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Microstock Photography Forum - General => General Stock Discussion => Topic started by: lumina on April 13, 2008, 09:48

Title: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: lumina on April 13, 2008, 09:48
I am still sending images to 5 agencies, but I have send to 9 before. In the future maybe I send to only 3 or 4. Thatīs remember the evolution of search engines in internet. Survival of the fittest become with 2 or 3 sites alive.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: Bateleur on April 13, 2008, 12:00
By 'agencies' do you mean purely microstock agencies, or all agencies?
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: lumina on April 13, 2008, 12:35
All agencies
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: Bateleur on April 13, 2008, 12:54
Okay. Thanks. I've put in my number.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: takestock on April 13, 2008, 14:06
Actively submitting to 5.

For the remainder the jury is out!
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: Bateleur on April 13, 2008, 17:02
Interesting ... no one is exclusive (not yet, anyway).

Or, if they are, they're breaking the rules.

Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: yingyang0 on April 13, 2008, 20:46
Interesting ... no one is exclusive (not yet, anyway).
Fixed that for you.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: vphoto on April 13, 2008, 22:12
this post made me rethink my upload strategy. I decided to limit myself to big5. on other sites i will leave my images in hope of the rare payouts.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: lisafx on April 14, 2008, 10:28
this post made me rethink my upload strategy. I decided to limit myself to big5. on other sites i will leave my images in hope of the rare payouts.

I think the Big 5 is actually the Big 6 and should include Bigstockphoto.  There is only .1 percentage point difference between them, and for many of us Bigstock is well ahead of 123. 
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: DanP68 on April 14, 2008, 10:32
I am involved with 10 agencies, but only actively contributing to 8.  That may be pruned more by early summer.

Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: vphoto on April 14, 2008, 11:23
this post made me rethink my upload strategy. I decided to limit myself to big5. on other sites i will leave my images in hope of the rare payouts.

I think the Big 5 is actually the Big 6 and should include Bigstockphoto.  There is only .1 percentage point difference between them, and for many of us Bigstock is well ahead of 123. 
lisafx, you are right. I looked at the 3 last months when I began keep tracking and there is  almost no difference in earnings between the two. So the question either to drop both, or to stay with both ...


Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: rene on April 14, 2008, 11:48
TOO MUCH.
Still active : IS, SS, FT, DT, StockXpert, 123rf, Alamy, Panther
Stopped uploading: LO, FP, SV, BigStock, Mostphoto, Scanstock
Deleted my account : Crestock
Will delete my account : Canstock, Albumo, Stockphotomedia, Geckostock, Paxxion
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: RacePhoto on April 15, 2008, 00:37

I think the Big 5 is actually the Big 6 and should include Bigstockphoto.  There is only .1 percentage point difference between them, and for many of us Bigstock is well ahead of 123. 

Which makes the Magnificent Seven?  :D

Have to agree from reading others and even my small collection. BS ranks up with the top five/six... which makes seven.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: windmill on April 15, 2008, 01:04
Almost 4 out of 10 submit to 10+ agencies?

How often do you get a payout from the 10 +? Can it really be worth the uploading and tagging time?

And how many pics do you have as a min portfolio to get payed at all from other than the big 6?

I am a newbee and have just started uploading parts from my incredibly big 140 portfolio to IS, DT, FT,FP, MP, key, yay and photoshelter.


Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: leaf on April 15, 2008, 02:08
payout from the poorly producing sites... well depending on how many images you have of course.  But on 2000+ images they produce less than 1 payout/year.  Perhaps somewhere between a payout every 1 year and every 10 years. :)

I submit to the payout every year agencies (if uploading is easy) and drop everything else.

If you put your keywords and descriptions in the iptc info then it is not much work to upload your images to many of the sites.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: windmill on April 15, 2008, 03:43
Yes thats probably true, i will use Irfan from now on with all photos, but definitely drop sites that don't give a payout/year. And untill i have 2000 i my portfolio? Lets hope we meet that nuber in the end of this year :D

Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: Alatriste on April 15, 2008, 04:07
Im not a very succesfull stock photographer but here it goes my opinion.
I have to rethink wich are my best 6.

Bigstock has never perform very well for me. 123 is 5 times more profitable.

I hadnt too much success at StockXpert too and I got a lot of rejections. Months without sales. But suddenly StockXpert started to work with everyday sales and a better acceptance ratio. Perhaps Im a better stock photographer now  :)

Also I noticed a dramatic drop in my sales in Fotolia since V2 came up.

Crestock and StockXpert are performing much better than BigStock and fotolia for me.
And I always made more sales with 123 than Ft and BigStock.


Following this thread:

Registered in 20 sites but just 10 active.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: leaf on April 15, 2008, 04:13
wow.. that is crazy that 123RF is 5x more productive for you than bigstock.  Now I know why 123RF has managed to sqeek by Bigstock in the polls.

I am surprised because bigstock is 2x more productive than 123RF
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: Alatriste on April 15, 2008, 04:21
How can this be...?

Does BigStock have any feature to promote portfolio? any trick?
I have always faved my images at 123 and it works as you know.

123rf:   http://www.123rf.com/portfolio/trebuchet/1.html (http://www.123rf.com/portfolio/trebuchet/1.html)

BigStock: http://www.bigstockphoto.com/search.php?photo_profile=trebuchet (http://www.bigstockphoto.com/search.php?photo_profile=trebuchet)
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: common on April 15, 2008, 04:34
I've only recently started uploading my own work for the first time. I started it just out of interest and its become a little addictive so i'm taking it further..

At the moment, I'm trying a mix of different sites with different pricing models.

IStock
Shutterstock - I will when I have a larger portfolio ready and keyworded, start with a bang there.
Dreamstime  - Have just started uploading and to the editorial, too.
Fotolia - Limited views, and perhaps harsh rejections.

The rest of the big 6 will come in time.

Crestock - Great site, nice UI. Small investment in time and hopefully sometime in the near future this site will pay dividends
SnapVillage - Simple site, just waiting for it to come alive. Its backed by Corbis, which shouldn't be sneezed at. Not paying notice to current activity.
YayMicro - Another site with potential, started by 3 guys from ScanPix with a realistic outlook and a simple approach.

Alamy, Photoshelter Panthermedia, and Mediamagnet.

Having been a microstock buyer, keyworder, photo editor and uploader I'm lucky to have a bit of insight here. And, i would never upload to a site I wouldn't want to buy from. Like Canstock or mostphotos for instance.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: leaf on April 15, 2008, 04:47
-> Trebucket
I was wondering the same thing.. there must be something I am missing - except for 123RF not BS...
I dunno, i don't think i have any secrets for bigstock... but sure would like to know what is holding down my 123RF portfolio

-> Common
thanks mentioning that it was Scanpix where the yaymicro people came from.  I have heard it was from another norwegian stock agency but i didn't know who.  I thought it was another micro agency like crestock, or scanstockphoto
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: leaf on April 15, 2008, 04:50
one thing I would like to know... how does yaymicro have an earnings rating of 1.8 when they haven't started to sell images yet????

Some people are voting scewed... ... not that i am surprised, just funny.
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: Alatriste on April 15, 2008, 05:04
-> Trebucket
I was wondering the same thing.. there must be something I am missing - except for 123RF not BS...
I dunno, i don't think i have any secrets for bigstock... but sure would like to know what is holding down my 123RF portfolio


Apart from fave images I do nothing.

They are mysteries of microstock sites
Title: Re: number of agencies you are active with?
Post by: windmill on April 15, 2008, 05:53
Interesting comment!

"Having been a microstock buyer, keyworder, photo editor and uploader I'm lucky to have a bit of insight here. And, i would never upload to a site I wouldn't want to buy from. Like Canstock or mostphotos for instance"

I wounder wich sites do we harm us self by providning to them?

I will start a new thread, about that!