| |  Yuri Arcurs - The self-made, top selling microstock contributor in the world, having sold over 1.1 million individual licenses in the past year. Now you can catch up with Yuri in his video blog, published every fortnight on Crestock.com. Yuri will be dropping by, as much as time allows, to share a few thoughts and discuss developments inside of microstock.
www.arcurs.com - Check out Yuri's blog here..  Lee Torrens - Perhaps the most successful commentator in microstock, Lee Torrens is the author of the popular Microstock Diaries blog. Regular readers will appreciate his unbiased and well-analyzed thoughts regarding microstock. Lee will be dropping by to contribute and answer queries as often as he can.
 Ron Sumners - Perhaps better known for pulling scary faces in profile pictures, though, you will be hard pressed to find someone with more practical knowledge of photography than Ron. As a good friend of Crestock, and all-round nice guy, Ron has, in the past, published some hilarious accounts of photography travels in the Crestock blog. We look forward to hearing his humorous but practical spin on discussions right here in the Crestock forum.
 Tyler Olsen - Better known as Leaf, the owner and moderator of the popular micrstock forum, MicrostockGroup.com, Tyler brings a lot of experience and know-how of the industry to the panel. Tyler will be dropping by regularly to provide his thoughts on discussions here.
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8/14/2009 11:49:26 AM]
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| | Nice to be keeping such esteemed company! Yuri, if you want some photography tips just let me know! ;) |
| | Hi all, I am looking forward to this, hopefully we get some good discussion in here. |
| | Yep, there's enough talent in here to.... (insert something funny).
[Last Modified:
11/12/2008 4:35:56 PM]
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| | Yes, definitely is. Regretfully, we've not had too much time to get this great segment off the ground as yet. But, everybody is more than welcome to start using it right away posting your own topics. |
| | I wonder why Crestock members dont use the forum much. :( |
| | yeah it is always a catch 22. No one posts when no one is here and no one is here when no on posts. This area of the forum should be able to get some convesation going though! |
| | I dont know but they all are pretty busy on on your Microstock group forum instead. |
| | Yeah, it's another catch-22. People go where the conversation is, so it's difficult to start a new one. Just like it's difficult to start a new microstock agency: without contributors buyers don't see sufficient volume and without sufficient buyers it's difficult to attract contributors. Intervention is required to get a new microstock agency into a positive upload/sales cycle. You need a clever idea and be able to execute it well. Obviously some do it better than others, and to different levels of success. It's certainly fun to watch!
[Last Modified:
2/27/2009 6:36:52 PM]
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| | Yeah, it's another catch-22. People go where the conversation is, so it's difficult to start a new one. Just like it's difficult to start a new microstock agency: without contributors buyers don't see sufficient volume and without sufficient buyers it's difficult to attract contributors. Intervention is required to get a new microstock agency into a positive upload/sales cycle. You need a clever idea and be able to execute it well. Obviously some do it better than others, and to different levels of success. It's certainly fun to watch! Lee, you hit the nail on the head! "without contributors buyers don't see sufficient volume and without sufficient buyers it's difficult to attract contributors. " Crestock does not seem to be addressing the former! Since the contributers are the egg, and the buyers are the chicken Crestock needs to address the issue of discontent amongst the number of folks who have taken the time and effort to contribute to the web site. As many of us have pointed out in the other forums, there seems to be no logical, rational and consistent reasoining to the rejections. I appreciate that you may want to be the best fish in a large ocean of microstocks, but, using your own "Catch 22" analogy, if you end up with Yuri and his team being your only contributor, what market do you serve, when his organization also contributes to the same 10 plus sites that the rest of us contribute to? If your intent is to only accept images from SLR's that produce images that are natively 12MP or greater, why pretend to be a microstock when you are imposing controls as stringent as Midstock agencies? Since payouts here are at microstock ageny levels, and constraints on contributors are at MidStock levels, I wonder what the thinking behind this strategy is, or more pointedly how you think you are going to recruit, and retain a group of loyal and devoted contributers?? You must realize that for us contributers there is a threshold of pain, which is directly related to our ROI. If we exceed that threshold we eliminate that which causes an increased level of work for little return. Your forums are full of folks expressing this discontent, and I am concerned that your fledgeling site may have already created a level of this discontent that it is rippling through the forums on others sites, that Crestock affords little ROI for contributers. I hate to see anything untoward happen to new enterprises, but I would urge you to establish greater uniformity and define exactly what you arer looking for, and who your target market is so that contributers can better understand exactly what to expect. Here's hoping you can smooth the waters of the torrent of disgruntled investors (because that is what we are, we invest out time, money and equipment into supporting your enterprise), and establish clear guidelines for us such that we can concentrate on supplying those images that you deem your clients need. BTW great movie "Catch 22" |
| | good points, but I am also seeing a slow increase in earnings from year -> year and month-> month so things are at least going in the right direction! |
| | I'm seeing the same pleasing increase over time, but I wonder if it's enough. Others are growing faster. How can a new agency catch up if the leaders are winning all the business with their bigger portfolios and larger quantity of contributors? Even if they're growing, they still battle the catch-22 situation. Don't you think? |
| | Crestock's stats are reflecting an ever-increasing interest in microstock, both from traditional sources and also from a whole new flock of partakers. Its becoming an interesting meeting in the middle, and while looking at the larger picture its a more open race than seems apparent. Where and how some of the larger traditional suppliers of images choose to throw their support will change the landscape of agencies, more so than the continuing of independent microstock agencies unamalgamated. Things are slow but ready, at the moment. Larger things are coming though.. |
| | Cryptic but promising. :) |
| | Cryptic but promising. :) quite :) -> Yes the catch 22 game is probably still being played, but I feel that crestock does have the critical mass of suppliers and a large enough database that things could take off (even without the criptiq bonus :)) |
| | I am curious to why Yuri has teamed up with Crestock in the first place? (His blog promo's them and his videos ) I bet if SS or DT or any other agency wanted to promo with him, he would jump ship. Crestock seems to have so much discontint with their contributors that I imagine it does effect them alot. So many people asking to have their portfolio's removed that it amazes me. Crestock does not have but 1/8 -1/4 of my port. I have not uploaded forever. I just dont take the time to add my images here. I think everyone made good points.  |
| | I must say that you have a very good line up here. And being around the forum for a while, I can see Josh giving some very good points and I learn a lot from Lee's blog. Keep it up guys! 
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mckown Kansas City, United States | Did I read on the microstock forum right and Josh is no longer with Crestock?  |
| | Yes that is what I heard as well, from confirmed sources. |
| | I am curious what is going on and who is left at Crestock? At least Josh talked to people. I want to know who I am talking to and not just "Crestock Admin" or "Crestock Team". A little impersonal. LOL It is like talking to one of those not real voices on the phone. LOL So who is their NEW lineup? I want to know who is here at Crestock? |
