Israeli online freelance services company Fiverr today announced it has raised $60 million in new financing led by Square Peg Capital, with existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners, Accel and Qumra Capital. This brings the total amount raised by Fiverr to $110 million.
Fiverr CEO Micha Kaufman and CTO Shai Wininger founded the company in 2009, which was chosen as "Globes" most promising startup of 2012.
The company will use the new funding to more aggressively attract the 97% of freelancers who, according to the recent MBO Partners State of Independence in America Report, still rely primarily on word-of-mouth, local networks and other less-efficient, offline means to do business. On Fiverr, every freelancer can turn their digital service into a product sold to small businesses and entrepreneurs around the world.
Fiverr says that it is also going beyond five dollars. For the first time, the company announced that all freelancers on the site will soon be free to set their own prices rather than be required to start them at $5. Over the next several weeks, Fiverr will introduce easy-to-understand Gig Packages across several pricing tiers. This will dramatically simplify the way freelancers -- or Fiverr sellers -- price and bundle services. The new Gig Packages will also help Fiverr sellers pocket more cash, create greater value for buyers, and make sellers nimble enough to compete for larger projects from SMBs, entrepreneurs and even corporate marketing departments.
Fiverr says that freelancers can package their core services with other value-added services -- like printing and stock imagery -- directly on Fiverr.com. As a result, sellers can expect to see an increase in the value of their Gigs, while buyers will enjoy a more streamlined purchasing experience. Fiverr plans to continue to roll out new value-added services and bundled Gig Packages throughout 2016.
Kaufman said, "We started Fiverr to prove that you can bring the world of freelance creative services online and make buying gigs as easy as purchasing a flat-screen TV online. Today, we see more freelancers shifting their business online, which grabs the attention of investors, and they're driving the overall size of the marketplace to dizzying new heights. With the Gig economy workforce expected to hit 43% of the total U.S. workforce by 2020, we're bullish about the economic opportunities we'll create in the near future for our community."
Fiverr currently generates close to 1 million digital transactions per month and features everything from one-off design and creative deliverables, to projects costing thousands of dollars. The new Fiverr platform features will allow more experienced freelancers who may have shied away from online marketplaces to design and execute packages that allow them to earn more without any perceived quality concerns based solely on price. For buyers in large companies and SMBs, Fiverr is now a one-stop shop for on-demand creative projects that deliver unmatched value.
Since 2010, Fiverr has focused on helping aspiring creative professionals build their own businesses and monetize their passions in new ways. From cash-strapped college students needing more than an unpaid internship to get through school, to Gen X workers stuck in a dead-end job and retiring Baby Boomers supplementing their income, Fiverr is enabling people around the globe to pursue their passions.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 11, 2015
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