What’s Your Preference?

Izzy · #1 (**permalink**) 11-14-2010, 07:43 PM

Does anyone here have experience selling on Etsy? I know of all the other clearing houses for selling your images and I am not about to pay yet more for an additional site. Besides being stuck in an ocean of other peoples images is hardly worth it. Selling in a clearing house is little better than a crap shoot.

sk66 · #2 (**permalink**) 11-14-2010, 10:18 PM

Selling your photos?
Good Luck....

zephod · #3 (**permalink**) 11-14-2010, 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Izzy

Does anyone here have experience selling on Etsy? I know of all the other clearing houses for selling your images and I am not about to pay yet more for an additional site. Besides being stuck in an ocean of other peoples images is hardly worth it. Selling in a clearing house is little better than a crap shoot.

Make em small and logo the hell out of them. If you don't then you will likely find your photo's on someones digiscrap site...

nickbedford · #4 (**permalink**) 11-14-2010, 11:29 PM

Just don't make them shit in the process. Sorry for the French, but I must admit, I've seen photo companies throw up galleries like this and the photos are very small, look quite compressed and you can barely see much detail because of the horrendous watermarking. In fact, I didn't see any photo I would want to buy based on such a small, crappy looking JPEG.

Don't make the mistake of making your work look 10 times worse than it actually is by trying to ultra protect them by using big ugly trashy watermarking and minute sized JPEGs that don't give the wow factor.

nokiN · #5 (**permalink**) 11-19-2010, 11:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Izzy

Does anyone here have experience selling on Etsy? I know of all the other clearing houses for selling your images and I am not about to pay yet more for an additional site. Besides being stuck in an ocean of other peoples images is hardly worth it. Selling in a clearing house is little better than a crap shoot.

Just because are images online isn't going to sell them.

You have to promote the snot out of whatever site you wind up using.

That means you need to know online marketing, online promotion, and online sales techniques that work.

Regardless the web site you use, there are literally billion of images online that you will be competing for eyes with.

Something else to ponder is that 85% of the images online that do sell, have people in them.
So, if your images are landscapes, nature shots, sunsets, or any other genere of image that is devoid people, don't get your hopes up.

I do much better by putting my best no-people-in-them images in galleries that cater to business and corporate clients that collect art.

Jim Bryant · #6 (**permalink**) 11-20-2010, 12:27 AM

Unfortunately, we are in a what-the-market-will-bear situation these days, unless you're offering something that's hard to replicate elsewhere. I long ago gave up submitting for single-image stock requests for editorial / retail uses as the rates just don't justify the time it takes. I feel bad letting these opportunities slip by, but realize that even if I do make the sale I'm earning, literally, just a few bucks. Spinning wheels to jump through hoops, try to negotiate a specific usage vs. an all-rights grab, and finally deliver a file for $10, $20, or even $50 makes me so mad that it's actually counterproductive. I can't make a living doing that, so even when I win. . . I lose.

I've personally decided that it's better for me and my business to take that frustration off my plate and save my stock energies for situations where the potential payoff would justify the effort, should I eventually make the sale. I find I have more energy left to put a better effort into the presentation of the images and negotiating the deal, and I'm more likely to come out ahead in the long term for not having dealt with all the nickel-and-dime situations along the way.

Niresangwa · #7 (**permalink**) 11-20-2010, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim Bryant

Unfortunately, we are in a what-the-market-will-bear situation these days, unless you're offering something that's hard to replicate elsewhere. I long ago gave up submitting for single-image stock requests for editorial / retail uses as the rates just don't justify the time it takes. I feel bad letting these opportunities slip by, but realize that even if I do make the sale I'm earning, literally, just a few bucks. Spinning wheels to jump through hoops, try to negotiate a specific usage vs. an all-rights grab, and finally deliver a file for $10, $20, or even $50 makes me so mad that it's actually counterproductive. I can't make a living doing that, so even when I win. . . I lose.

I've personally decided that it's better for me and my business to take that frustration off my plate and save my stock energies for situations where the potential payoff would justify the effort, should I eventually make the sale. I find I have more energy left to put a better effort into the presentation of the images and negotiating the deal, and I'm more likely to come out ahead in the long term for not having dealt with all the nickel-and-dime situations along the way.

Unfortunately, we are in a what-the-market-will-bear situation these days, unless you're offering something that's hard to replicate elsewhere. I long ago gave up submitting for single-image stock requests for editorial / retail uses as the rates just don't justify the time it takes. I feel bad letting these opportunities slip by, but realize that even if I do make the sale I'm earning, literally, just a few bucks. That spinning of my wheels to jump through hoops, try to negotiate a specific usage vs. an all-rights grab, and finally deliver a file for $10, $20, or even $50 makes me so mad that it's actually counterproductive. I can't make a living doing that, so even when I win. . . I lose.

I've personally decided that it's better for me and my business to take away that frustration and save my stock energies for situations where the potential payoff would justify the effort, should I eventually make the sale. I find I have more energy left to put a better effort into the presentation of the images and negotiating the deal, and I'm more likely to come out ahead in the long term for not having dealt with all the nickel-and-dime situations along the way.

starting the beers early tonight Jim?

starting the beers early tonight Jim?