Single sales are good, but...MULTIPLE SALES ARE BETTER. Every now and then, a commercial stock photographer says to us here at PhotoSource International, "I never sell a photo for less than $500." He goes on, "I don't see how you can survive at stock photography, selling photos for less than $500!"

His position has merit--if you are selling commercial stock photos on a one-shot basis, to clients you probably won't deal with a second time. In fact, the overhead cost of contacting and following up on the initial sale to any commercial client could eat up most of your profits. The secret is to develop your business so that you are working vertically--rather than across the board (horizontally) with your buyers.

CONTINUING SALES Editorial stock photography lends itself to developing long-term working relationships with photo editors, with potential for continuing sales. (There's far less turnover among editorial photobuyers, in the book, magazine, and periodical industry, than among commercial photobuyers in the advertising, pr and corporate areas.) If a photo editor pays an average of $200 per picture and you make 4 sales a year to him/her, that one photo editor really represents a $800 annual annuity for you (4 x $200). If that specialized market remains a client for you for 10 years - which is the industry average -- that one photo editor (or his company, even if that particular editor leaves), represents $8,000 in revenue for you, minimum. If in one year you make a match with ten specialized photo editors, with yearly sales of about $800 to each, you're talking about a $8,000 annual annuity. This translates to a total $80,000 asset if they (and their replacement editors-- since the subject area needs of the publishing house usually remains the same) continue as clients for the usual ten-year period. And remember this is on the basis of only four photo sales per year. You may realize 20 times that or more, with each client. Effort put to keeping your editorial photo editors satisfied is effort well spent.

Rohn Engh is director of PhotoSource International and publisher of PhotoStockNotes. Pine Lake Farm, 1910 35th Road, Osceola, WI 54020 USA. 1 800 624 0266 Fax: 1 715 248 7394. Web site: http://www.photosource.com/products

Source: www.articletrader.com