Working with Milestones

With the new milestone update, customers will be able to see your workflow and pricing before they make an order. This can help customers understand your work process, and help you attract customers with bigger orders. Show customers what exactly they can expect—and by when. 

Use the milestone workflow to:

• Get more orders
  When it comes to conversion, milestones are a great tool to increase Gig interest and sales.
  
• Build a new level of trust
  The added layer of transparency into your process shows customers exactly how you manage your workflow.
  
• Manage expectations
  With structured updates throughout the process, your customers know what to expect from you, and by when.
  
• Streamline communications
  Limit the (oftentimes unnecessary) inbox dialogue between you and your customers. Instead of asking you to clarify process details, it’s already clear to customers—based on your milestone workflow.
  

Adding the milestone workflow to your Gig 

 As soon as you add and save a milestone, customers will see the option to use milestones on your Gig.

Note: Only Gigs with a basic package over $100 in the following subcategories can add milestones to their Gigs: 3D Product Animation, Business Plans, Producers & Composers, Desktop Applications, and Social Media Marketing.

This feature also gives the option to:

• Pay per milestone
  Ask that customers pay per completed Milestone.
  
• Update per milestone
  Update your customers about the stages completed in the work process.

Add a milestone

When you create or edit your Gig, you can add milestones directly from the Description & FAQ tab.

1. Use an existing milestone template or create your own.
   
   
   
   
2. To add your first milestone, click Start from scratch. Your first milestone will automatically be created.
   Please Note: You can add up to 5 milestones.
   
   
3. Milestone payments are set as On by default. Use the toggle to deactivate.
   
        
   
   
4. Click Add a milestone and fill in all the details.
   
   • Milestone name and description
   • Indicate if it includes the option to Zoom (toggle)
   • Available packages for the milestone
     
     
     
     

5. Review that all the details are correct and complete and click Save milestone.
   
   

6. After adding your first milestone, you can add a substep (optional) to the milestone, or move on to the next milestone.
   To add a substep. click Add a substep, type in the Substep name, and indicate the Available packages. Review that all the details are correct and click Save substep.
   
   Please Note: You need to add a minimum of 2 milestones.
   
   

7. Save all milestones by clicking Save and continue.

Adding milestones to your custom offer

Custom orders: Using milestones

If you don’t want to apply the milestone workflow to your Gig, you can still use milestones in your custom offers to customers. Use milestones to manage your larger projects and use smaller, and more manageable steps—and get paid for each one completed.

Suggestion: Define your revisions per milestone for an even more organized project. 

Creating a custom milestone offer

Note: Milestones are not available in all categories.

1. Log in, click Messages > Inbox > See All in Inbox.
   
   
2. Open a message and click Create an offer.
   
   
3. Select a Gig and click Choose an order type (single payment, subscriptions, milestones).
   
   
4. Give each milestone a name, state the time it will take you to complete it, and the amount you charge for it.
   
   Please Note: With custom offers, you have up to 6 milestones per project. Each milestone is up to 30 days.
   
5. Customers are charged for the first milestone when they place an order. Once a milestone is approved by a customer, and the next milestone begins, the next payment will be made.
   
   Please note: If a customer chooses to stop an order (which they can choose to do after each milestone is accepted), you‘ll be notified not to continue with future milestones.
   
   For example: If a customer decides to stop the order after 5 out of 6 milestones have been delivered, the order will be updated to "completed.”
   
   
6. In the final delivery, submit the full project (after your last step in the project) to deliver.
   
   Please note: Customers will have 8 days from the delivery of each milestone to request a revision/accept it, If they don’t, the order will stop, and be marked as completed.