From Frustration to Fruition: Metaraba's Story

Metaraba, aka megdmwick on Fiverr, is a software engineer who went from barely being able to pay for graduate school to building his dream home and business, all within a few years after finding success on Fiverr. This is Metaraba's story:

Tell us a little about yourself. Who you are, where you’re from, what you do on Fiverr.

I’m Metaraba Damith Wickramawardena and I’m a 25-year-old Software Engineering graduate from a tiny island in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka.Without Fiverr, I couldn't imagine where I’d be right now. A few years back when I left high school and started my degree I was really struggling to fund my degree, even with a full-time job. In the 2nd year, I even had to delay some of the exams because I couldn’t pay the exam fees. But I’ve never given up on my dreams.

How did you get your start? Is Fiverr your full-time Gig, or just a side hustle?

I was doing a lot of research on making money online. Nothing was working for me. And then that ‘aha’ moment. I got to know about Fiverr and the rest is history. To be honest, at the beginning, I never thought a simple $5 order would make any difference to my life. The first few months were the toughest. There were so many instances when I felt like giving up. I was able only able to get about 6-10 sales a month during that period. But for some reason, I kept on fighting. I loved everything about Fiverr. I spent more time on Fiverr than I used to spend on Facebook.I was constantly thinking about a new Gig idea. Nothing was working for me. During those days, I noticed that Fiverr had started to emphasize the value of having a video in your Gig. I was gifted with creativity and I was very good at video editing and graphic design. One night all of a sudden that golden idea struck me. What if I start making Gig videos for others?Well, I jumped out of the bed and put up my first Gig on making Gig videos. I felt that there was a big demand for Gig videos as lot of people were struggling to make videos by themselves. Every day I used to send all the available 10 buyer requests. In the very first week, I started getting sales. Surprisingly most buyers wanted videos for their businesses. I was getting really inspiring and emotional positive feedback on my work. Every day before I started working I used to go through my positive reviews because it really kept me motivated to add more value to my videos. Honestly, I didn’t do anything specific to promote my Gigs. I optimized my Gig as mentioned in Fiverr Academy and the forum. Every video I did, I tried my level best thinking that I’m doing the video not to a customer but for my own business. I thought that was the biggest secret. I never felt I was working. Working on Fiverr became a habit and I just loved what I did.

What impact has Fiverr had on your life? Has it changed the way you think about your profession or career?

A few years have passed and now my life has turned upside down. I was able to complete my degree successfully. I spent every cent of my higher education through the income from Fiverr. Right now, I’m helping fund my brother’s education, too. I’m allocating a certain amount of my Fiverr income to help underprivileged children. It’s quite amazing how a simple $5 Gig changed someone’s life forever. Within a span of two years I have successfully completed 1600+ orders (Animations) and now 95% of the orders I do are way above $75 each.But the most defining moment in my Fiverr career was the day I got an email from the Fiverr seller success program. Honestly, I didn’t expect that to be a massive game-changer. Yarden was assigned as my success manager and she started giving me advice and tips to improve my Gigs. She constantly kept me updated of my Gig’s status. She advised me to include triple Gig packages and do some major tweaks to improve the Gig. Initially I was really hesitant to change a Gig which was doing okay. But after few months I decided to change the Gig exactly as Yarden recommended and the rest is history. Results were mind blowing. Within just two months, I’ve ended up making $10,000+ and even I still cannot believe what really happened. I owe Yarden and the amazing Fiverr team for everything I’m experiencing today.

How have your skills grown since joining Fiverr?

I’m making a lot of money from Fiverr which has changed my life into something amazing. I’m experiencing an enormous financial freedom and I’m currently in the process of starting my own company as well as building my dream home. None of this could have been possible without Fiverr, Yarden, and the great seller success program.

What advice would you give an entrepreneur starting out on Fiverr?

There are no secrets to success on Fiverr. It’s all about hard work & doing whatever you do with absolute passion. Treat your customers exactly the way you want to be treated. Always over-deliver and make your customers happy. Quality is everything in this business. Trust me! The money will start to pour in. Never give up! Never lose hope!And that’s the story of my life. Thanks to Fiverr, Yarden, and the seller success program, today I’m living the life of my dreams. Time will fly and the world will change but one thing sure, I will always be a die-hard fan of Fiverr. How has Fiverr changed your life? Tell us in the comments below.