Stock photography is the best way for a photographer to earn passive income while reaching out to new clients, especially in the earlier stages of their career. Whether you’re selling old photos or dedicating time to creating new stock images, working with a visual marketplace can help you reach designers and marketers who are willing to pay for republishing your images. Here are five marketing tips to help you sell yourself (and not your soul … unless you’re into that).
Geoff Ang/PIXERF
#1 Be Generic
Sawitree Pamee/PIXERF
Avoid showing recognisable brands in your photos. This allows a buyer to use your images in their marketing collateral without any copyright implication, or inadvertently advertising another brand for free. Get permission from everyone in the photo if they weren’t hired as a model. When using tags for your images online, stick to generic keywords and phrases (e.g. ‘sports car’ instead of ‘Lamborghini’).
#2 Choose a Marketplace
Geoff Ang/PIXERF
Stock photography marketplaces vary in terms of the type of stock images they offer. Pick one with a good blend of food, lifestyle, and commercial photography. Make sure that it allows you to grant exclusive and non-exclusive rights for your works to be made accessible globally, while you retain the ownership and copyright of your work. We know just the place!
#3 Study the Marketplace
Kenny P/PIXERF
Spend some time looking through the Asian stock photos on PIXERF for inspiration if you need fresh ideas. Avoid shooting images that are similar to what’s already in the database: this gives you a higher chance of reaching your target audience. Play around with lighting, angles, and composition.
Alexander Ow/PIXERF
#4 Look for Opportunities
Chiok Jun Jie/PIXERF
Now that you’re all set up to share your work, start looking (and planning) for photo ops everywhere you go. It’s not fun to stumble upon a photo op without your camera there, so be prepared. Look out for festivals, events, and tourist spots around you, and stay informed with trade magazines and newsletters.
Larry Teo/PIXERF
#5 Blog
Lee Yik Keat/PIXERF
Sharing your content from the marketplace to your blog and social media is the best way to extend your reach and make it easy for people to find the images they want to purchase. Keep your blog current, boost your SEO score, and use the same relevant keywords that you tagged your images with.
Chiok Jun Jie/PIXERF
