Photographers and Illustrators who submit their work to microstock agencies have one important decision to make. Should they be exclusive or nonexclusive with the agency of their choice? Both licenses come with advantages and disadvantages. In this article, I will discuss these advantages and disadvantages.
Exclusive Advantages
First of all, what does exclusive mean? An exclusive license means that any images published with the exclusive license can't be published elsewhere. There are advantages to being exclusive with an agency. One of the main advantages to going exclusive with a microstock agency is that they tend to pay you higher commissions if you decide to go exclusive with their agency.
Another reason to go exclusive with a microstock agency is because it makes your life a little easier. Instead of going through the hassle of having to submit and keyword your photos with several different agencies, you just have to do one. It saves time.
Nonexclusive Advantages
A nonexclusive license means that you are free to publish your images elsewhere as long as they're under a nonexclusive license as well. The main advantage to using a nonexclusive license with your images is advertising. When you submit your images to all of these different agencies, you increase the likelihood of achieving a sale. Not everyone uses just one microstock agency to buy their photos with.
And if you spread your images around four or five agencies, you will probably make more money in the long run. It's true that exclusive images pay more, but I tend to believe that being nonexclusive with several agencies will bring you more money with time. This is due to the sheer volume of sales you will likely achieve by spreading your images around different agencies.
Disadvantages
Obviously, if you are dependent on a single microstock agency for your sales then their problems are your problems. If there are any technical glitches or site outages, you will lose money. And if that company goes bankrupt then you are going to have to start all over again with another agency.
And if you're exclusive with a bankrupt agency then there is no telling whether or not you can actually switch your images to another agency. I would think you could since the agency you were with is bankrupt, but who knows. You should check into this before you go exclusive with any microstock agency.
Going nonexclusive with a company lessens any potential disadvantages. It's similar to buying financial stocks. If you spread your money between fifteen to twenty stocks then you are less likely to lose all of it. If one or two companies fail you then the other stocks will theoretically take up the slake.
So if you place your images on four or five well known microstock agencies then you're less likely to have any problems. Of course, if one particular microstock agency suddenly attracts all of the buyers then you may lose money with a nonexclusive license. If you had been exclusive with the company that attracted all of the buyers, you would make more money then you would with the nonexclusive license. But that's an unlikely scenario.
Going exclusive or nonexclusive with a particular microstock agency is a decision that every microstock photographer or illustrator has to make. There are advantages and disadvantages to both of these types of licenses, so you will have to decide which is best for you.
