Roadmap to Launching Your Own Freelancer Platform, Inspired by Fiverr

Intro

The freelance marketplace economy is thriving. A new report by Grand View Research suggests that the market size of the global freelance marketplace industry is expanding at a CAGR of 16.5% and is expected to reach $9.7 billion by 2028. While talking about freelance marketplaces, Fiverr is one of the biggest players in the industry.

Fiver is a leading freelance marketplace platform launched in 2010 that connects freelance service providers with service seekers. The platform has shown tremendous growth in recent years. According to recent reports, Fiverr’s revenue in 2023 reached $92.5 million, marking a 12.1% increase from 2022.

As you can see, the market size of the freelance marketplace industry is gaining speed and there are still huge chances of success for the newcomers. If you also wish to launch your freelance marketplace like Fiverr, this blog will equip you with all the necessary knowledge that you need.

Fiverr’s Operational Model

Fiverr’s operational model includes three user types. These are:

1. Admin or the owner of the marketplace

2. Service Provider/Freelancer

3. Service Seeker/Customer

The operational model of Fiverr is created to facilitate the interaction between service providers and customers. Let's look at how this whole model works:

1. Freelancers create their detailed profiles on the platform and list their services.
2. Customers search for freelancers and schedule an appointment. Fiverr also allows customers to post their jobs.
3. After choosing the freelancer to complete the task, the customers deposit the booking amount on the platform. This amount includes the admin’s commission. Fiverr charges 5.5% of the booking amount as commission.
4. The freelancer coordinates with the customer and completes the job.
5. The freelancer can withdraw the amount from eWallet after reaching the minimum withdrawal limit.

The Revenue Model of Fiverr Marketplace

There are many revenue streams that Fiverr uses to generate revenue. You can also incorporate these revenue streams into your platform. The revenue model used by Fiverr is as follows:-

1. Gigs Commission - As discussed in the operational model, you can charge a commission fee for each transaction on the platform. Fiverr charges a 20% commission on the booking amount from the freelancers and a 5.5% commission from the customers.
2. Featured Listings - Apart from the commissions from gigs, you can also charge freelancers to display their profiles in the featured section of your marketplace. These listings will be displayed for a short period of time. After that, the freelancers can pay again to feature their profiles.
3. Display Ads - Display ads are advertisements that you can display throughout your marketplace platform and charge advertisers.
4. Buyer/Freelancer Subscription - You can also generate revenue by providing subscriptions. Customers and freelancers can get some additional features and insights about their profiles by subscribing to your platform. You can offer yearly or monthly subscription plans to the users.

How To Create Your Freelance Marketplace

The most commonly used method to create your on-demand services marketplace is low-code/no-code development. Let us understand this method in detail:-

1. Market Research The first step in developing your freelance platform is to conduct market research. You should study your target audience and analyze their problems. You should also study your competitor's business model, revenue model, pricing, and the issues faced by the users. Market research helps you to get insights into customer’s needs, and make informed decisions.
2. Software Selection The next step in this process is to choose the type of platform that you want to create. While selecting, you should be mindful that this software will be the base of your marketplace. The two common types of software available in the market are self-hosted and software as a service (SaaS).

Self-Hosted: The self-hosted software provides you the option to host the software on your desired server. You get the complete software at a one-time cost and don’t need to worry about recurring costs or scaling charges. YoGigs is the best example of this type of software.

SaaS: The SaaS software, on the other hand, allows you to access the software on a subscription basis. You have to pay a recurring fee to keep using the software. Also, you need to pay additional charges for scaling up your marketplace.

3. Decide Key Features - Now, you can decide what key features you want to include in your marketplace platform. Some of the crucial features of eCommerce marketplaces include:-

• Multiple Job Types - The admin can provide the option to create multiple job types, including biddable, private, fixed-price, and public jobs.
• Custom Registration Fields - The admin must be able to create custom registration fields for different job categories.
• Company Listing - To place bids on large-scale projects, the freelancers should be able to register themselves as private companies.
• Direct Invitation - Customers should have the option to send direct job invitations to freelancers.
• User Profile Management - The admin should be able to manage the profiles of all the freelancers and customers registered on your platform.
• Issue Resolution - Both the customers and the freelancers must have the option to report an issue or conflict to the admin.
• Custom Task Categories - Admins must be able to create custom task categories and subcategories up to three levels.
• eWallet - You can have an integrated eWallet in your marketplace to ensure that the freelancers are getting their payments on time.
• Bidding Management - Service providers should be able to place their bids on the job postings. Customers should also have the option to set the minimum bidding price.
• Social Sign-up - The users should be able to sign-up and login using their existing social media handles.

4. Deploying The Software - Now you need to deploy the freelance marketplace software to the server of your choice. In the case of the SaaS model, the software is already hosted on the provider’s server.

Now you can set up some important pages that your platform’s users will see. You can personalize the layout and design of these landing pages and what information will be displayed on them. Some of the landing pages that you must set up include Homepage, About Us, Contact Us, Job Listing, and Find Freelancers.

5. **Onboarding Freelancers - ** This is the most crucial part of the whole process. Before getting any revenue, you need to make sure that your platform has skilled freelancers who can fulfill the customers’ job requirements. To onboard freelancers, you can offer various incentives to freelancers including free listings and low commission rates.

How YoGigs Can Help?

YoGigs is a feature-loaded service marketplace software, which can be fully customized to match your marketplace requirements. It has all the necessary features of a freelance marketplace, including job posting, bidding management, background checklist, verification badge, reviews, and ratings, and transaction management.

YoGigs self-hosted software that is highly scalable and can manage an unlimited amount of listings, profile creations, and financial transactions. It also provides multiple revenue streams to assist you in the revenue generation process.

Conclusion

The freelance marketplace economy is booming right now and there is an immense scope of growth in this industry. To build a successful freelance marketplace like Fiverr, you can either go for custom development or choose a no-code approach where you can purchase a ready-made software and customize it as per your requirements. If you wish to launch your marketplace with a no-code approach, Yo!Gigs is the perfect solution for you as it has all the necessary components that you will need to deploy your freelance marketplace platform.