Online market offers services — silly or serious — for $5

Let's say you want to hear "Happy Birthday to You" sung in Croatian. Or let's say you know how to sing "Happy Birthday to You" in Croatian and you need some money.

Ta da!

Coming to your rescue, either way, is a website called fiverr.com, which bills itself as "the place for people to share things they're willing to do for $5."

The website is an eclectic mix of the goofy ("I will crack five eggs over my head and send you the video via e-mail, for $5") and the really useful ("I will make a full HD video tutorial on just about anything for you, for $5").

The result is both playful and telling, both a fun read and a barometer of what the modern American worker might do to make a few bucks in a difficult economy.

Launched last February, www.fiverr.com now lists more than 75,000 "micro-services," says founder Micha Kaufman.

Reached at his home in Israel, Kaufman wouldn't discuss any dollar amounts, or what percentage of the employment offers — fiverr calls them "gigs" — get paying customers. Some freelancers have made "quite a bit of money," he said. "True, it's $5 at a time, but they are making money." (Actually, they get $4 for each gig, and $1 goes to fiverr.) Some unemployed workers have gotten jobs through their fiverr contacts, Kaufman said.

One of the more popular freelancers is Noga Vilozny (user name: nogalicious), a California-based life coach who peddles services such as "I will give you instant relief from sadness and stress," "I will tell you how I got 2,875 Facebook friends" and "I will share my non-soggy sandwich secret."

Some of the service offers on fiverr.com seem distressingly time-intensive ("I will write press releases, articles and other write-ups of up to 500 words for $5"; at a penny a word — that's bad news for writers). Others take no time at all ("I will not take a bath or shower for three days for $5").

There are gigs offering to solve math problems, create a custom fitness workout plan, help explain classic literature, hourlong Photoshop instruction, propose marriage on your behalf, and "listen to your problems for 30 minutes and not offer any solutions."

The offerings are sometimes silly — however, usually sincere. And then there are those who provide a cynical window into the digital age, including the offer to "write up to four very positive reviews for anything on the Web."

e-mail: jarvik@desnews.com