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Author Topic: Is it worth to remove images that are not selling?  (Read 12763 times)

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« on: January 29, 2014, 07:00 »
0
Hello everyone, I read somewhere a long time ago that it is a good idea to prune own portfolio and get rid of photos that no one needs.

I am now thinking about making this step, but it is even necessary? I mean - most of the buyers probably search by keywords and if they get to one's portfolio, I guess it is sorted by selling rate so the not needed files are piled at the bottom and no one cares.

So, do YOU delete your unsuccessful files? Or what do you think about it?

Thank you!


ACS

« Reply #1 on: January 29, 2014, 07:12 »
0
Unless; I later discover a technical problem, a potential copyright issue, or the subject is limited to a specific time period (2013 calendars, London Olympics etc.) I never delete.

ShadySue

  • There is a crack in everything
« Reply #2 on: January 29, 2014, 07:19 »
0
I agree with ACS, and get first time sales from old files, - even ones which somehow weren't demoted to Main on iS.

Ron

« Reply #3 on: January 29, 2014, 07:30 »
+2
Never, I have seen sales on images that never sold before.

cuppacoffee

« Reply #4 on: January 29, 2014, 07:31 »
0
If you dont delete non-sellers after a few years then you cant complain about there being too many images on the sites. I delete.

Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #5 on: January 29, 2014, 07:33 »
+4
Nope.. Extra work for no purpose.

« Reply #6 on: January 29, 2014, 10:48 »
0
Cool, that's what I thought. Thanks to everyone for your answers! I'll let that agencies cope with my files :)

Rinderart

« Reply #7 on: January 29, 2014, 11:42 »
+1
NEVER DELETE.

« Reply #8 on: January 29, 2014, 12:04 »
+4
NEVER DELETE.

Unless you care about what your port looks like in the customers eyes.
Like do they drool, or do they think: "Average, there is a lot of sh++t there"

« Reply #9 on: January 29, 2014, 12:29 »
+1
Depends on how the search engines return images to buyers. If there is a sort component based on sales per portfolio then deleting dross is a very good idea. If the sort is not based on any portfolio calculation then leave the images on the case when some body buys the lesser sold image and put s a few more pennies in your pocket. Now how do we determine if contributor portfolio calculations are in play?

Rinderart

« Reply #10 on: January 29, 2014, 13:04 »
0
NEVER DELETE.

Unless you care about what your port looks like in the customers eyes.
Like do they drool, or do they think: "Average, there is a lot of sh++t there"

Agree...But, Who defines Sh++t? me,You? lol

lisafx

« Reply #11 on: January 29, 2014, 13:15 »
+2
Depends on how the search engines return images to buyers. If there is a sort component based on sales per portfolio then deleting dross is a very good idea. If the sort is not based on any portfolio calculation then leave the images on the case when some body buys the lesser sold image and put s a few more pennies in your pocket. Now how do we determine if contributor portfolio calculations are in play?

I agree with that. Since none of us know what criteria are going to be used in the search engines at any given time, it seems foolish to delete photos which might at some point attract buyers to your portfolio. That is assuming that the pictures are attractive. If you have anything truly dreadful left over from early days there might be a reason to delete it.

Goofy

« Reply #12 on: January 29, 2014, 13:17 »
+3
Let the buyer determine if they are crap! Recently, I had an old (never sold once) image sell for $28 (EL)- I had thought about removing it a while back...

Rinderart

« Reply #13 on: January 29, 2014, 14:01 »
+1
Yep. Had many Like that on stuff so Old I honestly didn't recognize them. Im not deleting anything. They want it gone Like DT does. Let them do it.

« Reply #14 on: January 29, 2014, 14:43 »
0
Being primarily a buyer, I never look at anyone's individual ports. I simply view the search results, add images to light-box, then sort through those selected. The only times I've ever deleted an image from a site(s) is when a buyer wants exclusive rights to an image (only happened twice).

« Reply #15 on: January 29, 2014, 14:47 »
+2
Leave 'em up. It doesn't cost anything and there is always some mug out there who thinks a picture you made in 2007 of clothes pegs on a washing line is high art - and worthy of an extended licence.

« Reply #16 on: January 29, 2014, 14:54 »
+4
Being primarily a buyer, I never look at anyone's individual ports. I simply view the search results, add images to light-box, then sort through those selected. The only times I've ever deleted an image from a site(s) is when a buyer wants exclusive rights to an image (only happened twice).

Of course, in my post above I meant to write "valued customer" not "mug". Don't know how that happened.


fritz

  • I love Tom and Jerry music

« Reply #17 on: January 29, 2014, 20:17 »
+3
I'm afraid next year SS and other agencies will have to clean up their database so we don't have to remove non sellers. They'll do for us :) like DT did year ago! And it might not be such a bad idea, it's easier for us, buyers and agencies. Dealing with database larger than 50m is PITA for everyone.
Correct me if I'm wrong!

« Reply #18 on: January 29, 2014, 21:51 »
+1
NEVER DELETE.

Unless you care about what your port looks like in the customers eyes.
Like do they drool, or do they think: "Average, there is a lot of sh++t there"

Agree...But, Who defines Sh++t? me,You? lol
The customers do.

Rinderart

« Reply #19 on: January 30, 2014, 00:36 »
-3
True. If you believe the customer is always right. I do. having invested in and owned a chain of Very high end mens and womens clothing stores in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica..
« Last Edit: January 30, 2014, 00:39 by Rinderart »

« Reply #20 on: January 30, 2014, 00:53 »
+2
I was culling my portfolio on Alamy at one point - I'd printed out a bunch of  "contact sheets" of sorts from the site and was making notes of those I planned to remove  I'd culled some but then fortunately got caught up in something else because the next thing I knew they licensed one of the photos on my delete list for $290, back when I got a 60% commission. Since then, I've deleted very few files there, and a handful from DT that hadn't sold in the requisite number of years. I was kinda of bummed about the DT deletes since some of them have sold elsewhere. I wouldn't have deleted them except I had no choice. In fact, one of the files I deleted from DT last year has made nearly $200 elsewhere, the rest pennies, so no biggie. You just never know.

Sometimes time is on your side too. For the past two years I've been working with a client who requests yearly portfolios of stock photos for various calendars and similar items, licensing them for various amounts, depending upon region and usage. They also keep past images on file for potential later use, and yesterday I got a contract for $100 to license one image for a small regional calendar for 2015. The photo was in the batch I sent them back in August 2012, not the batch I sent in 2013, so you never know how things will pan out. It's similar to a couple of images they licensed last year, and was taken in 2009. They probably earmarked it for the future when they received it last year, since they send out the bulk of their contracts in April, May and June, so this was an early surprise.

That's the thing too, a buyer may have your image in a private lightbox, and plan to use it in the future.

So, I heartily agree, unless the image is truly awful, don't remove it. 

« Last Edit: January 30, 2014, 00:58 by wordplanet »

« Reply #21 on: February 01, 2014, 02:42 »
0
So, do YOU delete your unsuccessful files? Or what do you think about it?

I did it few years ago, but that was my begining and images were reaaallyyy hopeless. However, even in that images some client saw potential and bought it. Now I don't delete and glad DT stoped deleting old files. They are selling even after 4 years with 0 (zero) downloads before! I wonder how client find them in milions of fresh files ;)
The same images may sell very well with other agencies...

« Reply #22 on: February 01, 2014, 04:20 »
0
I don't see point in removing images because of bad sales. I had once image that didn't sell for a long time and one day it was bought with EL.

Gino

« Reply #23 on: February 01, 2014, 04:28 »
0
I had the same experience. One of my first images. Never sold and then $28 sale. So never delete anything.

« Reply #24 on: February 01, 2014, 04:40 »
0
Leave 'em up. It doesn't cost anything and there is always some mug out there who thinks a picture you made in 2007 of clothes pegs on a washing line is high art .
Hey, have you been stalking me?
I agree, though. How bad does an image have to be before you decide to prune it? In any case, a good designer might see a picture with lousy WB and see immediately that he can clean it up and get something usable.  You might have something as dull as Rheinwater and it turns out to be the biggest earner ever ;)


 

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