Miscellaneous: Fiverr Continues to Grow

Earlier this year, I discovered Fiverr, an interesting Web site that allows people to post "gigs." These are small jobs that people offer to do for five dollars. That's the gimmick; every job has to be offered for a fiver. I've been watching the site develop. I thought it a great idea from the outset. Evidently, I'm not alone. The site has continued to grow, and there are now too many gigs to count, but at least the Fiverr administrators have added new categories that make it easier to find what you're looking for--or maybe what you didn't know you were looking for. Some of what's on offer is pointless, some is whimsical good  fun, some is more serious. What continues to astound me is that a lot of what people offer for a mere five dollars is clearly a stunningly good value.

To take just one example, Silverz (her screen name) will take any photo you send her and remove the background for you for five dollars (click here). I've been using Photoshop since version 2.0. This is something I could do myself, but it's tedious work, time-consuming, and easy to botch. If you don't know how to do it, your only option is to go to a printer or similar store where they'll charge you a hefty hourly fee to do this sort of thing. Look at the detail in the hair here (photo above). Five dollars? Next-day delivery? Really? Brilliant! I'm very glad to see the Fiverr marketplace thriving.

Miscellaneous: Fun with Fiverr

Not long ago I discovered an interesting little site called Fiverr. What's the idea? Create a marketplace for just about anything. The only condition is that every transaction has to be valued at five dollars. It seems like a great idea to me. There are plenty of things I'd happily do for five dollars. I already have seven or eight gigs posted. One of the most popular so far has been my offer to tell people with a tattoo in Japanese (or considering one) whether the design they have used (or will use) really says in Japanese what they think it does: believe me, I've seen some unfortunate mistakes.

People are offering all kinds of services, some of them seem to me to be worth far more than $5. Some are just plain silly, but some are eminently practical.

Martin, for example, will send three real cards (that is, paper and ink cards, not e-cards) for you anywhere in North America for only $5. He puts them in the envelopes, attaches (and pays for) the stamps, and sends your greetings on their way, so you don't have to. Brilliant. Just one of hundreds of useful things you can get done for a simple fiver. Martin's gig is here.

Miscellaneous: Fun with Fiverr

A day or two ago I mentioned a site I recently discovered called Fiverr (see this post). It's a lot of fun. I have seven gigs posted now. It's fascinating to see what people are offering. Some silly, some serious, some clearly a mistake--promising services worth far more than $5. I get the feeling that users will benefit more than the people posting gigs, in many cases. No, I haven't made any money myself, but it's fun thinking this stuff up.

Any suggestions?

My Fiverr gigs.

Miscellaneous: Interesting Concept

Here's an interesting concept. Create a marketplace for...whatever. The only condition is that every transaction is to be valued at five dollars. It's called Fiverr.

Fiverr is still in beta, it seems. I had problems--I tried to join, but the site has failed to deliver the confirmation e-mail required to complete registration. So, I can't try this out yet. Still, it seems like a great idea. There are plenty of things I'd happily do for five dollars. What would you do?  Fiverr.

[Update: I eventually found the mail in my spam folder. I've put up my first gigs--offering to answer any wine-related question for $5, and offering to recommend bird watching hotspots in Sonoma County for $5. We'll see if I get any response.]