MicrostockGroup
Microstock Photography Forum - General => General Stock Discussion => Topic started by: kaycee on December 30, 2009, 10:07
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Just received an e-mail from workingtitleimages.com to become a new submitter to a brand new agency located in the UK.
Anyone else received an e-mail and what do you think about:
Our current payout is 15 pence per download and due to our low prices and subscription model our buyers download a high number of images each month. At 2,000 downloads each month you would earn (GBP) £300, that's £3,600 per year.
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Yep, got the email this morning.
None of their photos are available for download but they still say this on their About page:
"Working Title Images is Europe's leading community based stock photography and image network. The website exists as an online exchange to bring together photographers, designers, illustrators and creatives with individuals, companies charities and organisations who require photos and images for various projects, design ideas."
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Yawn. Another sub site. Don't patronize 'em. Just let 'em fade away...
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Our current payout is 15 pence per download and due to our low prices and subscription model ... you would earn (GBP) £300, that's £3,600 per year.
If I would buy lottery tickets and I would win the jackpot, that would be one million euro, and if that would happen every year, that would mean 10 million euro by 2020. Fifteen pence = 0.24$.
No thanks.
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We should email this wanna-be and ask them to provide their business plan, current government-issued identification cards of their owners, financial statements, and ten of their best images for us to inspect. Only then would I even consider uploading to a new site.
What other red flags? Keywords don't bring up any images. (Kinda goofy to show a February launching with a search box active but no images yet approved). No marketing info -- not even the customary hype. No background info on owners. High payout of Euro 50. Really unattractive web site. Feel free to add to this list.
However, I do respect their honesty in the name. Workingtitleimages really says "not ready for prime time".
Oh, and I am insulted about not getting my invitation yet.
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This is a joke right?
The site looks pure amatuer. And it's yet another "beta".
And the best one is "our buyers download a high number of images each month". Really? On a site that doesn't appear to have any images.
How will they attract any market share from the well-established sites?
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Zym just closed... ::) 1 gone 5 new
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I can't be arsed with new start ups right now. All that effort to get work up on the site and very few views never mind downloads, PictureNation,Mostphotos,Cutcaster etc.
Agree wholeheartedly with Mr Locke and Mr Oates.
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There should be a law against new sites without huge financial backing or an innovative strategy now. It is really getting tedious seeing a new one every week and seeing that none of them are getting anywhere. I am not sure if they have no idea about business, they are intentionally trying to lose money or they think we will never reach a payout so they can close and take our money. What other reasons can they have with so many sites now?
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We should email this wanna-be and ask them to provide their business plan, current government-issued identification cards of their owners, financial statements, and ten of their best images for us to inspect.
The way it is going now there will be more agencies than contributors in a few months... ;D
So I agree, let's ask them their Social Security Number and a copy of their passport!
Claude
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Just received an e-mail from workingtitleimages.com to become a new submitter to a brand new agency located in the UK.
Anyone else received an e-mail and what do you think about:
Our current payout is 15 pence per download and due to our low prices and subscription model our buyers download a high number of images each month. At 2,000 downloads each month you would earn (GBP) £300, that's £3,600 per year.
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Hang on, that's just the Shutterstock home page re-written with UK pricing! How on earth can an agency that doesn't even exist yet make claims that "our buyers download a high number of images a month". Nor can they be "Europes leading" anything when they haven't launched yet. Most concerning is the complete lack of address/phone number/ownership details. I certainly wouldn't want to be sending an unknown business my passport/driving license details.This looks like a total wind up (to see how gullible some of us are) . If this really is a serious business venture then I suggest they get on here and explain some of their claims. And, I didn't get an email either! Wishing you all a very happy and sales filled (at least 2000 a month) New Year. Kind regards, David.
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You have been spared!
We should email this wanna-be and ask them to provide their business plan, current government-issued identification cards of their owners, financial statements, and ten of their best images for us to inspect. Only then would I even consider uploading to a new site.
What other red flags? Keywords don't bring up any images. (Kinda goofy to show a February launching with a search box active but no images yet approved). No marketing info -- not even the customary hype. No background info on owners. High payout of Euro 50. Really unattractive web site. Feel free to add to this list.
However, I do respect their honesty in the name. Workingtitleimages really says "not ready for prime time".
Oh, and I am insulted about not getting my invitation yet.
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We should email this wanna-be and ask them to provide their business plan, current government-issued identification cards of their owners, financial statements, and ten of their best images for us to inspect. Only then would I even consider uploading to a new sit
Well the 10 best images won't be a problem Lou -they just have to approve those "25,000 pending images" ;D Regards, David.
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Jnce again an anonymous site - no official business address, neither VAT number, nor phone number... Regardless the interface, content and "beta" status I don't trust anonymous "business".
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Isn't it just about this time after a new site starts soliciting images that they post something on this forum answering these concerns? You'd think that someone entering this market would be very attuned to places where contributors dwell -- to put a friendly face on the new kid on the block. This could be a terrorist plot for all we know. Wasn't it Lucky Oliver that was active here? Much of the good will that new sites gained came from schmoozing with their suppliers. And it doesn't even cost much time or money.
I think that we should start an office pool here by choosing the date that this one shuts down. I'll start by choosing April 1, 2010. I figure that gives enough time for their landlord to get whatever legal papers are required to evict them.
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Most concerning is the complete lack of address/phone number/ownership details. I certainly wouldn't want to be sending an unknown business my passport/driving license details.
I stand, partially, corrected. There is a business address (on the Model Release you can download). "Suite 30, Sheffield Technology Parks," etc. Hmmm Sheffield is not a million miles away from Stafford (home to offline for three months but "back soon" UK agency Picturenation). Some sort of breakaway venture? Probaly a complete co-incidence but until they provide full information about themselves they should expect idle speculation like mine ;). Mind you, at 15pence per download from an unknown start up, I won't be wasting too much time on that! Regards, David.
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Hi everyone,
Thank you for your comments; I can confirm that we are not connected to Picturenation, nor any terrorist plot, nor any mind bending games. We simply set up our site after graduating from Hallam University (not as exciting I know).
We are aware that our site is not the most attractive / user friendly, we have had problems with the developers, but we are working on this. The search button is currently disbaled and we have a problem with approving images (problems with resizing them) - hopefully this should be resolved soon.
Richard
Working Title Images
PS, louoates ~ we have free rent until June so move your bet until after that date.
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^^^ Nice reply! I thought you might need to pour yourself a large one after reading that but you seem to have a sense of humour.
What makes you think you can succeed in such a crowded market without anything obviously unique about your site? Unless you've got several $M's to throw at the project you are almost certainly wasting your time & money.
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Unfortunately no million$ to spare, just a love of what we do and a belief that life is too short ~ regrets are worthless.
Besides what else would we do; I'm pretty much unemployable
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Besides what else would we do; I'm pretty much unemployable
Become a contributor?
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Yup, that was a possibility but we do have an idea - Unique Selling Point as the marketing poeple call it - the only problem is that we need to sort the website out first. Then we should be able to stand out from the crowd.
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Will you change to "ActualTitleImages" once you actually have a working site? :)
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... strictly speaking it should be 'NotWorkingTitleImages' right now.
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Unfortunately no million$ to spare, just a love of what we do and a belief that life is too short ~ regrets are worthless.
Yea... starting a new micro because it's worthless and most of contributors will never reach payout limit anyway ? Then never close the agency, for you to never have to make a final payout. Then get yourself vacation in Honolulu.
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Yea... starting a new micro because it's worthless and most of contributors will never reach payout limit anyway ? Then never close the agency, for you to never have to make a final payout. Then get yourself vacation in Honolulu.
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lol, yes, why don't we all group together and start our very own stock site, and call it what Racephoto calls, "CRAP STOCK"..
and after a couple of years, we can close it and all celebrate in Honolulu with the money that did not reach payout.
it might be a great idea, instead of us spending hours making great photos and uploading to micro sites who seem to prefer paying us SUB-level (ha!ha bad pun) commissions , don't you think?
moreover, we don't even need to ask for contributors as our joint portfolio would make us the fastest growing micro sites on day 1.
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Unfortunately no million$ to spare, just a love of what we do and a belief that life is too short ~ regrets are worthless.
To bring a stock site to market you will need $100k - $350k just to get started, and love will not pay for the development, storage, bandwith, inspectors, legal advice, marketing, marketing and did I say marketing?
Unless you have something unique you will not attract any venture capital, or get any foothold in the current market, you are about 9 years to late joining the party, good luck anyway, but you will need more than good luck though.
david
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lol, yes, why don't we all group together and start our very own stock site, and call it what Racephoto calls, "CRAP STOCK"..
and after a couple of years, we can close it and all celebrate in Honolulu with the money that did not reach payout.
it might be a great idea, instead of us spending hours making great photos and uploading to micro sites who seem to prefer paying us SUB-level (ha!ha bad pun) commissions , don't you think?
moreover, we don't even need to ask for contributors as our joint portfolio would make us the fastest growing micro sites on day 1.
Count me in Perseus!!!
ahahahh
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Anyone thinking of starting a stocksite might want a nostalgic PSC reality check (http://blog.photoshelter.com/2008/09/a-difficult-decision-and-refoc.html) !
We believed that we could create a more democratic system - a marketplace for stock photography where virtually any one could participate. And a few months later, The PhotoShelter Collection was born. Upload your images, keyword & price, attach the appropriate releases, and voila! You were now a stock photographer.
Just remembering the shattered dreams of many photographers?
David :(
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Sounds like a business plan written on the back of a cigarette packet.
But count me in for starting a new agency. I've got several ideas written on the back of a beer mat.
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Unfortunately no million$ to spare, just a love of what we do and a belief that life is too short ~ regrets are worthless.
Besides what else would we do; I'm pretty much unemployable
I know the feeling after being in the fine art world as a painter for 30 years, . . . so I like your attitude as an unemployable free thinker. Your problem is that you have to convince people your site is serious and worth THEIR time to contribute.
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^^^ Nice reply! I thought you might need to pour yourself a large one after reading that but you seem to have a sense of humour.
Hi Richard, I'll second Gostwyck on that one! My apologies for suggesting you might be a Picturenation breakaway (as I said, just idle speculation -it sort of fitted in nicely). I never subscribed to the terrorist plot suggestion though! I have nothing but admiration for anyone trying to launch a new business in the current economic climate and I would love to see more successful British picture sites. So I will wish you the best of luck. However, my suggestions would be 1) engage in dialogue here frequently so that potential contributors can build up trust in your new site. 2) Rethink your pricing and commission. I am afraid that nobody (or very few) here are going to be attracted by 15pence a download (well, obviously, I cannot speak for everyone but I would be surprised). You have pitched it at about the same as Shutterstock but they get masses of sales every day. A new business will not. If you are going the Subscription route how about pitching upmarket -say £1 commission a download?. That said, it's your business, not mine!
Regards, David.
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Vonkara, I'm not sure what type of people you are used to dealing with, but the sound deeply immoral, this is certainly not what we are about.
etienjones, I think that we may have found a kindred spirit in you, all the best with the photography and life :)
Newsfocus1, no worries at all. I agree that it is currently difficult, but we do have a plan (we believe it's a good one), we just need to sort out our current web developers (not an area I specialise in ~ possibly time for a hitman?). I appreciate your suggestions, they are ones that we will look at, and hopefully we should be able to bring a more polished product to the market. As a community site we do welcome all feedback.
Thank you guys
Richard
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Vonkara, I'm not sure what type of people you are used to dealing with, but the sound deeply immoral, this is certainly not what we are about.
etienjones, I think that we may have found a kindred spirit in you, all the best with the photography and life :)
Newsfocus1, no worries at all. I agree that it is currently difficult, but we do have a plan (we believe it's a good one), we just need to sort out our current web developers (not an area I specialise in ~ possibly time for a hitman?). I appreciate your suggestions, they are ones that we will look at, and hopefully we should be able to bring a more polished product to the market. As a community site we do welcome all feedback.
Thank you guys
Richard
Don't you think it would have been smarter to have waited untill your site was up and running correctly before you stated inviting contributors? The way it looks it would push them away just as you have seen here. Not real smart marketing in my opinion