The new site design works really well in terms of advertising as I notice far more than in the old design the latest models for sale at Rendro. What this has also highlighted to me though is how cheap (price) alot of models are - I'm not complaining as a potenetial customer as it benefits me, but thinking from the creators point of view do they really make any money at all and is it worth doing such great, detailed work for very little? For example the antique typewriter that has been advertised recently looks fantastic. It certainly looks of a high standard and very detailed, so I'm assuming it took some time to create, and then some for the texture maps. But it only retails at $7.00...I was so surprised when I saw that - that means the vendor is only making about $3.50. Is the traffic and resulting sales volumes at Rendro that good that the vendor would actually see a decent return on their creation? I'm thinking they could charge more at some other sites I'm not knocking Rendro or suggesting they should..but it puzzles me.

Or maybe such a model really takes no time at all for someone experienced (teach me how you do it lol!) or is not as difficult as it looks,  and therefore the price is a reasonable reflection of the time taken to create it,or skill level...?

Just some thoughts....am I missing something? Would love to hear thoughts from some other.

As a Poser content buyer, I'd say please don't say things which make sellers think about increasing prices or asking more from a commissioned deal, because it really affects the marginal spenders here.

If people can't afford to buy items - especially for hobby use - they may resort to the less than legal markets (and we don't want to go there).

As it is, several vendors give up when they see their items on warez sites.  This is a greater loss to the entire 3D art community.

The market will determine if a product's price is right for its purpose (except illegal warez!).  If an item is priced too expensively, it won't sell to the hobbyists and marginal spenders.  I believe Renderosity has a mechanism in place to ensure items with poor sales are moved or removed.

Today's economy has really put a dent in sales for vendors, some of us really had to change our prices.  Sometimes we make more if we sell cheap, because it is now based on volumn.  That is why we do it.  And it does take some time to create a really nice model, but it is what it is.  Sharen

Yeah, I do understand that because the market is a 'hobby' market this will affect what people are willing, and are able to pay for. I guess it seemed more noticeable here because I've seen other sites with models of comparable quality with higher prices.

IO4,

I made the Antique Typewriter that you refered to in your OP.  I can confirm that it did take many long hours to make and texture due to the amount of modeling detail that it contains.  I would also agree that $7.00 is a low price, but infinity10 is correct in her assessment of the market.  As many potential customers are hobbiests if I was to set a price that I felt was fair for the time I put into making a product then I would not sell anything.  As a vendor here at Renderosity I hope to sell many models at a lower price rather than a couple of sales at a higher price.  This may be good for the buyers but it devalues the true worth of the model.  Add to that the excessive sales and coupon deals that Renderosity offers and the whole situation becomes ridiculous. 

It is always a gamble when we vendors make a model as it may be popular or it may bomb.  In my case making models is my hobby, so I am not relying on what I sell to make a living where as other vendors do rely on their sales to get by.  I really feel for the vendors who struggle to get by on what they make in sales here as the uncertainty of sales, low return on work done and often poor exchange rates on the US dollar make things very difficult.   I no longer sell exclusively here at Renderosity any more because of the reasons stated above. 

In answer to your closing question, Yes often the modeling process IS as difficult as it looks, and the price is NOT a reasonable reflection of the time it took to make.

Thanks very much for your reply keppel (that typewriter is superb!). What you say makes a lot of sense and is kind of what I was assuming, but thought maybe I might be missing something. It's a shame I think that indeed the low prices can devalue the true worth of the model, and also  that  artists don't  get a bigger reward for their skill - but yes, I see that's the nature of the market. And of course, it's like that in all streams of the art world - only a minority get recognized for what they do and can command prices of their choosing.  But equally as you say, it's better to sell a lot at a lower price, than a few at a higher one.    

Thank you to all the artists who are prepared to spend the time to make great models and textures and offer them to us at these kinds of prices!:)  Maybe you all should have a donate button also so people who appreciate your skill and time can show it more if they want to:)

Let's face it - I've never bought anything from Turbosquid.

'nuff said

Yeah, content creators here know that the mass market on Renderosity is the hobbiest, so prices have to match accordingly to accomodate the consumers.

I personally learned how to model to keep me from having to buy so much. Starting a store and selling came later, after peple in the chat room convinced me to.

As for the donate button, I've noticed some with them in their forum signatures, but if they're like me, very few, if any, actually donate.

Its a case of selling large numbers at low prices. The problem is selling large numbers ;)

Turbosquid seems more toward the professional market where $100 for a prop may be well worth the cost.

I would not be surprised if sell through rates on Turbosquid are significantly less than Renderosity or any of the more hobbyist focused sites. I have sold models through Turbosquid, and there are a few considerations there -

• The use license there is more flexible than what Poser folk want or need. For this reason, in licensing my own content the cost of licensing for inclusion into a real time 3D playback environment is significantly higher than an "art" license. It just seems right to me that if you are only using a model to render a still, or render an animation, you should not be paying as much as game developers.

• Like some other sites, Turbosquid is uncurated. That's not a problem at all on many sites (not naming names), but I have found, in the past many sellers selling Incredible Hulk or Buzz Lightyear models on Turbosquid. Consequently, if you are selling anywhere, I recommend you check on TS now and then to see if your stuff starts to appear there.

• Turbosquid clearly targets the MAX/Maya type user, but what does that mean? It really doesn't mean all that much. Yes, there is a lot of good stuff there for MAX, plus other add-ons for MAX. But Ive seen some models appear on Rendo that far outshine many models on Turbosquid.