Author Topic: How I went from $100 to $5000 month (Read 33358 times)

RedScarlet · « **on:** March 25, 2011, 10:02 »

I have a portfolio of 300 video clips and 250 photos and I rarely submit to micro-stock sites anymore. The single reason I stay with micro-stock is to showcase my stuff. I spent 2 years developing my Ebay DVD sales and other avenues. I started off selling DVD sets for peanuts. 300 clips/300 photos for $29. Now I sell them for $299. My best photos only go to Alamy and I never submit a prime piece of work to micro-stock.

Good luck in the rat race of Micro-stock,

*link removed*

jbarber873 · « **Reply #1 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:08 »

So now you sell 300 clips for $300? Maybe someday you can move UP to microstock rates.

Microbius · « **Reply #2 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:11 »

I just took a look at the website.
Now....I'm....very....confused......
I think I need to lay down

RedScarlet · « **Reply #3 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:12 »

Per clip and photo I sell them for far less than 50 cents per unit.

I sell DVD sets that contain 50 GB of material.

RedScarlet · « **Reply #4 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:14 »

I have not listed my video/photo website. Just one of my blogs. Don't want to be accused of self promotion.

jm · « **Reply #5 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:15 »

I hope you have paid that funny microstock price to Fotolia for image at "Foods that will save your life no matter what" article

RedScarlet · « **Reply #6 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:20 »

Yes I did. The one of Cacao beans, bought from Fotolia. I use Fotolia on all 3 of my blogs. Probably $200/month.

All those highly quality extra small pics for dirt cheap. Good deal.

And then you post them on a blog and 30 seconds later they are on Google images for free. WordPress should come up with a pluign to stop that.

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #7 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:27 »

Well, it's an interesting idea - but do you have to track orders, burn and mail the CDs yourself?
There are plenty of ways of trying to monetise our work and different ones work for different people.

RedScarlet · « **Reply #8 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:30 »

The first 6 months it was Hell. Burning 15 DVDs on my desktop for a lousy $29-$69, then I started getting the Ebay and private feedback to use as references. Then I upped the price and went direct marketing. Facebook ads were a good avenue.

RedScarlet · « **Reply #9 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:41 »

Just my opinion of course... but MS is way too saturated. There are a 1000 very good photos and illustrations on every subject.

I don't care about per unit price. It's how much I make per month that counts.

loop · « **Reply #10 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:44 »

Well, it can be done much more than 5,000 at MS, believe me.

gostwyck · « **Reply #11 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:48 »

I can't find anyone selling stock video clips on Ebay at all. There are quite a few stock image DVDs for sale but none at anything like the sort of prices you claim. Most of them are 1000 images of $5 or thereabouts. Maybe you could provide a link to an example sale?

RedScarlet · « **Reply #12 on:** March 25, 2011, 10:58 »

I guess your not very adept at an Ebay search.

So I am now providing bona fides?

For what purpose? I have not entered into self promotion.

I am not selling something... yet you want my secret ingredient for free.

RedScarlet · « **Reply #13 on:** March 25, 2011, 11:02 »


OpenCL Render. ATI 4850. Cinema 4D 11

I did a more complex render of this scene for a contact through a stock site. Took about 72 hours to render 300 frames on my quad core.

RedScarlet · « **Reply #14 on:** March 25, 2011, 11:09 »

To digress for a second,

I'm very stoked about the new Nikon Coolpix P500. Especially the video. On the photo side I'm going to downscale to minimum sizes for MS. But the video really blew my socks off. One a tripod and with good lights of course.

cthoman · « **Reply #15 on:** March 25, 2011, 11:19 »

Quote from: RedScarlet on March 25, 2011, 10:58

I guess your not very adept at an Ebay search.

So I am now providing bona fides?

For what purpose? I have not entered into self promotion.

I am not selling something... yet you want my secret ingredient for free.

You are definitely entitled to your privacy, but you did bring up the topic. I looked at ebay too awhile back for selling stock, and most of what I saw was so cheap that it didn't look like there was a lot of money in it. Especially when you start factoring in shipping and probably sales tax. I've sold prints that way and it was always a pain.

RedScarlet · « **Reply #16 on:** March 25, 2011, 11:35 »

Building up a good blog or website certainly adds to exposure. The site I just sold a site while back got 1 million plus hits in 7 months and I was posting all of my pics for free. *link removed*

I find micro-stockers overly protective and petty when it comes to their images. The fact is that with one download your highly prized photo has just been put for free somewhere on the internet. Stock Agencies and Cameras companies are making the money from artist.

But hey that's your choice. Free world and all.

loop · « **Reply #17 on:** March 25, 2011, 11:56 »

It seems that you don't understand well this business: We don't sell just images: we sell licenses as well. Of course, photos can be grabbed by amateurs for their amateur blogs or pages, that is difficult to control, but very few legitimate business, big or small, would use unlicensed images. Those are the costumers that matter; the others wouldn' buy even if they could not rob.

click_click · « **Reply #18 on:** March 25, 2011, 11:58 »

You may be honest with everything you say, however I don't understand the purpose of this thread.

If you wanted to "share" your success with fellow microstockers without giving them any verifiable information about your venture what's your intention then?

I'm roaming anonymously for a number of reasons but I don't claim that I make $5000 and assume people believe me either.

People can sell crap on ebay and make thousands a month but it's all in the marketing and targeted traffic and not the actual product itself.

As you see there are tons of photo DVDs etc already on ebay for a few bucks. Why would anyone pay more for yours? Only because you can generate targeted traffic to your offerings.

Just because we have content doesn't mean we also know how to sell it ourselves.

That it is possible sure, but your posts are not helping anyone here IMO.

stockmarketer · « **Reply #19 on:** March 25, 2011, 12:13 »

OK, we're not very adept at Google searches.

But I tried one anyway and found this...

https://flippa.com/122678-500month-Hot-website-collection-of-Video-clips-and-Photos

It says your site didn't sell, but you say it did. Did it?

It says you make $500 a month selling DVDs of your images and videos. You say $5000. Which is correct?

RedScarlet · « **Reply #20 on:** March 25, 2011, 12:15 »

I find MS artist very much like Amway salesmen, they buy into the BS from the agencies.

I am not here to offer you anything. I'm simply saying there are viable alternatives to being a Micro-stock slave.

Micro-Stock will be so watered down and priced so low in a few years it will make all points here irrelevant.

Personally I think Pond5 will be the number One agency in 2 years if they stick to setting your own price. All other models will fail.

Megastock · « **Reply #21 on:** March 25, 2011, 12:17 »

Quote from: RedScarlet on March 25, 2011, 10:20

All those highly quality extra small pics for dirt cheap. Good deal.

And then you post them on a blog and 30 seconds later they are on Google images for free. WordPress should come up with a pluign to stop that.

What makes you think the images on the DVD that you sold on ebay for $29 didn't end up on the web for free? There is no difference between someone buying an image on a DVD and using it on their blog (full res?) and buying it RF and using it on their blog in terms of someone willing to steal an image... Only in your case you sold it for $0.10 an image !

I would never buy anything off eBay in terms of image licensing for fear it was pirated in the first place!

LSD72 · « **Reply #22 on:** March 25, 2011, 12:18 »

You could also make $16,500 a day teaching photography.

Seriously though... you come into a MS Forum this way and expect us to "see the light" or something.

RedScarlet · « **Reply #23 on:** March 25, 2011, 12:18 »

Actually if you do your research you will find that I listed scarletwhore.com 17 different times on Flippa and sitepoint.

caspixel · « **Reply #24 on:** March 25, 2011, 12:18 »

Why would I want to buy a 300 of only your photos when I could have my choice of millions from a wide variety of photographers for far less money? And I can even see them and test how they work in my designs before buying.

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Author Topic: How I went from $100 to $5000 month (Read 33358 times)

RedScarlet

jbarber873

Microbius

RedScarlet

RedScarlet

jm

RedScarlet

BaldricksTrousers

RedScarlet

RedScarlet

loop

gostwyck

RedScarlet

RedScarlet

RedScarlet

cthoman

RedScarlet

loop

click_click

stockmarketer

RedScarlet

Megastock

LSD72

RedScarlet

caspixel

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