Full Review – Using WIRESTOCK to Sell Stock Footage & Photos

Wirestock - The easiest way to sell photos & videos online
Wirestock’s home page

09 PERSONAL reasons why I’m going ALL IN with Wirestock

TL;DR: I took a personal decision to go ALL IN with Wirestock and I have 9 reasons why:

Ok, Wirestock… Well, by the tone of my “happiness” you might think I was paid to say this, but that’s not the case. This is just me happy that someone has finally made life easier for us. By the end of this article you’ll realize why I think these guys will change the game for us stock creators.

*However, I do use affiliate links on products and services I believe.

But who cares about my personal opinion right? So let’s head to the facts – 2 CONS and 9 PROS about Wirestock.

Wirestock: start selling photos & footage right now
Click here to open your account

Wirestock’s PRO #1: Upload to multiple agencies

Starting with the most obvious one. Wirestock can be used to upload your stock files to multiple agencies at once (because, as you know, submitting your files to multiple agencies is the best way to maximize your stock earnings).

So instead of doing the manual process inside each agency’s website, you can use Wirestock to submit your photos & videos to multiple agencies at once.

At the time of this writing, that means: Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, Alamy, Dreamstime, DepositPhotos, and Pond5. 

And you can always choose which agencies you want them to submit your files to. That’s useful to avoid duplicates if your files are already online in any of these agencies.

Wirestock Submission Update Dashboard - Multiple Stock Agencies
Wirestock Submission Update Dashboard – Multiple Stock Agencies

Extra #1:
And actually, it goes beyond that because of 2 other programs called Instant Pay and Extra Channels. These features increase the earnings potential but I’ll tell you more about it later. The cool thing about these programs is that your files might also be available at other stock agencies like 123RF and Canva. 

Extra #2:
Another important reminder is the partnership between Pond5 and Vimeo Stock. So chances are your video files will also be sent to Vimeo Stock.

Wirestock’s PRO #2: Images *AND* Videos

Wirestock allows uploads via browser, ftp, google drive and dropbox
Wirestock allows PHOTOS & VIDEOS uploads via browser, ftp, google drive and dropbox

Also good to mention that Wirestock is also one of the few services that allows submission of both Photos & Videos. 

Aggregators (like BlackBox for example) are usually focused on Photos OR Videos only.

Wirestock’s PRO #3: They Write Metadata For You

Now, my favorite feature of ALL and one that I haven’t seen before is that THEY WRITE METADATA FOR YOU.
Yes guys, you heard read it right. The feature is called “Easy Submission”

In a round of questions I made to the company, CEO Mikayel Khachatryan, told me that Wirestock has a team of metadata experts placed in countries all over the world. They choose to do so to guarantee metadata quality no matter where you shot your content or the cultural specifics of that area.

So by mixing human curation + keyword presets + technology, the whole process can be done with speed and quality. 

That means all you need to do is to simply upload your files to Wirestock, attach releases if needed, and make sure the Easy Submission button is on. And you’re done, their team will take care of the rest. 

Ready to get started?

Manual Metadata

It’s good to notice that Easy Submission is just a shortcut to get your stuff online faster. But in some cases, it might not be the best idea. Especially if you enjoy writing metadata or if the subjects you shoot are way too specific. 

In these cases, all you need to do is to turn off the “Easy Submission” button. That will allow you to manually write your metadata. Also, notice that the “Easy Submission” feature is not available for Editorial content. At least not at the time of this recording.

Still, this is an amazing feature to get your files online fast and the Wirestock team keeps increasing the quality and speed of their metadata. I’ve got to say that I haven’t seen a solution like this before.

Wirestock’s CON #1: Their Own Username

Now, one thing that might be seen as a downside is that your files will be published in behalf of Wirestock, instead of your own portfolio. So whenever a photo or video you uploaded is found on Shutterstock, for example, it’s Wirestock’s name that will be there, not yours. 

Personally, I don’t think that’s a big deal. You probably would like to have your name on your photos, I get that. But a stock agency is not really a trending social network or a hype gallery to get your work exposed.

And I guess that is the reason why Wirestock created a feature called portfolio pages.  

Wirestock’s PRO #4: Portfolios

The portfolio page is a link of your own that you can share and promote on your social networks. This is where all your approved content will be organized and where direct customers can buy your content. 

Example of a Wirestock Portfolio
Example of a Wirestock Portfolio by user mauricio.darias

Right now, if someone clicks “buy” they’ll be redirected to Adobe Stock, but the company plans to implement the ability to buy directly from Wirestock soon. And that also means a higher commission for the creator behind it. 

Wirestock’s CON #2: Commission

You must be thinking: “Cool, but where’s the catch? How does Wirestock make money?”

Well, there’s not exactly a price. Registering and using Wirestock, right now, is free. And you can do so by clicking here.

Wirestock makes money through a commission. They earn 15% of the earnings generated by your files, according to their site.. 

Now, some contributors tend to give up after knowing that. But there’s something VERY important that has to be taken into consideration. And that’s the potential of earning more, despite Wirestock’s commission. 

Let me tell you how.

Wirestock’s PRO #5: Earn even more

Wirestock has a giant portfolio made of files from multiple users. And that gives them commission rates with the agencies you could hardly find by yourself.

Shutterstock Changes

You might have heard about Shutterstock and the terrible changes they did on the commission structure. Every new year, all contributors will go back to level one, which means a commission of 15%. 

It will take you 500 downloads to then get back to level 4 and earn 30%, which used to be the standard. 

Now Shutterstock is just one example. Unfortunately more and more agencies are doing the same, like Alamy for example.

A scene of our YouTube video comparing earnings of a Level 1 Shutterstock user vs. a Wirestock user

The Wirestock Advantage

On the other hand, if more and more contributors unite under Wirestock’s portfolio, it will quickly rank as a level 6 contributor earning 40%.

The difference is huge. Let’s take a $100 sale as an example:

  • If you are a level 1 contributor on Shutterstock, you’ll get 15%. That’s $15.
  • If the same sale happens inside Wirestock, which is probably on level 5 or 6, that would mean $35 or $40, depending on which level they are. Take away their 15% commission rate, and you’ll end up with something around $29.75 and $34. 

For most of us, it might mean up to 225% more.

And that is the thinking behind my personal decision of going all in with Wirestock. Not only does it save a lot of time, as the earning potential in Wirestock is higher too.

At this moment, the commission rate is marked as 15%, but I have no idea if they will change it for users subscribing later. So I highly encourage you to create your account at their website.

Wirestock’s PRO #6: More selling opportunities

As said a little ago, Wirestock opens extra opportunities to make more money with 2 programs called Extra Channels and Instant Pay Program.

The company has a Sales team that works directly with Ad agencies, brands and web platforms to get the Wirestock content sold directly. In these cases, instead of getting the average 30% we usually get from agencies, we the contributors get 50%. 

Based on what other users told me, this income source is bringing an average per sale that is 7x higher than they get from other agencies.

Wirestock’s PRO #7: Digital Releases 

Another feature I love on Wirestock is their Digital Releases system. It is pretty similar to the one Shutterstock got. 

It means you don’t need to handle model & property releases on paper anymore. All you need to do is to fill in basic info including the model’s email. The model will then receive a link where he can sign the release digitally. 

Once it happens, you will be notified and able to add that release to its respective files and you’re good to go.

Seriously guys… ask anyone who used to work with paper releases and they’ll agree how revolutionizing digital releases are.

Wirestock’s Digital Release Feature

Wirestock’s PRO #8: Upload from Your Browser

Wirestock also allows you to upload your photos & videos straight from your browser. This is pretty standard for photos, but when it comes to video files, most agencies require you to upload your files via FTP. Which is not a problem, but it’s cool to be able to save this time.

Not only that, you can also upload files straight from your Google Drive or Dropbox account.

Wirestock’s PRO #9: Mobile App

And finally, there’s the Mobile App.

Believe me or not, mobile apps are still a rare thing among stock agencies. Right now, Shutterstock is probably the only agency with an app for contributors. 

Wirestock’s mobile app is super handy to increase your productivity. Not only will you be able to get releases signed from it, check your earnings and the status of your uploads as you’ll also be able to upload photos & VIDEOS you took from your phone. 

The app is currently being beta tested Wirestock’s Slack Community, so be sure to register as soon as possible to be notified when it happens. 

Conclusion

These were only a few points I wanted to mention about Wirestock and why I’m choosing it as my master tool when it comes to stock submission. Feel free to write down all your thoughts, questions, and critics in the comment section down below.

Try Wirestock Right Now

*Disclosure: I only recommend services I use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. 
This post may contain affiliate links in which I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you,.

Blackbox Footage vs. Shutterstock

Which method is the best to submit your stock footage?

As we wrote previously, Blackbox is taking over the Stock Footage market – and well deserved. In June of 2018, the number of users grew amazing 700%.

BlackBox is not only attracting the old experienced stock filmmakers but is opening the doors for thousands of new contributors.

And though there’s a big hype around it right now, it’s prudent to carefully take a decision if you’ll go exclusively with them or stick in the traditional way (uploading straight to Shutterstock, Pond5, Adobe Stock, etc).

This isn’t a company comparison overview. After all, Shutterstock is one of BlackBox’s partners. This is actually a comparison review with pros and cons of selling footage in the traditional way or the BlackBox way.

I hope this comparison helps you take your own decision.

What is Blackbox?

Stock Footage is just the starting point of BlackBox. The platform is revolutionizing the process of making content and getting paid the long tail money creators really deserve. If you listen to Pat McGowan’s interview, you’ll agree this is just the beginning.

This article covers the stock footage process, but you can check our BlackBox focused article here.

Blackbox is a digital guild that connects video creators and curators. With their platform, film creators can focus on shooting/filming new footage and leave the “boring work” on them (metadata, descriptions, keywords). The video content will be submitted to 4 major stock agencies at once:

  • Shutterstock
  • Pond5
  • Adobe Stock
  • Storyblocks
  • more to come

For stock filmmakers, it means you can now be free to work on what you really like, while you let other users take care of writing metadata and keywords for you.

It is also an opportunity for editors and copywriters to work on files of other users so they can get a share of the income.

If you haven’t subscribed to BlackBox yet, you can do it clicking here. By using our referral code, you help us keep the work on this blog and YouTube channel.

Choose your side: the BlackBox way or the old-fashioned way

While many new users are going exclusively with BlackBox, it might be a good idea to analyze the traditional way before going full speed on the decided direction. The whole idea explains the hype around BlackBox but your decision should be based on real information, not just hype.

Since you can’t upload repeated footage files to the agencies Blackbox submits to (Shutterstock, Pond, Adobe Stock and Storyblocks), you have to decide which way you’re going to submit your footage files.

There are pros and cons on both sides. It will really depend on what kind of user you are. The following comparison might help you take your own decision.

Pros & Cons of submitting files exclusively to BlackBox

Still not a BlackBoxer? You can become a stock contributor right now registering here.

I’m personally in love with BlackBox and its community. Still, I’ll put my emotions aside and will write you neutral pros & cons.

1. Pro. Submit to multiple websites at once.

I’ve been working on my own multi-agency spreadsheet for years and no matter how good it gets, the whole process still takes several hours.

Each agency has its own way of doing things. The categories names, the maximum of keywords and file formats are just a few given examples.

That struggle alone makes BlackBox worthy of attention. As for today, BlackBox submits your files to 4 major agencies: Shutterstock, Pond5, Adobe Stock and Storyblocks.

Check out my 2017 earnings report and notice how those were my most profitable agencies.

2. Pro: More time doing the work you love

I’d say this is the biggest advantage of BlackBox: being free to focus on producing more footage.

Writing metadata, uploading your files to multiple agencies… All this while trying to fit the stock agencies requirements is a hard and tedious work. Upload your files to BlackBox and they’ll take care of the dirty work.

It gets harder if English is not your native language, which is the case for me and 60% of Creative Income YouTube Channel.

If needed, BlackBox gives you the chance of letting other users curate your files (from editing to keywording) in exchange for a small share of those files’ income.

I’d say this is the biggest advantage of BlackBox: being free to focus on producing more footage and earning more with that.

3. Pro: Better rates

The power of being part of a big community is that together we preferential commission rates from the stock agencies. So even though BlackBox takes 15% on net sales (that would be ~5% on the gross value) you will still get more money than you would alone.

You just have to be aware that if you’re taking help of other users you will also share your earnings with them. We call it the curator’s share.

In fact, it is totally negotiable. You’ll choose your curator among many users and will let BlackBox know the share that specific user is going to have. BlackBox’s platform will take care of paying each user through PayPal.

For Metadata only curation, BlackBox recommends a share of 20% rate. That means 20% of that file’s net income will be paid to the curator.

For Full Curation, which means someone is also writing metadata for you, BlackBox recommends a share of 40%.

4. Pro: Sell more than you would be working alone

At this point, some of you might be thinking you will make more money if you just do it by yourself. You may be right, but let me ask you a few questions first:

  • Do you still have files laying on your computer and external HDs waiting to be edited?
  • Do you think you would get better metadata if someone else writes it?
  • Do you believe you would get better-looking footage if someone else edits it?

If you have answered yes to any of the questions above then you’re probably losing money right now. You should never have files laying on a hard disk when they could be making you money instead.

Although you’re getting a smaller share, there’s a big chance you will be selling way more than you would alone. Especially if you’re a bad keyword writer.

It’s a better idea to get a smaller percentage of something than 100% of nothing.

Having experienced BlackBox users to write and submit your work to the 4 big agencies will probably make more sales than your own keywords would. So there is a big chance you’ll sell better with their help.

The platform offers collaborative work and takes care of the revenue sharing process.

COLLABORATION will always beat COMPETITION.

5. Pro: Rank better on search results

Given that we’re all contributing to the same BlackBox seller profile, you should probably get better search rankings for your files.

That means your footage will probably appear on the first line of results and, consequently, sell better.

It’s the size of our BlackBox portfolio that makes every member’s content more searchable to buyers.

6. Pro: Stock Footage is just the tip of the BB iceberg

I had the opportunity to talk with Pat McGowan and got amazed with all the plans the company has for the future. They are totally centered on creators and their financial freedom.

Stock Footage is really just the starting point for them. Being part of this community means giving power to the creator’s community.

7. Con: You’re contributing to BlackBox profile

As I just said, we’re all contributing under the same BlackBox profile. So I believe you got it that your name is not going to publicly appear on the stock websites.

Though you still got all the rights for your files, they will all appear under the BlackBox profile.

Some people might see it as a downside. But let me be honest, is Shutterstock really the “social network” you want to get famous on?

From my point of view, this is even better. Some of my files do embarrass me, but they still sell. So I’d rather keep them there.

Pat’s argument is that “in our experience, the concept of personal branding is not a factor in buying decisions on agency platforms.” I would say the same.

You still own the rights over your footage. Use it on your YouTube channel or something like that. Youtuber Jeven Dowey that in a pretty amazing way.

8. Con: Blackbox process

The team behind BlackBox is really working hard to make it better every day. It’s a promising future.  If you’re already a member you’re probably getting weekly news of their improvements.

BlackBox 2.0 should be launched soon, but for now (June 2018), BlackBox portal is still a little hard to comprehend and might be difficult for beginners.

You may also be experiencing a delay on some files. But hey, this is totally explainable. They just grew 700% on a month!

If you want a better understanding of the microstock market, I suggest you register at Shutterstock as a contributor and go through the process to submit a bunch of pictures. Shutterstock’s process and user interface are really user-friendly.

I see this as a temporary downside. I’m still sure BlackBox will get there soon. I receive constant emails of weekly improvements they’re doing.

9. Footage only

As of today, Blackbox is only allowing stock footage contributors and shows signs for Stock Music. So photographers will have to wait.

If you’re a photographer, I still suggest you give it a try to shooting footage. You’ll probably raise your earnings by doing that and it probably can be done with the same camera.

Pros & Cons of going the old-fashioned way (straight to Shutterstock, Pond5, Adobe Stock, etc.

If you didn’t start submitting your stock photos/footage yet, I’d suggest you start with Shutterstock. It is normally the most profitable stock agency and has the best contributor interface so far.

1. Con: Fewer sales (in case of poorly written metadata)

You’ll definitely get more money per sale – but that doesn’t mean higher overall earnings. BlackBox curators are good at their work, so there’s a big change you won’t write as good metadata (title, description, keywords, etc) as they would. So you might get a smaller amount of sales in the end.

2. Con: Requires discipline to edit, curate and write metadata

Why did so many filmmakers and photographers give up on Stock Photography/Footage?

Simple. We all hate writing metadata. We’re creative people, after all.

In my case, I found the discipline to work on a batch of files every 6 months. It’s a very boring week but pays out in the end.

3. Pro: Process is easy and quick to understand

Shutterstock is on the market for many years. So, of course, their contributor interface is still better and simpler than BlackBox. But I’m sure it is just a matter of time before BlackBox comes up with new improved tools.

4. Pro: Better understanding of the whole process

The experience of contributing to Shutterstock (and Pond5, Adobe Stock, Storyblocks, etc) at least once will make you better understand the process. I see a lot of new users uploading files to BlackBox and asking people on the facebook group why is it taking so long.

The experience of submitting your own file will give you a complete overview of the process and market.

5. Pro: Your own portfolio

Submitting your footage and photos straight to the stock agencies will also allow you to create your own portfolio and track specific data (each agency gives you a couple of different insights).

6. BONUS: Choose your thumbnail

Shutterstock, Pond5, and StoryBlocks let you choose a specific snapshot of your video to be used as a thumbnail. Strong thumbnails are strong when it comes to footage files.

This is small, but a considerable obstacle for BlackBox.

My personal advice

As a 6-year-experienced contributor, my advice is that you subscribe to both platforms: Shutterstock and BlackBox. Try to upload a dozen different footage files on each of them and check how comfortable you feel.

On the other hand, if you hating writing your own keywords and description, then stick with BlackBox and focus on producing more footage.

If you can’t wait a few days for approval, prefer to choose your thumbnails and believe you can do a good job writing your own metadata, then go forward and try to sell your files by yourself.

 

What is your opinion?

What are your thoughts on this? Are you moving your footage to BlackBox, staying on Shutterstock (and other agencies) or mixing both? I believe this is a strong subject for our community to discuss!

If this article was helpful I’m sure you’ll enjoy liking our Facebook page and following us on Instagram. We would strongly appreciate that!

my stock footage earnings (2013-2017)

Stock Footage – What I earned and what I learned.

On this article, I’ll bring you a full report of my earnings from 2013 to 2017 and the participation of each agency on the total income as well. I’m definitely far from being a big contributor, but I’m sure this data can help a lot of people choose the right direction.

Full 2013–2017 earnings Report

I sell my footage online since December 2012, when I only had a Canon T3i. Most of my files were refused, so I started with a very small portfolio (30 video files) on Shutterstock and Pond5. The info I had at that time showed me these two would be a good way to start my stock earnings.

Since that time I used to work on my stock portfolio once a year, I slowly started uploading my files to other microstock websites: Storyblocks (former VideoBlocks), DepositPhotos and iStock/Getty were the next ones. This is how my portfolio grew on the last years:

I reached 240 video files in February of 2017, so I believe it’s fair to say that was the official portfolio size for 2017.

Total Earnings for 2017

So by the end of the year, the sum of all my stock footage earnings was: U$1.690,80.

 

My 2017 earnings by each agency.

Alright, no complaints about that. Definitely, a good revenue based on a small portfolio. But I have to admit I was expecting a little more earnings when compared to 2016. I thought the increase of files in my portfolio would directly impact my sales. Take a look at my year over year growth.

 

My personal yearly earnings when summing Shutterstock, Pond5, iStock, Storyblocks, and DepositPhotos.
My personal yearly earning when summing Shutterstock, Pond5, iStock, Storyblocks, and DepositPhotos.

My big mistake

I did a mistake by betting all my chips on Shutterstock. If you go back to the first graph I showed you’ll notice Shutterstock was the only stock agency on which I really uploaded new footage/photos. Since I had never analyzed these earnings as close as I’m doing now, I thought Shutterstock was the main and only source of this “creative income” (I was also very lazy)— but I couldn’t be more wrong.

Take a look at my 2016 income share, when Pond5 and Deposit had my total portfolio, StoryBlocks had 75% and Getty/iStock had 20%.

earnings per stock agency in 2016 (footage + photography)
What each stock agency represented on my 2016 earnings.

On that year, Pond5 was even better than Shutterstock! Videoblocks and Deposit also had better impacts. So that’s a big lesson I learned — I will diversify my portfolio to other websites.

There’s still a lot of lessons I learned when analyzing my best sellers, but this will be a subject for the next time.

If you would like me to keep writing/recording this reports/insights, please let me know! This is something I love doing, but knowing there’s someone reading and interested is the gasoline I need to keep making it public!

My 7 Personal Bestselling Stock Footage Files 

On this the second article (and video), I will showcase my 7 best selling files, the earnings of each one, and all lessons learned as well. I’m writing this to attend a request on my last video.

If achieving creative income through Stock Footage and Stock Photos interests you, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube.

I’m sure every microstock contributor with at least a few sales already noticed there’s no correlation between his/her favorite files and the ones that sell the most. While I was doing the analysis I noticed how wrong my first predictions were.

Many of the files you believe will sell a lot may never bring as many sales as many files you despise.

My 7 Top Sellers on Shutterstock, Pond5, iStock and other microstock sites.

01. Space travel

This group of Space Flight simulations made on After Effects is by far my best seller. So far, they made me U$1.898. (50% from Shutterstock, 40% from Pond5, 10% from DepositPhotos, approximately).

You can start selling your photos and videos today with this link: http://bit.ly/newcontributor

These are actually the only files I got that were entirely made on After Effects (and makes me want to that again). They were originally made for a church service opener that later I adapted to sell. It’s quite a nice effect, but I never expected they would do so well and I’m so happy I did submit them.

This is a precious lesson for me: leave no file behind.

02. The Brazilian Flag

On second place I have this slow-motion shot of the Brazilian flag. This file alone made me $914 (approximately, 90% from Shutterstock). It was shot on a Canon 60D and is not even in Full HD. So there’s a second lesson: start with what you got.

It was shot in 2014, a few months before the World Cup in my country. This is a strategic one, of course. So learn to identify this kind of opportunity that happens close to you. I also submitted other soccer related files in that year that made good sales.

03. Curitiba Bus

In third place comes this editorial pack of my city’s public transportation. 5 files combined made me $714. Storyblocks brought 20%, while Pond5 and Shutterstock represented 40% each.

Apparently, the city where I live in, Curitiba, is a historical reference in public transportation. So these ones might work very well for documentaries.

Lesson to learn? Explore unique subjects close to you. Many other clips of local touristic points also sell well. Maybe I don’t get to sell the famous Rio de Janeiro landscapes, but I can definitely build some authority on my city’s icons. This works well if you live in a city that’s not so mainstream.

04. Aerial Amazon

Next, we have this aerial shot of the Amazon forest. With this shot alone I was able to sell $602. This one is strong on Pond5 (80%), while Shutterstock had 13% and Storyblocks had 7%. If I combine the other images I made on this trip to the Amazon, the total would easily go over $1000. Which I believe is enough to cover the trip costs I had.

Lesson: Make good use of your travelings.

05. Labrador Dog

Here’s a funny one. These were my first approved files and were actually nothing but a test I made with my dog. $357 earned. 40% came from Pond5, and 30% from Shutterstock and iStock each.

Lesson: Commercial value can be found much closer than you think.

06. Car Mirror

Another interesting case. A shot of a sunset on a car mirror. No sales on other agencies, but $230 on Shutterstock.

Lesson: Take your camera with you.

07. Public University

This is a public university in my city that for some reason sells a lot. $228 earned on this file alone. Also one of my first files (Canon 60D, I guess). I have no idea what people see on it. It’s one of those files I was almost giving up on. There’s even a shake on the end I forgot to cut.

The original file was shot during the night with a very bad camera and conditions. So I tried it again with a better camera and lens a couple of years later. No sales. Go figure…

Once again, start with what you got. But start!

I’ll stop here but there’s still a lot of curious cases I could talk about. It’s interesting how many files I despise sell better than the ones I am proud of.

What about you? What are your funny best sellers? Feel free to put them in the comments below. I guess this is a way we can learn a lot from each other.

If you would like me to keep writing/recording this reports/insights, please let me know! This is something I love doing, but knowing there’s someone reading and interested is the gasoline I need to keep making it public!