How to stay afloat under adversity

Words of advice for weathering recession from businesses on Fiverr

You’ve probably heard a recession isn’t the ideal time to start a business. Well, there’s definitely some logic there. But if you’ve got something in the works, the current economic climate doesn’t have to be a reason to throw in the towel—as long as you’re armed with a solid strategy. We reached out to Fiverr freelancers to learn how they’re adjusting their businesses to weather the recession as well as what advice they might be able to offer new businesses launching during this uncertain time.

Do your research

When it comes to business, it’s usually not a great idea to take a shot in the dark. That becomes even truer when money is tight. Take the time to fully understand your target audience, so you can use your valuable resources to craft informed, meaningful acquisition strategies that offer you the best shot at success.

“If you assume that your demographic is ‘out there somewhere,’ you're going to fail. Find out who your customers are, where they are, and what they can afford during these tough times.”

Bill Ricardi, Bill Ricardi Publishing

Go where you’re needed

If you have some flexibility regarding the focus of your business, economic downturns are an ideal time to enter low-competition domains, where your offering is truly needed. Once you’ve built up some revenue and customer loyalty, you can expand to more concentrated spaces that may have been harder to break into without those resources to back you up.

"If you know how to find the cracks within the market—where can you bring value and are ready to give value without expecting anything back—you’ll find yourself planting seeds that will flourish.”

Sefy Tofan, Olympus Assets

Narrow your offering

You may be inclined to promise clients the world, but honing in on a specific product or skill will not only reduce your competition, but likely also attract more audience interest, particularly when businesses are trying to keep expenditures to a minimum and fill very specific gaps in their resources.

“Clients want specialists who can come on board and take off their load. Don’t be a jack of all and a master of none.”

Ravi Shama, Webomaze Technologies

Prioritize customer experience

Though launching retention and acquisition campaigns may be beyond your budget at the moment, a tried-and-true means of doing both is delivering customer satisfaction. Taking a customer-centric approach to your business is your best bet for earning the loyalty of existing customers as well as referrals to potential customers.

“I know it sounds cliché, but it's true that satisfied customers become returning buyers, and these can help you overcome the difficulties of an economic downturn.”

Jonathan Strugo, El Guapo Music

In fact, ensuring customer satisfaction as a means of success during a recession was the most echoed piece of advice among our respondents.

Look for the opportunity

As Rodrigo Lamadrid of Educación Freelance so eloquently puts it:

“My biggest advice would be to see the economic downturn as an opportunity. Some of the most successful freelancers on Fiverr began their businesses—and experienced explosive growth—in the middle of the pandemic, when the whole world was in despair and thinking it was the darkest of times.”


In every challenge, there is opportunity. Did you even know what Zoom was before COVID-19 hit? Monitor the market, keep your eyes on demand, and then find a creative way to meet it.

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