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Author Topic: How to increase sales on Shutterstock  (Read 7209 times)

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« on: December 26, 2016, 04:29 »
0
Hi guys,

I am new to microstockgroup and was wondering if I can get some help.

I am a Vector artist and specialize in designing Icons. I started working on my portfolio 2 years ago and now I have around 54,000 icons published on Shutterstock. I have devised a model through which I can upload an average of 1,500-2,000 icons per month.

I am looking for any tips / suggestions that can help me increase my sales as I grow my portfolio and add more images.

Regards,
IconBunny


« Reply #1 on: December 26, 2016, 04:56 »
+7
Hmmmm, seriously?
I have a strong suspicion what kind of answers you'll get below.....

« Reply #2 on: December 26, 2016, 06:07 »
+3
Let's see, you make 1 file with 1 icon, and now you have 54.000 images, I have a tip for you, increase your quality and don't publish 1 icon per file,  is a favor for you and us

Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #3 on: December 26, 2016, 07:15 »
+4
It looks like your best sellers are quite different from one another. That should give you some idea of how to proceed. I don't think doing thousands of slight variations of the same icon will bring you a very large increase in sales.

gyllens

« Reply #4 on: December 26, 2016, 07:21 »
0
I cant help answering this one!  but when you finally have taken and done all the advice given here and uploaded your absolute best content and keyworded it all to perfection and spent hours on end in post-processing.

Guess what............. along comes a search change not in your favour and all your hard work will be for nothing. Youre back to square one. :)

memakephoto

« Reply #5 on: December 26, 2016, 11:51 »
+1
I was going to write a big long sarcastic essay about the secret thing we all do to get tons of sales on SS but that's just too much work.

Don't you think if there was some way to increase sales, other than the obvious** we'd all be doing it?

** upload good quality commercially valuable work on a regular basis.

« Reply #6 on: December 26, 2016, 12:10 »
+1
I was going to write a big long sarcastic essay about the secret thing we all do to get tons of sales on SS but that's just too much work.

Don't you think if there was some way to increase sales, other than the obvious** we'd all be doing it?

** upload good quality commercially valuable work on a regular basis.
I just rely on the search engine to take control of the buyers PC to purchase images they don't want

SpaceStockFootage

  • Space, Sci-Fi and Astronomy Related Stock Footage

« Reply #7 on: December 26, 2016, 12:51 »
+2
I think there's another key to more sales which is relevant to this thread, on top of the 'upload more work and upload better work' advice, which I do agree with. Variety.

I tried to come up with some kind of math to explain it, but I was confusing even myself... but I'm pretty sure I'm right!

So you've got a picture of a cat and it sells 100 times a month. So you think hey, this cat vibe is the way to go, I'll upload another photo of this cat. But the thing is, you're very unlikely to then get 100 photos of the cat in pose A an 100 photos of the cat in pose B. The person that would have normally seen your one cat photo now has a choice of A or B. if they only wanted one cat image then they're not going to buy two just because two are available... they'll buy A or they might now buy B instead of A.

Yes, having another cat photo gives you (on average) a better chance of them buying one of your cat photos, rather than somebody else's, but I can't see you doubling your sales as a result of that.

However, if that pose B was a picture of a dog instead, that could result in an additional 100 sales per month. I mean you've got your cat image to appeal to the cat buyers and you've got your dog image to appeal to the dog buyers. If you have too many similar images then you're just cannibalising your own sales.

I'm not saying don't upload more stuff that's similar to existing stuff you have that sells well... choice is always good, but variety might be the spice of microstock. I can talk, as the majority of my stuff is space stuff, but I try and cram in a bunch of variety within that niche.

Anyway, I could be completely wrong, but I'm confident that a cat and a dog in the hand is worth two cats in the bush. Or something like that. 

« Reply #8 on: December 26, 2016, 13:09 »
+1
With icons you are a needle in a haystack.
You need a niche, and with icons there is no niche.
Icons are waste of time.
In some years time you will believe it, not now.

« Reply #9 on: December 26, 2016, 13:14 »
0
I think there's another key to more sales which is relevant to this thread, on top of the 'upload more work and upload better work' advice, which I do agree with. Variety.

I tried to come up with some kind of math to explain it, but I was confusing even myself... but I'm pretty sure I'm right!

So you've got a picture of a cat and it sells 100 times a month. So you think hey, this cat vibe is the way to go, I'll upload another photo of this cat. But the thing is, you're very unlikely to then get 100 photos of the cat in pose A an 100 photos of the cat in pose B. The person that would have normally seen your one cat photo now has a choice of A or B. if they only wanted one cat image then they're not going to buy two just because two are available... they'll buy A or they might now buy B instead of A.

Yes, having another cat photo gives you (on average) a better chance of them buying one of your cat photos, rather than somebody else's, but I can't see you doubling your sales as a result of that.

However, if that pose B was a picture of a dog instead, that could result in an additional 100 sales per month. I mean you've got your cat image to appeal to the cat buyers and you've got your dog image to appeal to the dog buyers. If you have too many similar images then you're just cannibalising your own sales.

I'm not saying don't upload more stuff that's similar to existing stuff you have that sells well... choice is always good, but variety might be the spice of microstock. I can talk, as the majority of my stuff is space stuff, but I try and cram in a bunch of variety within that niche.

Anyway, I could be completely wrong, but I'm confident that a cat and a dog in the hand is worth two cats in the bush. Or something like that.
Yep if on those rare occasions I have a good seller I try and load things that have some similar characteristics but not similar images e.g if its a cat at cat in a different pose or a dog in the same pose. I think it may be also worth revisiting a theme say after a gap 2-3 years. Apart from anything else I want to enjoy doing this ;-)

« Reply #10 on: December 26, 2016, 13:16 »
0
With icons you are a needle in a haystack.
You need a niche, and with icons there is no niche.
Icons are waste of time.
In some years time you will believe it, not now.
I don't the figures but people seem to turn out vast quantities at minimal cost and they seem to carry on so I'm guessing they can earn money...personally I think it would fry my brain.

« Reply #11 on: December 26, 2016, 13:17 »
0
This cat-dog is good theory but I'm not sure, it works. For example, I uploaded a vector set of some chemical warning signs, and it was selling really well, so I thought I should make another set with some additional warning signs, thinking, if buyers see and download first set, they will for sure download a second set with more (similar) signs so I'd get double sales. Well this wasn't the case, it very rarely happened, that buyers downloaded both sets.
My conclusion: buyers wont download files that don't need. So if they need a photo of a cat, they most of the time will not also download photo of a dog.

At least that's my experience.

« Reply #12 on: December 26, 2016, 13:24 »
0
This cat-dog is good theory but I'm not sure, it works. For example, I uploaded a vector set of some chemical warning signs, and it was selling really well, so I thought I should make another set with some additional warning signs, thinking, if buyers see and download first set, they will for sure download a second set with more (similar) signs so I'd get double sales. Well this wasn't the case, it very rarely happened, that buyers downloaded both sets.
My conclusion: buyers wont download files that don't need. So if they need a photo of a cat, they most of the time will not also download photo of a dog.

At least that's my experience.
I think you are often right its back to the old adage 50% of my work is a waste of time but I don't know which 50%. Many times I have thought I'm on to something only to be proved wrong. Yes they might want a cat or they might want a cute pet. It may not be the best analogy but the principal is there may be something about the image that buyers like not just the obvious subject matter.

« Reply #13 on: December 26, 2016, 13:28 »
0
The thing is, my second set was also selling well, but buyers who downloaded first set didn't download second, and buyers, who downloaded second set didn't download first one. It happened that both were downloaded, but was extremly rare....

« Reply #14 on: December 26, 2016, 16:46 »
+1
The thing is, my second set was also selling well, but buyers who downloaded first set didn't download second, and buyers, who downloaded second set didn't download first one. It happened that both were downloaded, but was extremly rare....
Don't have to be same buyers as long as there is something about the pics that makes someone want to buy them ;-).

« Reply #15 on: December 27, 2016, 01:13 »
0
if you have an icon and it sells well, make more variations on that icon and you will have found a niche.

when you know what sells, make more of that. it works.

make sure your keywords are accurate and unique.


 

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