Author Topic: increase portfolio views and downloads/day (Read 5467 times)

FotografieSchnabel · « **on:** December 06, 2015, 07:17 »

Hi,

I'm thinking of ways to increase traffic to my portfolio's on SS,DTand Istock.
I recently started writing a blog with links to those ports (I write seperate blogs on DT), and I tweet and G+ some of the new images. Also I have banners for DT and SS galleries on my personal website. But despite all of this, I don't get the sales I'dd expect. But I do get plenty of views.

Any hint and tips on how to get more public?
Thanks in advance

memakephoto · « **Reply #1 on:** December 07, 2015, 17:01 »

This is microstock. The majority of buyers go to SS, DT and IS looking for specific images and are usually working under a deadline, so they find what they need by doing a search and they quickly select the image or images that suit their needs and buy them, often without knowing, or caring, who took the photo(s).

Buyers don't generally spend their time browsing through portfolios looking for photos they like, hence the importance of the search engine. That's why there are so many threads on this site about the various search engines on these agencies and possible changes to the algorithms that effect sales.

Increasing traffic is something you should do to drive visitors to your own personal site or to your port on sites like fineartamerica, rebubble, crated etc. where it may actually help since those sites sell fine art rather than stock.

fritz · « **Reply #2 on:** December 07, 2015, 19:51 »

Writing a blog won't help(I think)! Ask yourself if you are looking for a picture(for whatever reason) and you're not a registered buyer on any stock site where will you start search?
...and that's the place where you suppose to place yourself and drive traffic to your portfolio and sell.
Oh i forgot, you'll need lot more than 58 images to do something
Best,

ccbcc · « **Reply #3 on:** December 08, 2015, 04:54 »

A blog would make sense if you sell photos as art. But for microstock purposes, it makes no difference for reasons described in the posts above.

MichaelJayFoto · « **Reply #4 on:** December 08, 2015, 06:09 »

Quote from: FotografieSchnabel on December 06, 2015, 07:17

But despite all of this, I don't get the sales I'dd expect.

I'd say the problem is not the sales, it's your expectations.

Getting regular sales with 50 random images of nature or birds is just not going to happen.

ShadySue · « **Reply #5 on:** December 08, 2015, 06:19 »

Michael's right.
Look at other photos of your subjects and ask yourself whether and why a buyer would prefer yours to them.*
Sorry to say, most of yours would have been rejected on iStock when they had standards (I speak from experience aka 'tough love'). Just because they accept everything now, barring IP issues, doesn't mean they'll sell.
*Then think about how you can make images that buyers would prefer. (I'm not claiming it's easy!)

kmlPhoto · « **Reply #6 on:** December 08, 2015, 08:25 »

I took a quick look at your SS port. Nice work, but I don't think you have enough images for your sales to pick up. For me, I started getting regular sales after I had about 500 images, I don't contribute too much anymore because there are other much more lucrative ways to earn money in photography where I live. I would say that if you are committed to microstock you want to submit 20-30 images a week for at least a year. You will need holiday and seasonal images that you submit at least 3 months before the beginning of each.

Best of Luck to You!

luckeyman · « **Reply #7 on:** December 09, 2015, 08:06 »

I agree, your portfolio for instance at SS is way to small..
I got around 500 images now and seeing daily sales and sometimes some SOD's
Like yesterday I got a $55 SOD so unexpected. But to get more sales you need quality and quantity. And atm you have no quantity.

FotografieSchnabel · « **Reply #8 on:** December 11, 2015, 10:52 »

Quote from: luckeyman on December 09, 2015, 08:06

I agree, your portfolio for instance at SS is way to small..
I got around 500 images now and seeing daily sales and sometimes some SOD's
Like yesterday I got a $55 SOD so unexpected. But to get more sales you need quality and quantity. And atm you have no quantity.

Thanks for your input.
I know I don't yet have the quantity, but I'm working on it.
Learning illustrating programs, taking classes and hopefully submit a lot of seasonal related images. To bad the area I live in isn't all that great to photograph...

authenticcreations · « **Reply #9 on:** December 13, 2015, 11:22 »

It doesnt make any sense of promoting your work on stock agencies in my opinion. You will not win clients but the agency on whole.

No buyer will go to a stock agency to look only on your portfolio. A agency has not for nothing millions of images.

Mirco

weathernewsonline · « **Reply #10 on:** December 13, 2015, 17:04 »

I'm kinda in the same boat but with video but I have learned you do need a massive amount of files, unique content, stuff not many others are shooting and I am still uploading more and it has been good but next step is to figure out who my customers are and promote/advertise to them. Social media is useful but general public aren't always our paying customers. That's the research project, who are our customers?. For example, if you wrote engineering software you wouldn't market it to general public, who would you try to market it to and how? same with photos/video.