Thanks everyone for the kind feedback!  I read the forums and try to apply what I learn, but I'm such a newbie at the selling side of this that there's usually little I can offer that would be of help to anyone.  So, my thanks to Leaf and all of you for the opportunity to contribute anything that may be of help to all of you.  Your posts and the generous spirit of sharing your knowledge is very much appreciated as well.  Glad to help or share whatever info/resources I have on my end with all of you.   

@ Pixart ... thanks for the tip about referrals.  Unfortunately, I can't participate in them because when I recommend a photographer's portfolio to a client, or when I'm asked for my opinion by either the client or designer when they are choosing images, it has to be clear that I will not benefit one way or the other.  I work as an independent consultant, so my recommendations are what I get paid for, so I can't risk losing their confidence if it appears that I could be influenced by referral commissions.  Sometime in the future ... when I retire perhaps, I would certainly consider joining the referral programs.  Thanks so much for mentioning it though!   

@ Hospitalera ... Big "Hi!" to you Sy!   You and Lisafx were among the first gems I discovered in land of microstocks.  Your work continues to impress me and inspire me.  Thank you for all the tips and info you've shared that helped encourage me to try this from the other side.   

Good luck and good sales to all!

Quote from: jeffclow on March 19, 2008, 13:38
Interesting commentary......and the comments about Flickr made me smile since that's where I got my "start" in stock photography.

A kind commentator on one of my shots told me he thought that the image I'd uploaded to Flickr was a good stock shot...and suggested I explore microstock.  I did and it led to several thousand sales over the last 18 months.....all because of one Flickr comment.

Okay,  I'm one of those newbies armed with a starter d-SLR, so I probably have no business jumping in here ... but I saw Jeff Clow's name and had to read the thread.  Jeff was one of my first "contacts" at Flickr almost 3 years ago.  His work, his photography skill, and his kindness towards this total putz with a point-n-shoot in her hand was tremendously encouraging and inspiring.  It still is.  Hi, Jeff ... remember me ... the squirrel lady?

Same thing happened to me, on a much lower scale of skill and volume.  I never had any intention of selling photos when I joined Flickr in April 2005.  My hard drive crashed and I wanted a place on-line where I could store some of my favorite photos in case it ever happened again.  I got much more than I bargained for ... met a lot of nice people, learned more than I could have ever imagined there was to know about photography .. and still have a lot to learn ... and crazy as it sounds, people would contact me every month wanting to use or buy some of my photos of squirrels and birdfeeders.  Go figure?!?  I was giving them away free for non-commercial use, and still do for non-profits that benefit animals or children.  Then a TV production company contacted me through Flickr and wanted to buy some of my shots "exclusive and in perpituity..."  That was too much legal talk for me, so I submitted them to a microstock basically just to broker the deal and thought that would be the end of it.  I'm sure I only got accepted because I came with a buyer in hand ... lol!  I submitted a some more shots and for the next 3-4 months got shot down on just about anything I uploaded ... but in the course of those rejections I learned how to take much better photos. 

I truly hope that those of us who are amateurs and hobbyists will not dilute the pool or hurt those who have more experience and large portfolios.  I'd like to believe that in some way, small though it may be, that we can contribute something to the industry that might also help bring in niche markets and new buyers to microstocks in general.  Since I started doing this in Nov 06, a number of my clients who had never even heard of microstocks before have now become avid buyers.  They can now afford to change and refresh the image content on their marketing materials in ways that were impossible or too costly to do so before. 

I appreciate the opportunity to offer my small portfolio for sale, but I don't think I would have stayed with it if sales hadn't come along with commensurate learning.  So, I agree that the dreck and the one's looking to earn a quick buck will fall by the wayside.  And I don't think folks like me who sell random shots of squirrels, cars, flags, etc. will ever adversely affect sales of someone like Yuri ... but there are buyers who need something as simple as shots of a backyard birdfeeder.  And I hope in that way, we rookies and newbies can help keep and bring new buyers to the microstock marketplace.

@ Jeff ... I still find great inspiration in all your Flickr photos ... "A frog's life" set still stands out in my mind as an all-time favorite!  Thanks again for your many kind comments, encouragement, and tips!

Wishing continued success and many sales to all!

Teri

Quote from: leaf on March 16, 2008, 22:41
hey terifrancis are you a designer (a buyer) as apposed to a seller?  It would be nice to hear from that side of the fence once in a while.

Hi Leaf ... sorry it took so long to reply, busy work week! 

Yes, I am actually both a buyer and a rookie seller.  My background is in marketing and PR ... been in the business since 1984, putting together text and graphic compositions (my specialty is the text) mostly for ads, menues, brochures, newsletters, corporate reports, promos, presentations, and in the last 7-8 years some short and complex video presentations.  I've done some web designs--not my favorite thing to do, but it keeps my pet squirrel eating plenty of walnuts. 

For the most part, I recommend images, lightboxes, and specific artist's portfolios to my clients.  They usually do the buying and retain verification and certificate of purchased licenses.  But there are a some non-profits and other organizations that I work with where there's a regular transition of administrative or elected officers every couple of years, so in those cases I will buy the licenses and retain them with all the legal documents in their file ... basically so we don't have to go hunting down someone from 5-10 years ago to keep track of the licenses and/or receipts of purchase. 

Most of my clients lean more towards photos than illustrations, but they do buy both.  Each project is vastly different from the next, both in size and complexity ... some projects can require 5-8 photos, others 20-30.  There was one case in which the client purchased approx. 90 small low-res images to see what would work best as we staged through the layout and final page designs ... at the end of the day, only 23 made the final cut and were re-purchased for the appropriate size and licensing rights. 

Microstocks have made it affordable for my clients and many small business owners to update their content more frequently.  Studies have shown that using fresh images with familiar branding or messaging increases new customer response and usually rekindles past customer interest. 

Microstocks have also helped bring more awareness and interest for midstock quality images.  Four years ago, some of my folks would have balked at the idea of paying $50 - $300 for RF licensing of an image -- one that might be used in their marketing material for a period of three months to one year.  Now, because they've seen what microstock images can do for their promotions and campaigns, many of them consider it a worthwhile investment if they have a specific vision and want to strike a finely targeted audience or marketplace. 

I wish I could tell you the magic answer of what buyers are looking for ... but the reality is that they all need and want different things at different times.  The best perspective I can offer from a buyer standpoint is what I look for ...

1)  copyspace ... copyspace ... copyspace!  It often amazes me how many really great photographers and artists forget that their work will be used to sell something or to convey a message.  I'm a copywriter, give me room to do my work! 

2)  clipping paths, isolations, and backgrounds ... make it easy for the buyer/designer to work with your image.  Most of the time it will be composited with either a different background, additional images, and almost always with a logo or branding of some sort.  I don't look for the technically "perfect" image ... I look for clean, neat images that will be easy for both the graphic designer and myself to work with.

3)  color ... I tend to like soft, muted colors -- often monochromatic ones --that will blend well with whatever design we end up going with.  Many others though prefer bright, bold splashy colors.  Either way, keep the colors in complimentary contrasts or tonal ranges.  There are some terrific articles out there about the psychology and impact of colors on the typical consumer.  Obviously, most of you know there are certain blues that are always going to be winners ... but keep in mind that reds leaning more toward orange tones will have a more positive influence on men -- yet the same color range will often be a turn-off to female consumers.  Bright or soft yellows that fall more on the blue/green side of the spectrum will hold a woman's interest longer.  If your images are geared more towards one gender or the other, it pays to spend some time paying attention to the colors in your photos and illustrations. 

Whew!  Don't know if that's what you were looking for from the buyer's perspective or not, Leaf.  But I hope it helps.  Of course, there will be some buyer out there today looking for an image that fills the frame, with wild bokeh in the background, rich in red/orange tones intended to sell something to women ... lol! 

Best advice is to shoot or draw what you love or have a personal interest in ... I guarantee there is a marketplace for it.  I often think of my few little stock images as kids going off to college ... I've nurtured them and "brought them up" to the best of my abilities, now it's time for them to go out in the world and become whatever they will become under the influence of others.  Some will succeed and thrive, others will do okay, some will languish.  Even though your job on any stock image is finished, it's life is only just beginning in the hands a buyer ... and if you keep that in mind when shooting or drawing, I think you'll have buyers coming back to your portfolios looking for more. 

Wishing much success and continued sales to all microstockers here!   

Teri
   

Thanks again, Vikavalter!   Got the info to him. 

Wow!  That was fast!  Thanks a bunch, vikavalter! 

btw... very cool portfolio you have!  Neat images, neat use of light!  Will tag your DT portfolio in my fav's.  Thanks again!   

Hi,

Can anyone at iStock help me contact this exclusive artist?

blackred  http://www.istockphoto.com/user_view.php?id=136247

I found one of his/her illustrations in use  -- actually several times.  I think he/she might want to see it in action ... and also make sure the appropriate license has been purchased for these uses. 

My concern is that one person who bought the image (I hope they bought it!) is reproducing it with different backgrounds and selling the reprints of the illustration with their own name as the copyrighted artist.  Is that allowed if they purchased an Extended License? 

Anyway, I'm a member at iStock but I am not a contributor, so I can't sitemail BlackRed directly.  If someone is one of his/her contacts and would like to pass the info along ... I can be contacted at [email protected].

Thanks in advance to anyone who can help. 

Teri

AreaPhotography ... Thanks for the info and the link.  I took a look and liked what I saw there, so I signed up using your affiliate link ... make sure you get your referral credit 

I have a very small portfolio -- 103 at SS and DT, 175-200 at BigStock, 123, and FT.  Just about given up on CanStockPhoto and FP ... seems like small ports don't make it worth the effort to upload there. 

One of the things that I liked about BNPS is that they want smaller size pics -- at least for now.  I have some small pics that do well at the sites that accept 3mp shots, but can't submit them to SS and others because they don't meet the minimum size requirements.  So, we'll give them a chance at BNPS and see how they do there.  The bummer is that I can't submit my large illustrations, vectors, or my 10mp shots ... but maybe they will increase the max limitation if more folks with bigger ports sign-up. 

Anyway, thanks again for sharing this info.  Will keep you posted on how things go there over the next couple of months. 

Glad I could contribute something     I'm very appreciative to all those who have shared their insights, and tips with me as I stumble along the learning curve, so I'm glad to share any info I pick up along the way ... hope the 123rf freebie thing works out well for all of you as well!

Two trends that I've noticed with it  1) donating a couple of freebies right after a new batch is approved almost always results in at least one or two sales, and 2) staggering the expiration time on your freebies also helps ... i.e., I try to always have at least one freebie in the 26-30 day range, one in the 18-24 day range, one in the 9-14 day range, and one or two in the 1-7 day range.  Some buyers first browse the "newest" freebies (the last page - 28-30 day range), others first check out the ones that are about to expire (on the first page - 1-3 day range).  Those seem to get the most views and "free" downloads, often converting to a larger-size sale ... but I've been surprised how many times a freebie in the 10-20 day range gets a paid dl out of the blue.  Those surprises are always nice!

Look forward to hearing about any other trends or strategies that you notice on the favs or freebies.  Again, good luck and good sales to all!

Hi all,

Been reading the forums here for a while--this is my first post.  I'm just past my rookie year at microstock ... joined DT Nov06, 123rf in Jan07.  Submitting to DT was rough on a newbie like me, but the folks at 123rf (admin, reviewers, and members) were all very helpful and encouraging.

My first few months at 123rf resulted in 3-6 dls/mo ... one year later, my average now runs 15-18 dls/mo, with the occasional UltraHiRes sale here and there.  I know it's not much in comparison to what others are doing, but I've been very happy with the progress of the site and my own experience in learning the ropes.  Probably not a great selling site for the pro's, but for those of us just getting started it's offers a lot of incentives.  As a result of what I've learned at 123rf, my approval rating and sales have increased significantly at DT, FT and BigStock as well.

The "fav" thing definitely helps portfolio exposure/sales ... but the best tool I've found at 123rf -- and I know this will be controversial -- is their free image system.  Their free images are low res only, and you control when and how long your freebies are available.  This system has routinely resulted in X-large and UltraHiRes (at $10/dl!) sales for me.  And it's often images that would never have been seen among the many, let alone downloaded, if not for the exposure in the Free section. 

I'll gladly give up the 10-12 subs sales that any image might garner at $.36/dl (maybe $3-$4 over time) for the increased number of X-large and HiRes sales (at $4.50-$10/dl) that the freebie exposure brings to my portfolio. 

Just thought I'd add this to the discussion as it seemed no one has mentioned it yet.  Now, let's hope I didn't bring the sophomore jinx down upon my head!  Good luck and continued to success to all.