Fiverr and Upwork have been around for a while now, both serving customers with access to talent in the gig economy. Now while both gig marketplaces are focused on a variety of professional services, they do have a winning formula for creating a place where customers can self-serve and get access to professionals on an on-demand basis.
In this blog we’ll take a look at what we think they do well and how we can pull inspiration from them when building your own private-network eCommerce marketplace — just like a fiverr in your pocket. Let’s jump into a few key lessons:
Transparency at all stages
Here’s why transparency removes all barriers to getting started. Fiverr has removed all friction from the buying process. Besides having good UX for customers to find solutions, they allow you to engage with service providers before buying their services. When you contact a seller, you create an account and you’re directed to an inboxing system where you can start a conversation with the seller. Once you’re all aligned on project scope, the seller sends you a custom proposal, and only then do you pay for services.
Fiverr not only makes it easy for you to engage with providers but provides sellers with all of the necessary tools to be completely transparent in their offering details and pricing. Therefore, further enabling customers to self-serve and make informed decisions when comparing solutions and deciding who to engage with.
Lesson: Selling services isn’t always an off-the-shelf or straightforward process. Often customers will have needs that match a ready-to-go package but will need some customizations. Therefore, enable them to engage before they buy.
UX that lets the customer self-serve
Right off the bat on Upwork’s homepage, they guide users through the different ways they can engage with service providers. You can send a RFP, browse service packages or have someone on Upwork help you find the perfect solution. Check it out below:
Lesson: Besides using standard filters and search bars, add different types of engagement mechanisms in your marketplace. In doing so, customers will be able to more easily self-serve and find a solution that works for them.
Monetization strategy
Both Fiverr and Upwork make money on transaction charges and platform fees. For every project awarded to sellers on their platform, both the customer and seller are charged.
Lesson: Keep it simple and be transparent in your pricing. Don’t make it difficult for either side of your marketplace to understand the costs involved. At Morphed our experience in running a marketplace is what we offer our customers when building their own white-labeled marketplace.
Additional lessons for building your own eCommerce services marketplace
You control the supply & demand
With gig-economy marketplaces like Fiverr and Upwork, the contentious factor is often that price causes a race to the bottom, making it extremely competitive. But if you’re creating your own private marketplace, you’re in control of supply and demand. You can control your ecosystem based on the value you provide and not on price. Value to you might be niche skills, industries, technology know-how, and so much more. Remember if someone is using your private marketplace, they already know that they’re going to get services that are unique to your business.
Practice community-led growth
What does this mean? Simple. When you invest in your community, you invest in all of your stakeholders: your customers, employees, suppliers, partners, and more. Creating a private marketplace for your product or services should be about building connections, not just transactions. Here’s where you look at creating your village-style ecosystem, but online. With Morphed, our white-labeled eCommerce marketplace technology not only helps you take your services online but helps you to create a place where your community can connect and engage through the sale of services.
