# Good bye SMUG MUG - Hello ?????



## CNCO (Mar 2, 2011)

I am going to cancel my smug mug. I think its ridiculous that you have to have the pro account to watermark your images and set prices. I think I tried to buy one of my photos and the price was 21 cents. Yes thats right, How do people expect photographers to buy expensive equipment when they sell their work for that price. 

What are the alternatives to smug mug. Im looking for a site like that where people can buy my photos and have their photos printed on items like coffee mugs, mouse pads etc....


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## e.rose (Mar 2, 2011)

If you're talking about clients that you've had sessions with buying images... and then being able to get their images on coffee mugs and mouse pads, you could just build a "regular" site and show them the proofs in person and/or set up an online gallery for them.  Then you can find a local printer that offers those services.

I'm using a printer that someone I know recommended to me based out of Pittsburgh... and while that's over 4 hours away, it's still close enough that we get our orders back in 1 - 2 days and they offer all of that jazz... coffee mugs... mouse pads... calendars... not that *I* personally would ever use those things, but I'm sure that there are plenty of printers that *do*.

Smug Mug isn't the end all of selling your photos.  I didn't realize that they didn't let you set your own prices either... soooo, that's now added to the list of reasons why I probably will never use them.


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## reedshots (Mar 2, 2011)

it offten takes money to make money.  if you like SMUG MUG but don't want to pay them for thier service - then why should you get paid for yours?
$150 a year for an accout isn't much and can be made up with just a few sells of your images.


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## Fleetwood271 (Mar 2, 2011)

Smug Mug DOES allow you to set your own prices.  You can set a certain percentage, or an actual dollar amount.  And You can price every image you have on their site at once time, or you can price every image individually.

And they sell mouse pads, and mugs, along with lots of other merchandise.


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## Bitter Jeweler (Mar 2, 2011)

Build your own site.


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## kundalini (Mar 2, 2011)

CNCO said:


> I am going to cancel my smug mug. I think its ridiculous that you have to have the pro account to watermark your images and set prices. I think I tried to buy one of my photos and the price was 21 cents. Yes thats right, How do people expect photographers to buy expensive equipment when they sell their work for that price.
> 
> What are the alternatives to smug mug. Im looking for a site like that where people can buy my photos and have their photos printed on items like coffee mugs, mouse pads etc....


 
I'm not reportig you, but you're more than welcomed to report me this time.

You haven't a clue on SmugMug price points. 21¢ is YOUR cost dumbass. You charge whateverthephuuque you want for people to purchase prints from your gallery.


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## CNCO (Mar 3, 2011)

right dumbass but you need a pro account, i only have a few gigs so far, just starting out but as mentioned before it takes money to make money.


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## o hey tyler (Mar 4, 2011)

CNCO said:


> right dumbass but you need a pro account, i only have a few gigs so far, just starting out but as mentioned before it takes money to make money.


 
Well yeah, it takes money to make money, so buy a pro account and stop being such a dolt. You pretty much just answered your own question.


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## PASM (Mar 4, 2011)

reedshots said:


> it offten takes money to make money.  if you like SMUG MUG but don't want to pay them for thier service - then why should you get paid for yours?
> $150 a year for an accout isn't much and can be made up with just a few sells of your images.



Excellent point. It's worth it. And what's $150 these days as a business cost? ..five hours fee to a cheap webdesigner who cannot deliver the same brand awareness. Pay the pro fee IMO and let SM worry about uptime, functionality, site promotion.


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## Robin Usagani (Mar 4, 2011)

come to zenfolio.  You pay $100 a year.  Or $90 with discount code (ill give you my code if you want).  For $100 you pretty much get the same thing as $150 smugmug except you dont have video.  Plus I think zenfolio looks so much better.


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## Overread (Mar 4, 2011)

PASM said:


> site promotion.


 
pretty sure that whilst Smugmug make effort to advertise SmugMug itself (which gives a level of brand comfort for those ordering) they won't make any effort at all to advertise your photos on their site. Any advertising and promotion of your work you'll have to do on your own


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## bigtwinky (Mar 4, 2011)

So... you don't want to pay the SM fee of $150 for a pro account, but want the ability to sell your images?
There are companies that offer store fronts like that for $20 a month, just for the store front!

If you really don't like that $150 per year, try finding someone who will do it for you.  There are people out there, but for $150, you'll be lucky to get a junior developper to build you a 5 page site, with no store front.

Zenfolio might answer that, but I didn't find ZF to be as customizable as SM.

What it comes down to is that SM is fairly cheap.  ZF is fairly cheap.  Hell, i dont like SM because I am not allowed to have international labs or pricing, its all from the US which ups the cost for shipping... so I turned off pricing for prints.

You are saying tht you don't have a pro account and SM forces you to sell all your images for $0.21?  That does not sound normal at all, I would follow with with customer service on that instead of just taking my ball and going home.


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## PASM (Mar 4, 2011)

Overread said:


> PASM said:
> 
> 
> > site promotion.
> ...



Yes they do. smugmug . com/browse/


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## Robin Usagani (Mar 4, 2011)

Zenfolio can do a custom page now.


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## Overread (Mar 4, 2011)

PASM said:


> Overread said:
> 
> 
> > PASM said:
> ...



Sort of true, but its not really advertising your photography its just auto listing all the tabs that are attached to photos as well as listing the current top hits. If you can regularly work your way into their top hits it works (and probably self perpetuates itself once you're in the top hits unless they operate some random selection codes as well). 
Like I said you'll still have to put your own work in to advertise yourself to get sales on your work


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