Best Match Discussion - Feb 15, 2013

I've just noticed that 1 of the files i uploaded in December is now placed where i'd (more or less) expect it to be in BM searches and in my portfolio... unfortunately the rest from that september onward period are still seemingly unaffected.


Is this a sign of this issue slowly getting fixed?


BTW It's been a little while since i logged in to check the BM situation so i don't know when this happened.

(Edited on 2013-03-01 05:00:59 by AtomA)

Follow-up just one day later:

Photo number one went down from #265 to #844 in one day. From page 2 to page 5.

Photo number two went down from #319 to #524 in one day, from page 2 to page 3. Interestingly, photos number 1 and 4 show up at #559 and  #563 of the tourist search. The keyword "tourist" is listed 23rd and 11th on each shot respectively, suggesting that the order of keywords really doesn't matter much.

Photo number three went down from #65 to #103 in one day and stayed on page one.

Photo number four appears at #2032 or page 10 of the search. That's on its 3rd day of indexation. Photo number 2 appears ahead of it at #1758 despite NOT having "Boyfriend" listed at all in its keywords. (?!?!)

So what I make of this so far:

Photos fall fast and have bad initial positioning depending on the number of photos with 10+ downloads in a specific search. The 10 downloads threshold is ruling the BM. Everything else has very subtle effect compared to that bulldozer of a stat.


Keyword order doesn't matter (on new files - I haven't checked older files yet): the photos will show up with other shots upoaded at the same time no matter if the keyword is listed 1st, 11th or 23rd.

There are some additional unseen keywords in action here - I'm thinking perhaps because photo 2 has "Heterosexual Couple" listed, it also shows up in "boyfriend" searches despite not having that word listed. It is bizarre that it precedes a shot with the actual keyword attached. Photo number 2 is E+ while the others are regular. Perhaps that comes into play.

One thing is sure: the only decent exposure new files get past its first day is in obscure searches with few 10+ downloaded files and multi-word searches that also produce few 10+ downloads results. Views and downloads are therefore very, very slow to come and that 10 downloads mark seems impossible to reach in such little time (one day, basically) near the top of popular searches. Does the future only belong in niche markets?

(Edited on 2013-03-01 08:04:12 by NicolasMcComber)

Another day... (day 4 of indexation)

Photo one is down do #1001, now on Page 6.

Photo two is down to #646, now on Page 4.

Photo three cannot be found today with the same search as before. It is not showing in file age mode nor in BM sort. Just for fun I'll look in the next listed keyword (Horizontal !) hmm, no i'll go to the third: "Switzerland" where it sits on page 3 #427.

While I'm on the subject of Switzerland, did you know there was a minilypse there in October 2012? The best selling file from the event has a whopping 5 downloads 3 months later. The bulk of the photos (uploaded in late October and November - obviously the newly uploaded files are higher) I was able to find in the Switzerland search were between pages 18 and 28. No wonder they don't sell. I personally have two files that have sold 3 times and I couldn't find them. Couldn't find the best selling file either. I have a Vetta file uploaded in December that sold once and benefitted from the supposed current BM bump all the way to... page 19, #3779. Boy, things certainly have changed.

Photo number Four is now #2365, page 11.

I thought that the fall would stabilize when new images reach the bottom of the 10+ selling files, but the continued sinkage of the Lenk Lypse files seem to indicate otherwise. Bummer.

(Edited on 2013-03-02 08:18:13 by NicolasMcComber)

Good analysis Nicolas. Thumbs up!

Regarding the minilypse, I think we should also add that up to a certain point in november, we were getting plenty of downloads of those files, lots of first time downloads but also 2nd and 3rd in short time. After that point of time in november, the sales literally stopped for those minilypse files. So basically there is a demand, not that Switzerland/Alps/etc. themes don't sell. It sells but not the fresh new files.

I think your analysis makes perfect sense. But we need more data. 

Now, something has definitely changed right now.


It seems new files are going up in searches, although a lot of very old files are still there.


 

Agreed.

I'd say 99% of the BM shifts reported by contributors on the forums are probably imaginary. People spot some minor change and assume a dial must have changed somewhere, but from just a quick personal analysis, it looks like a real change has happened over night. Newer uploads of mine that had dropped down over the past few weeks and days have now sprung back up. Looks promising.

ETA: done a few more test searches and relevance seems improved too.

(Edited on 2013-03-03 06:39:17 by kelvinjay)

Yes, it definitely looks a lot like the "pre-September BM" that everyone has been requesting on the test searches I've done.  Great job SearchFairy and team!!

Yes, I agree--looks promising!!!!!

New files definitely getting more of a boost, looks great!

Still too many new 0 dl files from the same contributors 'clumped' together. Try 'Business' under video search and it's not pretty.


 

We will provide an update early next week. Is BM ever going to be perfect for everyone?: No.

Awesome! Thank you for doing a well-needed shake-up. It will make creating new photos exciting again.

(Edited on 2013-03-03 09:16:20 by NicolasMcComber)

I agree, looks better.  Thanks.


Time to start uploading more frequently and see what happens.  Should be an interesting next few weeks, for more reasons than one.

Will upload files the next days and see if they're given a fair chance.

THANK YOU! This looks way better.


I know it has been suggested previously, but how realistic might it be to reward exclusives with a contributor boost on select images? Maybe an earned quantity of these based on RCs or canister level or whatever? I realize that now is probably not the best time to start introducing new functionality, but if TPTB are reading, maybe stick this in your "ideas that might make contributors happy" file. (Surely, you have one of those, right?)

thanks for the updates over night, new files seem to be getting a better chance. at least there not stuck on the back 3 pages anymore.

Thank you New files are certainly better positioned. But it still seems there's no logic to how BM behaves. I have two files with practically identical keywords, uploaded three days apart. Earlier upload has 4 views and 2 downloads, and the one uploaded three days later has 7 views but no downloads. You'd presume that 2 downloads of the first file would move it in front of the newer file that has no downloads. Instead the 3 more views or 3 days less age outweighs the downloads by over 300 BM positions. The 2 times downloaded file has BM position 701, and the never downloaded one position 398.


Files performance should be rewarded. I have nothing against normal fluctuations of the BM and have never complained about such. But this is different, if new well perfoming files don't get rewarder in the form of better BM placement, there's absolutely no point to produce above average work. If iStock wants to be in the business for years to come, the collection must evolve and get better and better. All the time.

(Edited on 2013-03-03 13:05:37 by Vaara)

I don't want it perfect for everyone. I want it perfect for ME!

It will be interesting to see how this BM works out for me - I have been enjoying having my old files back near the top recently, and haven't been uploading anything new.


One thing that the new BM highlights is that we really could do with some sort of initial keyword weighting, provided by the contributor. Putting new files that have no keyword weighting high up in search results means that there can be a lot of irrelevancy.

Looking good. My newer images ie, ones i uploaded August - October are now well represented in my BM so hopefully it will benifit them giving them a chance to be seen and downloaded.