“Clipping path and possibility of ending the business”

If you are into graphic design you’d probably know what clipping path is. However for some who doesn't know anything about the clipping path technique then don't just skim though the paragraphs but read and digest everything that's written here. So what's is clipping path anyway?

Here it is: What is clipping path?

Clipping path is a term used in the graphic industry which refers to the process of creating an outline around a certain image without having to modify or erase even a single pixel of the image. Clipping path is done by using Photoshop's mighty pen tool. A silhouette of an area that serves as a mask and the only portion of the image that has been clipped appears visible while the area outside the clipping path then becomes transparent.

The process of separating the objects from their basic layer or background is known as isolating, and the isolated parts of the image are placed on a new background. It can be either to create another image or simply to remove the background and changed its color. Clipping path is very useful for background elimination but is not only limited to it. You can do whatever you want since clipping path can be engaged in a variety of graphic editing procedures.


Why is clipping path becoming a niche in online business?

Probably, you wouldn’t think that there is such service about clipping path. The truth of the matter is, there is and it has been one of the most booming outsourcing services and is expected to grow even further in the coming years.

Clipping path services are becoming a popular outsourcing niche in todays' graphic industry simply because it is a way to cut labor cost and save time. For you to know, there are a lot of businesses that makes use of any form of digital imaging that primarily needs the clipping path service. Such businesses are advertising agencies, magazine editors, catalog, posters, brochures, websites, photographers, design studios or other form of print and design company. They have been the avid customers for many clipping path providers since clipping images is one of the most important base in graphic design.

Most of the businesses make use of this outsourcing graphic solutions primarily because it is repeatitive, labor intensive and there is no room for creativity which makes it unpart of the graphic core process. For many catalog companies, clipping path is a necessity since voluminous images are usually dealt with.


Nature of clipping path companies

Many clipping path providers all over the world are popping like daisies when this niche business opportunity became popular. For you to find out please go to one your favorite search engine and then type the word “ clipping path” as your keyword. You might be surprised how many companies are offering such service.

Clipping path companies guarantee to deliver the service within 24 hours or less though they don't have the same prices but most of which offers a free trial to test the quality of their work. In which the primary goal is to provide the best possible clipping paths suited for a business' needs. The prices range from $0.95 up to $3.89 per image which actually depends on the kind of clipping path your image needs. You can transfer your images to your offshore partner via FTP since this is a popular way to transfer files over the net. Most companies have a Upload / download function on their sites which definitely add convenience for many clients. Some companies use online file transfer services, such as yousendit.com, filefactory, and among others.

After clients received the services in a period of time they will be given the invoice which contains all the necessary information to settle their bills. Payment method is usually via paypal, bank transfer, credit and other mediums that are available on the net.

Aside from clipping path, most of these companies also offers other services such as image masking, photo restoration, image manipulation, photo retouching and other types of graphic outsourcing services.


How stiff is the clipping path competition?

The popularity of the Adobe’s Photoshop software opened up a market niche for entrepreneurs aspiring to hit it big in outsourcing. There are quite a number of companies operating within the graphic outsourcing industry, especially those offering clipping path services. Clipping path, in my opinion, is the best graphic related service to outsource since (a) it’s a routine job, (b) its precise and there is no room for creativity, and, (c) many creative graphic artists hate clipping path especially when a voluminous number of images are involved. The stiff competition is brought about by many small to medium sized companies in developing countries with partners set up in Europe or USA. The increasing number of competitors, brings in more choices for consumers to pick those providers who offer the highly affordable and standard quality service.

Having an online business is not as easy as you think, there are things to consider especially when online competition is pretty stiff. In order to beat your competitors you have to make an extra effort in marketing yourselves online. Most service providers consider SEO (search engine optimization) as a profitable internet marketing strategy for their online business. The underlying principle of search engine optimization is that you must optimize your site to be search engine friendly so that you will predominantly outrank your competition for the word “clipping path” and such. There are many types of SEO strategies but the main goal of Search engine optimization is for your website to offer something relevant and important to both the website user and search engines.

Companies providing clipping path service do all sorts of online marketing strategies from basic to complex just to beat their competitors. Some would resort to a few “underhanded techniques” and blatant black hat SEO which in the long run might damage your site. Others would use “client baiting” strategies wherein a certain business own multiple websites, each stashed with a lot of keywords but offering the same services. The main point of these strategies are to create a catch basin for clients without ruining the copy of your main site all because you are trying to outrank your competition on the SERPs.


The near end of the clipping path biz?

The clipping path market is saturated, it is in its peak and it's near decline. The possibility of ending the clipping path business is uncertain. But we would never know what would happen in the future. Technology is fast evolving and there are different kinds of software available that can make our work much easier. Outsourcing as they say is a mere hype. Few years from now, technology will sooner or later learn how to handle processes that are currently outsourced to many developing countries. Right now, there’s a turbo mask photoshop plug-in which provides automatic tools to speed up composite image creation and other tasks that require masking. The software is called Paravue Turbo Mask which cost $249, Smart Mask for $120, Background Remover $49.00 and so much more. Others believed that this toolset is comprehensive enough to handle image editing requirements. But does it really? Yes, it may make your work faster but on the other hand, it has fewer tools to complete complicated graphics conversions. “No software is capable of perfectly accurate results”, one software company said.

Anyway, if you want no money involve then you can also consider online editor. It doesn't have same tools as what Photoshop gives but it can also do simple clipping path though. But personally I believe that if there are still companies needing the clipping path service then there would always be clipping path business. There is no better way than having it done with an experienced professional than with just software alone.

There are hard realities involved in the ever changing economy driven by competition and globalization. Companies may have to close down and some people do lose their job. But on the brighter side, there will always be a new beginning in every ending and visa versa.