valestock Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 Hi, I have just checked my stats for the period of June-July 2012 and found out that zooms and sales are down. In the past year, I almost doubled my port in size and I am receiving tons of views, 200 are normal for a working day... In the past months I had an average of 2 sales per month. Really little, I was expecting a growth at least. Please, tell me that it's just me, that Alamy is still growing and there is hope for the future! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Ventura Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 My collection may have grown by about 1000 since a year ago but my income stays roughly the same due to the lowering value of the sales. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Hi, I have just checked my stats for the period of June-July 2012 and found out that zooms and sales are down. In the past year, I almost doubled my port in size and I am receiving tons of views, 200 are normal for a working day... In the past months I had an average of 2 sales per month. Really little, I was expecting a growth at least. Please, tell me that it's just me, that Alamy is still growing and there is hope for the future! My sales numbers and income are also down from 2012. BTW, I think that expanding your captions might help. Many of them look too brief to me. I always try to use up all of the 128 characters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Buziak Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 I've uploaded only 750 images in the past year and, largely thanks to one good, and unknown, client who has made more than 30 licenses, my sales year on year remain constant. Notably, the average price has fallen somewhat, from $88 in 2012 to $81 this year. However, I'm thinking of trading my remaining old Nikon D300 camera for an artist's smock, an easel and packed of Gauloises to go with the French beret I already have. My painting output now makes me more money than photography (a painting I sold 50 years ago even popped-up on Facebook recently). And interestingly, for me at least, three licenses of my personal artwork in the past couple of years (used for art textbooks) have averaged $180 per sale. Now where are my brushes... Ed Buziak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dov makabaw Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 My average income has fallen by 13.5% while my total income has fallen by 3.5% thanks to my increased portfolio size. You seem to have to run faster and faster nowadays just to stand still. Is this a sign of the world economy or is it an irreversible trend? Increasing supply accompanied by reducing demand. dov Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pearl Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Last month I randomly looked back at April 2008. It wasn't a particularly unusual month at the time and I sold 11 images. In June 2013 I sold three times as many images but made $200 (gross) less than April 2008. It was pretty depressing when I think of all the hours of shooting and keywording that has gone on since - yes I have increased the number of sales but I feel I am pedalling backwards. Pearl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan_Andison Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 For analytical purposes comparing one month is not really that useful, unless the analysis is how well you do for that month each and every year. It's too small a sample and can be significantly effected by peaks and troughs for that year. For instance, last month was terrible for me but this month has been extremely good. The net result if you add the two months together is a steady increase. If analysis is carried out across the full year you will not only be able to confirm if the year overall is poor but also spot trends in purchasing. I'm in the process of building an analysis package that takes the data from each agency to create a database of all searches, zooms and purchases as well as recording the type of image sold. This will help me to spot patterns over time in volumes and types of images sold. In turn, this will help plan what I will shoot going forward and where to place particular types of imagery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidC Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Duncan, I admire your ambition and analytical skills immensely - would not know where to start. However, I find a chat with my accountant during a social meeting in a local pub, comparing this year with last year gives me a good pointer as to where things are going wrong - it does not help with trends which I find are just that - ever changing factors - but it is much more convivial..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan_Andison Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Duncan, I admire your ambition and analytical skills immensely - would not know where to start. However, I find a chat with my accountant during a social meeting in a local pub, comparing this year with last year gives me a good pointer as to where things are going wrong - it does not help with trends which I find are just that - ever changing factors - but it is much more convivial..... I was a credit risk analyst for 12 years analysing mortgage portfolio trends in order to determine key risks and areas of improvement. While the skills are useful here the photography is far more interesting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
valestock Posted July 24, 2013 Author Share Posted July 24, 2013 Thanks for the replies, everyone. John, in what way a longer caption could help sales? I do not see the connection, but maybe you are right... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Baker Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 .. a chat with my accountant during a social meeting in a local pub .. I can't think of anything worse! But maybe that's my problem. .. in what way a longer caption could help sales? I think it's pretty much a known that a full(er) caption will increase the likelihood of a sale. 128 characters is really not a lot of space to fill with WhoWhyWhatWhereWhen. Even the 600 for Reportage/News often feels restrictive. Rgds, Richard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morrison Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Thanks for the replies, everyone. John, in what way a longer caption could help sales? I do not see the connection, but maybe you are right... More location details for a lot of your shots? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Yes, more specifics and location info needed IMO -- e.g. a caption such as "Check-in area" isn't going to help buyers very much. Also, the Alamy engine searches captions as far as I know, so the more relevant details the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
valestock Posted July 25, 2013 Author Share Posted July 25, 2013 Thanks, everyone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Endicott Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 It's all relative. Let me present you my position. I currently have a CTR of .55 (the CTR for Alamy is .49). I haven't licensed an image since 8 March (over 4 months). My account balance is at $146.50. Even if I licensed an image later today, I probably won't see a payout until October or November. How's that for budgeting? P.S. - I'm with another agency that after issuing a sales report for the 1st quarter of 2013, it took them 2 months of begging before they paid me. My 2nd quarter report indicated I made 6 Euro...and on the 24th day of the month, I'm still waiting for my 6 Euro despite an email last Friday indicating they would send payment via Paypal "ASAP". I'm so frustrated I'm not sure how to proceed. I know for sure I will not stop creating images. Maybe I should lock them in a closet or a rental locker until I die and someone finds them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
valestock Posted July 25, 2013 Author Share Posted July 25, 2013 Sorry to hear about your crisis, but I understand you discouragement.... I don't know, I gave myself 5 years or microstock and art photos to become something important in my life. I can stand micro improvements on daily basis, but not delining while buting my ass uploading every day.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WPL Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 Compared to last year my overall stock earning from that month were 7.4 times higher. Unfortunately Alamy has only been a small part of the increase. I also have a tiny number of shots with Getty (about 100 times less) and some months am making almost the same from Getty as Alamy. Just not that comfortable putting loads of work with an exclusive with the way the market is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
valestock Posted July 25, 2013 Author Share Posted July 25, 2013 Interesting...what is the deal with Getty? You still have to be invited to join? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WPL Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Interesting...what is the deal with Getty? You still have to be invited to join? Personally got in the back door via the Photolibrary buy out. Think you can still apply though. It is a long time between adding material and getting sales, way longer than Alamy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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