Inventory

Keep It Fresh

Best advice...Don't rush it. If there is one thing I have learned, Quality wins out over Quantity! The great thing about creating a quality image is once it's uploaded and accepted, it can sell forever. I have some images that have sold hundreds of times and they continue to sell.

There have been unconfirmed rumors that some Microstock websites don't promote your images as actively if you are not a regular contributor. I can not confirm this. The simple fact is if you are serious about your goals, you should be uploading new images on a regular basis anyway and this will never be an issue.

 When I started creating stock images I created and uploaded images in a random and sporadic manner. I was working full time and I really didn't have a plan or schedule for creating and uploading Microstock images.

I remember getting quite frustrated over how challenging it was to find the time to create my images. Then, one day, it suddenly occurred to me that the Microstock was generating a part-time income. If I had to earn a part-time income through a part-time job, I would be committed to working an extra 20 hours per week and probably one day per weekend at that - and I would have no choice but to be there.

With this realization, I set aside twenty hours per week in my schedule. I booked three hours on three evenings and half a day on Saturday. My new part -time job was creating Stock images, uploading them, doing my research and checking my stats to get cash for pictures

I let my family know that I had a new part-time job and what my work schedule was. During these times, I would be at work. The funny thing is, I found myself putting more than 20 hours per week into my part-time job.


Getting Ideas

It was easy at first.  I had a lot of fresh ideas.  Some were instantly popular, others flopped.  Once I started learning that I couldn't just do what I wanted, I found my inspiration was starting to drop off.

Strategy 1
Sketching - when I have rough ideas or no ideas, I usually turn to sketching.  Sometimes, just one line falling perfectly on the page is all it takes to spark an idea.  I remember seeing an interview with Billy Joel one time where he was talking about song writing being a job.  Every morning, he would go to his studio and got to work.  He said he would just pound on the keys until something jived.

As artists, we have been trained to engage in warm up exercises that include gesture drawing, two minute still-lifes and such.  These exercises are all designed to loosen us up and get the creative juices flowing.  I consider this an essential part of the design process.

Strategy 2
Professional creative work that's leftover.

I do a lot of work for clients designing logos and flyers.  I have also registered with Crowdspring.com.  These two avenues allow me to consistently generate fresh and sellable stock images.

Strategy3
Research Top Selling and Most Searched Keywords from Microstock Sites.

Every Microstock website offers insights as to what is selling best.  Shutterstock, for example offers insights here. Use these resources to spur your creativity in making marketable and in-demand images.

Regardless of where you get your creative inspiration, keep growing your image inventory since ultimately, this will be the key to your success.