MicrostockGroup

Agency Based Discussion => Shutterstock.com => Topic started by: lagereek on December 01, 2011, 11:31

Title: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 01, 2011, 11:31
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cthoman on December 01, 2011, 11:47
I'll bite. I'm a doubter. It's a good agency, but to be honest, it's nowhere near even iStock circa 2009-2010 for me. But that iStock is probably not coming back, so SS is as good as it gets.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: CarlssonInc on December 01, 2011, 11:48
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gostwyck on December 01, 2011, 11:52
Yes I must admit SS are rock solid and just keep on delivering sales by the bucketload. Last month SS contributed 41.6% of my total microstock earnings, a new record high, although slightly short of a BME.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: microstockphoto.co.uk on December 01, 2011, 12:00
I have no doubt SS are the most solid agency at present, and I hope they will keep their n. 1 position forever.

Nevertheless, forever means nothing in this business and I feel safer if there are a number of other sound agencies around.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gbalex on December 01, 2011, 12:03
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)


Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....

Well that would be one way to drop the competition to their knees. http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=15 (http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=15)

Wonder if these unusual sales will continue after they fix their multiplying bugs.  I guess I should say "if" because they have been occurring for months.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: rubyroo on December 01, 2011, 12:13
Yes I must admit SS are rock solid and just keep on delivering sales by the bucketload. Last month SS contributed 41.6% of my total microstock earnings, a new record high, although slightly short of a BME.

Oh!  I only just saw this after posting my figures in the November thread.  We're seeing similar results this month, Gostwyck.  SS constituted 42.24% of my total.  A new record high for me too.  It'll be interesting to see if other indies have a similar story to tell this month.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: fotoVoyager on December 01, 2011, 12:32
Hmmpfh. Went to sign up with Shutterstock only to find someone else has already grabbed my brand identity of 'fotoVoyager'. I tried searching for images by that username but got no results. Anyone else had this kind of problem? I'll go and sign up as Sean Locke if identity grabbing is allowed!
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 01, 2011, 13:00
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....

Youre wrong there, ( sincerely) I mean, not trying to recruit anybody or anything, not my religion actually. Its in my interest as a contributor that as few as possible joins up, competition you know. However, credit where credit is due, its a fantastic agency. Its a breath of fresh air to find that today.

PS. Im a bit surprised over your post. Not like you.

best.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: flashon on December 01, 2011, 13:04
Yes I must admit SS are rock solid and just keep on delivering sales by the bucketload. Last month SS contributed 41.6% of my total microstock earnings, a new record high, although slightly short of a BME.

Oh!  I only just saw this after posting my figures in the November thread.  We're seeing similar results this month, Gostwyck.  SS constituted 42.24% of my total.  A new record high for me too.  It'll be interesting to see if other indies have a similar story to tell this month.

My #s indicates the same thing.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: wut on December 01, 2011, 13:20
Yes I must admit SS are rock solid and just keep on delivering sales by the bucketload. Last month SS contributed 41.6% of my total microstock earnings, a new record high, although slightly short of a BME.

Oh!  I only just saw this after posting my figures in the November thread.  We're seeing similar results this month, Gostwyck.  SS constituted 42.24% of my total.  A new record high for me too.  It'll be interesting to see if other indies have a similar story to tell this month.

My #s indicates the same thing.

Amateurs! I'm at roughly 50%  :P
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gostwyck on December 01, 2011, 13:32
Hmmpfh. Went to sign up with Shutterstock only to find someone else has already grabbed my brand identity of 'fotoVoyager'. I tried searching for images by that username but got no results. Anyone else had this kind of problem? I'll go and sign up as Sean Locke if identity grabbing is allowed!

It's likely to be a totally dormant account __ about 90% of them are. That account holder has probably never even passed the submission test let alone has an active portfolio.

Try contacting SS, explain the situation and who you are and maybe they'll close the other account and give you your moniker back. It is very much to the advantage of both SS and their customers that your work should be easily found. Good luck with it.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: RT on December 01, 2011, 13:45
This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days, 

Apart from the commission!
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 01, 2011, 13:49
This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days, 

Apart from the commission!

Well yes but that was ALL RM, remember? I was more refering to the running of the agency, totally problem-free, just making earnings for everybody without the slightest bit of hickups.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: fotoVoyager on December 01, 2011, 13:59
Hmmpfh. Went to sign up with Shutterstock only to find someone else has already grabbed my brand identity of 'fotoVoyager'. I tried searching for images by that username but got no results. Anyone else had this kind of problem? I'll go and sign up as Sean Locke if identity grabbing is allowed!

It's likely to be a totally dormant account __ about 90% of them are. That account holder has probably never even passed the submission test let alone has an active portfolio.

Try contacting SS, explain the situation and who you are and maybe they'll close the other account and give you your moniker back. It is very much to the advantage of both SS and their customers that your work should be easily found. Good luck with it.

Thanks, I'll do that.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: Snufkin on December 01, 2011, 15:34
Hmmpfh. Went to sign up with Shutterstock only to find someone else has already grabbed my brand identity of 'fotoVoyager'.

I'm rather surprised that you decided to drop the crown since you have quite many succesful Vettas.
Bear in mind, Shutterstock doesn't accept modern architecture anymore (you have a very nice series from Valencia).
Also, they don't accept "non-newsworthy" editorial photos anymore. IMHO their editorial program is seriously flawed, they want only the type of images that have a very short life cycle which doesn't justify the low prices. You have very good editorial images, but you will have difficulties getting that accepted on SS. DT does accept modern architecture and "non-newsworthy" editorials but they don't sell so much.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: 7Horses on December 01, 2011, 15:46
Shutterstockers are flying sky high now  ;).  Sooner or later they will fly to close to the sun and fall down.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: fotoVoyager on December 01, 2011, 15:53
Hmmpfh. Went to sign up with Shutterstock only to find someone else has already grabbed my brand identity of 'fotoVoyager'.

I'm rather surprised that you decided to drop the crown since you have quite many succesful Vettas.
Bear in mind, Shutterstock doesn't accept modern architecture anymore (you have a very nice series from Valencia).
Also, they don't accept "non-newsworthy" editorial photos anymore. IMHO their editorial program is seriously flawed, they want only the type of images that have a very short life cycle which doesn't justify the low prices. You have very good editorial images, but you will have difficulties getting that accepted on SS. DT does accept modern architecture and "non-newsworthy" editorials but they don't sell so much.

iStock's not leaving me much choice in the medium term. I used to sell 150+ images a day, now I'm lucky to sell a third of that. It's a real pity because I like the people at iStock but either the library has become so diluted that it's not possible to be seen in my subject area or they really are losing customers. Either way I have to consider my business first.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: sharpshot on December 01, 2011, 16:22
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....
People have always spread the good news when a site is doing well, there isn't much point in trying to keep it a secret.  I don't like the thought of lots of exclusives joining SS but its hard to get sales going for new images now.  Hopefully if more people drop the crown, more buyers will move as well.  The big problem could be if SS becomes too big, I would like to see istock stay strong to provide some competition but its hard to see their decline stopping.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 01, 2011, 16:31
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....
People have always spread the good news when a site is doing well, there isn't much point in trying to keep it a secret.  I don't like the thought of lots of exclusives joining SS but its hard to get sales going for new images now.  Hopefully if more people drop the crown, more buyers will move as well.  The big problem could be if SS becomes too big, I would like to see istock stay strong to provide some competition but its hard to see their decline stopping.

Good points. However I am pretty sure none of the, lets say 3 top agencies will go down the same way as IS, they must have seen the kind of damage it will render. Remember in the old film-days, the entire competition were between 3 agencies, Tony-.Stone, Image-Bank and Pictor-International, right? all of them made a great living!
Besides, what can you do? you got to put your trust in something?
Its not just revenues, its the running of things as well. SS, is running the show in a professional way, lots of know-how, etc. That! as far as Im concerned, its more important then the money aspect.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: epixx on December 01, 2011, 19:34
SS is so good it's almost worrying. 55% of my sales at the moment, and IS is struggling to stay ahead of DT and 123. Strong competition is needed to keep them on their toes though, so hopefully we won't have to many stumbles among the competition. Hopefully also we won't see anymore takeovers/killings of good agencies like the IS/StockXpert thing. It's bad for the whole business.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 01, 2011, 20:00
Are you this fotovoyager?

http://www.istockphoto.com/user_view.php?id=482239 (http://www.istockphoto.com/user_view.php?id=482239)

With a killer Portfolio and nearly 400 V/A files? And you have quit exclusivity? :o

What a loss for istock  :-[
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: pancaketom on December 01, 2011, 20:57
SS is doing well for me right now, but I am a little troubled by the lack of traction that new images are getting there for me. It might just be my not so great images, but my older ones continue to sell, so right now it still looks rosy.
I do wonder if sales will just take a while to show up for my new images like they do on DT and used to on IS or if those images that don't get sales in the first few weeks will be forever buried. There certainly isn't the new image boost on SS that there used to be.

I would like to see some of the smaller decent places like GL, 123, stockfresh etc. make some advances as well as DT. I'd hate to see SS become too dominant. As far as I'm concerned IS is dead to me.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gostwyck on December 01, 2011, 21:31
Are you this fotovoyager?
What a loss for istock  :-[

Yes he is ... and yes it is. Sorry to break the news to you Jasmine but Istock are dying. They massively miscalculated the effects of their greed and now they are beginning to pay the price. At some point, possibly quite soon, the dam will break and the majority of those exclusives will flood out onto the other sites. That will be the end of any significant USP that Istock can claim to have. I think it is entirely possible that in 2-3 years time Istock will be a minor microstock site primarily concerned with selling their 'midstock' V/A offerings. Shutterstock by then will be hugely dominant basically because they will have stuck true to the original microstock principles __ keep it simple, keep it cheap, have decent search results and keep all images at the same price. That's the winning formula and no other agency has come close to maintaining such basic rules.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 01, 2011, 21:47
It´s been a difficult week as you know. I am aware that many people with a smaller portfolio are jumping ship, especially if they have a day job. However the results from the people I know have been very mixed, i.e. it is very likely they would have made more money if they had stayed and just started uploading regularly again.

To see such a huge port leave...all I can think of is that he must be setting up his own site and has some contacts into macro as well. I find it very hard to imagine that he can recover the loss in 12-18 months. The Vetta files alone are probably earning more money than all my 3000 images together.

I am focussing on video and having a look around, but IMO istock can definetly turn things around with the right attitude and careful management. (I can imagine what you are going to say...)

Fotovoyagers journey into independence  will be watched by many people.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 02, 2011, 02:08
Terrific portfolio! wishing the best of luck here, its well deserved.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: rubyroo on December 02, 2011, 03:32
I agree.  What a terrific port you have, FotoVoyager.  I hope you do get to keep your name, as I'm sure many buyers will be trying to find you directly on other sites.

Good luck with your decision, I hope it works out really well for you.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: CarlssonInc on December 03, 2011, 02:06
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....

Youre wrong there, ( sincerely) I mean, not trying to recruit anybody or anything, not my religion actually. Its in my interest as a contributor that as few as possible joins up, competition you know. However, credit where credit is due, its a fantastic agency. Its a breath of fresh air to find that today.

PS. Im a bit surprised over your post. Not like you.

best.

Christian, you sound like I offended/insulted you in some way - not my intention at all, but if I did I apologize. My point was merely that recently I feel that you (and many others) have been quite, if not very active in criticising iStock and bigging up SS. That is absolutely fine, just pointing out potential hazards with being so vocal about it.

You should keep in mind that many newer contributors, contributors with fewer downloads etc. look for "guidance" and are probably quick to jump on the bandwagon i.e. heading for SS as you make it out to be the new gold-rush over there - more contributors will have to share the pie, less for everyone.

You said it yourself the other day that this is a tough cut-throat industry etc. I feel that perhaps some things are better left unsaid? Photographers are notoriously neurotic, paranoid and prone to mass hysteria...dangerous to feed those feelings.

Anyway, the industry has been through many storms before, as has iStock (and the rest of the libraries) not the time to do anything rash. I don't believe iStock is crashing, going away or anything like that. Things go up and down, constant change is the norm.

Martin
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 03, 2011, 02:37
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....

Youre wrong there, ( sincerely) I mean, not trying to recruit anybody or anything, not my religion actually. Its in my interest as a contributor that as few as possible joins up, competition you know. However, credit where credit is due, its a fantastic agency. Its a breath of fresh air to find that today.

PS. Im a bit surprised over your post. Not like you.

best.

Christian, you sound like I offended/insulted you in some way - not my intention at all, but if I did I apologize. My point was merely that recently I feel that you (and many others) have been quite, if not very active in criticising iStock and bigging up SS. That is absolutely fine, just pointing out potential hazards with being so vocal about it.

You should keep in mind that many newer contributors, contributors with fewer downloads etc. look for "guidance" and are probably quick to jump on the bandwagon i.e. heading for SS as you make it out to be the new gold-rush over there - more contributors will have to share the pie, less for everyone.

You said it yourself the other day that this is a tough cut-throat industry etc. I feel that perhaps some things are better left unsaid? Photographers are notoriously neurotic, paranoid and prone to mass hysteria...dangerous to feed those feelings.

Anyway, the industry has been through many storms before, as has iStock (and the rest of the libraries) not the time to do anything rash. I don't believe iStock is crashing, going away or anything like that. Things go up and down, constant change is the norm.

Martin

Hi Martin!

No, no offence at all, your post was OK and yes!  we certainly are a paranoid bunch, thats for sure ;D we tend to see enemies just about everywhere, dont we? Im very much aware of up and coming people are reading this, jumping on the band-wagon, etc and I always say, they will have to make their own choice, same as all the rest of us.

You have to admit though, under present circumbstances, all things considered, its pretty hard to recommend IS, as a photo-agency, I mean the chances are you would get flamed instead of thanked.
This time around, I cant figure Getty, can you?  I came from Stones in 93 and throughout the years I have seen them take-over just about everything, some things good others bad. This thing with IS though is an enigma because they are really in the process of slaughtering it?  just take "fotovoyager" as an example, thats the kind of heavy contributors that are bailing out. Scary stuff!

Anyway Martin, have a nice weekend, speak to you soon.  Christian
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: CarlssonInc on December 03, 2011, 03:05
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....

Youre wrong there, ( sincerely) I mean, not trying to recruit anybody or anything, not my religion actually. Its in my interest as a contributor that as few as possible joins up, competition you know. However, credit where credit is due, its a fantastic agency. Its a breath of fresh air to find that today.

PS. Im a bit surprised over your post. Not like you.

best.

Christian, you sound like I offended/insulted you in some way - not my intention at all, but if I did I apologize. My point was merely that recently I feel that you (and many others) have been quite, if not very active in criticising iStock and bigging up SS. That is absolutely fine, just pointing out potential hazards with being so vocal about it.

You should keep in mind that many newer contributors, contributors with fewer downloads etc. look for "guidance" and are probably quick to jump on the bandwagon i.e. heading for SS as you make it out to be the new gold-rush over there - more contributors will have to share the pie, less for everyone.

You said it yourself the other day that this is a tough cut-throat industry etc. I feel that perhaps some things are better left unsaid? Photographers are notoriously neurotic, paranoid and prone to mass hysteria...dangerous to feed those feelings.

Anyway, the industry has been through many storms before, as has iStock (and the rest of the libraries) not the time to do anything rash. I don't believe iStock is crashing, going away or anything like that. Things go up and down, constant change is the norm.

Martin

Hi Martin!

No, no offence at all, your post was OK and yes!  we certainly are a paranoid bunch, thats for sure ;D we tend to see enemies just about everywhere, dont we? Im very much aware of up and coming people are reading this, jumping on the band-wagon, etc and I always say, they will have to make their own choice, same as all the rest of us.

You have to admit though, under present circumbstances, all things considered, its pretty hard to recommend IS, as a photo-agency, I mean the chances are you would get flamed instead of thanked.
This time around, I cant figure Getty, can you?  I came from Stones in 93 and throughout the years I have seen them take-over just about everything, some things good others bad. This thing with IS though is an enigma because they are really in the process of slaughtering it?  just take "fotovoyager" as an example, thats the kind of heavy contributors that are bailing out. Scary stuff!

Anyway Martin, have a nice weekend, speak to you soon.  Christian

Hi again Christian! Not easy to figuring out any agency at the moment. Can't really recommend anyone as you say...firstly cause I don't want to "entice" people to go where I am...secondly cause all the agencies bar Alamy are way too greedy. Only recommendation is to have many fingers in many pies...go with instinct and what feels right. I do like Getty though...at least for the fact that you don't have to worry about the keywording etc. send and forget, get on with new stuff. Also think it would be too late to become independent now, if you are not established in MS by now go elsewhere.

There is constant change and I wouldn't be surprised if it soon will be SS turn for some negative news/reporting/changes...

I don't think they are deliberating slaughtering iStock. I think Getty want to create a clear front with multiples entries into all the different price levels of imagery. Wouldn't be surprised if iStock became that portal....

iStock themselves are currently having too many issues on-going and by the look of it have not been taking them seriously enough. They will cop on and fix it, there will be losses, but things will go back to "normal" or at least better then currently. Never underestimate iStock.

Didn't like the best match search today though. Usually does my search for "high heels" photos only, creative only and usually I'm quite prolific in that search, but today 1 or 2 images on the first page...been replaced by CSAs glorious illustrations labelled as photos....

Yes, enjoy your weekend too. Soon off with the wife & kids to Liseberg...in the cold, in the wind...then back home for glögg and whiskey ;)

Martin
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 03, 2011, 06:00
Well dont!  today is a typical day for me. Dozens of subs, 12-SODs and yesterday even ELs and its only half day gone. This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days,  just delivering all the time, no nonsense, hassles or anything, just pure business knowledge and know-how, followed by a friendly atmosphere. :)

Wonder if you will feel the same when you have managed to entice more and more contributors to join you over there....

Youre wrong there, ( sincerely) I mean, not trying to recruit anybody or anything, not my religion actually. Its in my interest as a contributor that as few as possible joins up, competition you know. However, credit where credit is due, its a fantastic agency. Its a breath of fresh air to find that today.

PS. Im a bit surprised over your post. Not like you.

best.

Christian, you sound like I offended/insulted you in some way - not my intention at all, but if I did I apologize. My point was merely that recently I feel that you (and many others) have been quite, if not very active in criticising iStock and bigging up SS. That is absolutely fine, just pointing out potential hazards with being so vocal about it.

You should keep in mind that many newer contributors, contributors with fewer downloads etc. look for "guidance" and are probably quick to jump on the bandwagon i.e. heading for SS as you make it out to be the new gold-rush over there - more contributors will have to share the pie, less for everyone.

You said it yourself the other day that this is a tough cut-throat industry etc. I feel that perhaps some things are better left unsaid? Photographers are notoriously neurotic, paranoid and prone to mass hysteria...dangerous to feed those feelings.

Anyway, the industry has been through many storms before, as has iStock (and the rest of the libraries) not the time to do anything rash. I don't believe iStock is crashing, going away or anything like that. Things go up and down, constant change is the norm.

Martin

Hi Martin!

No, no offence at all, your post was OK and yes!  we certainly are a paranoid bunch, thats for sure ;D we tend to see enemies just about everywhere, dont we? Im very much aware of up and coming people are reading this, jumping on the band-wagon, etc and I always say, they will have to make their own choice, same as all the rest of us.

You have to admit though, under present circumbstances, all things considered, its pretty hard to recommend IS, as a photo-agency, I mean the chances are you would get flamed instead of thanked.
This time around, I cant figure Getty, can you?  I came from Stones in 93 and throughout the years I have seen them take-over just about everything, some things good others bad. This thing with IS though is an enigma because they are really in the process of slaughtering it?  just take "fotovoyager" as an example, thats the kind of heavy contributors that are bailing out. Scary stuff!

Anyway Martin, have a nice weekend, speak to you soon.  Christian

Hi again Christian! Not easy to figuring out any agency at the moment. Can't really recommend anyone as you say...firstly cause I don't want to "entice" people to go where I am...secondly cause all the agencies bar Alamy are way too greedy. Only recommendation is to have many fingers in many pies...go with instinct and what feels right. I do like Getty though...at least for the fact that you don't have to worry about the keywording etc. send and forget, get on with new stuff. Also think it would be too late to become independent now, if you are not established in MS by now go elsewhere.

There is constant change and I wouldn't be surprised if it soon will be SS turn for some negative news/reporting/changes...

I don't think they are deliberating slaughtering iStock. I think Getty want to create a clear front with multiples entries into all the different price levels of imagery. Wouldn't be surprised if iStock became that portal....

iStock themselves are currently having too many issues on-going and by the look of it have not been taking them seriously enough. They will cop on and fix it, there will be losses, but things will go back to "normal" or at least better then currently. Never underestimate iStock.

Didn't like the best match search today though. Usually does my search for "high heels" photos only, creative only and usually I'm quite prolific in that search, but today 1 or 2 images on the first page...been replaced by CSAs glorious illustrations labelled as photos....

Yes, enjoy your weekend too. Soon off with the wife & kids to Liseberg...in the cold, in the wind...then back home for glögg and whiskey ;)

Martin

Hi!

Liseberg, Glögg and Whiskey!  sounds the right stuff indeed. Look!  We sold out in Stockholm 4 years back and invested in a horse-farm ( häst gård) up towards Jönköping, Småländska höglandet and I take it your down in Gothenburg.
When we have our ways past or whatever, we can sit down and polish off a bottle of Lagavulin or something.

have a good day and enjoy Liseberg,  great place.  Chris.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: luceluceluce on December 09, 2011, 07:34

Also, they don't accept "non-newsworthy" editorial photos anymore. IMHO their editorial program is seriously flawed, they want only the type of images that have a very short life cycle which doesn't justify the low prices. You have very good editorial images, but you will have difficulties getting that accepted on SS.

Not true in my experience. All of my editorial images are illustrative rather than newsworthy. I do pay special attention to the caption though...

Back on topic... SS rocks and ELs and ODs are coming thick and fast
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lthn on December 10, 2011, 05:27

 ...Photographers are notoriously neurotic, paranoid and prone to mass hysteria...dangerous to feed those feelings...


Nice blanket statement... directly after saying some things should be left unsaid. : )

I'm not having serial nervous breakdowns from being involved in photography. Maybe I'm not doing it right : )
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: CarlssonInc on December 10, 2011, 06:14

 ...Photographers are notoriously neurotic, paranoid and prone to mass hysteria...dangerous to feed those feelings...


Nice blanket statement... directly after saying some things should be left unsaid. : )

I'm not having serial nervous breakdowns from being involved in photography. Maybe I'm not doing it right : )

Irony is humor for the intelligent, something many fail to appreciate ;)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lthn on December 10, 2011, 07:06
lol @ backpedal :)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: kelby on December 10, 2011, 17:31
Hmmpfh. Went to sign up with Shutterstock only to find someone else has already grabbed my brand identity of 'fotoVoyager'.

I'm rather surprised that you decided to drop the crown since you have quite many succesful Vettas.
Bear in mind, Shutterstock doesn't accept modern architecture anymore (you have a very nice series from Valencia).
Also, they don't accept "non-newsworthy" editorial photos anymore. IMHO their editorial program is seriously flawed, they want only the type of images that have a very short life cycle which doesn't justify the low prices. You have very good editorial images, but you will have difficulties getting that accepted on SS. DT does accept modern architecture and "non-newsworthy" editorials but they don't sell so much.
wow !! what a pity !...in the medium term is impossible for to recover in SS or FT or DT what you can earn only in IS...what can i say ? it's an hard choice...Good luck !
iStock's not leaving me much choice in the medium term. I used to sell 150+ images a day, now I'm lucky to sell a third of that. It's a real pity because I like the people at iStock but either the library has become so diluted that it's not possible to be seen in my subject area or they really are losing customers. Either way I have to consider my business first.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: click_click on December 10, 2011, 18:16
This agency, let me tell you all, is like Tony-Stone and Image-Bank, were in the film days, 

Apart from the commission!

LOL, exactly.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: SK on December 10, 2011, 19:00
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 10, 2011, 19:37
This is why I keep wondering how much earning power SS truly has. If their management published that they were paying out 2 Mio USD or more per week to their contributors, it would be a different story.

I am sure SS has growth and they know how to sell. But my guess is it will take them at least another 2-3 years to catch up with istock/getty in earnings power. And who knows what will happen in the meantime? There are so many agencies in the market and getty has enough money to buy a few more agencies if they want to.

I am concerned about istock, no question, but with what I am learning from my peers is that SS is no instant goldmine either.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: click_click on December 10, 2011, 20:31
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.
Were you exclusive?
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: wut on December 11, 2011, 09:54
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.
Were you exclusive?

Of course he is, how would he be able to average over 7$/DL otherwise? That's a lot, if you take into account the prices in the pre 2007/2008 era (non-exclusives were averaging 20-30c/DL in 2005/06 - so I've heard, haven't been around back then)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 11, 2011, 10:33
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.

I find that pretty weird actually, with your history, surely you have got used to acceptance and rejections, its kind of something we all have to live with, isnt it?  I have close to 50,000 downloads at IS, non-exclusive,  yet at this moment I earn 4 times more at SS. Having said that, I have deleted lots of top-commercial files at IS, since all these troubles started, found new grounds for them.
So,  I suggest you try again. No harm in it, is it? I mean by the look of things, nobody knows what is happening to IS.
I
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: wut on December 11, 2011, 10:51
Lagereek, it looks like you want to bury IS and piss on their grave ;D (not saying it's a bad thing or something a lot of ppl doesn't want;)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: BaldricksTrousers on December 11, 2011, 10:59
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.
Were you exclusive?

Of course he is, how would he be able to average over 7$/DL otherwise? That's a lot, if you take into account the prices in the pre 2007/2008 era (non-exclusives were averaging 20-30c/DL in 2005/06 - so I've heard, haven't been around back then)

That's mildly depressing, given that I've averaged about 90c for my 50,000+ dls there. Maybe being exclusive was by far the best option at one time.

.... Oh, wait a minute, does "generate revenue" mean that he is including iStock's cut in the total? If so, then I'm around the $250,000 mark, too, though 200,000+ of it hasn't done me any good.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gostwyck on December 11, 2011, 11:30
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.

Are you serious? That's an average sale of $7.14. I know a Diamond exclusive who has sold over 75K images and also has a huge number of Vetta files. Fairly recently she told me her average sale price was about $3.50 without Vetta and $4 with Vetta included. She gets the 40% commission rate too. I suppose your rate might be possible for a successful vector artist but if that were the case why on earth would you even be contemplating giving up exclusivity? SS are a very successful business, obviously know the commercial worth of stock imagery and I would assume that new applicants are reviewed by the most experienced staff. I have never heard of a highly successful stock contributor who has failed to be accepted into SS let alone with all 10 initial submissions rejected. Your story doesn't add up for me.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 11, 2011, 11:42
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.

Are you serious? That's an average sale of $7.14. I know a Diamond exclusive who has sold over 75K images and also has a huge number of Vetta files. Fairly recently she told me her average sale price was about $3.50 without Vetta and $4 with Vetta included. She gets the 40% commission rate too. I suppose your rate might be possible for a successful vector artist but if that were the case why on earth would you even be contemplating giving up exclusivity? SS are a very successful business, obviously know the commercial worth of stock imagery and I would assume that new applicants are reviewed by the most experienced staff. I have never heard of a highly successful stock contributor who has failed to be accepted into SS let alone with all 10 initial submissions rejected. Your story doesn't add up for me.

I tend to agree with you, never heard myself of a successful contributor thats been rejected. Doesnt add up somehow. :-\
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 11, 2011, 11:46
sodafish is a vector artist, they earn a lot more. My own average is around 3-4 dollars.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: SK on December 11, 2011, 16:51
Yes, I am including iStock's portion of the revenue in my $250,000. My share is $86,000+ and iStock's is about $170,000. These numbers are as an exclusive. I am not a big fan of iStock but I think they will figure things out in time and get back on track. Their overall stats are sinking and they can't afford to leave things as there currently exist. 2012 should be an interesting year.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gostwyck on December 11, 2011, 17:25
I am not a big fan of iStock but I think they will figure things out in time and get back on track. Their overall stats are sinking and they can't afford to leave things as there currently exist. 2012 should be an interesting year.

Not a chance. If Istock knew what to do and, more importantly, had both the will and the authority to do it then ... they'd already be doing it. My honest expectation is that the situation will continue to slowly deteriorate. Start planning your escape route as you may need it sooner than you think.

What do you think has caused the problems and therefore what would you do about it if you were in charge? Why are SS doing so well having stuck fairly firmly to the original microstock business model (almost uniquely nowadays with all images priced the same)?

The answer my friend is not blowing in the wind but has much more to do with Istock's pricing architecture, insultingly low commissions, ridiculous clumsy search facility and a website with an ever-growing number of bugs. If Istock want to reverse the trend then they'll need to start reversing the steps that have got them where they are. Can you see them reducing prices and increasing commissions anytime soon? Nor can I but that's what it will take to dig their way out of the hole they have dug for themselves.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 11, 2011, 17:27
Now I am a little surprised, I always thought Vector artists had much better returns than photographers which is why they have to meet higher RC levels than us. 5-8 Dollars is what I´ve been told as an average return for exclusives and obviously more for Vetta. I suppose Illustrations were far too cheap in the past.

But yes, let´s see what the next year brings.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: RacePhoto on December 12, 2011, 00:29
Yep, I doubt SS! I have 35,000+ downloads on iStock and have generated more than $250,000 in revenue. Thought I would try SS in January so I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected. I have no further interest in SS. To be successful with a new agency you need to upload 1,000+ images as fast as possible. SS has become so selective that it doesn't seem like an achievable goal therefore I give up.

I suppose it would be interesting to know why they were refused. What were the reasons from the reviewer?

There's an obvious difference of opinion between your opinion of very sell-able and theirs? Or was it something other than LCV?

I really would rather see them accept more so called, LCV images and less, series of 30 similar shots, with the model moving an inch, or slight variations in the shot, when  a few good shots would do it. I'll email example of the inch by inch, but it seems that once I pointed to them and some people were offended. Something like a girl on a vintage bike in the field and there are 40 shots? Or girl sitting in a car and there are 30 shots, from every angle.

Keep this in mind, they took me, so someone who actually has talent should be able to get in.  ;)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 12, 2011, 03:14
There is a tendancy that contributors with large ports, etc, will take it as a breeze, marching into SS, DT or FT, this is far from the case. The SS, reviewing, DT and FT, as well is today, far tougher then the IS reviewing and has been for a couple of years now.

A massive successful port at IS, is great, got one myself but its no guarantee at all for some sort of automatic acceptance at other top sites.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: grp_photo on December 12, 2011, 04:34
I doubt it!
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 12, 2011, 06:57
I doubt it!

Dont!
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: panicAttack on December 12, 2011, 11:59
I doubt their power to fix bugs, and also, many contributors said that their earnings from new images are not good as it used to be.

Anyway, they are still best microstock site to me.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 12, 2011, 12:13
Well, SS just sold my first video! 12 days after having my first video online. Not bad.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 12, 2011, 12:49
Well, SS just sold my first video! 12 days after having my first video online. Not bad.

There you go!  congrats!  hope you sell many more! you deserve it. :)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 12, 2011, 12:57
Thank you!
I enjoy the 22 Dollars but as a passionate istocker I am also sad that this is a file that is still in the istock queue, uploaded long before I uploaded it to SS. Because it is a holiday video, it won´t reach istock customers before early next year. So obviously the decision to quit exclusivity for video has already paid for itself.
Also love the map that shows you were your file was downloaded.

My little video agency battle is currently istock/SS  1:1

Yes, 2012 will be very interesting indeed!  :)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gostwyck on December 12, 2011, 13:18
Thank you!
I enjoy the 22 Dollars but as a passionate istocker I am also sad that this is a file that is still in the istock queue, uploaded long before I uploaded it to SS. Because it is a holiday video, it won´t reach istock customers before early next year. So obviously the decision to quit exclusivity for video has already paid for itself.
Also love the map that shows you were your file was downloaded.

My little video agency battle is currently istock/SS  1:1

Yes, 2012 will be very interesting indeed!  :)

Excellent and congratulations! You will become a passionate Shutterstocker soon too. They've got a website that actually works, no dodgy refunds (ever), no commission cuts or moving targets like the RC system and they know how to shift stock content in high volume. Keep us updated on the 'video agency battle'.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 12, 2011, 13:25
Keep us updated on the 'video agency battle'.

I will, I promise.

I do miss views and having lots of private lightboxes to link files. There are also less statistics than on istock.

But if they know how to sell...well...off to make more videos...
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: rubyroo on December 12, 2011, 13:27
Congrats Cobalt!  :)

That is great news.  I'm sure you'll come to love SS as much as many of us do.  For me they're the constant that just keeps delivering without cutting commissions.  I pray it stays that way.  I think of them as my safe harbour when all else is turmoil.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gbalex on December 12, 2011, 14:12
I doubt it!


Dont!

You make a great advocate for SS, but not everyone has such positive experiences at SS. Maybe they should give you a signing bonus. For a bit of objectivity, if you do not already have a large established port on SS the odds that your new uploads will have good sales are limited by technical issues and the probability that you will have good sales with a new membership are dimming every day that SS does not fix its serious technical bugs.

What would you say to those who are experience significant issues with newly uploaded images. As someone else mentioned in one the our threads one of the top 10 microstockers has stated that he will no longer upload images to SS until they get a handle on the problem. http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196 (http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196)
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: ShadySue on December 12, 2011, 14:22
I doubt it!


Dont!

You make a great advocate for SS, however not everyone has such positive experiences at SS. Maybe they should give you a signing bonus. For a bit of objectivity, if you do not already have a large established port on SS the odds that your new uploads will have good sales are limited by technical issues and the probability that you will have good sales with a new membership are dimming every day that SS does not fix its serious technical bugs.

What would you say to those who are experience significant issues with newly uploaded images. As someone else mentioned in one the our threads one of the top 10 microstockers has stated that he will no longer upload images to SS until they get a handle on the problem. [url]http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196[/url] ([url]http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196[/url])


How come have I never read about this on here? From all I read, SS is perfect in every possible way and only iStock and some very insignificant/new sites have any technical problems. I guess it must have been mentioned, but very much en passant.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: lagereek on December 12, 2011, 14:36
Thank you!
I enjoy the 22 Dollars but as a passionate istocker I am also sad that this is a file that is still in the istock queue, uploaded long before I uploaded it to SS. Because it is a holiday video, it won´t reach istock customers before early next year. So obviously the decision to quit exclusivity for video has already paid for itself.
Also love the map that shows you were your file was downloaded.

My little video agency battle is currently istock/SS  1:1

Yes, 2012 will be very interesting indeed!  :)

To be honest I havent got a clue about videos, etc, BUT, since you are a very nice person, I hope you sell WELL!
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cobalt on December 12, 2011, 14:43
I am a video newbie and still have to figure out the basics of my camera and software. I can handle a tripod, focus and pressing a button. No fancy after effects or video editing or complex overlays with animations...But I´ll learn... ;)

It is also much, much more work than I thought, kudos to all you video pros...but great fun!

 
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: cthoman on December 12, 2011, 14:49
You make a great advocate for SS, but not everyone has such positive experiences at SS. Maybe they should give you a signing bonus. For a bit of objectivity, if you do not already have a large established port on SS the odds that your new uploads will have good sales are limited by technical issues and the probability that you will have good sales with a new membership are dimming every day that SS does not fix its serious technical bugs.

What would you say to those who are experience significant issues with newly uploaded images. As someone else mentioned in one the our threads one of the top 10 microstockers has stated that he will no longer upload images to SS until they get a handle on the problem. [url]http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196[/url] ([url]http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196[/url])


I've heard about some of the bugs with new files on SS's forum. It seems like it hasn't been discussed much here though. I can't claim any personal experience though because I haven't uploaded anything new there for a year.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: BaldricksTrousers on December 12, 2011, 15:33
My newest uploads to SS don't seem to be selling, so I presume that is because of the search engine bug. Of course, that would be very offputting for an exclusive thinking of dumping the crown because if he got all his files on SS in a lump they might get stuck in a black hole.

Another factor is that it has been suspected for years that exclusives (or maybe certain select exclusives) get more lenient inspections than independents on iStock. It's actually possible to do very well with a portfolio of technically sub-par images if you have good subjects and are blessed with a good search position. However, Shutterstock's inspection criteria are now tighter than iStock's so older material or anything that got through on the old chums' network is unlikely to pass muster.

It may be far, far harder for many well-placed exclusives to jump ship if the going gets too tough than they have imagined.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gbalex on December 12, 2011, 15:36
I doubt it!


Dont!

You make a great advocate for SS, however not everyone has such positive experiences at SS. Maybe they should give you a signing bonus. For a bit of objectivity, if you do not already have a large established port on SS the odds that your new uploads will have good sales are limited by technical issues and the probability that you will have good sales with a new membership are dimming every day that SS does not fix its serious technical bugs.

What would you say to those who are experience significant issues with newly uploaded images. As someone else mentioned in one the our threads one of the top 10 microstockers has stated that he will no longer upload images to SS until they get a handle on the problem. [url]http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196[/url] ([url]http://submit.shutterstock.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114196[/url])


How come have I never read about this on here? From all I read, SS is perfect in every possible way and only iStock and some very insignificant/new sites have any technical problems. I guess it must have been mentioned, but very much en passant.


Short sited as it may be: my guess would be that many who participate here have large established ports with older files.  Thus they may have good sales if some of the nastier bugs are not impacting their own ports too much. Not everyone at the SS site has been hit by the bugs, so why upset the cart and risk the ire of the site itself if the bugs plaguing others could also be a benefit to overall sales.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: gostwyck on December 12, 2011, 15:54
Short sited as it may be: my guess would be that many who participate here have large established ports with older files.  Thus they may have good sales if some of the nastier bugs are not impacting their own ports too much. Not everyone at the SS site has been hit by the bugs, so why upset the cart and risk the ire of the site itself if the bugs plaguing others could also be a benefit to overall sales.

Exactly. It doesn't really worry me at all because I have far more 'older' images than new uploads. It only makes a few days difference anyway. All of my recent uploads are showing up in searches (the important bit) although not in my portfolio at the moment. The SS forums are full of newbies who scream blue murder over the most minor, often imaginary issues.

It is getting tougher to get new images to 'take off' though __ but that's the same everywhere. Buyers can afford to be selective because there's so many images to choose from.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: stockmarketer on December 12, 2011, 15:55
The recent complaints in this thread -- about recent pictures not showing up -- made me double check my port, and I don't seem to have been affected by it.  I have never noticed recent additions to my port not showing up.  What I have noticed is that starting several months ago, my recent pics didn't dominate my downloads like recent pics used to do... I'm sure that's been commented on here... must have been a default results switch some time ago.  Even that change didn't really affect my sales... they have been steady.  

And as for rejections, I have no complaints there either.  I think I see one or two rejections a year out of around 1000+ submissions.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: BaldricksTrousers on December 12, 2011, 16:51
I just checked and my new images are in the search - but the way the search works has completely changed now and unless users select "new" (or random) they are going to get results that favour files that have already sold. I guess that's the reason for the change - and it isn't going to favour new contributors who dump large portfolios there.
As I've been submitting files every month for seven years the net effect for me has just been to reinforce sales of older stuff. Rather than suffering from the search, my sales have gone up. It may be a different picture for people who have only been submitting for months or a year or two.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: pancaketom on December 12, 2011, 17:32
I just checked and my new images are in the search - but the way the search works has completely changed now and unless users select "new" (or random) they are going to get results that favour files that have already sold. I guess that's the reason for the change - and it isn't going to favour new contributors who dump large portfolios there.
As I've been submitting files every month for seven years the net effect for me has just been to reinforce sales of older stuff. Rather than suffering from the search, my sales have gone up. It may be a different picture for people who have only been submitting for months or a year or two.

In general I think that other than the "New" search SS has always favored files that sold. I think a year or more ago they lowered the boost that recent images that sold got. This tends to make the "most popular" search closer to all time sales rather than just sales/time. I am not sure what goes into the "relevant" search - perhaps a heavier weighting to the title? This also might have been around the time they went from indexing new images a few times a day to almost continuous indexing for the new search but then they would take a while to show up in the general search.

I think the problem more recently with new files is when the "new" search doesn't show them they get permanently buried with almost no chance of a later sale unless the search is very specific or the sale comes from a portfolio search. I have had a few files that seemed DOA but then a bit later started to collect a few sales, so maybe there is hope for new files with no sales (or maybe they are just obscure enough to show up in searches with only 1 or 2 pages of results).

My sales have continued to climb this year, but I have a lot of older files and semi-obscure ones that are keeping me at the level I am accustumed to (low but continuous sales). I am a bit worried that most of my new images for this year will be essentially wasted on SS.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: YadaYadaYada on December 12, 2011, 20:59
New files that are accepted has disappeared and are not found in any search for keywords that are in them. New files accepted show and go away after a few days in portfolios. Sale from the US are down. Sales for new files are gone. They said they fix this in Oct but it's still broken. SS has a bad problem. Many submitting will not upload more until its fixed. But SS still beats IS.
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: stockastic on December 12, 2011, 21:16
...I submitted 10 accepted and very sell-able images from my iStock portfolio. They were all rejected.

The real problem isn't that these agencies are changing their ideas of what they want and will accept... it's their lack of ability to communicate their new requirements.  Or maybe it's just a lack of interest - and they're now so intoxicated with "crowdsourcing" that they believe that no matter how inconsistent or incomprehensible their rejections, or how low the returns, there's still an endless supply of new material.   
Title: Re: Anyone doubting the power of SS?
Post by: emeebe on December 13, 2011, 04:01
Hi All,

As a DT exclusive for the last 6 months I just wanted to let you know how this thread has changed my opinion on things. I was just accepted into Shutterstock today (on the first go round) 9 out of 10 approved. I've spent the evening here uploading files to the site. I hope good things come out of Shutterstock for me... I've been purchasing there for the last couple of weeks and they seem pretty 'With It'... Anyway, thanks for the post, it's really opened things up for me.