I'm still exclusive on iStock. I wonder if a couple of SS veterans would mind having a look at my iStock portfolio and letting me know if I would do well on SS with my portfolio and the type of work I shoot?

I know this is a hard question, especially since helping someone new is technically helping the competition. I'm hoping someone won't mind having a look. it is just good information to have should the decision be in the foreground again.

Studio10, that definitely isn't correct information. .
Stacey, I think that you would do very well with your portfolio at SS if you upload in the correct way there which is trickle your portfolio up slowly there instead of all at once.   This keeps the attention on your images and you will then keep selling all the good images. Most images sell as soon as they get in the search, good images keep on selling and average images drop never to be seen again. You have plenty of good images which should easily keep on selling. Also you need to upload images there at least weekly to keep the sales going.
I've been at this for 3 and a half years.  To get an idea of the earning potential of SS I earn more there than at IS and I am a diamond at  IS. The place that I earn the most is Fotolia but that takes years to get to that level of earnings whereas at SS it can be as soon as your whole portfolio is up.
DT is a good site too but I only make about half what I do at the others and that also takes time to earn good money because of a tiered earnings systems where each image earns more the more it sells.
I hope that help and good luck whatever you decide.

 

Stacy

I am not the veteran you ask for - sorry for barging in... But, did I read somewhere that an istock exclusive that chooses non-exclusive will loose all photos uploaded since exclusivity? They all need to be uploaded and reviewed again as a non-exclusive? I hope that is incorrect because that seems harsh. If it is true then in my opinion I would definitely stay as you are. The build would be slow everywhere else and it would take a long time to get back to the sales you are used to. But again... My port is way smaller than yours, I base this only on what I read in forums.

the information about removing your portfolio is misinformation. Rob Sylvan already posted the correction about this issue in a previous thread. no files are removed.

thank you for the other points. I am a constant uploader, I work freelance full-time, so I have the opportunity to produce images constantly. I had already presumed that constant, slow uploading would be the best approach at SS, so thanks fotografer for that info.

I didn't think I would question exclusivity so soon again. but now that 2.0 is rolled out over here, I'm feeling discouraged and a bit war weary and frankly tired of thinking about. a colleague recently said 'screw it, just take the plunge" and maybe that's the way to go.

it is FAR too early to make any judgments about the new best match, but at the same time, it would be nice to have things spread out a bit so it doesn't feel so acute and probably easier to go non-exclusive when things are down. I have close to 2,500 files that were selling about 40 - 60 a day, and I am down to 10-15 dls a day now. my income is down to 1/3 of what is consistently was at last year even though I have close to 1,000 newer, better files. I am about to hit gold, so I should probably wait for that...then again, I had originally projected that I would be gold at the end of December '08. probably tw weeks I will be gold, if I maintain my measley 10-15 dls a day.

we'll see. thanks so much for the information.

^ thank you, yeah, I would not dump my whole portfolio in at once...I would slowly add it. we'll see,, even if I decide, I have to wait 30 days. makes me kind of mad that I didn't just do it two months ago, I would already be getting established. I think I'll wait for gold and another few weeks and see what happens. for all I know, sales might really pick up.

I can't even really complain because frankly, the new best match at IS is pretty fantastic, it does exactly what it should. so, I think I might just have to cut my losses. I'm pretty sure the majority of my portfolio is lost in iStock limbo. all the changes they made, it is no wonder. who knows what to do now. I don't think there is much a contributor can do to control the sale of their files. and it seems with the new system that once a file is lost, it is just gone.

I have also noticed lately that most of the big Canadian newspapers seem to buy from SS. that kind of stirred my interest again.

hi Lisa - I know I would have to really spread it around at the top 7, if I am ever brave enough to actually go non-exclusive. I'm never really off the fence when it comes to exclusivity, but sometimes the view is nicer than other times, lol. I think that once you get the bee in your bonnet, it is hard to let it go. especially since my sales are so bad at IS. I don't really know what else I can do to fix the situation. I was doing so well last year, and then wham, and I just can't seem to bring sales back. now that the new best match is implemented, I think realistically that this is the new normal and I just have to deal. which is fine, but I need to get sales somewhere...I am working so bloody hard and the return is just not acceptable to me. it could change, and I have my fingers crossed.

thanks for the kind words about my portfolio and for your support, as always :-)

exclusivity, like Lisafx said, is an ongoing decision. yes, last month I had made the decision to remain exclusive. two benchmarks I had in mind were going Gold, which will happen in a few weeks. and the roll out of best match 2.0. which has just happened.

I'm not going to jump to conclusions about performance this week being related to 2.0. I had only 9 dls today. that is typical for a Sunday for me, certainly not for a weekday. I am guessing it has little to do with the new best match. I am going to give the new best match a fair shake and it is always my preference to stay exclusive at iStock. I was just asking how my work would be received at SS should my sales totally dump. seems like a pretty smart thing to do, but it is not a harbinger of some huge change in my position. I want to be exclusive at IS. that is fairly obvious. I think some contributors struggle with that decision for years and I am struggling with it.

so, how is SS about posting on third party forums? as long as you behave in their forums, are you 'permitted' to ask questions in this forum without ruffling feathers at SS?

What on earth are you drinking talking about?

my question, to be more clear, was a result of a conversation I had with a colleague tonight. I was talking about the opinions we all post on this site, and that I'm sure the admins from the agencies all come here to read. and neither of us knew the SS policy on asking questions on third party sites. I have heard it is very frowned upon at Fotolia. and I just wanted to know if it is frowned upon by the SS PTB to ask questions here?

^ thank you...I was just curious. the SS forums are quite unruly, which is what prompted the discussion.

Stacey, instead of jumping the gun to quit your being exclusive with IS especially at this point when Getty has thrown a curved ball with their new relationship (re: sjlocke's thread)... you know which one i mean, as you 're there discussing it too.
... why not just try submitting editorials with DT, BigStock, Alamy?
you are, as IS exclusive , allowed to work with other sites to submit non RF, right?
i feel this might be a better option for now, if you are testing the waters. just lateral thinking, perharps a win win situation for now tentatively. at least to get a fix on how things must look for you elsewhere.

Stacey, instead of jumping the gun to quit your being exclusive with IS [...]
... why not just try submitting editorials with DT, BigStock, Alamy?
you are, as IS exclusive , allowed to work with other sites to submit non RF, right?

Just because an image is editorial doesn't mean it isn't RF.

Editorials at DT and BigStock are RF, and are not allowed under IS exclusivity.

^ you are correct. the only avenue for editorial for me right now is custom and I recently asked about submitting editorial to Getty.

But as previously mentioned, RM editorial such as on Alamy is also allowed (or even non-editorial, as long as it's RM and not similar to RF images in your iStock port). I'm sure you know this, I just want to make it clear to someone else who might be reading it who doesn't.

yeah, thanks. I looked into Alamy, but the problems they are having are a big deterrent. I don't think the ROI would be worth it. and the iStock exclusivity agreement has always freaked me out a bit. there is a lot of ambiguity, so unless I were to go non-exclusive, I won't take the chance on contributing eslewhere for RM.

smart , if it ain't broken why fix it !  8