Are There Benefits to Having Multiple Pseudonyms?

[Pearl]

 

 

I've only just recently created a pseudonym, mainly for images that are not doing well or that don't seem to fit into my main collection. It's a bit early to judge whether or not this move has improved the CTR of my main collection, although it consistently remains above the Alamy average. One thing I do notice, though, is because the new pseudo has not had any zooms yet (CTR = 0), my "Average CTR" is half of my "Total CTR." I don't know if this adversely affects overall Alamy rank. If it does, then wouldn't having multiple badly performing pseudonyms make matters even worse?

Yes, that seems to make using multiple pseudonyms pretty self-defeating in your case, the successful one being dragged down by the new one that has few or no sales yet.

The higher CTR one would probably still show up higher up in searches. You could consider liquidating the least successful one at some point? (But maybe the intereconnectedness of the CTR-ratings is not as clear-cut as this)

 

In my case creating a new pseudonym (and potentially one with a better CTR) could in turn also boost the other one? Still lots of questions to ponder....

 

Yes, I'm now thinking of putting everything back into my main collection and deleting the pseudonym. Guess I'll wait awhile, though, to see if things improve. It would be helpful to know if "Average CTR" is used to calculate overall rank. Have to admit, I find all this stuff to be very confusing.

There is NO OVERALL rank.  Each pseudo has it's own rank and the Average CTR and Total CTR are pretty meaningless.  Each pseudo performs independently of the other/s.  Believe me, I have used several pseudos for many years and have two that are high ranked, one in the middle and two low ranked.  It works very well if you are selective as to which images go into which pseudo.

 

Pearl

[John Mitchell]

 

 

 

I've only just recently created a pseudonym, mainly for images that are not doing well or that don't seem to fit into my main collection. It's a bit early to judge whether or not this move has improved the CTR of my main collection, although it consistently remains above the Alamy average. One thing I do notice, though, is because the new pseudo has not had any zooms yet (CTR = 0), my "Average CTR" is half of my "Total CTR." I don't know if this adversely affects overall Alamy rank. If it does, then wouldn't having multiple badly performing pseudonyms make matters even worse?

Yes, that seems to make using multiple pseudonyms pretty self-defeating in your case, the successful one being dragged down by the new one that has few or no sales yet.

The higher CTR one would probably still show up higher up in searches. You could consider liquidating the least successful one at some point? (But maybe the intereconnectedness of the CTR-ratings is not as clear-cut as this)

 

In my case creating a new pseudonym (and potentially one with a better CTR) could in turn also boost the other one? Still lots of questions to ponder....

 

Yes, I'm now thinking of putting everything back into my main collection and deleting the pseudonym. Guess I'll wait awhile, though, to see if things improve. It would be helpful to know if "Average CTR" is used to calculate overall rank. Have to admit, I find all this stuff to be very confusing.

There is NO OVERALL rank.  Each pseudo has it's own rank and the Average CTR and Total CTR are pretty meaningless.  Each pseudo performs independently of the other/s.  Believe me, I have used several pseudos for many years and have two that are high ranked, one in the middle and two low ranked.  It works very well if you are selective as to which images go into which pseudo.

 

Pearl

 

"... the Average CTR and Total CTR are pretty meaningless."

 

Interesting. Then why does Alamy provide these stats, I wonder.

[dustydingo]

There is NO OVERALL rank.  Each pseudo has it's own rank and the Average CTR and Total CTR are pretty meaningless.  Each pseudo performs independently of the other/s.  Believe me, I have used several pseudos for many years and have two that are high ranked, one in the middle and two low ranked.  It works very well if you are selective as to which images go into which pseudo.

 

 

I've only just recently created a pseudonym, mainly for images that are not doing well or that don't seem to fit into my main collection. It's a bit early to judge whether or not this move has improved the CTR of my main collection, although it consistently remains above the Alamy average. One thing I do notice, though, is because the new pseudo has not had any zooms yet (CTR = 0), my "Average CTR" is half of my "Total CTR." I don't know if this adversely affects overall Alamy rank. If it does, then wouldn't having multiple badly performing pseudonyms make matters even worse?

Yes, that seems to make using multiple pseudonyms pretty self-defeating in your case, the successful one being dragged down by the new one that has few or no sales yet.

The higher CTR one would probably still show up higher up in searches. You could consider liquidating the least successful one at some point? (But maybe the intereconnectedness of the CTR-ratings is not as clear-cut as this)

 

In my case creating a new pseudonym (and potentially one with a better CTR) could in turn also boost the other one? Still lots of questions to ponder....

 

Yes, I'm now thinking of putting everything back into my main collection and deleting the pseudonym. Guess I'll wait awhile, though, to see if things improve. It would be helpful to know if "Average CTR" is used to calculate overall rank. Have to admit, I find all this stuff to be very confusing.

 

Pearl

"... the Average CTR and Total CTR are pretty meaningless."

 

Interesting. Then why does Alamy provide these stats, I wonder.

 

Because they can? Pearl is correct, Average and Total CTR are relatively meaningless when compared to the CTR of any particular pseudo. As communicated by Alamy many times in the past, the important CTR is per pseudo, not "average" or "total" for a contributor, and unless they've changed the rules without telling us, I for one am comfortable assuming it still stands.

 

Of course, the really important question is just how important CTR is in the determination of Alamy Rank, and whether that level of importance warrants obsession to the point of constantly micro-adjusting the content of individual pseudos. Methinks not.

 

dd

[Pearl]

DustyDingo wrote

 

"Of course, the really important question is just how important CTR is in the determination of Alamy Rank, and whether that level of importance warrants obsession to the point of constantly micro-adjusting the content of individual pseudos. Methinks not."

 

I totally agree that adjusting pseudos to improve CTR is not worth the effort because I don't believe CTR counts very much towards AR.  However adjusting the content of pseudos is worthwhile based on the sales history of images in them.  Sales certainly do influence AR.

 

Pearl

[dov makabaw]

 

There is NO OVERALL rank.  Each pseudo has it's own rank and the Average CTR and Total CTR are pretty meaningless.  Each pseudo performs independently of the other/s.  Believe me, I have used several pseudos for many years and have two that are high ranked, one in the middle and two low ranked.  It works very well if you are selective as to which images go into which pseudo.

 

 

I've only just recently created a pseudonym, mainly for images that are not doing well or that don't seem to fit into my main collection. It's a bit early to judge whether or not this move has improved the CTR of my main collection, although it consistently remains above the Alamy average. One thing I do notice, though, is because the new pseudo has not had any zooms yet (CTR = 0), my "Average CTR" is half of my "Total CTR." I don't know if this adversely affects overall Alamy rank. If it does, then wouldn't having multiple badly performing pseudonyms make matters even worse?

Yes, that seems to make using multiple pseudonyms pretty self-defeating in your case, the successful one being dragged down by the new one that has few or no sales yet.

The higher CTR one would probably still show up higher up in searches. You could consider liquidating the least successful one at some point? (But maybe the intereconnectedness of the CTR-ratings is not as clear-cut as this)

 

In my case creating a new pseudonym (and potentially one with a better CTR) could in turn also boost the other one? Still lots of questions to ponder....

 

Yes, I'm now thinking of putting everything back into my main collection and deleting the pseudonym. Guess I'll wait awhile, though, to see if things improve. It would be helpful to know if "Average CTR" is used to calculate overall rank. Have to admit, I find all this stuff to be very confusing.

 

Pearl

"... the Average CTR and Total CTR are pretty meaningless."

 

Interesting. Then why does Alamy provide these stats, I wonder.

Because they can? Pearl is correct, Average and Total CTR are relatively meaningless when compared to the CTR of any particular pseudo. As communicated by Alamy many times in the past, the important CTR is per pseudo, not "average" or "total" for a contributor, and unless they've changed the rules without telling us, I for one am comfortable assuming it still stands.

 

Of course, the really important question is just how important CTR is in the determination of Alamy Rank, and whether that level of importance warrants obsession to the point of constantly micro-adjusting the content of individual pseudos. Methinks not.

 

dd

 

I have multiple pseudos and review these after each re-ranking ie 3 times pa. I transfer non performing pix into my non performing pseudo and find that in this way my main pseudos stay on the first few pages of the BHZ sort while my non perfoming pseudo is on the last 2 pages. If and when a non performing pic gets a sale or zoom it is promoted to an intermediary pseudo. It works for me and doesn't take up too much time. I guess the decider is where you are in the rankings.

 

dov

[Ger Bosma]

dd

I have multiple pseudos and review these after each re-ranking ie 3 times pa. I transfer non performing pix into my non performing pseudo and find that in this way my main pseudos stay on the first few pages of the BHZ sort while my non perfoming pseudo is on the last 2 pages. If and when a non performing pic gets a sale or zoom it is promoted to an intermediary pseudo. It works for me and doesn't take up too much time. I guess the decider is where you are in the rankings.

 

dov

 

 

 

Sounds like a good strategy indeed, even though it means diligently tracking the performance of all your images in all your pseudos.

First I will probably do some keyword analysis of what is the most frequently requested in terms of wildlife, create a new pseudo and start adding images in those categories that stand out in thumbnail instantly and therefore - if seen - are likely to be at least zoomed in on.

 

Also after having scrutinized my own hits I'd say it's wise to (as much as possible) avoid using generic or ambiguous keywords (ones leading to hits, while someone is clearly not looking for wildlife images).

 

See how that turns out

 

Different question: is it easy to transfer images back and forth between pseudonyms? Is the transition instantaneous?

[John Morrison]

Not sure why, but when I joined Alamy I called myself "Susan", the name on my birth certificate but I've always been known as "Sue".  Even on my driving licence and (now expired) passport I'm Sue.  So, I'd like to alter my one and only pseudonym without losing my ranking.  I don't have enough images up to merit multiple pseudonyms and I'd rather spend my time trying to submit more images.  But I guess I'll have to remain as Susan.........

 

I refer you to the songs of Johnny Cash...

[Sue Norwood]

 

 

Not sure why, but when I joined Alamy I called myself "Susan", the name on my birth certificate but I've always been known as "Sue".  Even on my driving licence and (now expired) passport I'm Sue.  So, I'd like to alter my one and only pseudonym without losing my ranking.  I don't have enough images up to merit multiple pseudonyms and I'd rather spend my time trying to submit more images.  But I guess I'll have to remain as Susan.........

 

I refer you to the songs of Johnny Cash...

 

Was thinking the same, but didn't dare to mention it   LOL

Love that song

 

Cheers,

Philippe

 

Ummm......... a great name for songs...either Johnny Cash or Dion DiMucci...perhaps I should use my middle name.

 

Sue

[Lindasj2]

Very new here...so have a lot to learn.

 

I was wondering, if you create a number of pseudonyms, when someone views your image and then clicks on your pseudonym they only see what is in the current pseudonym where the image was placed.

 

Is there a way that person could see your whole portfolio if they wanted to?

[Alex Todd]

If you click on the number under your name <--- your whole portfolio will show therefore it's easy for clients to go from one of your pseudonyms to find your whole portfolio.

[Pearl]

If you click on the number under your name <--- your whole portfolio will show therefore it's easy for clients to go from one of your pseudonyms to find your whole portfolio.

Surely that is only if the client is looking at the forum where you have posted.  I don't know of any way of getting from a pseudonym to the whole collection.  Perhaps I am missing something.

 

Pearl

[wiskerke]

Maybe register as an agency. If the client clicks on the agency name below the pseudo, he/she will get the whole collection of that agency.

 

e.g. DEMJ1B

 

Click on Alvaro Leiva: you will see that pseudo's collection (12,179 images)

Click on age fotostock Spain SL and you will see that agency's whole collection (786,927 images)

 

wim

 

edit: some contributors include their name in the keywords, they are clickable, so if your name or brand is unique enough, the client will get just your complete collection if he/she clicks on it or searches for it.

[Alex Todd]

 

If you click on the number under your name <--- your whole portfolio will show therefore it's easy for clients to go from one of your pseudonyms to find your whole portfolio.

Surely that is only if the client is looking at the forum where you have posted.  I don't know of any way of getting from a pseudonym to the whole collection.  Perhaps I am missing something.

 

Pearl

 

 

Yeah, they would need to do a bit of digging but it is possible. That's the reason given by a whole load of the posters from the old forum not joining up here.

[Lindasj2]

Thank you wiskerke, I will add my name.  I'm glad at this point I am only starting and only have a few up and ready to add to.  It seems there should be a way for a customer to see your whole port from zooming on a single image.  I also wish I could add an image to more than 1 pseudo's collection.  For instance.  I would like all my lighthouses to be in a collection, but I would also like for them to be included in the country or state in which it was taken.  Both places would be applicable.

[Joe Gaul]

I had intended to delete older images which I don't believe cut it any more on reaching a certain number of pics but the pseudo route may be another option.

If I had news upload privileges (which I don't so news goes to Demotix and ends up on Corbis) or archival upload privilages (applied for but got no reply so they also go elsewhere) then I would find a different pseudo for each route useful. Otherwise the Titanic deck chair analogy seems appropriate.

[Dyn Llun]

I know a few artist friends (mostly painters but also one potter) who have pseudonyms. They sell their 'serious' work through prestigious galleries under their own name but also sell 'pot boilers' of a very different, more populist style under a pseudonym. They maintain it avoids confusion and retains their serious identity in the more up-market side of the gallery business.

 

I never bothered. For many years before sales of my 'serious' work began to take off through 'serious' galleries I did all sorts of photography to support myself and this work. I was just always me. Caused a few chuckles from time to time though. A couple came to me to have their portraits made and after the sitting told me that there was another Pete Davis in the area who was a photographer. They didn't go to him, they said, because "He only photographs old rusty tin sheds"! I replied that they were probably right and had made the correct choice. They were happy with the portraits so they never realised. 

[digi2ap]

For many years before sales of my 'serious' work began to take off through 'serious' galleries I did all sorts of photography to support myself and this work. I was just always me. Caused a few chuckles from time to time though. A couple came to me to have their portraits made and after the sitting told me that there was another Pete Davis in the area who was a photographer. They didn't go to him, they said, because "He only photographs old rusty tin sheds"! I replied that they were probably right and had made the correct choice. They were happy with the portraits so they never realised. 

 

Haha…..great anecdote.

[Paulstw]

I have now put all my Alamy News images into one, proper stock into one and one for ones that don't have releases. The Alamy News pseudo is my best performing one with the most sales, views and CTR. Wouldn't have thought that. 

[M.Chapman]

If you are thinking about creating a new pseudo, one thing to consider is creating a name for your pseudo using a made up word (or combination of words and letters without spaces) that doesn't produce any hits on Google. This makes searching for usages much easier (no false hits), especially if you include -alamy.com -allcanadaphotos.com -dijitalimaj.com -worksinprint.com in your search string and put you pseudo in quotes to force a more exact search.

 

Also bear in mind that it's worth trying to create something sensible, distinctive and memorable. This may help customers remember you and the apprearance of credit lines will help promote your collection.

 

Mark