MotionArray Contributor Guide: Tagging Templates and Motion Assets
MotionArray sells templates and project files, not just footage. How to tag assets where software compatibility and version matter as much as visual style.
# MotionArray Contributor Guide: Tagging Templates and Motion Assets
MotionArray is not really a stock library. Alongside footage it deals in project templates and motion assets — After Effects and Premiere Pro projects, transitions, titles, presets, music, sound effects. That changes what metadata has to accomplish.
For a photograph, metadata answers "what is this?" For a template, the buyer needs to know "will this open on my machine, and can I actually change it?" Those questions come *before* whether they like the look.
## The compatibility problem
A beautiful template that a buyer cannot open is worth nothing to them, and generates a refund rather than a sale. So the fields that determine usability are not supporting detail — they are the primary metadata.
**Software and minimum version.** After Effects, Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut. And crucially, the *minimum* version that can open the project. Buyers on older installs filter on this constantly.
**Plugin dependencies.** If your project requires a third-party plugin, that must be stated prominently. An undeclared dependency is the single most reliable way to generate a bad review, because the buyer discovers it only after purchase.
**Resolution and frame rate.** What the project is built at, and whether it scales cleanly.
**Duration and structure.** How long the template runs and whether the length is adjustable.
**Editability.** What can actually be changed — text, colours, logos, media placeholders, timing. This is what buyers are paying for.
Leaving any of these undeclared does not just cost a sale; it costs a refund and a review that suppresses future sales.
## Style tags still matter, but second
Once compatibility is settled, visual style is what buyers browse on: minimal, corporate, glitch, retro, kinetic typography, particle, liquid, 3D, hand-drawn. Include the use case too — intro, outro, lower third, transition, slideshow, logo reveal, product showcase, social post.
The ordering principle is: **compatibility qualifies you for the search, style wins the click.** Contributors who lead with style and omit compatibility get browsed and abandoned.
## Editability is the product
For templates, the underlying value proposition is saved time. A buyer is not purchasing your visual idea in the abstract — they are purchasing something they can put their own content into quickly.
This has design implications that show up in your sales:
- Text layers should be clearly labelled and easy to find, not buried in nested compositions
- Colour changes should be driven from a control layer rather than requiring edits in twenty places
- Media placeholders should accept drop-in footage without manual re-linking
- Duration should be adjustable where the design allows it
Templates that look impressive but are painful to customise generate refunds. Templates that are slightly less flashy but genuinely easy to work with generate repeat buyers.
## The preview is the product page
For footage, a thumbnail and a few seconds of playback communicate most of what a buyer needs. For a template, a still frame communicates almost nothing about the thing that matters — customisability.
Your preview needs to show the template running and demonstrate what changes. A preview that shows text being swapped, colours adjusting and media dropping in sells the actual value. A preview that just plays the finished animation sells the visual and leaves the buyer guessing about the work involved.
## Managing this alongside a stock portfolio
Template metadata is structurally different from image and footage metadata. The compatibility fields have no equivalent in a stock library, and the platforms that host templates ask for them in different shapes.
For contributors running both — footage and stills on stock agencies, templates on MotionArray and similar marketplaces — the practical issue is maintaining separate metadata profiles without maintaining separate manual processes. Rastock AI [generates per-destination metadata and handles delivery](/features) across 25+ platforms, so a template batch and a footage batch can each carry the fields their destination expects. Our [Pond5 footage guide](/blog/pond5-video-metadata-automation) covers the video side in more depth, and plans by volume are on the [pricing page](/pricing).
## Summary
On MotionArray, declare compatibility before style: software, minimum version, plugin dependencies, resolution, duration and what is editable. Build templates that are genuinely easy to customise, because that is the product. And make the preview demonstrate customisation rather than just play the animation.
Templates license at higher prices than clips, but they are a production business with support obligations attached — not a way to earn more for the same effort.
This guide is part of our overview of [where to sell stock photos](https://rastock.ai/blog/where-to-sell-stock-photos), which compares every major agency on royalties, review standards and AI policy.
## Related reading
- [Envato Elements Contributor Guide: Subscription Payouts and Item Quality](https://rastock.ai/blog/envato-elements-tagging-design-trends)
- [PIXTA Contributor Guide: Selling Stock in the Japanese Market](https://rastock.ai/blog/pixta-japanese-stock-market-ai)
- [Pond5 Contributor Guide: Stock Footage Metadata That Sells](https://rastock.ai/blog/pond5-video-metadata-automation)
Frequently asked questions
What can I sell on MotionArray?
Beyond stock footage, MotionArray deals in project templates and motion assets — After Effects and Premiere Pro projects, transitions, titles, presets, music and sound effects. That mix makes it closer to an asset marketplace than a traditional stock library.
Why does software version matter for template metadata?
A template is only usable if the buyer's software can open it. Version compatibility, required plugins and whether the project uses third-party effects are the first things a buyer checks — and the first reason a purchase gets refunded when undeclared.
How should I tag motion templates?
Cover the software and minimum version, any plugin dependencies, resolution and frame rate, duration, whether text and colours are editable, and the visual style. Style alone is not enough because it does not tell the buyer whether the file will open.
Do templates earn more than stock footage?
Templates typically license at higher prices than individual clips because they save the buyer production time rather than supplying raw material. Production effort is also considerably higher, so it is a different business rather than an easy upgrade.
What makes a motion template sell?
Genuine editability. Buyers want to change text, swap colours, adjust duration and drop in their own footage without rebuilding the project. Templates that look impressive but are difficult to customise attract refunds and poor reviews.
Should I include a preview for templates?
Yes — for template assets the preview is effectively the product page. It needs to show the template in motion and demonstrate what is customisable, because buyers cannot evaluate editability from a still thumbnail.