Where to find them?

Finding Stuff



Despite the ease of consumer shopping these days, finding essential items is not so easy. Take the case of the lowly shoelace. You can't do without them. And you need white ones for your sneakers, not black, not plaid, nor leather. You don't feel like walking half a mile through a Wal-Mart. On-line shopping on the Internet would cost you three times the actual price when you add in the shipping. And gas prices make a special trip to the Dollar Store prohibitive.
I can't suggest an easy way out of this dilemma, and it's interesting that the same parallel holds true for the photo researchers looking for an essential picture for their publishing project. But on this latter issue I can offer a solution. Like on a shoe, 'any ol' shoelace won't do. For the researcher, that "just right" picture can turn a B-minus layout into an A-plus.
The savior in this case is the search facilities on the Internet. Like the improvements in cell phones over the last two years, 'search' on the Internet has improved also. Using a text search, rather than a picture search is the simplest answer for the weary photo researcher.
"But are researchers using text to find pictures?" you might ask. Not all of them, because not all of them are aware of this fairly recent search method. But the successful researchers are finding out about the benefits of this method, and growing numbers are climbing on board. realize this method.
The top search engines these days seem to be Google, Yahoo and MSN. On your website, if you enter several words, even sentences or phrases, that these search engines can pick up in their frequent 'web crawls' of the Internet, your pictures and essential details will be indexed. In other words, you'll be 'cataloged' like a reference book, just like in your local library. You and your picture description will be identified. And you'll be found.
Though each search engine will invite you to apply for a search (it's free), you don't have to. Like the census taker, they trace you down -in this case, about every three to six months, depending on their workload.
If you don't have a website, or you want double protection, place your descriptions on the PhotoSourceBANK at Photosource International. The web crawlers will index your personal website but also the PSI website, giving you double protection. More importantly, the photo researchers tend to opt for easy shopping by adding the word -photosource-to their search description, which directs their search to the major image database, the PhotoSourceBANK.
As for shoelaces, however, I don't have an easy answer for you. -RE
 



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Pricing Website Use



Advance Notes: A client wants you to locate a photo for use on his website. What do you charge the client? Here's an easy formula to use.

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WEBSITE PRICING is easy if you use the "Hits Formula." It applies to both editorial as well as commercial markets. A client asks, "What is the charge for website use?" Return the question with your question, "How many hits does your site get each day?"

This question may stump them, and they may admit, "I don't know." But you can easily look like the expert when you return with, "Just a minute, I'll let you know."

Using the free software from www.Alexa.com (a company owned by Amazon.com) you call up Alexa.com. Type your client's website address in the search bar. Once a page comes up, at the bar at the bottom of your screen, click on, "traffic." The statistics will not only show you the owner and address of the company (you can spout that back to them also for verification) but the number of "Alexa hits" they get each day. Alexa has its own secret formula for determining the number of web traffic hits, but it's generally regarded as close to accurate.

Now that you've determined this figure, you are ready to apply the "Hits Formula." Most inquirers contacting you for a photo to use on the Web, are interested in acquiring a photo for their Home Page, and the formula applies to this usage.

THE FORMULA*

If your client currently receives 50,000 hits a day, the charge or a photo will be $25 per month. If they receive 100,000 hits per day, the charge is $50 per month. If they receive 200,000 hits a day then their monthly fee would be $100.*

A client may be just starting out and not have stats available yet at Alexa. Your response: "Who are your competitors? Can I assume you plan to keep up with them? Let's see what they are getting in the way of daily visitors."

Of course, if your client receives very few hits per day, a minimum you could establish would be $10 per month.

Some companies may plan to use a number of photos at various places on their website. In that case it's discount time. The monthly fee for the initial, primary photo will remain the same, but for the extra photos, divide the monthly fee by the number of photos they plan to use. This will give you the per photo fee to charge, for those additional photos.

You might find it necessary to make some bargaining concessions. To keep the style consistent in their website, they might want to use only one photographer's work - and plan to use many photos profusely throughout their site. It may be good politics to adjust the price for volume purchase.

For non-profit organizations that might have a high visitor count but a low budget, be prepared to make adjustments.

* Multiply the number of hits by .0005 to get the dollar amount they should pay each month for the use of a photo on their home page.

Rohn Engh, veteran stock photographer and best-selling author of "Sell & ReSell Your Photos" and "sellphotos.com," has helped scores of photographers launch their careers. For access to great information on making money from pictures you like to take, and learn how to sell pictures, and to receive this free report: "8 Steps to Becoming a Published Photographer," visit his website, PhotoSource International or call 800 624-0266.