If you’ve ever used high-quality, free images online, chances are you’ve come across Unsplash.
Ever wondered how they manage to stay afloat while giving away high-quality images for free? How do they keep the lights on and the photos flowing?
In this article, we’ll dive into the story of Unsplash and uncover how it turned generosity into a massive success.
The birth of Unsplash: A happy accident
Unsplash’s journey started with a bit of luck and a lot of creativity. Back in 2013, Mikael Cho, the founder of Crew (a freelance marketplace), was frustrated with the lack of quality, free images online. Stock photo sites either had terrible images or came with restrictive licenses and annoying watermarks. So, Cho hired a photographer to shoot some high-resolution images for Crew’s website.
Mikael Cho
When the photoshoot resulted in more images than he needed, Cho decided to share them for free on a simple Tumblr blog called “Unsplash.” What happened next was nothing short of magical. The photos went viral, racking up thousands of downloads within hours. News of this amazing free resource spread like wildfire on platforms like Hacker News, and soon, talented photographers from around the world started contributing their own work. Unsplash transformed from a personal project into a bustling global community almost overnight. Today, Unsplash features over 3 million images, has 2 million contributors, and millions of users around the globe.
Fun Fact: The name "Unsplash" actually came from a typo! While searching for keywords related to "beautiful free photos," the original word got mixed up. To this day, no one knows what the intended word was.
Scaling up with user-generated content
The secret to Unsplash’s success? Giving away top-quality photos for free. This approach struck a chord with writers, bloggers, and content creators who needed beautiful, copyright-free images. As Unsplash’s library of HD photos grew, so did its audience.
Photographers who uploaded their work enjoyed huge exposure thanks to the traffic Unsplash attracted. Nick Nice captured this perfectly in a tweet:
“Over 150 million views on @unsplash — I know it's not a lot, but for me it's 🤯.”
This kind of reach made Unsplash a go-to destination for high-quality, free images.
Link building strategy
Unsplash’s clever link-building strategy is another key to its success. Whenever someone downloads a photo, they’re prompted to credit the original photographer.
This simple step generates valuable backlinks, which are crucial for SEO. The more backlinks Unsplash gets, the higher it ranks on Google. This caused their growth to skyrocket in under six months, proving that smart link-building can drive remarkable success.
Using product as a marketing tool
Unsplash’s early success wasn’t just a lucky break. The platform started as a side project to promote Crew, with just ten new posts every ten days on Tumblr.
Unsplash as a Tumblr Blog
The strategy paid off when Unsplash hit #1 on Hacker News and attracted 50,000 visitors in just an hour. This wasn’t just luck; it was a deliberate tactic. Cho’s idea that a product could serve as marketing turned out to be a brilliant move.
So, they decided to keep the momentum going by launching a few more products:
- Launch This Year: A weekly series of business-building tips, curated by industry experts; (This one’s no longer around, though.)
- How Much To Make An App: A quick tool to calculate the cost of building an app in under a minute;
- Moodboard: A simple way to share your inspirational images with just a link — no account required.
These new ventures helped Unsplash keep growing and expanding its reach.
Monetizing without compromising core values
Even with its success, Unsplash faces the challenge of monetizing its free photo library while staying true to its mission. Here are some ideas for how Unsplash might bring in revenue:
- Boosting premium subscriptions
- Exclusive content: Offer special collections and templates just for subscribers;
- Advanced tools: Provide better tools for organizing and sharing photos;
- Direct photographer support: Connect subscribers with photographers for custom work or advice;
- Educational resources: Include tutorials and workshops on photography.
- Expanding custom licensing
- Industry-specific collections: Create curated collections for different industries with higher licensing fees;
- Targeted marketing: Promote these collections to relevant brands and agencies;
- Direct commissioning: Allow businesses to commission work directly from photographers;
- Broader licensing: Offer licenses for uses beyond just online content.
- Introducing API usage fees
- Tiered plans: Offer different levels of API access with varying features;
- Enterprise solutions: Create custom API solutions for larger companies;
- Data insights: Provide businesses with access to data insights and trends.
- Enhancing targeted advertising
- AI for contextual ads: Use AI to show ads based on user behavior and searches;
- Brand partnerships: Collaborate with brands for sponsored content;
- Interactive ads: Try new ad formats like interactive or shoppable ads.
- Exploring new revenue streams
- Freemium content: Offer limited free downloads or time-limited access to encourage upgrades;
- Creator-specific subscriptions: Create subscription tiers with exclusive content and direct interaction with photographers;
- Curated collections: Work with experts to build premium collections and license them commercially;
- Print-on-demand: Partner with print services to offer customized prints and share profits with photographers;
- Educational resources: Launch courses and certification programs to position Unsplash as a leader in photography education.
Suggestions for product managers
To successfully navigate these opportunities, product managers should:
- Understand user needs: Research what users want and need from premium features;
- Involve the community: Get feedback from the community to ensure new features are fair and valuable;
- Use data wisely: Track performance metrics and adjust strategies based on data insights;
- Stay flexible: Experiment with different approaches and be ready to adapt based on what works;
- Maintain ethics: Ensure user privacy, fair compensation for creators, and transparency in all monetization efforts.
By balancing innovation with its core mission, Unsplash can continue to be a beloved resource while exploring new ways to generate revenue.
Conclusion
Can you please rewrite this without word leveraging: Unsplash’s journey from a humble Tumblr blog to a leading source of free, high-quality images is truly impressive. Their success goes beyond just giving away photos for free — it’s about leveraging user contributions, clever link-building, and turning their platform into a powerful marketing tool. As Unsplash looks for new ways to generate revenue while staying true to its values, it shows how creativity and generosity can turn a simple concept into a worldwide success.
