How Long For Your First Sale?

if you type in that exact line in the box you'll find it comes up almost every month with the same answers.

for me it was about 2 weeks.

you won't get sales very fast if your unknown or new. i already had a past and google was able to pick me right up. it often takes much longer to be seen. right around now sales will be slow, since you joined just shy of xmas, and with the new years and cold weather airports closed, sales are usually less (for me they are anyway).

you have to advertise yourself if you want to be seen.


---Mike Savad

you'll have to do something about your print quality though, if it does sell they may tell you to retake this. to me it looks pixelated and a bit noisy in spots, but mostly it has glare.


this one has your name cut off, unless it's like that in real life they will complain about that. it's also very blurry up close, that alone will make the sale fail. this was enlarged.


same with this - really blurry up close. you should scan these, as they would never print.


this has an edge of the sheet showing. the crops need to be tight. they won't do it for you. i think the print quality is acceptable.


---Mike Savad

Thanks, first 3 are old photos, scanned years ago that appeared acceptable. I'll go in and either try to get better quality images, or pull them. I appreciate all your help.

735 visitors? oh dear I think I'm doing something wrong.

Well Mick, how many images do you have up? and how long have you been on FAA? I've been on FAA since March 2013. If you rely on just putting up images and waiting for the sales to roll in then you may have a long wait.
I've had 7 sales in my first year. One of my fall images has over 2000 views (and this is not one that has sold) I'm not sure if I'm in the ball park on where I should be on sales... I know I woud like to have 1 or 2 (or 10) a day but that is obviously not happening.

You need to do everything Mike S advises as far as contests, commenting on others and using social media. Then! you have to do a ton of things outside of FAA..

Your mission you choose to accept it is to market outside of FAA. I'm a writer of several blogs and I have several Facebook pages and I'm on Twitter with 700 followers. I inform these channels that I have new work up on FAA. I also inform friends and family and hope that they will share this information with their channels.

All of this is what you need to do.
I find that many folks may leave a comment and they may say they liked it or fav'd it and outside of the fav's you have no way of knowing whether or not if they really did... This whole process of leaving comments for each person that leaves a comment on one of mine is time consuming. This is almost a full time job.

In the past 10 months I've had a little over 19,000 visitors to my artwork... So for me 19,000 equals 7 sales... You'll have to take a look at my work to see if my work is crap


Or am I in the ballpark with so many others out here on FAA with everyone else...

i have an average of about 1300 views a day right now. with a 2 year count of 948,635


@mick
with a total of 7 images being on here for about 2 weeks, it will take a while to get more views. but you have to advertise these. and well today with that bad gateway issue, will make it much harder to get views.

i would change your avatar to something more memorable like a face or something. people may skip over it otherwise. you should have a bio, because google finds you with that. i wanted to look at your work up close, but that 502 is really getting old fast.


---Mike Savad

Thanks fellas for taking the time to offer some pointers, that's kinda nice to see folk with such a fine body of work taking time out to offer advice to someone as hopeless as myself. I will consider your comments carefully although I can't promise to act on them immediately.

Hi everyone,

I have been in the `selling business´ all my life and never SOLD anything !!
My customers always BOUGHT from me !!
My success has always been based on quality and service and, above all, the enjoyment I continue to have in `doing what I do `
That´s what gets you connected and eventually noticed.

`Attitude´ is everything.....stay cool, have fun and, let it happen !!!

Best of luck to you all !!!!

Member since October 2013ish.

115 images

10000+ views

0 sales

Philip, you've been here about 30 seconds in the grand scheme of things...

I'm gonna venture a guess that most of those views are search engine bots putting you into the system so to speak so you can actually be found.
You're gonna need some work on your keywords...

for example: for this one you basically have 4 keywords - colorado, snow, garden of the gods and gog... you are given 500 characters to work within, use them. The ones you use are popular, and so you will be at the back of a big search result.

You don't even have the keyword waterfall in this one... time to get to work!

a few months isn't that much. raise your prices if you want people to see you in a better light - lower is not better. you have to advertise your own work and have the right keywords to be found.


like rainbow, mountain, etc just look at the comments. add plurals and your name as well. sitting around won't help. views are really not a great gauge of success. it often takes google a whole year before it decides you should be in that search.

on average, it takes me about 3 months to sell something that i upload. in that time it travels around.

your gallery -

Rmnp - change that to what the name really is - because it's a meaningless acronym.


many of your images don't pop, they look darker then they should be. due to competition, they need to jump off the screen. titles are not seen by the internal search - grace falls should be a term in the tags. just like the other one - waterfall was not included.


partly due to too much polarizer, and your screen being set to bright, this image is just very dark. it doesn't pop. it's not bad, but it doesn't pull a viewer in. if this is a panorama it should be marked as such along with landscape, water, lake, mountainscape etc. anything a buyer might type in.


---Mike Savad

"You don't even have the keyword waterfall in this one... time to get to work!"

I am liking Heather more and more every day!

Once you double your portfolio, the money should start rolling in.

Good advice on this thread. In answer to the OP's question, it took 7 weeks for my first sale. I sold a greeting card 2 days ago. Don't know when I've been this excited about being a couple bucks richer! :-)

Hang in there, upload your best work, and listen to the advice of the successful people here who generously offer their help.

735 views? Dayum! I joined one day prior to you and have 161 views. I've never been good at promoting myself but have to get past that if I want to get anywhere in this endeavor. Good advice in this thread.

Just a simple thanks here for good advice in this thread - both about marketing and staying positive about what you enjoy doing.

I didn't get any sales for the first three years I was a member but once I got that first one...it took off like a shot!!!

I just started. Will let you know as soon as the first sale presents itself Cheers!

joined 10/09/2013
206 images
4671 visitors
participating in groups, contest, twitter pinterest
0 sales

But on the other hand I am selling hundreds/month on microstock , man can´t have everything i gues

quite often stock and art doesn't mix and i've seen that pattern before. while i always get yelled at, stock is a different form of photography. and often what looks good as a single graphic to advertise a product may not good on a wall. plus if you sell in both places and they like it, they can buy as stock for cheap. and print it themselves.

---Mike Savad

@judy - you only have 10 images, he has like 68, so just by default he'll have more.

---Mike Savad

I made a few sales in the first month or so. The next 10 months ZERO....
I have over 700 images for sale and I advertise on fine art america, twitter, facebook and flickr.

I have just started and I`ve got to say, above all, I love the community feeling here. Do you think a premium membership would significantly boost your chances of getting a sale? Thank you and best of luck to everyone!

haha - just saw your post Bradford - thanks!

Robert - as has already been said to you probably a few dozen times now, you may have 700 up for sale, but many of those are not of printable quality.

Petrovan - really the only ways it boosts the ability to sell is that you can have an infinite amount for sale, as opposed to the 25 you can have for free. And you get your own site to promote rather than the entirety of FAA.

@elrey - it's hard to know what will sell. things that are artistic might sell and it might not. it all depends on the viewer. i would say your work seems ok (though the loupe doesn't work so i can't just the up close quality.


for this one, besides adding more keywords. i would try to get the color back in the sky, though hard now. it could use some pop. so it thumbnails better. if you increased the greens in the trees and add a bit of yellow it should help.


you might want to calibrate your screen i think it's too bright, as many of these are far too dark, like this is nice, but too dark


this one is way too dark, it's hard to say if they will print it or not because it's kind of dull looking. nothing is worse than a dull looking image. you only have seconds to catch an attention. for this image i would crop tighter since the background doesn't help the story.



up close the bird is cute, but as a thumb this just blends in. i would crop it tighter, remove the soft leaves, increase contrast, add some red, boost saturation a bit as well.

make sure your pushing your work, the views are rather low. the nice thing about selling online is - you don't have to move much, so energy is related to the comfort of your chair.

i think the bio is a little too detailed about your life history. choose where you shot most of your work, don't compare yourself to others, and don't give keywords that will stray people away from you. you can say that you specialize in scenic nature shots or something. what camera you use isn't that important. i wouldn't mention how long you've been doing photography, even age won't help a lot.

if friends like the work, ask them to buy it. they probably won't, but maybe next time they'll say something more useful.


---Mike Savad

I joined around the 30th October have 15 photographs and 7 fractal artworks views 1296
Sales none as of yet, I have been using keywords and descriptions, sharing via twitter etc

I have been a member for a year or so but just recently (the past two weeks) been uploading photos. I have been participating in everything FAA and have had 496 visits in two weeks. I am not too concerned with sales, I am having fun taking my time with it! Obviously I would love the sales but patience will go a long way. If anyone could critique my work I would greatly appreciate it!!!

I joined in mid November 2013 and had my first sale last week.

Jean

I haven't had my first sale yet. What suggestions could be given?

Thank you

Angel

@airstudios - you only have 12 photos. that's a teeny tiny amount to show your work with. times it by a 100.


this image is crooked, and it really doesn't tell a story, the description is more about you then why he's on the water or why anyone should put this on their wall. the term boat - doesn't appear in the tags.


there is too much effect in here. as a result the image is muddy looking and it makes the thumbnail look bad as well. don't use the fake hdr look, it won't enhance. saying it was taken by you won't help people to find it. say what this is, give a story, something people can bite into.


this is rather blue, dark, very cluttered and rather dirty. the real question is why you took it, and who would want it? would you buy this and hang it up? often when people buy snow scenes they are looking for the better half of winter. a pleasant farm scene, a contrast of red with a bird or a bridge and so on. but this is a common suburban street after a few days and there is no frost in this scene at all. the description doesn't help much, tossing in polar vortex won't impress much. now if you lived in the desert and shot this - it might be different. but this can be anywhere usa.


this is a bit better because it does tell a story. but its way too dark and has a bit of a vignette on it. i would ramp it up in brightness a bit and make it a black and white. forget about this photo was taken by you - we know that already. tell us the location and that he's going to go sledding or something. and chalk it up as street photography.

give yourself a bio. it looks just like your descriptions right now. tell people what you specialize in tossing a few keywords in. then advertise everywhere and constantly. but mostly you need more work that is eye catching. simply taking pictures of this and that won't attract people or keep them there for very long. the question everyone has to ask is - would i buy that? am i giving people a good value for their money?


---Mike Savad

I am fresh and new to FAA, I have always been terrified to find out the real truth on my work. There is never a good time to face your fears, so I want to take the plunge. At first I wanted to wait till I possible made a first sale before I upgraded to the full membership. So please critic as please be as honest as possible. Being that I know none of you if I receive terrible reviews it will just help me learn and adjust, Thank you

Is this "How I long for a sale?" - don't wait around for your first sale. It can take months for the search engines to find your image and for you to market it enough to be seen by enough people to find a buyers.

This is a "long tail" - keep working, keep moving, keep promoting. The sales will come but it can take years to build up the following needed for regular sales.

Timothy, I'm not one of the top photogs in FAA, but I can tell you that you really need more keywords, and some of things have no description and you need a bio. I could comment on the actual photos, but since I am an artist first and photographer second, I'll bow out. Also, I strongly suggest you look at the tab "Need Help? Start Here"

Rebecca

@timothy -


you want to keep the effects off of people or they glow like this. you need more keywords.


the composition is ok, but the uneven lighting and the all blue snow is off putting. while there are no real rules, i'd rather see the horse off center. you want more keywords for all of these, and descriptions.



this will be impossible to sell. it's kind of cluttered, electric stuff, a bird, contrail blurs. and it's very noisy on top of that. if it should sell, they wouldn't print it. i would honestly remove this one, because it only takes one odd image to make people leave.


when shooting dogs, always get on eye level, always watch the background and make sure there isn't stuff in it. watch the lighting, and don't include a leash, collar or tags. otherwise it will look like a snap shot. on top of all that there is no clarity in this, it won't print, i can see it looks like it was shot from a phone, or enlarged twice, you can see the chunkifications in there. you'll also want to watch out for red eye.


usually shots like this only make the pet owner happy. it has a low sale value. while an ok pose, it's really a snap shot.


stay away from borders like these, they are hideous. also statues are covered by copyright and you could get in trouble by the artist that made it unless you have permission or it's way old.

change the bio, it's lame. it's like saying -- come on in buyers, i want your money. just leave it to what you specialize in. and in that, you want work that other people may buy. and in that effect, would you buy it? that's where it becomes tricky.


---Mike Savad

How to get something of art sold is a mystery to me. I always thought that since people like it that's good enough.

Most likely but I do not know I think there is no one on FAA who sells enough here to pay their rent or mortgage let alone fuel, supplies and of course internet provider.

first you have to get the art in front of the right people, and from there, then they have to like it and then, know where it will go and often what it will match.


---Mike Savad

I found out that there few of the right people in my area. My style of fine art is of little interest. I've considered making what seems to interest people but only if they hire me to before the work is done. The commercial sign business I retired from has killed any desire to make anything but what interests me regardless of anyone else.

A fine artist should be making just what they themselves like and find an audience who loves it enough to spend money on prints or original works.

To do this is more expense & work than doing any art.

if you have enough work, you kind of force people to like it. usually it takes 1 piece they really like, before they like the other stuff. it's like having a smash hit in a band. up till now you never noticed the music, you like that one song, you might like others they made in the past. that's why it's a good idea to constantly make new things of every genre, and do it your very best. then tell everyone about it, getting as many different kinds of people as followers.

if you have a commercial sign business background, you can make simple ones. like - COFFEE - people get those for kitchens. or other general names. you can make it your way and use the skill and get the sale.

like i can do art stuff, but i've tried things with signs and it seems i'm terrible at making signs. so i kind of gave up with that idea for now.

---Mike Savad

You have a point Mike. Optimistic like you are is good!

The sign business has some arty crafts like neon so I made some abstracts on wood using slick enamel paints and had my tube bender make the neon for it. I will try showing these in a gallery somewhere. I made a few custom neon signs for people's party dens. They go for $6-1800.00. I did break down and paint a metal sign and another with vinyl for a friend's friend but it cost them $2000.00.

I wish that kind of action happened in fine art! The most I ever got was $1200.00 for a bear painting but customers die off or move on.

that's why you need a huge variety and try something for each market to see what catches on. that's why you'll see what looks like a totally random set of things, that i've sent here (if you look at images) really are all experimental. some i know will sell. some are here to fill in for things i know sell well, and others are just experimental, to see what might catch on, and start a new section. every day i try to make at least one new things. though right now i'm trying to fix old things that haven't ever sold, and trying a new angle on them.

---Mike Savad

I new at this and haven't sold anything yet.

@lydia - your starting people in galleries, but you have no cover images.

i'm not going to critique the image however


this one is a bit dark, but your name is cropped off - they won't print it for that reason alone.


this one is also really dark, you turned the loupe off so i can't tell you if it will print or not. but if buyers are used to seeing the image up close, they may not want yours because it's off. i'm not sure what the printer will say about the edges. usually cropped edges are a no no, but this is a little different. you have very few keywords on these, and hardly any description.

you have to remember that the site won't advertise for you, you have to do that for yourself. the numbers are quite low, which means your just waiting for a sale. but it won't happen unless you tell people your here.


---Mike Savad

me too..i also haven't had my first sale yet.
I would appreciate any advice given...

Thank you

Janice

Janice you have 5 images...
I have 200 images and 18,5k views and no sales too.

janice you've been here for a week. have only 5 images, you have to advertise yourself and it still may take months before people take notice because it's not an overnight thing.


this one has cropping issues on the lower right.


this one you didn't straighten or crop at all, plus you signed the edge in large letters - not only is this a bad presentation, but they won't print it should it be sold. oh and on top of all of that, it's not very clear up close, looks like it was enlarged at least once. you need better descriptions calling that a jpeg helps no one. tell people what we are looking at - who is this for? - for example. you have pretty much no keywords. you need all these to attract attention.


you have 2 that are identical. this one is small and has compression marks around the eyes - though it might be the site doing that, the background looks dirty. there is nothing in the keywords that suggests happiness, that it's a girl, face, etc. it just says what they all say. i don't know why there is a word on the mouth, they may see that as a watermark, but it may limit your audience because it's another language.


you have a lot of dots in your tags.

mostly:

1. you've been here only a week.
2. you only have 5 images, 2 are the same
3. there are cropping and clarity issues
4. there are poor descriptions
5. practically no keywords
6. you don't have it in any groups, so very few are seeing them internally.

so you have to: fix the issues first. then advertise, then have realistic expectations that not everything sells and it isn't overnight. that while every now and then the site tosses one up for sale, you'll be in the back of the search until you bring in more people.

also rewrite your bio. it's so wishy washy. don't focus on what you can't do, focus on what you can do, and do make. while i write in all lowercase here in the forum, the bio should have the proper grammar, punctuation, capitals, etc. it should be broken up, and you should be telling people what you make. not how you started. because no one cares. your writing this for google, tell people what you like making.


---Mike Savad

Still waiting, not holding my breath.

I do what I can to promote my work on FAA, but since I consider my smugmug hosted site my "real" and much more professional looking website, that is where I generally steer my clients.

Also, and this may be selfish, but on my real website, there is no risk of a potential client clicking on the "Shop" button at the top of the page and seeing other people's artwork. When it comes to keeping an eye on the prize, I want their eyes only on my prize.

Dear Mike Saved,

Thank you very much for the advice and wisdom you shared with me. It really did help me.
Your words meant a lot and I will particularly take note of the advice..
I really appreciate your advice and you are absolutely right! Thanks again :)

Dear Martin Capek,
Hope you can get your first sale soon =)

Janice

Haven't had a sale yet, but I'm having fun. I'm playing around with different things and will probably pull some of the photo's. Any help appreciated.

Thanks Mike for the advise. I do need a better camera.

Mike sorry, but what is loupe ? what do you mean by turned off ? Thanks

I figured out the loupe .