How to Make Money on Fiverr in Nigeria (2022): Complete Step-by-Step Guide

Have you ever wished to make money on Fiverr in Nigeria but, still don’t know how to start making the dream come to reality? Or maybe you’ve been running a Nigerian Fiverr account for years and you’re yet to make a substantial income, if this is you, It’s my pleasure to share some working tips with you today.

Note that before you are able to earn money on Fiverr in Nigeria, you must be a “Freelancer”, because Fiverr is all about freelancing and getting projects done. If you would like to be a successful freelancer, check this guide on how to build a successful freelancing brand.

If you’ve never heard about Fiverr before, you may be thinking that;

What is Fiverr?

Fiverr is an online marketplace for freelancers to showcase and sell their services or skills for money. The name is gotten from “Five” because when Fiverr started, services were sold for as low as $5 but that’s not the case now as you can sell a service up to $20,000 or more (depending on the project and agreement between you and your client).

There are hundreds of freelancing platforms in the world but Fiverr stands to be the best in Nigeria. It’s kind of difficult to get an approved Upwork account in Nigeria but Fiverr makes it easy for everybody across the world to use their platform.

Here are a few reasons why I said Fiverr is the best freelancing platforms in Nigeria so far;

Benefits of Fiverr for Nigeria’s Freelancers

• No payment is required to get your account approved
• Registration and Approval is easy (Fiverr freely allow Nigerians to sell or buy services unlike Upwork)
• Fiverr allow you to withdraw your earning easily (in 3 different methods)
• Bidding for projects is Free (you get 10 bidding offers or chances every day)
• You can create gigs to sell your services for FREE
• Fiverr has Level hierarchy to boost profiles and reputation of freelancers
• Active and responsive customer care services
• Easily Navigable, Responsive Website and Mobile Apps
• And so on…

Now, let’s talk about the requirement you need to have before you can start making money on Fiverr in Nigeria;

Requirements to Get Started on Fiverr in Nigeria

• An active email account
• A phone number 
• A laptop (very important)
• A Smartphone
• A PayPal or Payoneer account
• A government-issued ID card (just in case you’re asked to verify your identity)
• At least digital skills
• Patience and Persistence
• Negotiation skills

Now let talk about getting your account;

How to Apply and Get Approved for Fiverr Account in Nigeria

• Click here to sign up for an account

• Enter your email address correctly and click on “CONTINUE”
• Choose a good username and Strong password
• Click on “JOIN” and you’ll be automatically signed in
• Now you need to verify your email address, go to your Gmail or Yahoo Mail to Verify your email address

• After you’ve successfully verified your account, you need to start setting it up

How to Set Up Your Fiverr Account Professionally

• Go to your profile or go to Fiverr.com/my_profile or fiverr.com/yourusername

• Change your Profile picture (by clicking on (1) as shown in the below above)

                          (NOTE: Use a picture that shows your face with a good background, you can also use a logo)

• Click on the Tagline (2) and add a short intro about you. If you’re a graphic designer, you can put “A Professional Graphic Designer” or “A WordPress Plugin Developer” and so on.
• The Question (3): Which Option best describes you? Simply choose “Freelancer”
• Use a Catchy Description (4): This is where you can freely introduce yourself but don’t brag and make sure that your introduction is less than 200 words (make sure you introduce yourself starting from your real name, your skills and what you can do to satisfy your clients).

• Link Your Social Media Account (5): This is not “compulsory” but if you’re okay with it, link your Facebook and other available social media account.
• Add your Skills (6): Here is where you can add all your skills; all you need is to start typing your skill and Fiverr will bring out related skills. Make sure you choose “Expert” on all services you choose.
• Education (7): If you’ve attended any college or university, you can add here with your course or major – This is Optional

• Add Certification (8): If you have any certificate with your name, you can add here – This is also optional

Those are what you need to set up before you can start selling on Fiverr. Okay, let talk about getting started as a seller on Fiverr.

Note that your client is called “Buyer” while you are the “Seller”. You sell services and someone buys them from you.

How to Start Selling on Fiverr in Nigeria

After setting up your account, you’re neither a buyer or a seller until you choose one. Because you want to make money by selling your services on Fiverr, you’re to become a “seller”. Here’s how to do that;

• Click on Become a Seller (9) and you’ll be taken to a page to get started.

• In the new page, click on “Become a Seller” again
• Another page will open, click on “CONTINUE” and keep clicking on CONTINUE till you arrived at “Personal Info” page
• Make sure you answer all questions correctly. Use your real name (because one day, you might be asked to verify your identity)
• Answer all questions until “Account Security” where you will need to verify your email address, add and verify the phone number and finally set a security question.
• After that, you’re now a seller on Fiverr and ready to start making money!

How to Make Money on Fiverr in Nigeria

I’m going to explain this in two parts, which are: How to create the best gig on Fiverr and what to do after creating a gig to make money.

A – Creating the Best Fiverr Gig:

1. Spying on Competitors

Checking on your competitors’ gigs is the first prerequisite to start making money on Fiverr but unfortunately, most people don’t know how important this is, and will really affect their earnings.

So, to create a better gig, look for how others created theirs. 

Here is what I’m saying:

If you are a website designer and want to sell web design services on Fiverr as a beginner, don’t create a gig without spying on your competitors. If you have another browser on your PC, do these;

• Go fiverr.com and search for “WordPress Designer” or “Graphic Designer” (according to the service you want to create a gig for,
• You will see some results, check on the first five gigs that are shown in the results. Study what’s unique and common on the gigs (Don’t copy anything from them!)
• After checking on those gigs (checked the gig title, description, and tags), finally, go back to where you’ve been setting up your Fiverr account to create your own gigs.

2. Create a Professional and Catchy Gig Title

This is the first thing buyers will see, so, take time to create a good one. To create a good gig title that will drive traffic and earn you some money in Nigeria, you need to use a few SEO practices.

• If you want to sell logo design services, don’t just say: “I will Professionally Design a Logo for You” why? Because as far as I know, there are different types of logos, there are vantage, mascot, cartoon, text, etc… 

So, kindly specify the type of logo you can design such as: “I Will Design a Professional Mascot Logo”, from this, the buyer will know you are experienced when it comes to designing the Mascot logo (do these separately for other types of logos like Vintage, etc).

• • Make your gig title simple: Avoid using excessive words, with the intention of attracting buyers with it. Don’t use something like “I will design a good, beautiful and professional logo for your business within 24 hours” – This is too long mehn. You don’t need to put a timeframe or exaggerate what you do.
• Select CATEGORY and Sub-Category: Since you’re offering logo design service, your category will be “Graphics & Design” and your Sub-category will be “Logo Design”

NOTE: I used logo design service as an example, the same methods applied to all services you want to sell on Fiverr.

3. Use Keywords in Your Gig

Remember I told you that we’re actually going to do some SEO practices? Yes, we need to, if you really want to make money on Fiverr in Nigeria because most people who quit Fiverr didn’t understand that SEO is also needed to make sales.

Now, after creating your gig title and choosing a category for your gig, do these;

• • Make sure that the targeting keywords appear in your gig title. For example “Mascot Logo Design” or “Design Mascot Logo” – This is your primary keyword and it must appear in your gig title.
• The keywords should appear in your gig link or URL: Once you’ve got your primary keywords, make sure your URL is catchy and has your keywords

Quick Tips: Before you save your gig, you can leave only your keywords as a gig title. Then after saving it, you can edit and write your gig title normally (such as Keywords + Call to Action).

• Use Keywords in your Search Tags: You’re given an opportunity to use 5 keywords, make sure you find the top 5 keywords relating to your service gig, and use them here.

Quick Tips: Go to fiverr.com with another browser and search for the service you’re creating a gig for, after the results have been displayed, you’ll see some “related searches”, these are the related keywords that people are searching for, pick 3 there and use in your “Search Tags”. Then check top 2 gig results and use two of their keywords (it’s allowed)

• Use keywords in your Description: Your gig description is where you’ll explain what you’re going to do for your clients, make sure you use your keywords naturally while you thoroughly tell your buyers the reason why you’re the right guy for their projects.

4. The Pricing: Don’t Over Sell Your Services

We are now at the pricing page on Fiverr, where you are to shoot your shot again (before your gig description), you have the option to use 3 pricing packages or just 1.

I will recommend using the 3 pricing packages option instead of 1 because you will be able to split your prices here in 3 different ways.

• If you choose the 3 packages (BASIC, STANDARD, and PREMIUM), make sure that the basic is the cheapest (like $10) and the standard can be $25 while the premium can be $50. But this depends on what you will be offering on each package, try to make them look more attractive than others.

Quick Tips: Buyers tend to buy the “Standard” or the Middle packages the most, so make sure you make good use of this place with a nice price and what you want to offer.

Don’t oversell your services and at the same time, don’t undersell.

• Give each gig package an attractive title like Good, Better, Best or Beautiful, More Beautiful and Most Beautiful, etc., for the BASIC, STANDARD, and PREMIUM package respectively.
• Use unlimited revisions for Premium packages only!
• Make sure you put a fast delivery timeframe like 1 day, 2 days, and 3 Days respectively, according to how time-consuming such service is.

5. Avoid Copyright Issue: Use Your Own Files

If you steal anybody’s file such as content, images, or videos, your account might be blocked or your such gig might be removed from Fiverr without informing you.

So design your own gig images yourself using something like Canva.com or a good image editor. Don’t copy any contents on Fiverr, be warned! And finally;

• Upload a good image or video that represent what you’re selling to your gig, this is important
• Ask the necessary requirements from your buyer etc…

6. Preview Your Gig Before Publishing

After setting up your gig, don’t forget to click on ‘save’ at the top right of your screen. Then preview all that you’ve done so far, correct all mistakes, and make sure what you did motivates you, even without publishing it yet.

Finally click on publish if you’re satisfied.

Now let go to the next step;

B – How to Make Money with Your Fiverr Account in Nigeria

1. Publish More Gigs

Don’t sit on one gig you just create, make sure you have at least 5 different gigs in your Fiverr account. You just need to follow the procedure above to create more effective gigs.

2. Earnestly Promote Your Gigs

Without promoting your gigs, gaining traffic, and impressions, then you’re cheating yourself the prime chances of making money with your Fiverr account in Nigeria. Why? Because there are millions of sellers on Fiverr and that makes it very competitive for new sellers to make a sale.

I got my first Nigerian Fiverr account in 2015 but stopped using it for good 3 years. Why? Because I was expecting to start making money on Fiverr within a month or two, but my expectation was greatly disappointed.

In 2018, I came with full prowess, from my 2-years on Fiverr, I’ve noticed that promoting your gigs will really help or boost the chances of earning money on Fiverr in Nigeria.

How to Promote Your Fiverr Gigs?

The best place to promote your Fiverr gigs is Social media! There are many Facebook groups for Fiverr users, where you can join for free and share all your Fiverr links in return to gain some traffic and impressions.

NOTE: Getting more impressions to all your Fiverr gigs will boost the chances of getting more sales. So try as much as possible to promote your gigs on social media.

Quick Tips: To get some impressions quickly, you can buy fake traffic to your Fiverr links or look for a way to generate fake traffic online.

3. Try to Get 5 Star Reviews

I know you’re just starting out as a new Fiverr seller and it’s going to be tough for you in the Fiverr marketplace. Yes, tough but not impossible!

After taking your time to create some (at 5) amazing gigs, promote them to increase your traffic and impressions and now, you need to get 5-star ratings to your new Fiverr gigs.

Getting 5-star ratings will tell Fiverr that you’re selling something that people really love, and in returns, your gigs might be ranked higher in Fiverr search engines; giving a good edge of getting buyers.

QUICK TIPS: Try to sacrifice some money to buy these 5-star ratings. You can tell your friends to open Fiverr buyer accounts and buy your gigs, then give you some good reviews and 5-star ratings.

Note: To buy a $5 gig for review, you will need to have $7. Fiverr will take a $2 processing fee.

So, if you’re planning to buy 5 reviews, that’s going to be 7×5 = $35 (convert this to Naira). But make sure you do things naturally, don’t let people or Fiverr suspect you bought any review. 

If you really want to make money on Fiverr in Nigeria as a beginner, please invest in buying some reviews.

(from that Fiverr groups you joined on Facebook, you can buy reviews from Foreign accounts like the US, Canada, etc.)

4. Send Professional Offers to Buyer Requests Daily

Remember I said one of the benefits of starting your freelancing career on Fiverr is that you’re allowed to bid for 10 projects per day. A lot of people (buyers) post their project requests on Fiverr every day and a seller, you can send a proposal that you can handle their projects.

Quick Tips: When sending offers, don’t brag about what you can do, just do pitch your offer naturally. In your offer, tell the buyer what you understand in his project request, how you will handle the project, and in a few words, tell the buyer the kind of related projects you’ve handled.

If a Fiverr puts $5 in the project request, don’t put $5 in your own offer if you know that $5 is too small or not fair for such a project. But rather put a fair price, if you can handle the project for the minimum cost of $100, don’t be afraid to put it. Don’t worry, the buyer can contact you for negotiation if he/she falls for your offer.

And remember never to cheat yourself or oversell, charge for a fair price and the right buyer will buy from you.

5. Improve Your Negotiation Skills

If you don’t know how to negotiate fairly, then you don’t need to bother yourself about making money from Fiverr in Nigeria. The reason is simply that, negotiation skills are one of the top 1% ways of becoming a successful entrepreneur, business owner, or institution.

If your buyer said you should design a complete website for him for $20, don’t be happy that you got a job yet. Try to negotiate with the buyer that he/she needs to increase the price.

Quick Tips: Don’t just tell your buyer to increase his/her price, but show and tell him solid reasons he needs to. Explain to the buyer thoroughly what you’re going to do, the timeframe, expenses, and how effort-consuming it is. 

Don’t be afraid to negotiate!

6. Build Good Relationship with Buyers

Most new freelancers are after making money only, but business, especially freelancing is not about that.

You need to treat your buyers politely, be honest with them and try to deliver any project awarded to you within the agreed timeframe (it’s not bad to extend delivery date but make sure it’s not your fault). 

If you’re doing things orderly and according to the protocol, you’ll make money on Fiverr in Nigeria or anywhere you are.

Quick Tips: Treat your buyer like a very close friend or family member. Don’t be too professional, try to crack reasonable jokes, use emojis, ask about the buyer’s health, etc., doing this will create a good relationship between you.

7. Join Fiverr Affiliate Program

Another best way to make money on Fiverr in Nigeria is to join the Fiverr affiliate program. Although as a seller, you’re automatically enrolled, you just need to show interest that you’re rea to help preach the good news about Fiverr.

You can simply click here to join.

If you understand how affiliate marketing works, then it will be easy for you to make money with the Fiverr affiliate program.

Conclusion – How to Make Money on Fiverr in Nigeria

Let me address something here; what most Nigerians believe is that It will be so tough to be successful in the international marketplace because of being “black” or some alleged scams about Nigeria. But let me tell you that this is not true.

Although, there are some whites or foreigners that hate dealing with Nigeria (of course, they’re afraid of being scammed) but not all of them. In fact, more than 90% of these foreigners deal with freelancers from Nigeria, India, and Pakistan the most.

With my 2 years of activeness on Fiverr, only one buyer told me that he can’t hire me because I’m a Nigerian, the funniest part is that the man is from South Africa, lol. But after him, all my buyers are foreigners except a Nigerian guy that gave me a simple task.

SO, if you can put these 12 strategic steps into action, you will make money on Fiverr in Nigeria! But, don’t have the mind of scamming your buyer, if you do, you’ll be implicating other Nigerian freelancers on Fiverr like me and I won’t be happy with you (if I know ). Please let be legit and God will bless our hustles.

That’s my working tips about earning money on Fiverr as a Nigerian freelancer. If you have any corrections to make, don’t forget to write to me via info(at)gbolamedia.com, share this article with your social media pages by clicking on the floating social icons here.

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