank transfer takes about 5 days at most.

    Like what, you have to work the fastest for slave wages, but you have to queue like a beggar to collect those few unfortunate dollars. I had started on Fiverr when I started in Freelance in 2009 and in 12 years, I realize that it has absolutely not evolved or rather if, it is faithful to its capitalistic model, crush the weak and fatten the fat as pigs.

    Houssen Moshinaly

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