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Agency Based Discussion => Sites that no longer exist => StockXpert.com => Topic started by: GeoPappas on March 05, 2008, 19:11

Title: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: GeoPappas on March 05, 2008, 19:11
Starting next week, a new XS size will be added and prices will be adjusted upward:

XS (new) >> 1 credit
S 1 credit >> 2 credits
M 2 credits >> 3 credits
L 3 credits >> 5 credits
XL 5 credits >> 10 credits
XXL 10 credits >> 15 credits

Here is the original forum thread:

http://www.stockxpert.com/forum.phtml?f=showtopic&n=11322
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: vonkara on March 05, 2008, 21:01
Very nice a 100% on XL. StockXpert is a place I like more and more :) If SS was able to follow a bit it would be great, but for now their price increase rumors look shamefull. I say rumors but I don't remember if it was official?
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Freedom on March 05, 2008, 22:15
Excellent!
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: DanP68 on March 05, 2008, 23:22
Wonderful news!  Thank you Geopappas.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: phildate on March 06, 2008, 00:52
This is good news and hats off to StockXpert. I love the ease of uploading there and higher commissions is definitely something to look forward to.

Shutterstock really needs to follow suit now or it will find some of the better photographers having a mass exodus. Yuri made a pretty strong comment in the forums there and I hope they take note.

Added: Yes, let hope subscription commissions raise to 45c to 50c per download. Else I will opt out
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Danicek on March 06, 2008, 01:14
I see nothing about subscription in there. If subscription does not change in price, this will result in more customers going the subscription way and us getting more 0.3 per download.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: DanP68 on March 06, 2008, 01:32
The Shutterstock decision will likely influence what StockXpert and everyone else does with subscription prices.  I could live with subscription prices at credit dominant sites if they went up to 40c-45c.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: hatman12 on March 06, 2008, 03:19
Yeah, StockXpert and 123 are waiting to see what Shutterstock do.

But whatever happens, the gap between credit pricing and subscription rewards is widening rapidly and there is a swell of photographers reacting against the idea of subscriptions per se.

What's annoying is the way that Dreamstime and StockXpert lured photographers with the promise of 50% commissions then hit those same contributors with subscriptions once their libraries had reached 1 million.  This appears to have created a bad reaction and generated rather a scathing view of those agencies.

DT and StockXpert both have the potential to be excellent agencies, but the RISK is that they alienate the contributors who provide the products they need to sell.

While we all wait to see what happens with subscription commissions at SS in May, the gap between credit pricing and subscriptions at StockXpert will be too wide for customers to ignore.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: sharpshot on March 06, 2008, 03:41
StockXpert have a subscription opt out, so I have no bad feelings about them.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: hatman12 on March 06, 2008, 03:48
Opt-out appears to have been disabled.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Pixart on March 06, 2008, 10:50
Hatman, are you looking at #6 on the my account page? 

I had decided to opt "in" for the month of March to see how it affects things... I enabled it at month end.  Now I'm checking and it's still actually disabled, and I can't change it. 

Glitch? 
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: sharpshot on March 06, 2008, 12:12
It is a glitch, they are working on it.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: madelaide on March 06, 2008, 12:24
deleted.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Eco on March 06, 2008, 13:26
So glad I opted out of subscription sales. Since I opted out I am uploading my maximum size images. Just today had my first XXL sale with an earning of $5.00. To earn that much with subscriptions I would have needed 16 downloads.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Clivia on March 06, 2008, 13:32
Why can't they exclude the largest sizes from the subscriptions? It would make a lot of people happier.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: vonkara on March 06, 2008, 13:39
Why can't they exclude the largest sizes from the subscriptions? It would make a lot of people happier.
I agree that would be making me opting-in, but I still want more than .25 or .30

.45 or .50 will be OK for me but I don't know if it's mathematically sensible.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: HughStoneIan on March 06, 2008, 13:49
So glad I opted out of subscription sales. Since I opted out I am uploading my maximum size images. Just today had my first XXL sale with an earning of $5.00. To earn that much with subscriptions I would have needed 16 downloads.


I think that says it all, Eco.  I really really wish Dreamstime offered an opt-out option.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: MicrostockExp on March 06, 2008, 14:20
Now FT really lag behind with their XXL and XXXL prices.....
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: hatman12 on March 06, 2008, 14:56
Subscriptions at StockXpert and DT are a double edged sword - on the one hand you get an increasing number of sales that pay only 30c thus diluting earnings, but on the other hand if you opt out those sales are lost and that has an effect on the popularity ranking.

The clear answer is to exclude the larger sizes from subscription, but that will never happen unless Shutterstock makes the first move.

StockXpert seemed to be doing so well but the whole tone of the place has changed since subscriptions were introduced.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Pixart on March 06, 2008, 15:46
I agree Hatman.  I have never thought of downsizing photos for StockXpert, but I am troubled by the effect opting out has on overall popularity of photos.

Eco's portfolio is a good example of how this can only hurt these agency - either by contributors downsizing photos or simply abandoning the agency that offers highrez subs.   I would expect that many people seek out Eco's work because of it's uniqueness and quality.  Wouldn't the smallish sizes drive experienced buyers to Istock, where they know they can purchase his full rez files?  It sounds like before you opted out, you downsized, is that right Eco? 

I have downsized for SS the past few months, but will this hurt me long-term?  I really think that within a couple years they will have to offer single photo sales to keep their market share.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Eco on March 06, 2008, 16:24
That is right Pixart. I did downsize my images, but not always to the extreme of say 4 MP. Previously, I limited my image sizes to a maximum of 8 MP, but now I upload the maximum size up to 16.7 MP.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: fintastique on March 22, 2008, 14:27
what price increase? anyone seen a sale at the higher prices? Its two weeks since the announcement  ???
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: MicrostockExp on March 22, 2008, 15:40
Me too did not see any price increase so far..wonder what is happening  ???
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: vonkara on March 22, 2008, 16:06
StockXpert taked all the increase :P It was written in small in the announcement
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: MicrostockExp on March 22, 2008, 16:30
Should be there very soon look at the bottom of this discussion thread:
http://www.stockxpert.com/forum.phtml?f=showtopic&n=11322

L
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: jsnover on March 22, 2008, 16:35
That thread said "some time this week" at the beginning of last week - but I still don't see it.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: vonkara on March 22, 2008, 17:35
I don't know for you all. But I think this is a great way to improve the subs downloads. At least the numbers of account who will download by subscriptions. But at the same time the price increase can recover this situation. I opted out for subs, so I think it can hurt as I continu to be out, but I'm not completely sure
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: steve-oh on March 25, 2008, 08:20
Hi guys,

Price increase is in effect now. Sorry for the delay. Took longer than expected to create the XS files, and we wanted to launch on a Monday rather than a holiday weekend. :)

Enjoy!
-Steve
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: leaf on March 25, 2008, 08:21
great! good to see prices going up a little.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: MicrostockExp on March 25, 2008, 10:14
Thanks for the update Steve !
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Gregor909 on March 25, 2008, 12:20
This is funny! Now I have eps files for 10 credits but you can also buy a jpg for 15 credits.
Do buyers realise they can open an eps file in photoshop and make the size XXXXXXXXXXXL ?  ;D
I did have a few XL sales already!
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: cphoto on March 25, 2008, 13:36
That's indeed a great move from StockXpert and I welcome the news.

BUT lately I noticed that most of my increasing sub sales (99%) are for L or XL and my decreasing regular sales are most of the time for S or M.

I wonder if some existing users are not converting to subscriptions so that for the price of a couple of XL, or XXL and they can get 25 larger size image using subscription model?

If they don't raise or change the way sub works, I think more traditional users might move to sub, which would turn into less profit us.

What do you guys think?  It's even a bigger problem when you invested in professional equipment like a 21MP camera, of course you don't want to give away anything larger than say 5MP for 30 cents! 
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: lisafx on March 25, 2008, 15:25
Boy, I am loving the new prices.  My total $ today on Stockxpert is roughly double what it would usually be.   Very happy to have received $5 apiece for three XL sales.  :D

Thanks a lot for the hefty raise guys!!

Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: madelaide on March 25, 2008, 20:27
New prices are a treat, but unless subs prices get higher, the new pricing makes subs more attractive for a more frequent buyer.

Regards,
Adelaide
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: CofkoCof on March 25, 2008, 20:51
Will have to wait at least another month before I can see how I like the prices since they rejected my appliacation :(
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: epixx on March 25, 2008, 22:31
New prices are a treat, but unless subs prices get higher, the new pricing makes subs more attractive for a more frequent buyer.

Regards,
Adelaide

With one month subs costing just 20 XL size photos, and a year only 150 photos, the whole thing is just a joke. Until 3 years ago, I used to run a small graphic design agency, and we often needed 20 hi-res photos per week. For larger design or advertising agencies, subscriptions at this level equals getting the photos for free. The cost is simply insignificant.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: fotografer on March 26, 2008, 02:26
I have to agree with Lisa,  I'm also loving it.  My average price per download yesterday was 1.75$.  I've never got that anywhere else although I expect that the average will gradually go down if more people buy subs. For those of you that opted out the average price per dl will stay high but number of sales will probably go down.

Boy, I am loving the new prices.  My total $ today on Stockxpert is roughly double what it would usually be.   Very happy to have received $5 apiece for three XL sales.  :D

Thanks a lot for the hefty raise guys!!


Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Karimala on March 26, 2008, 03:45
Holy cow!  13% of my income for the month so far was earned yesterday!  Hopefully this signals the end of my downward spiral since subscriptions were introduced.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: stokfoto on March 26, 2008, 14:18
New prices are a treat, but unless subs prices get higher, the new pricing makes subs more attractive for a more frequent buyer.

Regards,
Adelaide

With one month subs costing just 20 XL size photos, and a year only 150 photos, the whole thing is just a joke. Until 3 years ago, I used to run a small graphic design agency, and we often needed 20 hi-res photos per week. For larger design or advertising agencies, subscriptions at this level equals getting the photos for free. The cost is simply insignificant.

totally agree with the comments above but I must say I love new prices and my sales suddenly boosted(and today  is my best day of the month) I guess that is side effect of price increase ,which was also the case when IS put the prices up:) I can't complain.but once again yes it would make a lot more sense if they either get rid of the sub system or increase the prices significantly otherwise I don't know how long this dream would last.
 
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: madelaide on March 26, 2008, 17:19
Got two L sales paying me US$2.50 each.  I'm loving it!  ;D

Regards,
Adelaide
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: DanP68 on March 26, 2008, 22:59
Things have been painfully slow for me this month at StockXpert, but I have to say they gave me the "wow moment of the week."  One sale today, XL size, $5.00!   :o

I didn't even realize my 30D 8.1MP qualified for XL size.  At those commissions, the earnings per sale sure make up for the slow volume.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Gregor909 on April 01, 2008, 00:01
Wow this is unbelievable!
I actually had a XXL sale today....$7.50.
I almost feel sorry for these buyers. Why don't they buy the EPS file for $5.00???
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: GeoPappas on April 01, 2008, 08:44
Wow this is unbelievable!
I actually had a XXL sale today....$7.50.
I almost feel sorry for these buyers. Why don't they buy the EPS file for $5.00???

Maybe they don't have Adobe Illustrator.
Title: Re: StockXpert Announces Price Increase
Post by: Freezingpictures on April 01, 2008, 08:46
They do not need Adobe Illustrator, I can open EPS files with Elements, I just have to type in how big I want the file to be, before it opens. But maybe they do not know or do not have even Elements.