I have read a few things people have done, some have success, some don’t. It looks like Alamy Rank is the key factor and trying to figure out how to make the most of it is the way forward.

Every contributor to Alamy has a rank, so if someone types in a keyword to look for an image and two people are using that keyword for their image, then the contributor who has the highest rank will get their image displayed nearer the top than the other person.

So how does someone new to Alamy get higher in the rankings?

I should just say here that this is all theoretical. I don’t have any stats to back this up, I’m just thinking out loud.

Well, from what I have read, although the info was a little old, it looks like it’s best plan of attack is to have a wide variety of subjects and themes to your images. So rather than do a whole series of 20 images relating to a stapler, you should limit it to only a few.

Why? Well according to what I read (can’t remember where it was now) if your image is being displayed in search results a lot, but no one is buying it, that has a negative effect on your rank. So by only producing a few images on a given subject, you will only have a few images being shown and not bought, rather than a lot of images being shown and not bought. Thus having a lesser effect on your rank. Also, if your images are selling, then if the one that sells is shown with many other of your images, then the one that sells has a positive effect, but the ones that don’t have a negative effect.

Confused yet?

So what if you do have 20 images of a stapler, how do you maximise the potential of all of them while bearing in mind the rank effects. Well, the answer would be the keywording of the images.

Rather than use the same keywords, like ’stapler’, ‘office equipment’, ’stationery’, etc etc for each image. Try using the keyword ’stapler’ for a few images, ’stationery’ for another few images etc etc so spread out the keywords, rather than try and cram in as many as you can for each image.

Keywording can be a tricky subject to get right, and it’s the same for building web sites. Let’s assume you have an image of a web site about mountain bikes. You could use generic keywords like ‘bike’ or ‘bicycle’ but that would mean that anyone looking for bmxs, choppers, racers etc etc could show your image, whereas if your keyword was ‘mountain bike’ and not just ‘bike’ then you immediately increase your chance of selling your image because it’s far more specific. OK, it might not get shown as much, good for your rank apparently, but when it does get shown it’s likely to be up against fewer images and more on topic for what is being searched for.

So, that’s one thing I will be trying, and resisting the temptation to stuff the keyword box full of generic terms.

Do you have any tips for improving your Alamy rank, or just improving the chance of your image selling?

There are no hard and fast rules in internet marketing, which is why whether it is email marketing or methods like pay per click, it is upto you, and your web site hosting service has absolutely no say in it.

In an already highly competitive market, with new stock photography web sites springing up all the time, for Alamy to have reached 10 million images, that is quite a milestone and puts them head and shoulders, in terms of quantity, above most other stock image suppliers. Digital photography has gone a long way to make stock photography a more viable option to the amateur photographer wanting to take the next step and perhaps earn a bit of money. The range of digital cameras that are available now that give you the image size and quality to submit your work for stock is also making it a lot easier to enter into the world of stock photography.

So, if you are a stock photographer, have you found it harder to make a living, or a reasonable income, from stock over the last few years, or are you thinking about giving stock a go? Let me know your thoughts.

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