This guide explains how administrators can change commission rates to increase user loyalty and incentivise use of their freelancer marketplace platform. Admins have three ways of reducing commissions based on freelancer activity: subscription plans, referrals and earnings. There is now a fourth way to reduce commissions, which is by using a coupon system– more information in this guide.
Video Guide
Step by Step Guide
This feature is accessed in your admin dashboard with the title: ‘Allow freelancers to reduce your commission based on their activities?’
By default the way that marketplace owners generate revenue is by charging a commission on all earnings of their freelancers. This feature offers three methods to incentivize your users to become more active to reduce the commission that you charge.
Subscription plans: You can reduce your base commission by several percent to users that opt to pay a weekly, monthly or annual subscription fee. For active users that regularly accomplish several tasks they will generate savings by paying a smaller flat-rate subscription to paying full commission on their earnings.
Selecting the subscription option will generate the following window. The left column lists the names of the subscription plans, with the cost shown in the ‘Amount’ column. There are four available user types: Individual Freelancer, Customer, Agency Freelancer and Agency Company, each of which can be charged differently. Changing the number in the ‘Commission’ box will create a commission discount for users subscribed to that plan. For example entering a value of 3 in the commission plan ‘Gold’ for an individual freelancer will generate a 3% discount from your base commission rate for freelancers, at a cost of $50 for the freelancer.
Earnings: Selecting the earnings option opens the following window. Here admins have the option of lowering the commission rate based on the earnings of the freelancer. In this example milestone values up to $1000 receive a 1% discount from the base commission rate, with each successive tier providing a larger discount.
Referrals: Selecting the referrals option generates the following window. This incentivizes freelancers to refer others to the platform as when they have referred a certain number of freelancers they will receive a commission discount on all future jobs.
Freelancers can invite new users when the feature ‘Display a new menu item for users to invite others to register as freelancers? (Optional)‘ is enabled. More details on this feature can be found in this guide.
These three options can be used simultaneously, creating a larger discount for your users. For example, a user that has referred 120 new freelancers to your platform will receive a 3% discount. If they additionally chose the ‘Gold’ subscription plan, they would receive an additional 3% discount, for a total of 6% off from the base commission rate that your platform charges.