Why Your "ONLINE" Status Matters
Sometimes, people who have been on Fiverr for a long time tend to take certain facts for granted. I'm thankful those I learned from didn't, and that helps me to remember that not everything long-term Fiverr sellers are aware of is necessary common knowledge. Here's one of those important things you, as a newer seller, might not be aware of, but will benefit from.
Fiverr publishes information about you in your profile, which potential buyers (customers) can take note of. One significant tidbit is whether you are currently "online" or not. Showing a status of "Offline" has obvious negative connotations, suggesting: "The lights are on, but nobody's home."
Showing an "Online" status helps assure people that you are available to assist them, which makes them more likely to take you seriously...so I recommend you maintain that status constantly. Never turn it off. Granted, you will occasionally need things like sleep, meals, and "life," but in all my years of Fiverr experience, the periods when I'm away have never caused buyers to question my availability or viability as a seller.
Scenario: I go to bed at 10 PM. At 2 AM, a buyer in the Middle East sends me an inquiry. At 7 AM, I notice it and respond. Will the buyer be impatient, or question why I was listing my status was listed as "Online?" Nope, not in my experience. Not once. Never. Frankly, I doubt they ever totally make the connection. After all...just what does "online" even mean, anyway? Available this very second? Sitting at our computer? Heck, that isn't true even when we're wide awake. Will we change our Online status every time we use the bathroom? Nuh uh. So what then?
Availability is a relative thing. There are times when I'm so busy with appointments, Gig Doctor sessions, etc., that I can't respond to buyer inquiries for many hours. Does that mean I'm not "online?" Not at all. I'm very much online. I'm just busy. So Fiverr's "Online" feature isn't all that reflective of anything real or practical, in my opinion. Still, it exists...so how can we use it to our advantage?
The best thing we can do, is to assure we maintain constant status as "Online," since any other status is more misleading than not. And the best way to do so is to enable the corresponding feature in the Fiverr phone app. It's very easy. Go to settings in the app, select "Online status," and toggle it on. Unless you change it, it'll remain in that status always.
Now, occasionally you may have someone, possible from a less refined culture who will insistently say "hello?" "Hello?" over and over again if you don't respond instantly. Not often, but I've seen that from time to time. I bring them back to reality with a simple, polite reply when I am able to respond.: "Please pardon the delay due to the difference in our time zones." That settles things down, and then we can begin our conversation in earnest.
A final thought on all of this. Yes, we want to make ourselves as available as we can, as often as we can, and respond quickly when we are able to, because sometimes that means the difference between being selected to do a job and not. But don't allow it to become such a dominant force in your life that you begin to resent Fiverr and/or your buyers. It's better to allow yourself a little breathing room from time to time so the platform doesn't start to feel oppressive. We need to maintain a positive attitude for our own mental well-being. Meanwhile, leave that Online status lit. Get back to them as soon as you can (within 24 hours so you don't take a response-time hit), but cut yourself a little slack too sometimes, for the sake of your own sanity.
There's so much you and I can do together to improve your gig's performance. Schedule your Gig Doctor appointment by hitting the Gig Checkup link at the top of this page for an inexpensive personalized checkup and consultation!
For those of you who do voiceovers, or who are interested in entering that fun profession, I can help there too. Check out my voiceover coaching services.