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Anyone selling on Turbosquid?

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 2:54 am
by Mattia Sullini
Just wondered if it is worth a try to do that, since lately i had to model highpoly detailed models of furniture... The problem is that i would have to cleanup the meshes a little bit since they are not always optimized and fair, and i will have to shoot some descriptive pics of the models also...meaning: more work. Do you think then i should shut off the computer and sleep a couple hours more? :D
Thanks in advance for any feedback

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 3:06 am
by Bubbaloo
I have sold some models on TS. The 50% cut kind of sucks, but they get a lot of business so that's the price you pay I guess. Search Bubbaloo. :wink:

I haven't been doing it for long, so all of my stuff is pretty cheap just to see if it will sell. It's fun to get on there and see that you've sold another model. All of the money I make, I set aside for a new computer...

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 9:29 am
by glebe digital
If you're in the U.S I think it's easier..............from the EU you'll need to complete a ramp of forms for U.S tax purposes........that put me off and I started putting stuff on 3d02.com instead. :)

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 10:28 am
by Mattia Sullini
50%...!!! I thought less....anyway 50% is better than nothing, isn't it? (considering it would be a surplus and that i have been already paid for the custom modeling!).

I applied for my ITIN a month ago and was waiting for the response...

anyway i can see that the models are actually bought, right? Thanks for the replies

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 2:57 pm
by Bubbaloo
50% is better than nothing, isn't it?
Exactly! They will just be sitting around on my hard drive, so might as well try to make some pocket change with them. The only thing I'm worried about is what happens to them after they are sold. Hopefully they won't be freely distributed after that.

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 3:33 pm
by Maximus3D
If they grab 50% of what you earn on your models it's not worth the trouble, try to find other places and methods which pay off better than they do. I would defintely not sell my work on a site which takes so much as half for themselves. It's unreasonable..

/ Max

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 6:22 pm
by Bubbaloo
Well, you can choose to sell a few models on another, lower traffic site, or you can sell lots of models on a high traffic site for less profit. Where do people go for buying high quality models, ready for production, from a well organized secure website? TurboSquid. That's just the way it is... You could always put your models on as many sites as you can find!

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 8:49 pm
by KurtS
wow - lots of great stuff at Turbosquid!


Image

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 9:17 pm
by Bubbaloo
I've sold over 1500 of those!

Plus, I'd say it's comparable to products like this:
Image

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 11:13 pm
by KurtS
the Bananaman is a brilliant design, if I have to say so myself...! :lol:

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 11:53 pm
by -Adrian
:lol:

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 1:16 am
by Thomas An.
Bubbaloo brings up an interesting point.
How do you appraise these things to know what is a reasonable price (especially since you do not know what kind of volume will be sold at each price point).

I saw one person selling a model train for $2000 (did he even sell one?) ... and how did he know to price it as such; instead of just setting it at $200 hoping to sell 10.

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 3:06 am
by RonB
I have a few models I have thought would sell...but then again they are Lightwave...guess I could export as .obj and see if I could get them converted to Max.

But I agree it is hard to price the model.

The 50% commision is standard for most regular art galleries. I made my living as an art potter for 12 yrs or so and that was the rate then. At least with digital models the same item can be sold over and over.

I'll give this some more thought...

Ron

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 7:24 am
by Hervé
he he they take 50%... hey this is why models are way way overpriced for what it is... Bubaloo.. 169 + tax for two cubes... com'on... I sell my realistic croissant for $10.... 8) :wink:

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 9:00 am
by ivox3
They don't take 50% , ...they add 50%. That's how it should be viewed and your pricing (whatever that may be) should have that in mind. It's more than fair given the maintenance of that site plus the traffic generated --- just try and sell a model on your own, just try.

As far as what to price, ... my personal take is quantity over quality of sale --that being in terms of price. Basically, .. be cheap.

Feed the masses and you'll dine with the kings, ...feed the kings and you'll dine with the masses.


Thomas, .. if that was my $2000 model train, .. I'd charge $20 bucks per and I'd probably make 6K on the thing over time. People who have those high price models are missing the point ---- yes there was a lot of time put in, ..but they're trying to re-coup the value all in one shot from a single person or more commonly, ...something more like a dozen sales. Even with the latter method, ..the models end up being pretty expensive.
If that's how industry worked, ....iPods would be like $20 million a piece ( guessing), but you get the point. . Also, with a low price, ..you corner a market by garnering professionals who actually need the model and you'll also pick up enthusiasts who like messing around with a quality model.

It's like the tortoise and the hare ---- and we all know how that worked out

If anyone has designs on actually making money with Tubosquid --- here's your plan:

1. Have an outstanding model. Let it be actually something useful to many that's not quickly or easily duplicated. But high quality is the primary factor.

2. Take the time to texture it -- if it's appropriate. ( and different textures are an absolute bonus)

3. Create all the common file formats --- a big plus is having a low / high res version.

4. Take the time to produce a killer render ( close-ups and whole shots)
This is crucial --- inferior renders do two things :
1. either hide inferior geometry
2. or hide excellent geometry
So eliminate any guessing on the buyers part. The pics will sell it.
Include good wires too.

4. Research similar models --- figure a general market value for something similar and now, ......make your price irresistable by being low. When you do this, ..you force the sale to be yours ------ everyone checks out similar models and ultimately makes a determination based on quality and price. You have the best model and the cheapest ........ think about it !!! sheesh ..

5. Set a given time to actually do this.

6. Shut up and model, upload, ..make money.

7. With your new income ----Buy a faster pc to model more. :lol:

8. Send me a kick back. ;)