[Hiring] Fiverr alternative for small businesses and start ups?

[u/Curious_Addendum_109]

Sorry i don't know where the appropriate place to post this is but I’ve spent the past year working closely with startups and small businesses, one of the biggest challenges I noticed is how difficult it is to get traction on platforms like Fiverr, Upwork, and Bark.

It seems like unless you already have a ton of reviews, you’re stuck fighting for scraps. Some of the most common frustrations I hear:

• Paying just to maybe get visibility, only to still be buried under bigger sellers
• Algorithms favoring top earners, making it nearly impossible for new or smaller sellers to break through
• High platform fees that take a huge cut of every job
• Clients ghosting or leaving unfair reviews with no real way to challenge them

It feels like these platforms are less about helping freelancers and small businesses grow, and more about maximizing their own profits.

I’ve been looking into alternatives, and I’m working on something that tries to fix these problems. It’s called Wijen, and the goal is to level the playing field for smaller service providers. No upfront costs, fair visibility, and actual protection from unfair disputes.

We’re in pre-launch, and early sign-ups get lifetime lower fees. If this sounds like something you’ve been looking for, check it out: https://wijen-pl.webflow.io

Curious—what’s been your biggest frustration with freelance platforms? Have you found any workarounds, or is it just about grinding it out until you can compete?

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[u/Thargoran]

"50% lifetime discount Enjoy 50% off of seller fees forever!"

50% off of what? I couldn't find any price list on your website. Could be 98% fees later on, so 50% off of that isn't such a great deal. (Exaggerated example on purpose.)

[u/Curious_Addendum_109 → u/Thargoran]

You’re absolutely right, we haven’t specified fees internally yet. It’s most likely going to be ~10% (half of fiverr). Bare in mind we are pre-launch and if there’s any concerns you may have - I would love to get on a call with you to learn how we can really turn this into a truly beneficial platform for service providers!

[u/Internal_Ad_6156]

Keep me posted on any finds too. Fiverr is nice but its so hard to make anything on there

[u/Curious_Addendum_109 → u/Internal_Ad_6156]

If you click the link and register your email you’ll get updated if the new platform ever goes anywhere :)

[u/Curious_Addendum_109 → u/[deleted]]

I’m actually exploring the idea of building a platform where it eases the barrier to entry and promotes establishing local connections.