Author Topic: The 3D Studio - anyway selling there? (Read 31183 times)

KB · « **on:** November 28, 2009, 00:23 »

What I mean is, is anyone getting sales there?

I had 3 sales during my first month, for very nice commissions. I like that they are continuing to upgrade the photo side of the business, recently adding ELs and web-sizes. But I haven't had a single sale now in a little over 2 months now.

My port isn't huge (600 some images), but it does get regular sales everywhere else.

Is anyone having better results?

elvinstar · « **Reply #1 on:** November 28, 2009, 01:09 »

I'm in pretty much the same boat as you... A few sales at first, then nothing for quite a while.

LSD72 · « **Reply #2 on:** November 28, 2009, 02:03 »

None at all. Stopped uploading until something happens.

Magnum · « **Reply #3 on:** November 28, 2009, 04:11 »

Why would anyone buy stockimages there? It`s a 3d site

Atleast the name says so. No more free candy there...

MicrostockExp · « **Reply #4 on:** November 28, 2009, 05:42 »

Ditto, zip, nada that is a shame (I have 1500 pictures on line)

FD · « **Reply #5 on:** November 28, 2009, 07:49 »

Quote from: ldambies on November 28, 2009, 05:42

Ditto, zip, nada that is a shame (I have 1500 pictures on line)

+1
I canceled my account last week but they asked me to stay a while for the work the reviewers put in. Fair enough, so I'll stay 6 months more minimum and see how it goes. I stopped uploading though 2,5 months ago.

Adeptris · « **Reply #6 on:** November 28, 2009, 08:04 »

I promoted them as I had good sales, now they have a few hundred thousand more images my sales have flat-lined, one sale last month compared to 3 or 4 a month when I started, the buyers are there but with the new assets the dilution happens.

As I have invested the time to upload and they have invested time as well, leaving my assets there for a year is no problem, if I was thinking about exclusive there would be no problem getting them taken down, as a new player in stock images they will need some time to sort out the search the collection and the buyers experience, to find the right market.

David

gbcimages · « **Reply #7 on:** November 28, 2009, 11:03 »

2 months,4 sales.

KB · « **Reply #8 on:** November 28, 2009, 11:26 »

Thanks for the many reports. It's nice to know I'm not alone.

I think I'm going to stop UL'ing there, until sales pick up. I hope they do, as there is an awful lot I like about this site: The ability to adjust prices, the high commission rate (and NO subs!), the easy UL'ing (and 100% acceptance

) and on and on.

But the bottom line is all about sales, which for now anyway seem to be missing.

oboy · « **Reply #9 on:** November 28, 2009, 12:27 »

I have in the moment 1,270 images online with them and about 1-2 sales per month in the moment.

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #10 on:** November 28, 2009, 15:28 »

Somebody just asked me to comment here so I figured I would...

Our stock photo section took off like wildfire in just the last couple of months and we've had more submissions than we expected in such a short period. That's a good thing and we know many of these new images are from the members here on this forum. So, let me say thank you to those that are getting in on the ground floor with us...we appreciate your early support.

Now, the big question everyone has is on sales, or lack of in some cases, right? Just like we said from the start a couple of months ago, stock photos are new to The3dStudio.com and we never intended to be an istock overnight. We don't intend to ever be an istock for that matter, it's just not what we are about here, but I think our stock sales will see some great increases in the next few months as we ramp up our advertising campaigns.

In the past few weeks we've seen great increases in stock sales and we are very pleased with that trend but that doesn't always translate into 1000 sales for every single seller every month. Part of that is just simple supply and demand and our supply shot up almost overnight and now we are starting to focus on increasing the demand. I can sell 100 images in the next hour but that doesn’t mean every photographer will get 10 sales or even 1 from that simply because we have a very large library from many contributors so the sales are more spread out than they worth 1-2 months ago.

Our intent from the start was to focus mainly on getting new contributors at The3dStudio.com for the last few months of 2009. We have been doing that while we continue to improve our stock upload tools, categories, search features, and so on. We’ve also added our “x-small” 400 pixel size for a $2 purchase along with an Extended License option that we think is an industry best and offers something other sites do not. Next up is a very major site design upgrade and this is very much focused on the custom side of the site as we continue to improve their experience…I can’t give away too much yet but it will be a much cleaner design, will be wider, and will have increased thumbnail sizes. It’s all coming soon.

From there our plan has always been to focus 2010 on bringing in customers and that plan is still 100% on track. We have some various advertising campaigns that will be starting then (some have already started) and this will help us bring in more customers.
I know some people like to “wait and see” and either won’t add any images until they hear of increased sales or maybe they only had a small percentage of their collection until they see an increase. While I understand the logic behind that, the flip side is that the more images we have the larger we become and the faster we can bring in customers. If you have images to add then we would love to get them added, it’s a very fast process and once you’ve done that you don’t ever have to touch them again. You have nothing to lose but a little bit of your time, and a very small bit at that.

So, I will end this overly long reply with a thank you to those who continue to support us. It will be worth your time in the long run but we aren’t here to compete against istock, shutter, or any other stock site. We’re doing things differently and different can be good if you give it a chance.

Magnum · « **Reply #11 on:** November 29, 2009, 11:42 »

Great answer! We all know this, but for some reason we can´t get our brains to understand why new sites don´t sell a LOT.

Unfortunately you´re not first to say "soon"

I´d love you to succeed...

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #12 on:** November 30, 2009, 07:23 »

"we aren’t here to compete against istock, shutter, or any other stock site."

What does that imply, or mean?

Adeptris · « **Reply #13 on:** November 30, 2009, 08:24 »

Quote from: sjlocke on November 30, 2009, 07:23

"we aren’t here to compete against istock, shutter, or any other stock site."

What does that imply, or mean?

I.M.O. and at a guess, the model is not to rip-off of the big microstock websites, and it looks like they are not trying to emulate the microstock business models of needing a large quantity of downloads to get a pay out.

The3Dstudio are different in a few ways, as you set your own prices and the commission is set at 60% is much higher than other sites, the comision rate at the time you add your asset to the collection is set for life, but you will never get the sales volumes you get from the big microstock websites, when you do get a sale you get a fair return, it took me three times longer to reach a payout level on the big microstock websites compared to The3DStudio.

If you look at what they are saying, you will never get the same volumes of downloads with them, I read a lot of posts on here where contributors to a new site have high hopes based on the look and feel of a site, expecting the new site to grow fast and take over from one of the big players, where all any new site can really expect to offer is to supplement your income from other sources and not replace them.

The key is not to expect to much to soon, and have another look in a year or a few months time, organic customer growth takes some time, but it can happen.

David

epantha · « **Reply #14 on:** November 30, 2009, 13:16 »

Zero downloads for me so far with about 250 images online. 16,361 views!!! I have stopped uploading for now. $:-\$

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #15 on:** November 30, 2009, 13:46 »

Magnum, thank you!

sjlocke, I think Adeptris actually said it very well. I think any time a company enters into an existing market space everyone assumes that company has to match the sales of other large competitors in that same space to succeed. I don't think that's the case at all and I don't measure success by comparing us to anyone else. We have a different model and most people will make more per sale with us than anywhere else. The overall dollars they get might not be the same for most right now but I think that will start changing as we grow. Growth takes time but we've done this before on the 3D side and will do it here.

epantha , we're not trying to fool anyone here and want to be completely honest as to what we are and aren't at all times. I think it's fair to say that we aren't the best fit for all contributors and we aren't here to make any a millionaire overnight. But please understand that a site like ours only works when we do have the full support of our contributors. The idea of "waiting on the sidelines" with partial support just doesn't work. I can't force you to keep adding your photos (nor would I want to!) but I know that it will be worth your time as we grow throughout 2010.

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #16 on:** November 30, 2009, 13:54 »

Quote from: The3dStudioDotCom on November 30, 2009, 13:46

sjlocke, I think Adeptris actually said it very well.

I would just watch how you state it then. It comes across as you having really no interest in the stock image side of things and that it's just something you run on the back burner. Obviously, you are interested in competing with all stock sites, otherwise, you wouldn't be selling stock imagery at all.

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #17 on:** November 30, 2009, 15:06 »

Very fair point sjlocke. I think that's the general problem with any forum, blog, site, etc...I don't think I can ever be clear enough for everyone to understand what it is I mean all the time. What makes perfect sense to me could make no sense at all to somebody else and it's easy for us (on this side of the business) to forget that everyone here isn't as up to date with our plans and vision as we are. So, good feedback, I appreciate that!

Eireann · « **Reply #18 on:** November 30, 2009, 16:04 »

225 images - basically my entire portfolio.
11.500 views (!!!)
Started uploading about 2 months ago.
0 sales.

Hi Matt,
I wish you would read this because I think it's important.
What you've got going on there, as opposed to other microstock sites, is special.
It's a foothold into the future.
3 D images are clearly THE way to go. They're everywhere, in movies, books, games, magazines and on TV. 3 D is the future of the imagery world, and you’ve got it all pretty much under your belt.
With a bit of extra effort your site could prove to be a golden goose. Different from all the others, ahead in time.
But things must change.
You’re trying to sell images and presentation is vital. It’s all about presentation. Unfortunately the site is not up to it and I think a complete makeover is needed.
Look at my stats, 200 images - 11.557 views!
No matter how you calculate those views, the result is staggering. It is a lost potential and it hurts me to even look at them. Designers are there, you’ve got them interested, all you need to do now is to present your products in the best possible way you can.
Hire a team of dedicated web developers. Revamp the site, bring it up to modern standards and let’s help translate some of those views into profitable transactions.
Also, tell us what to shoot.
I’ve got a Canon 450 D (not great), no expensive lenses and I’m not a photographer. But most of the artists around this forum have the very best equipment money can buy. They can provide you with textures / subjects / objects of all kinds at truly amazing quality.
They just need to know what to shoot.
One more thing - I was trying to upload an EPS AI file and I couldn’t figure out how to do it. Is there a way to sell such files on your site? Is there a demand?
I guess JPEGS only would have to do for now.
all the best,

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #19 on:** November 30, 2009, 17:45 »

Hi Eireann,

Large view counts are normal, we get huge amounts of traffic and are well linked on the web. Right now the bulk of our sales are in 3D models but in time that will increase and you will see stock image sales increase. With that in mind, some views you see aren't 100% targeted to stock images so that will explain part of the high views and low sales issue (some 3d customers stumble into stock for example).

The next issue is our site design. It's outdated and the small thumbnails don't translate well to stock images. The good news is that we've known this for a while now and have a solution in progress. We've been beefing up the back end and are almost ready to announce a new front end (the part customers see). We will have better thumbnails (much larger) and an overall better design (cleaner, wider, easier to navigate, etc). All I can say is that those improvements are coming soon...on the order of weeks, not months.

We've really planned out our entrance into the stock image marketplace back to early this year and now we're just going through all of those steps exactly as planned. Rather than making a bunch of quick changes and decisions we usually stick to a slower, more thought out, plan that is more likely to have positive results in the long term (which is why we’ve been around for almost 14 years now!). This gives us time to learn as we go and avoid costly mistakes.

As for "what to shoot", well, that's hard to say right now. We will be posting more on this subject down the road but right now we are trying to get a large variety of stock images so we have all of the bases covered. Once we really increase sales and have a better idea as to what types of images sell then we will post that (generalized) data. Right now we are seeing sales in all categories and only a few stand out as being extra popular (like business people & situations, lifestyle images, “headline” images like those dealing with housing markets, various people photos, etc).

LSD72 · « **Reply #20 on:** November 30, 2009, 18:55 »

Quote from: The3dStudioDotCom on November 30, 2009, 13:46

epantha , we're not trying to fool anyone here and want to be completely honest as to what we are and aren't at all times. I think it's fair to say that we aren't the best fit for all contributors and we aren't here to make any a millionaire overnight. But please understand that a site like ours only works when we do have the full support of our contributors. The idea of "waiting on the sidelines" with partial support just doesn't work. I can't force you to keep adding your photos (nor would I want to!) but I know that it will be worth your time as we grow throughout 2010.

Partial Support??? In my situation, I don't have thousands of images to upload. At the time I stopped uploading, you have my full port.I might have about 30 - 40 more images I could upload since then. I don't shoot alot... just in sporadic periods. Back to Partial Support...I gave you everything I got, not just part of my port. So why is it not fair for me to sit back and wait and see if something comes from this? If I even get 1 download, that's enough for me to get my new stuff up there.

We are in this to get paid. Money is the Motivator. If we were not in it for that... I think Flickr (and other free hosting sites) would be very very very crowded by now.

I hope you succeed because if your making money... then the contributors are making some too. Hopefully, I would be riding that wave too.

As you stated, Sites don't match with every contributor. I speak for myself. I give time to every site I upload to. If they don't perform for me, I don't upload anything new. After that then its watch time until I decide to pull my images. If no sales in 6 months... most certain to pull port so I don't have to spend time checking it.

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #21 on:** December 01, 2009, 13:50 »

LSD72, I never implied that you were giving partial support. The problem is that some contributors only put up a small portion of their collection to sell and that's not really enough to make this work. We can only be successful if large numbers of contributors give us their full support for a long period of time. We're not here to make every millions in the next 3 months or 6, this is a long term operation and I think all contributors who are serious about selling need to understand that.

Some won't add any until they "hear" some feedback from others first. Others only add a small portion of their collection and that's what I would call partial support. I understand why those people do that, but it's still partial support. We're all in this to get paid so I completely understand that money is the #1 motivator, but to get paid we just need full support from as many contributors as we can possibly get...once we have that setup the money will follow.

Some will add their images for a few months and then remove them and this is a strategy I understand. To me, once you've added them why would you want to remove them? You've done the hard work by that point and our reviewers have also put in a lot of time and effort. I've heard others say they don't want to spend time checking their sales on a site but my answer to that is simply "don't check" because the royalties will get sent to you no matter what

KB · « **Reply #22 on:** December 01, 2009, 16:23 »

Quote from: The3dStudioDotCom on December 01, 2009, 13:50

Some will add their images for a few months and then remove them and this is a strategy I understand. To me, once you've added them why would you want to remove them? You've done the hard work by that point and our reviewers have also put in a lot of time and effort.

I'm pretty sure that was a typo meant to read "... a strategy I don't understand".

I might know why. At least, the reason I removed my images from a startup after about 6 months and 1 sale: It seemed pretty obvious that I would never reach payout, and my concern was the Lucky Oliver scenario, where the site goes bankrupt and the money disappears. I don't think that is likely to happen with a long-running, established site such as The 3D Studio. So I also don't understand people doing that here.

leaf · « **Reply #23 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:10 »

Quote from: KB on December 01, 2009, 16:23

Quote from: The3dStudioDotCom on December 01, 2009, 13:50
Some will add their images for a few months and then remove them and this is a strategy I understand. To me, once you've added them why would you want to remove them? You've done the hard work by that point and our reviewers have also put in a lot of time and effort.
I'm pretty sure that was a typo meant to read "... a strategy I don't understand".

I might know why. At least, the reason I removed my images from a startup after about 6 months and 1 sale: It seemed pretty obvious that I would never reach payout, and my concern was the Lucky Oliver scenario, where the site goes bankrupt and the money disappears. I don't think that is likely to happen with a long-running, established site such as The 3D Studio. So I also don't understand people doing that here.

But we got paid out from Lucky Oliver even though they closed the doors.

anonymous · « **Reply #24 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:32 »

Quote from: The3dStudioDotCom on November 30, 2009, 13:46

Magnum, thank you!

sjlocke, I think Adeptris actually said it very well. I think any time a company enters into an existing market space everyone assumes that company has to match the sales of other large competitors in that same space to succeed. I don't think that's the case at all and I don't measure success by comparing us to anyone else. We have a different model and most people will make more per sale with us than anywhere else. The overall dollars they get might not be the same for most right now but I think that will start changing as we grow. Growth takes time but we've done this before on the 3D side and will do it here.

epantha , we're not trying to fool anyone here and want to be completely honest as to what we are and aren't at all times. I think it's fair to say that we aren't the best fit for all contributors and we aren't here to make any a millionaire overnight. But please understand that a site like ours only works when we do have the full support of our contributors. The idea of "waiting on the sidelines" with partial support just doesn't work. I can't force you to keep adding your photos (nor would I want to!) but I know that it will be worth your time as we grow throughout 2010.

Okay..started to test the waters and upload a portion of my port, then i saw that you're only offering 20% for stock (at which point i declined to upload). What about a higher payout since you're new to this arena?

KB · « **Reply #25 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:35 »

Quote from: anonymous on December 01, 2009, 17:32

Okay..started to test the waters and upload a portion of my port, then i saw that you're only offering 20% for stock (at which point i declined to upload). What about a higher payout since you're new to this arena?

They pay more than any site I know of:
The3dStudio.com pays a 60% royalty on all product sales:
http://www.the3dstudio.com/help.aspx?id_help=9

anonymous · « **Reply #26 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:38 »

Quote from: KB on December 01, 2009, 17:35

Quote from: anonymous on December 01, 2009, 17:32
Okay..started to test the waters and upload a portion of my port, then i saw that you're only offering 20% for stock (at which point i declined to upload). What about a higher payout since you're new to this arena?

They pay more than any site I know of:
The3dStudio.com pays a 60% royalty on all product sales:
http://www.the3dstudio.com/help.aspx?id_help=9

not what it says on my page:

Active - Affiliate ID: xxxxxx Members referred: 0 Commission sales rate: 20%

EDIT:
so is the 20% your "referal" percentage"?

KB · « **Reply #27 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:39 »

Quote from: leaf on December 01, 2009, 17:10

Quote from: KB on December 01, 2009, 16:23
I might know why. At least, the reason I removed my images from a startup after about 6 months and 1 sale: It seemed pretty obvious that I would never reach payout, and my concern was the Lucky Oliver scenario, where the site goes bankrupt and the money disappears. I don't think that is likely to happen with a long-running, established site such as The 3D Studio. So I also don't understand people doing that here.

But we got paid out from Lucky Oliver even though they closed the doors.

Not if you didn't have enough for a payout (which is a likely scenario with new, low sales sites).

Unless my memory is totally off, which could be, but I don't think so. Anyone else get "stiffed" by LO? (Though I bare them no ill will, as everyone there was so nice. I wish they had been able to make it ....)

KB · « **Reply #28 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:41 »

Quote from: anonymous on December 01, 2009, 17:38

Quote from: KB on December 01, 2009, 17:35
Quote from: anonymous on December 01, 2009, 17:32
Okay..started to test the waters and upload a portion of my port, then i saw that you're only offering 20% for stock (at which point i declined to upload). What about a higher payout since you're new to this arena?

They pay more than any site I know of:
The3dStudio.com pays a 60% royalty on all product sales:
http://www.the3dstudio.com/help.aspx?id_help=9

not what it says on my page:

Active - Affiliate ID: xxxxxx Members referred: 0 Commission sales rate: 20%

Yeah, that page needs to be re-worked, IMO.

That 20% commission rate is for referral sales. That is, if you refer a buyer, and they buy something, you get 20%. You get 20%, the contributor gets 60%, and poor 3DS gets the tiny 20% left over. No other site like that!

anonymous · « **Reply #29 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:49 »

Quote from: KB on December 01, 2009, 17:41

Quote from: anonymous on December 01, 2009, 17:38
Quote from: KB on December 01, 2009, 17:35
Quote from: anonymous on December 01, 2009, 17:32
Okay..started to test the waters and upload a portion of my port, then i saw that you're only offering 20% for stock (at which point i declined to upload). What about a higher payout since you're new to this arena?

They pay more than any site I know of:
The3dStudio.com pays a 60% royalty on all product sales:
http://www.the3dstudio.com/help.aspx?id_help=9

not what it says on my page:

Active - Affiliate ID: xxxxxx Members referred: 0 Commission sales rate: 20%

Yeah, that page needs to be re-worked, IMO.

That 20% commission rate is for referral sales. That is, if you refer a buyer, and they buy something, you get 20%. You get 20%, the contributor gets 60%, and poor 3DS gets the tiny 20% left over. No other site like that!

I see...my bad. Shall give them a whirl

Thx

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #30 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:52 »

As always, a tough group to keep up with...

KB...yes, meant I don't understand, thanks...for some reason, the forum reply text box gets jumpy in IE8 for me and I keep clearing out words I didn't mean to

That's a good point on not having enough for a payout, I can see that being an issue and the good news is (which you probably know but I will share for others to be safe) is that we have no minimum at all. We pay monthly via several means and if you choose PayPal you'd get paid any amount every month.

Anon...as already mentioned, the 20% if an affiliate commission if you refer a buyer to us. If you refer a seller then you get 5% as a referral fee for life. Our standard royalty rate for a sale is 60%...it goes as high as 70% if you join our non-exclusive loyalty program. and you are right, it's very confusing and our page layout there is crap. It's all changing soon though

lbarn · « **Reply #31 on:** December 01, 2009, 17:54 »

In this case I don't get the point "I may never reach a payout" since they pay you each month no matter what you made, in other words there is no minimum needed for a payout.

KB · « **Reply #32 on:** December 01, 2009, 18:03 »

Quote from: lbarn on December 01, 2009, 17:54

In this case I don't get the point "I may never reach a payout" since they pay you each month no matter what you made, in other words there is no minimum needed for a payout.

Yes, as Matt said, that is the case. However, I didn't know that.

(No other site that I'm aware of has such a policy -- not that I'm complaining!)

So the "may never reach a payout" theory may still be valid for idiots like me who don't read (or remember what they read!).

anonymous · « **Reply #33 on:** December 01, 2009, 19:33 »

Quote from: The3dStudioDotCom on December 01, 2009, 17:52

Anon...as already mentioned, the 20% if an affiliate commission if you refer a buyer to us. If you refer a seller then you get 5% as a referral fee for life. Our standard royalty rate for a sale is 60%...it goes as high as 70% if you join our non-exclusive loyalty program. and you are right, it's very confusing and our page layout there is crap. It's all changing soon though

thx for the clarification...as i said, i'll be uploading

Adeptris · « **Reply #34 on:** December 02, 2009, 03:31 »

Answered the last post on page one, missed the second page!

David

Adeptris · « **Reply #35 on:** December 02, 2009, 03:36 »

Quote from: lbarn on December 01, 2009, 17:54

In this case I don't get the point "I may never reach a payout" since they pay you each month no matter what you made, in other words there is no minimum needed for a payout.

Note: That is for PayPal payments not other payment methods.

madelaide · « **Reply #36 on:** December 04, 2009, 18:29 »

Quote from: leaf on December 01, 2009, 17:10

But we got paid out from Lucky Oliver even though they closed the doors.

I wasn't. There was a minimum value, and I was below it. Still better than other places, though, who closed without even a notice.

etienjones · « **Reply #37 on:** December 06, 2009, 04:43 »

Quote from: The3dStudioDotCom on November 28, 2009, 15:28

Somebody just asked me to comment here so I figured I would...

Our stock photo section took off like wildfire in just the last couple of months and we've had more submissions than we expected in such a short period. That's a good thing and we know many of these new images are from the members here on this forum. So, let me say thank you to those that are getting in on the ground floor with us...we appreciate your early support.

Now, the big question everyone has is on sales, or lack of in some cases, right? Just like we said from the start a couple of months ago, stock photos are new to The3dStudio.com and we never intended to be an istock overnight. We don't intend to ever be an istock for that matter, it's just not what we are about here, but I think our stock sales will see some great increases in the next few months as we ramp up our advertising campaigns.

In the past few weeks we've seen great increases in stock sales and we are very pleased with that trend but that doesn't always translate into 1000 sales for every single seller every month. Part of that is just simple supply and demand and our supply shot up almost overnight and now we are starting to focus on increasing the demand. I can sell 100 images in the next hour but that doesn’t mean every photographer will get 10 sales or even 1 from that simply because we have a very large library from many contributors so the sales are more spread out than they worth 1-2 months ago.

Our intent from the start was to focus mainly on getting new contributors at The3dStudio.com for the last few months of 2009. We have been doing that while we continue to improve our stock upload tools, categories, search features, and so on. We’ve also added our “x-small” 400 pixel size for a $2 purchase along with an Extended License option that we think is an industry best and offers something other sites do not. Next up is a very major site design upgrade and this is very much focused on the custom side of the site as we continue to improve their experience…I can’t give away too much yet but it will be a much cleaner design, will be wider, and will have increased thumbnail sizes. It’s all coming soon.
From there our plan has always been to focus 2010 on bringing in customers and that plan is still 100% on track. We have some various advertising campaigns that will be starting then (some have already started) and this will help us bring in more customers.
I know some people like to “wait and see” and either won’t add any images until they hear of increased sales or maybe they only had a small percentage of their collection until they see an increase. While I understand the logic behind that, the flip side is that the more images we have the larger we become and the faster we can bring in customers. If you have images to add then we would love to get them added, it’s a very fast process and once you’ve done that you don’t ever have to touch them again. You have nothing to lose but a little bit of your time, and a very small bit at that.

So, I will end this overly long reply with a thank you to those who continue to support us. It will be worth your time in the long run but we aren’t here to compete against istock, shutter, or any other stock site. We’re doing things differently and different can be good if you give it a chance.

As promised the upgrade has been finished, so thank you T3DS. With 531 images online and 27,653 views and no sales I am hopeful for the future. The site looks and feels much more user friendly, so lets get on with it . . . .

dirkr · « **Reply #38 on:** December 08, 2009, 10:24 »

Made my first sale yesterday, $7,20

Certainly a nice amount compared to the usual numbers in microstock...

Let's hope for more

MicrostockExp · « **Reply #39 on:** December 08, 2009, 11:07 »

3 sales yesterday after a 2 months drought:)

PixelBitch · « **Reply #40 on:** January 05, 2010, 23:17 »

Just uploading my work the past 3 days...what I find incredible is that with just over 500 images online so far I have had over 7000 views...and a sale the second day...lets hope they keep selling...so far am pleased.

Adeptris · « **Reply #41 on:** January 06, 2010, 02:45 »

With just 140 images online I have two sales this month 'Royalties this month: $12.00'

Here's to a good 2010

David

Agnesh · « **Reply #42 on:** January 06, 2010, 09:42 »

Looks like they made a kind of script to emulate sells, don't you think so? So many sells at once just after some time of total silence...

I'm now thinking on uploading a part of portfolio there but don't know if it will bea good time investment

LSD72 · « **Reply #43 on:** January 06, 2010, 09:47 »

Still no money for me there. Oh well.

willie · « **Reply #44 on:** January 06, 2010, 13:58 »

i joined 3dstudio due just out of curiousity. had 20 images and forgot about it completely because i felt there should be a bit of a QA to restrict too many snapshots and you know what.
then , again out of curiosity , i checked last month and found i had $5 for one dl, which isn't bad for one dl and 20 images.
as much as i still feel there should be some Quality Control, so it doesn't transform into another flickr or facebook, i decided to give them some support.

i agree with Adeptris, you can't really say matt and lisa did not do enough, considering the time factor. and also, as i pointed out elsewhere, if we all sat on the fence, we really should blame ourselves if the site did not make it like Zymmetrical's sad demise. we had two excellent sites before... Photo Shelter and Zymm.
i think PS went too quickly to consider themselves David and took on G-oliath (as in Getty) in their headline, and blinded themselves with the badly aim catapult.
Zymm, well... i think it turned lots of contributors off that their site kept
screwing up each time we uploaded something.

hopefully, 3 d studio will not fail in this section. their site is running well, and it's easy to upload and keyword. so i have no qualms in submitting them new work whenever i take a break with the Big 6 and Alamy.

but, i still have my strong reservations of take one take all , without QC.
i do see a lot of similars and tons of snapshots that really belong to the family album, and not meant for a stock site.

i hope matt and lisa will take this to heart in 2010.

click_click · « **Reply #45 on:** January 06, 2010, 22:39 »

- 520 files online
- referred 14 members
- referred 6 sellers
- 24.000+ views

royalties: $0.00

gbcimages · « **Reply #46 on:** January 06, 2010, 22:50 »

800 + files

58,000 + views

6 sales

click_click · « **Reply #47 on:** January 06, 2010, 23:00 »

Quote from: gbcimages on January 06, 2010, 22:50

800 + files
58,000 + views
6 sales

You're on fire! Way to go!

gbcimages · « **Reply #48 on:** January 06, 2010, 23:10 »

kinda sitting back waiting for more buyers,the site is fairly new on the image side.

dirkr · « **Reply #49 on:** January 07, 2010, 18:15 »

900+ files

36.000+ views

1 sale ($7,20)

And:

11 referred members, 10 referred sellers and 4 sales by them.

sharpshot · « **Reply #50 on:** January 07, 2010, 18:25 »

Are they still asking for an ITIN number?

willie · « **Reply #51 on:** January 07, 2010, 18:29 »

Quote from: dirkr on January 07, 2010, 18:15

900+ files 36.000+ views 1 sale ($7,20)

that would = 24 subs at SS , FT , DT or StockXpert or IS. that's still a bit underperforming. although as i said, they're still weaning. i made $5 with only 20 images which i thought was impressive, but i won't say if it will mean more dls with more images. we'll see.
i just like the idea of getting $5 for one dl. and only for a 4mp max size.

another thing, yes, the views are quite enormous. but i suspect it's mostly passersby looking at your work and keywords rather than buyers.

i will only begin to take them seriously once they introduce some form of QC to curb the facebook type snapshots.

LisaAnderson · « **Reply #52 on:** January 07, 2010, 19:10 »

PERSEUS, You must have been either reading our minds yesterday or if you live in Mesa, AZ did you sneak into the back yard to listen in at our weekly meeting?

We were discussing photo approval and we are getting a bit tougher. Tracy's team is adding categories to the rejection email so folks will have a better idea why something was rejected. When someone has a large batch of shots with the same problem she will email them directly with some advice/suggestions on how to make the photos acceptable.

We readily admit that in July 2009 when we started with stock photos, we didn't do much review and we accepted "everything" but we are learning and we hope we are improving! Oddly enough, some shots that the big guys would probably have rejected did sell with us, so we don't want to get too picky!

The3dStudio.com is still very much in the beginning and learning phase of stock photos and images. We do want to change for the better the way stock is bought and sold and we are willing to go a bit more slowly and figure things out as we go.

We welcome and appreciate all suggestions, advice, etc.

[email protected]

willie · « **Reply #53 on:** January 07, 2010, 19:15 »

Quote from: LisaAnderson on January 07, 2010, 19:10

PERSEUS, You must have been either reading our minds yesterday or if you live in Mesa, AZ did you sneak into the back yard to listen in at our weekly meeting?

We were discussing photo approval and we are getting a bit tougher. Tracy's team is adding categories to the rejection email so folks will have a better idea why something was rejected. When someone has a large batch of shots with the same problem she will email them directly with some advice/suggestions on how to make the photos acceptable.

We readily admit that in July 2009 when we started with stock photos, we didn't do much review and we accepted "everything" but we are learning and we hope we are improving! Oddly enough, some shots that the big guys would probably have rejected did sell with us, so we don't want to get too picky!

The3dStudio.com is still very much in the beginning and learning phase of stock photos and images. We do want to change for the better the way stock is bought and sold and we are willing to go a bit more slowly and figure things out as we go.

We welcome and appreciate all suggestions, advice, etc.

[email protected]

Lisa,
sooooo, that was your crowd raising all that ruckus with the swimming pool, half naked men and women, meringue band and hoola dancers

shoot, had i know i would have dropped in for some bangers and Guinesses.
just kidding.

HURRAH ...
i guess it pays to open my big mouth !!!

LisaAnderson · « **Reply #54 on:** January 08, 2010, 15:16 »

Perseus, you were in the wrong back yard!

It's certainly warmer here in Arizona than most places in the US, but not swimming pool weather quite yet. But drop by from May - October and we'll be splashing around.

[email protected]

cascoly · « **Reply #55 on:** January 08, 2010, 19:10 »

3242 images, 190K views, 18 sales - one of the easier sites to submit to -- would be nice if we could do multi image category settings, something like the new BigStock method

but since the $ is larger than other ms, a few sales can push them above the sales for is, Foto, BigStock or 123

2 sales so far this month

s

KB · « **Reply #56 on:** January 08, 2010, 19:22 »

Quote from: cascoly on January 08, 2010, 19:10

3242 images, 190K views, 18 sales

So very roughly, 1 sale per every 10K views. Similar ratio to gbcimages, and similar to me:

I've got 750 images, 37K views, and 4 sales.

So I guess I should expect another sale after another 10K views.

cascoly · « **Reply #57 on:** January 09, 2010, 02:39 »

i dont really pay attention to views -- it's an easy site to submit to, and the staff is friendly and helpful - much better than 123 and foto that reject entire batches for ridiculous reasons

steve

LSD72 · « **Reply #58 on:** January 29, 2010, 12:00 »

Hey, whaddayaknow. Got my first sale today. Netting $1.20. One of my Landscapes in Portrait Mode.

donding · « **Reply #59 on:** January 29, 2010, 12:32 »

Congrats LSD72 on the sale...for me it is nada...none...0. I hope they take off as an agencie...I'll give them some time and see what happens. I only uploaded to them in the last month or so.

MicrostockExp · « **Reply #60 on:** January 29, 2010, 12:55 »

My stats so far :
total royalties: $72.00
Total active products 1,725
Total product views: 114,192

Lisa when do you expect to have some news about the tax situation for european contributors?

Regards
Laurent

cascoly · « **Reply #61 on:** January 29, 2010, 20:56 »

they continue to be my 4th or 5th best seller [ss, dt usually 1 & 2]

had 4 sales today for $12 total - first time i've had more than 1 sale in a day. 3d is 5th this month, but that's because of a EL on 123 that shot them frm normal 6-8th pace to second

here are the images that sold this month

Waterfalls in narrow canyon
Horses and old wagon in field
Horses and old wagon in field
Horses and old wagon in field
Rolling green meadows and Pacific Ocean
Matthews House Stone House
Thyangboche monastery and peak of Ama Dablam
Hindu Sadhu gives blessings

steve

FD · « **Reply #62 on:** January 30, 2010, 03:57 »

Quote from: cascoly on January 29, 2010, 20:56

steve

Looking at your mugshot on DT, I thought you were Caesar Marcus Aurelius.

sharpshot · « **Reply #63 on:** January 30, 2010, 05:46 »

Quote from: ldambies on January 29, 2010, 12:55

My stats so far :
total royalties: $72.00
Total active products 1,725
Total product views: 114,192

Lisa when do you expect to have some news about the tax situation for european contributors?

Regards
Laurent

I would also like to know when the 3D studio will arrange with the IRS so that we don't have to submit an ITIN number to get the 0% withholding tax. None of the other site I contribute to is asking for it now. I will upload my portfolio when this is sorted out.

cascoly · « **Reply #64 on:** January 31, 2010, 12:19 »

Quote from: FD-amateur on January 30, 2010, 03:57

Quote from: cascoly on January 29, 2010, 20:56
steve
Looking at your mugshot on DT, I thought you were Caesar Marcus Aurelius.

yes, it's Marcus A - the image is from the statue on the Capitoline hill in Rome, always been one of my favorites.

fwiw, i have a beard but not a horse

s

LSD72 · « **Reply #65 on:** February 01, 2010, 13:41 »

Even though it is only $1.20.... I got the money in Paypal today. Pretty fast to pay up. Sweet. Now... NEED MORE SALES

epantha · « **Reply #66 on:** February 01, 2010, 14:19 »

Oh my gosh!
Finally got my first sale for $2.40 after months of nothing.
I have 293 photos online and 25,363 product views.
Guess I'll keep uploading the rest of my portfolio and hope for more uploads this year.

m@m · « **Reply #67 on:** February 01, 2010, 14:33 »

Congrats! Epantha...sales are kind of low for me in the new year, but they did OK last year...I'm very hopeful about this site

camera shy · « **Reply #68 on:** February 01, 2010, 15:12 »

I'm hoping they do well too. They are quick to communicate and seem to care about their contributors, unlike some of the others.

gbcimages · « **Reply #69 on:** February 01, 2010, 15:32 »

Jan was the first month without any sales,800 + images and over 64,000 views. joined 9/15/09/ 6 sales. I hope it gets better then this

gubh83 · « **Reply #70 on:** February 03, 2010, 15:23 »

Matt Anderson from The3dStudio has answered some question on a quick interview I've made with him. Check it out on my blog: http://stockillustrator.blogspot.com/

Phil · « **Reply #71 on:** February 08, 2010, 04:58 »

does their system read iptc? (or just for me that it doesnt?)

Ivelin Radkov · « **Reply #72 on:** February 08, 2010, 05:32 »

It works for me

oboy · « **Reply #73 on:** February 08, 2010, 09:20 »

Works for me too.

Phil · « **Reply #74 on:** February 08, 2010, 15:09 »

ok thanks

Ivelin Radkov · « **Reply #75 on:** February 10, 2010, 03:47 »

I got my first sale - $7,20 !
Total active products - 152
Total product views - 7,941

sharpshot · « **Reply #76 on:** February 10, 2010, 04:57 »

Quote from: gubh83 on February 03, 2010, 15:23

Matt Anderson from The3dStudio has answered some question on a quick interview I've made with him. Check it out on my blog: http://stockillustrator.blogspot.com/

They still haven't answered the one question I have asked a few times. When will they stop asking for an ITIN number? They are the only site asking me for the ITIN number now, there is no way I am spending time and money on that just for them. I don't want 30% of my earnings withheld when there isn't a need for it. As soon as they sort that out, I will start uploading.

Ivelin Radkov · « **Reply #77 on:** February 10, 2010, 11:23 »

I don't want 30% of my earnings withheld,too! On the other sites I lose only 5% on the US sales with no need of ITIN !

luissantos84 · « **Reply #78 on:** February 10, 2010, 11:57 »

Hi! Got also my first sales at 3D, got 1555 photos there..!

I have signed the contract and I am earning 70%, got 2 L sizes sales, 8.4$ for each!

hope that many come, I have also contacted Matt from 3D and we need the ITIN to get the tax treaty, in my case 10% for Portugal! He said that other agencies that are accepting W8 without ITIN are not following well the law..

Ivelin Radkov · « **Reply #79 on:** February 10, 2010, 14:23 »

Very discouraging: -30% and -20% here in Bulgaria... $:-\$

cathyslife · « **Reply #80 on:** August 03, 2010, 07:14 »

Well, it's been a few months since anyone has reported sales on 3D. How is everyone doing?

I started uploading to them about a month and a half ago. In that time, I have had 23,000+ views and not one sale. I am thinking that it was a mistake to upload there. With over 500 photos, I would have expected at least 1 or 2 sales in that time. Soon after I started uploading, I noticed tons of photos going through the q from yuri and iofoto, to mention a few.

I am discouraged with your reports of lack of sales and my own experience and have asked that my port be taken down. I started to delete my own photos, but after about 10 it stopped me and said I had to contact support. So I don't even have control over my own portfolio. There was no mention of having to leave photos up for any specific amount of time, which is why I started uploading. Their review process seems pretty quick, so I don't think a whole lot of time has been invested by reviewers.

For those of you who posted in this thread last year and beginning of 2010, have you seen any substantial increase? Some of you have WAY more images up than I do and are still reporting no sales.

etienjones · « **Reply #81 on:** August 03, 2010, 07:25 »

With 721 files not one sale, repeat zero . . . . . I guess that says 3DS is the wrong place for me.

PS . . no vectors or 3D renders in my port.

epantha · « **Reply #82 on:** August 03, 2010, 07:36 »

I stopped uploading there and rarely check the site to see if there are sales.
354 files, 45,047 views and 2 sales since I joined almost a year ago.

dirkr · « **Reply #83 on:** August 03, 2010, 07:42 »

Close to 1000 photos, more than 85.000 views, one sale in roughly a year....
Disappointing. (Though I will not delete anything, I don't see any harm in letting the portfolio sit there and wait).

m@m · « **Reply #84 on:** August 03, 2010, 08:09 »

wrong post!

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #85 on:** August 03, 2010, 09:44 »

I got an email to post a reply here to correct some information so wanted to do that really quick...

1. On the W8BEN issue, we have no plans to change this because the IRS has no plans to change this and thus we MUST follow the laws of our country. I'd love to lose the whole tax issue as well but we are required to do it. I've had many CPAs look at this issue now (and have literally paid thousands of dollars to have this investigate) and have talked with the IRS (anyone can call the IRS to get the same info) and the bottom line is that the ONLY way to claim tax treaty benefits for a reduced rate is with an ITIN. The IRS will tell you that if you read Page 5 of the W8BEN directions...

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/iw8ben.pdf

...you will see…

You must provide a U.S. TIN if you are:
Claiming benefits under an income tax treaty

...and that's about as clear as it gets. I used the "well, here is what shutter does" and every person tells me "they are wrong". We will watch this issue closely of course.

2. @cclapper – We have a system in place called Delete Protection that allows you to add and remove products without any problems at any time. But, it will detect surges in deleting and if a bunch of items are removed all at once it will temporarily stop the deleting to protect the account in case somebody got into your account. We actually added this feature years ago after an incident with an “ex” deleting their spouses products. We then had to restore some products from a backup to fix the issue so we added that feature and over the years it’s saved a few of our members from disaster.

You see, in the world of 3D we find that sellers don’t really delete many products and most people who sell with us stay with us so it’s rare when we run into an issue where somebody is removing their entire collection. Personally, even if a collection isn’t selling well I always go with the logic of it can’t hurt to leave it and see.

3. On that note, I know a lot of people here are starting to see their sales finally pick up and we have a few who aren’t seeing many or any sales. This is perfectly normal, this is a very tough business to break into and it just takes time and has been part of our business plan from day 1. We are actually ahead of where we planned to be and growing faster than expected as well which is great news. There is a common theme when I see people reporting sales, and that’s about the money they make. Even with low sales the amount you make per sale with us is much higher than in most places. Join our loyalty program and you are making $8.40 on each large size sale. We think this is why it only makes sense to stick with us because we are growing fast and getting where we need to be but we’re not in this to make every rich overnight, that’s just not our business model.

4. I’ve actually had 2 people tell me they want to leave because we are adding people like Yuri and iofoto (many others on the way!) and that they’ll get buried and never see sales. I explained to them both that the exact opposite is true because big names bring in both buyers and sellers and that allows for fast growth all around. We’ve already seen direct impact from the addition of large collections that has brought in many more sellers and many new buyers that we otherwise wouldn’t have. These buyers don’t just buy from these big collections and instead the sales are evenly spread around to many collections (big and small). It’s the support from these big names that will end up helping us all.

sharpshot · « **Reply #86 on:** August 03, 2010, 10:22 »

Have you asked the IRS why shutterstock, veer, bigstock and fotolia don't ask for an ITIN number? They must have some arrangement with the IRS, I still don't see why your site can't do the same. There are lots of us that wont get an ITIN number, it is time consuming, costly and we already have to deal with our own countries tax regulations.

Norebbo · « **Reply #87 on:** August 03, 2010, 10:42 »

I started uploading files there a couple months ago. About 1100 images uploaded so far, 50000+ views and one sale.

It's not performing as well as I had hoped, but I am not planning on deleting any of my files.

The3dStudioDotCom · « **Reply #88 on:** August 03, 2010, 10:59 »

@sharpshot: The IRS won't discuss any other company, but even our CPA's said something like "I wouldn't want to be shutter when they get an audit". My understanding is that taxes and W8BENs are fairly new to shutter and if that is the case they may have just done it wrong. My experience has taught me that in these businesses (in 3D as well) that one company does something and the rest blindly follow under the assumption that the other company "must know what they are talking about". I see time and time again. I suppose somebody could ask shutter why they don't require the ITIN when Page 5 of the W8BEN directions clearly say you do, maybe they have offices outside the USA and sales are done outside...I really have no idea as I know nothing about those companies. For us, we have to do what the IRS and our CPA's tell us.

Getting the ITIN isn't a fun thing but most tell me it wasn't nearly as bad as they expected it to be. Of course, some don't realize they don't have to get one if they accept the 30% tax. Sounds bad but keep in mind the 30% tax is ONLY on orders placed by USA customers. Non-USA orders are NEVER taxed. For most this isn't a huge deal since around 25%-ish of our total orders are from USA customers. Personally, I'd get the ITIN as I don't like the IRS having my money but there are options

You can also sell and get sales without anything, that gives you an option to see if you want to get an ITIN or not. Since our reports show you where the order came from (by country) you'll even know what you will pay in tax (if you accept the 30%) before you get paid out. I've had others worry about this as well only to find that 90% or more of theirs sales came from non-USA customers and thus it was a non-issue for them.

@Norebbo: We really appreciate your support! It's contributors like you who are in this for the long haul that we love to have and how we really will change the way stock is bought and sold.

cathyslife · « **Reply #89 on:** August 03, 2010, 11:04 »

Thank you for the explanation about the deletion of files, Matt. That makes perfect sense.

I appreciate your responding here as well as by email.

Anita Potter · « **Reply #90 on:** August 04, 2010, 02:51 »

119 products over 12,000 views and no sales. I'm not uploading my entire port just my photos and certain large raster files because files that I have say like web buttons I'd rather sell as vector and not jpg. And until that changes I'm not uploading those.

*sigh*

This site, Cutcaster (I pulled my port down) and Big Stock are the only ones I haven't had a sale on...yet. We'll see. Maybe I need to start doing 3d as well but it's just a * high learning curve esp. when you're doing it on your own.

hofhoek · « **Reply #91 on:** October 08, 2010, 09:40 »

I joined two weeks ago and have had two sales of 1.80 each and are seeing thousands of views on my 1000+ images. I wonder how that works? I have many more to upload but when I have uploaded my last batch I will wait untill I see some more action in buying. Anyone seen any sales there the last month?

dirkr · « **Reply #92 on:** October 08, 2010, 09:44 »

Views are very high, sales are rather low.
I joined them in August 2009, had my first sale in December, then nothing. Last month suddenly two sales (one $1,20, one $7,20).
As submission is easy, the commission is fair and they are rather new in selling photos, I'll hang in there and continue to upload.

m@m · « **Reply #93 on:** October 08, 2010, 09:57 »

I got a few sales at the beginning, but not a single one in many many moons...but hey, I've got 60K views with 500+ photos on the site, I which I could take those views to the bank...LOL

IMO a complete waste of time and effort, have not uploaded anything there for a long time, and probably won't ever again unless sales and not views start coming in.

Anita Potter · « **Reply #94 on:** October 08, 2010, 11:17 »

I quit uploading. Since right now they still don't accept vectors they don't have my entire port. It mainly consists of backgrounds and some photos that I've done. Over 17,000 views with 133 images but not one sale...yet. I'll upload again once I see some life.

LSD72 · « **Reply #95 on:** October 08, 2010, 11:40 »

I got $9 sale last month. I still upload there due to ... instant acceptance and no minimum payout level. You get paid each month as long as you got something in your account. Even though they dont sell like SS...I still like how they handle the contributors.

Plus I am working on learning Z Brush for 3D so its a place I can sell models if I get the hang of it.

mantonino · « **Reply #96 on:** October 08, 2010, 12:05 »

I was selling there until all y'all joined. LOL

3ds is up & down but that's the company I refer buyers to. Good money there - and easy to link in. I like them and hope they keep growing.