High-income part-time "madou" is a fantasy

Only 300 yuan earned in a year

A part-time "madou" is able to earn a salary of up to 20,000 yuan! "madou" is described by the media and on the Internet in this way: "madou" who takes photos for online stores selling clothes and decorations earns no less than ten yuan for every piece of clothing or accessory she wears. Because every piece of clothing and accessory comes in various colors and styles, the "madou" is able to take at least hundreds of photos or even up to thousands of photos for one online store, and as a result, is able to earn 300 yuan to 500 yuan or even up to thousands of yuan.

Is this actually the reality? On March 3, the reporter, through a website recruiting "madous," found Zhang Hong, who has been a "madou" for two years.

Zhang, aged 22, said that after she read the article titled "Easily Earn a Salary of 20,000 Yuan; Salary of Part-time 'Madous' Exceeds that of White-collar Workers" two years ago, she began working as a "madou" in Wuhan. Zhang has talked with more than 20 online store owners, and none of them have refused her because of her good temperament. Although every online store owner who has talked with her has asked for a contact number from her, it wasn't until late summer 2007 that she got her first deal from an online store in the Optics Valley of China.

The online store owner entered into an agreement with Zhang online that she will take photos for 100 pieces of clothing at ten yuan per piece. After Zhang received her first order, she was excited for an entire night. However, when Zhang hurriedly met with the online store owner, the owner only asked her to take photos for ten pieces of clothing, and the fee for every photo she took was reduced to five yuan.

Though the result is a far cry from what they have negotiated, Zhang accepted it without hesitation, and earned 50 yuan after working hard for a short time.

Zhang thought all things are difficult before they are easy. As long as I earned my first sum of money, the second will come soon. However, after one year she had only earned 300 yuan posing for photos for online stores.

In the summer of 2008, Zhang hurried to Guangzhou, where the "madou" market is the most developed, before the fall clothing went on sale, because she wanted to be a "madou" in Guangzhou. After looking into the market in-depth, however, she found that the business in Guangzhou was no better than that in Wuhan. During her five months in Guangzhou, Zhang earned less than 3,000 yuan.

Is the article claiming that a "madou" earns over 10,000 yuan a month just a lie as the "madou" said? On March 3, the reporter interviewed many online store owners over the Internet.

Liu Yi, an online store owner from Xudong, said frankly that he has run an online store for three years, and he does need someone to take photos for his products in order to sell them online. However, most of the photos for his products were taken by his friends, and as a return, Liu gave them tw pieces of clothing or treated them to a meal. He does not need to hire a professional photographer, nor pay a "madou."

Liu said that an ordinary online store does not earn much a year. It is said on the Internet that a "madou" earns at least ten yuan for every photo she takes. Actually, however, the online store earns less than ten yuan for every item it sells. No online store can afford to hire a "madou" that demands such a high salary.

Yang Haibo, who runs an online store called Fengcai, said that most of the online stores that are well-run will become the agents of famous brands, and these brands all have official websites where advertisements for these products are available. The online store owners only have to download photos free of charge, which dispensed with "madou."

Zhou Juanjuan who runs an online store that sells low-end Hanzheng Street products, said that although there is no official website for the products she sells nor are there any brand spokespersons' photos available for download, it is very easy to solve that problem: with the PS software, she is able to change any product, and as a result, she does not need to spend money hiring a "madou."