Which agencies are going to drop this year?

melastmohican

« on: January 03, 2010, 15:50 »

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It's going to be my second full year and I am currently uploading to 7. Observing trends from 2009 one I am coming to conclusion that some efforts are not worth return and I will probably stop doing anything with CanStockPhoto or Veer. First one already got enough images and shows no progress. The second one does not cost much time but also does not show any signs of life.

http://melastmohican.net/wordpress/2010/01/02/my-2009-microstock-results/


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elvinstar

« Reply #1 on: January 03, 2010, 15:56 »

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I think that it is a bit early to count Veer out of the game yet. They were already a major player in stock photography, but just started in microstock. If anyone has a chance to succeed, I would think that it would be Veer.

Just my opinion.


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willie

« Reply #2 on: January 03, 2010, 16:00 »

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i don't do forecast. if i did, i would know which of the Big 6 to keep, lol.

but yes, Veer is the greatest disappointment of 2009. i did better with snapdragon,
um, i mean snap.. whatever Grin


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Pixart

« Reply #3 on: January 03, 2010, 17:40 »

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I was just looking at MostPhotos and it looks like I have to delete each photo individually? I should keep my account open though, I have a few referrals (who haven't sold anything either).


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PixelBitch

« Reply #4 on: January 03, 2010, 17:56 »

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I believe you can simply delete your account...which should do the trick and delete images at the same time...give it a try...am thinking of it myself.

Quote from: Pixart on January 03, 2010, 17:40

I was just looking at MostPhotos and it looks like I have to delete each photo individually? I should keep my account open though, I have a few referrals (who haven't sold anything either).


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icefront

« Reply #5 on: January 03, 2010, 20:05 »

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In the chart SS and Veer has the same color. Is that, Veer, the biggest? Grin

I vote for MSP and YM. But there are other players not listed here, Featurepics and Stockphotomedia. I'm not bad or pessimist. Simply if the business doesn't show results than it isn't viable.

Although sad on this fact, because few agencies aren't good. The power is much more concentrated and the contributors are less respected due to the high number of them. I'm a little bit afraid because this is how the bank, food, car, etc. industry started and voila today each industry is a superpower and tomorrow they will not care about nothing. Divide and conquer.


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willie

« Reply #6 on: January 03, 2010, 21:41 »

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Quote from: icefront on January 03, 2010, 20:05

Although sad on this fact, because few agencies aren't good. The power is much more concentrated and the contributors are less respected due to the high number of them. I'm a little bit afraid because this is how the bank, food, car, etc. industry started and voila today each industry is a superpower and tomorrow they will not care about nothing. Divide and conquer.

well, micro stock is a bit different from banks. well, at least from my own experience. banks make allowances to their most faithful and best clients. at least my banks do, with giving us special rates and offering us better than their competition.
i don't see this happening with any of the micros . even the oldest and best sellers , at least here, complain about being treated like dirt. .. or at least, that's the impression i get.

i'd sooner deal with the biggest banks , because at least in my country, banks are regulated and cannot play dirty with their own self interests, by pushing their own insiders ahead of the rest of the client.
plus, any outsider who has been a long term clientele is given preference.

i don't think too many micro contributors , even exclusives , can proudly attest to either of these factors with any stock agencies. can you?


« Last Edit: January 03, 2010, 21:48 by Persue-d »	Ignore \| Logged

RacePhoto

« Reply #7 on: January 04, 2010, 01:34 »

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Quote from: icefront on January 03, 2010, 20:05

In the chart SS and Veer has the same color. Is that, Veer, the biggest? Grin

Translation: Your monitor needs calibration, I can see the difference between all the oranges and green shades. Grin

But just looking at it, someone running out of colors for a pie chart is fairly funny. I could use the primary and complimentary colors for mine if it was only Microstock, and not run out. Back to my minimalist roots. Less is more, except when you are in need of food, water or money!


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Perry

« Reply #8 on: January 04, 2010, 02:50 »

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I would dump Crestock. They don't seem to care about ANYTHING anymore. They don't even pay in a timely fashion. Crestock may be the first agency that I will quit totally (not just stopping uploading but also removing my account). There is no need to hang there if they don't pay.


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Lagereek

« Reply #9 on: January 04, 2010, 07:36 »

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I dont believe a word of this BS diagram, how come then that I and many collegues are earning far, far more at other places?

mind, if its only by DLs, well then I would say SS is in the lead since its a subscription agency only.


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gostwyck

« Reply #10 on: January 04, 2010, 07:57 »

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Quote from: elvinstar on January 03, 2010, 15:56

Nah __ like their predecessor Snappytown, their effort has been too half-hearted and under-funded to make an impact. To become a major player in microstock nowadays would require a massive investment in both content and marketing. FT demonstrated how to do it 4 years ago (back then they paid us up to $1 per image accepted) but today entry would cost even more.


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PaulieWalnuts

« Reply #11 on: January 04, 2010, 08:08 »

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Quote from: lagereek on January 04, 2010, 07:36

Probably because of sales volume.

At IS it looks like he has 90 DLs in just under two years. That's an average of 4 downloads per month which is probably $2-$4 per month.

So if he gets $10-$20 in sales at Veer the chart will show Veer with a huge slice.

For higher volume sellers the chart would probably show large slices of SS, IS, FT, and DT with everything else being slivers.


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« Reply #12 on: January 04, 2010, 10:44 »

#link

Quote from: lagereek on January 04, 2010, 07:36

I dont believe a word of this BS diagram

It's a pure reflection of amplified statistical noise since his volume is too low. That's the reason I don't have a blog: I have nothing to say since my volume is too low.


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melastmohican

« Reply #13 on: January 04, 2010, 13:12 »

#link

Quote from: RacePhoto on January 04, 2010, 01:34

Quote from: icefront on January 03, 2010, 20:05

In the chart SS and Veer has the same color. Is that, Veer, the biggest? Grin

Translation: Your monitor needs calibration, I can see the difference between all the oranges and green shades. Grin

I guess it is limited by software and my poor knowledge of it :-) Apparently OpenOffice does ot like so many items in pie charts ;-)


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melastmohican

« Reply #14 on: January 04, 2010, 13:18 »

#link

Quote from: lagereek on January 04, 2010, 07:36

I do not count DL, too hard to do. Why it's so unbelievable that one person got different results than others? Yes I am small piece of dust in microstock universe but I believe it I am neither in top 10% not bottom 10%. I tend to believe that it's mostly type of photographs I got in my portfolios which is responsible for this spread of results. I am not doing studio shots, I do not own Photoshop. There is lot's of things that can improve my results but since it's just a hobby I do it very slowly.


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willie

« Reply #15 on: January 04, 2010, 13:22 »

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Quote from: lagereek on January 04, 2010, 07:36

mind, if its only by DLs, well then I would say SS is in the lead since its a subscription agency only.

hmm, as an newbie without the faintest idea of micro stock history admittedly,
i didn't know SS is a subs agy only. i only know from you all here that many, if not most, of you make the most money with SS.
if the bottom line = more money,
then perharps it's ok to get peanuts per dl. so long as each site that promises us peanuts also deliver the bucks like SS does for most of you.

is this what the rest of the Big 6 are doing? ape SS since it's obvious they are not going to dethrone SS? thus, is this what we can expect from micro from hereone?

anyone care to give this (viz Perseus or Persue-d in 2010) ...dull minded newbie to micro... a quick insight Huh


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RacePhoto

« Reply #16 on: January 04, 2010, 18:01 »

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Quote from: melastmohican on January 04, 2010, 13:12

I guess it is limited by software and my poor knowledge of it :-) Apparently OpenOffice does ot like so many items in pie charts ;-)

None do, I was just joking because of so many slices in the pie that the colors start to have subtle variations. Grin


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Lagereek

« Reply #17 on: January 05, 2010, 02:14 »

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Quote from: Persue-d on January 04, 2010, 13:22

Quote from: lagereek on January 04, 2010, 07:36

mind, if its only by DLs, well then I would say SS is in the lead since its a subscription agency only.

Hi!

Yes, SS is the worlds largest subscription agency only and theyre doing very well. IS, FT, DT, etc, are more in line of the Trad-RF-agencies, where an image can cost the customer up to 20 bucks ( pohotographer gets 5 bucks for an xtra large image, etc).
I mean they are all doing pretty well actually but judging by annual turnover only, IS leads by far.


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traveler1116

« Reply #18 on: January 05, 2010, 05:51 »

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Dreamstime! Dreamstime! Dreamstime! Grin

also FT! FT! FT! Grin

already dropped BigStock, StockXpert, Crestock, Veer
sad to leave SS and 123RF I still like them.


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Yuri_Arcurs

« Reply #19 on: January 05, 2010, 07:31 »

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Read this. Hmmm. THinking


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willie

« Reply #20 on: January 05, 2010, 11:59 »

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mela, i think this thread serves a purpose, actually .

but it would be more useful if you could also add a pie chart to indicate which of the Big 6 sites that the top sellers intend to stop submitting or quit.
this way, i will know exactly where to increase my contribution for 2010 Grin


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melastmohican

« Reply #21 on: January 05, 2010, 13:20 »

#link

Quote from: Persue-d on January 05, 2010, 11:59

but it would be more useful if you could also add a pie chart to indicate which of the Big 6 sites that the top sellers intend to stop submitting or quit.
this way, i will know exactly where to increase my contribution for 2010 Grin

Answer is very simple. The only one from top 6 I am not submitting is StockXpert. Strangely I got results comparable to 123RF and DT without any effort :-) That's probably means that I am doing something wrong if it does not matter whether I am submitting or not :-)