Design Competition! My Experience

[lav]

Well, after reading this thread all the way through

Which Logo do you like the best (http://www.small-business-forum.net/starting-your-business/3256-logo-do-you-like-best.html) by Four94

I couldnt help but notice there are quite a few people who have very strong opinions on both sides of the fence as to whether websites like 99designs etc are not only having a negative effect on the design industry but also whether they are just plain unethical.

So I was a little intrigued by the contests and decided to have a go at a couple. I wanted to make an attempt to get some first hand experiences before I jumped to either side of the fence.

After 10 minutes of looking for the right place to post this I thought I'd post this blog post here for those who would like to get an insight of what the designers go through competing on these sites (I was a little worried the scary mods here will delete me for self promotion...... I dont mean it to be)

Heres the blog post (http://pickme.net.au/designers-talk/design-competitions/)

I hope this thread doesnt turn into a big debate on whether they are good or bad.

I really do believe there could be a future for this way (or similar concepts) of doing things so Im interested in hearing what you guys think could be done to fix what most designers see to be the problems.

After reading about my experiences what do you think 99designs would have to do to make it more ethical towards designers?

[vangogh]

Great post Jason. Your experience was very interesting and backs up my own belief about design contests and competitions. If you've built a client list and have work it's better to avoid the contests since you simply aren't going to make the same amount of money for your time and effort. I also think the CH doesn't really get the best value for their money either. I'm thinking of the first contest you entered where everyone copied your design at the last minute and I assume one of those entries won. The people who submitted those logos may have been able to make a nice copy, but they wouldn't understand why you made the decisions you made and their changes may have looked nice without actually being good for the logo itself. The client ultimately receives a watered down version of a logo.

I stayed out of the other thread. I do think contests like these should be as ethical as possible to protect both designer and contest holder. However I'm not sure how big a deal it is. Most working designers wouldn't bother entering these contests as a way to run a business. It's just not worth it. Again looking at your first experience of all the designers copying your logo. They clearly don't care much about ethics so is protecting them all that important. Same for the CH who took your second banner image and freely used it without permission. I don't think there's a perfect way to protect anyone in these contests as it's easy to send an email that circumvents the site and it's not going to be cost effective to have the site monitor every contest and ever design.

The truth is if you get involved in a design contest from either side you have to accept the downside that comes with it.

[cbscreative]

OK, this scary admin will let this go. In fact, I think it's an excellent discussion. It's a long blog post, but I don't see how you could shorten it, so it's worth the read.

Many years ago, long before the Internet, I participated an a logo design contest and learned a valuable lesson. That lesson means that the new model of bringing this to the Internet does not surprise me with its flaws. When I submitted my logo to a contest, it was for a radio station. Since I ran a sign shop at that time, I understood their need for a design that would include the need for a bumper sticker that wouldn't quickly fade.

In addition to my design submission, I included some commentary about how the choice of colors would stand up sunlight when producing bumper stickers. This was in the day when "neon" colors were popular so I figured many of the submissions would probably use neon colors. Neon inks wouldn't last 6 months on a bumper. My comments were obviously ignored. The winner used neon pink and sure enough, all those bumper stickers looked like !@#$ just as I knew they would when I saw the winner announced.

The lesson is, most clients are not qualified to choose a winning entry without professional help. As you discovered, most entrants are clueless about real design. I believe these are a raw deal for both parties. It's a seriously flawed model. If I were running a plumbing business like huggy does for example, I would be thrilled if all the other plumbers used these services.

[lav]

Thanks guys,


Again looking at your first experience of all the designers copying your logo. They clearly don't care much about ethics so is protecting them all that important.I understand what you mean VG but although the copying did bother me when I was competing, I still think their are issues which are bigger than that. As I see it the majority of the designers are young people some with talent and some not so talented. I would like to find some info, stats or something on how many of the talented designers giveway graphic design after failing to make a living from these sites. Think about a young designer fresh out of school, its unlikely they will walk straight into an agency job and even more unlikely they will be in the financial position to fund their own start up business (even with their talent).

This is why the sites are flooded with designers seeking work because

1- they cant find a job in the industry,
2. They cant fund their own start up,
3 Even if they did start up on their own or try freelance its likely with their inexprerience in marketing a business or running a business would lead them straight to the dreaded competitions anyhow.
4. They percieve that the prizes or awards on offer are more enticing than marketing themselves to either future clients or employers.

So for your question "should we be protecting them?" I think we should be at least trying to, Im not sure if all our posts and discussions across the web have any deterrance for young people using these sites or whether in fact we are just creating free promotion for the competition sites. If we dont try protecting them we could see the younger generation of designers being exploited even further. It is fair to say and I have seen it argued that "Clients will pay for quality" and some have even said that they like the design competitions as it "stops cheap clients from coming to me". From what Ive seen more and more reputable company's (some are even major players) are submitting projects. Also I noticed on the particular site I trialled that many of the projects, I would say about 25percent are run by marketing agencies, advertising agencies etc acting on behalf of their clients.


As you discovered, most entrants are clueless about real design.CBS there are many designers on these sites who yes are really untalented, but there are just as many who are extremely talented and its these people that Im worried about. If the very talented designers find themselves having to resort to the competition then that proves we have some problems in the industry. This means we either have too many designers on the planet and not enough work for them (I doubt that) or they have spent so much time honing their design skills that they get out into the big world and realise "holy cow, what do I do now?" and really dont know how the industry operates (let alone understand design industry ethics) nor do they know how to market themselves as a freelancer.

The other point about the above comment is that in reality the clients ARE actually getting what they want, so although many of us would prefer to believe they arent and we also try to educate our clients on the difference but the reality is that consumers are seeing this system as a positive way to buy design. We can no longer assume that clients think otherwise because design sales through these sites are growing at a faster rate than design sales outside of the sites. It is a really GOOD business model but is really BAD for designers using it. Clients are actually getting what they want even if we know that its not good for them.

Compare it to the fast food industry, it is an enourmous industry and although there is so much education out there about why you should not consume fast food it is still the fastest growing food industry. Why? because people like buying it, its fast, conveniant, cheap, filling, tastes good (apparently) and people assume they are getting value. The difference is that the food industry here in Australia is big enough to see the importance of regulating it and are slowly working towards setting some standards. They have also regulated the minimum wages for fast food employees who were once widely exploited and working conditions are fairer. Who is doing that regulation in the design industry.....? Is it important enough?

So Why arent design studios taking on trainees or intern's or junior designers? Or are they? If they are, are they taking on enough? What effect would this have if it was easier for designers to find work outside of the sites? Or do the designers using the sites feel differently to us? I have yet to see many designers argue in favour of the sites.... Would the industry benefit from having these sites regulate the awards on offer (basically raise the prices)?

[cbscreative]

Jason, I guess more than anything, this is a case for being adaptive. Although the majority may go with the fast food model, there is a great opportunity for those who don't. The fast food model is fueled by the masses, and a small business person cannot compete with that, they need a niche left open by the fast food, and it does always exist.

As for the graphics person that feels compelled to work as a burger flipper in a fast food joint, there will also be those who are master burger flippers, extremely talented, but unable to identify available opportunities. That doesn't mean they can't flip burgers (design great graphics) with the best, but they are destined to work at going rates even if those rates are dictated by a new model that reduces them to commodity level.

I say bring it on! I'll keep finding a way to service small business clients at a higher level. If it really does come to a point where the demand for higher level no longer exists (which I doubt will happen), I will gladly move on to something else. I love what I do, but if no one wants it, I'll use what I know to operate another business, carve out a niche, and bury the competition that thinks these other models offer some kind of value. Either way, I win. Every big business model has holes which provide an opportunity for small biz to capture market share. No matter what else happens, I seriously doubt that will change.

[vangogh]

Jason you make some good points about protecting the designers who enter for the reasons you stated. I certainly don't want to see those people taken advantage of, however I don't think contests are their long term solution. I agree with you on the reasons they enter.



1- they cant find a job in the industry,
2. They cant fund their own start up,
3 Even if they did start up on their own or try freelance its likely with their inexprerience in marketing a business or running a business would lead them straight to the dreaded competitions anyhow.
4. They percieve that the prizes or awards on offer are more enticing than marketing themselves to either future clients or employers.


1. The only thing the contest offers is a way to build a portfolio, which can also be done without the contests.
2. What's to fund in a startup freelance design business? The only costs is the tools (computer, software, printer) that they would generally need to enter the contests in the first place.
3. The only way they'll learn the business and marketing side of freelancing is to start doing both.
4. Understandable, but we also know not true.

My view is the sooner these designers stop entering contests and start learning to market and run their own business the better it will ultimately be for them. I don't want to see any get ripped off through the contest. What I want to see is them realizing they have talent that's worth more than the small reward of the contest. I want them to see their value and be paid fairly for their services. To do that they either need to find their way into a job or go it on their own.

You might want to talk to David (prova.fm (http://www.small-business-forum.net/members/prova-fm.html)). He's set up a site that runs contests for designing advertising and logos. If you enter and your design doesn't get chose it can automatically be placed in their template directory (if you allow) where it can still be sold. I think he's trying to do what he can to make it more beneficial for designers to enter contests.

A few weeks back I wrote a post asking Is Design a Commodity (http://www.vanseodesign.com/web-design/design-commodity/), which touches on the subject of this thread. My view is that design itself can never truly be a commodity, but the business of design can be commoditized if people can't distinguish the value of quality design and seek only price when it comes to choosing design services.

I think it's inevitable that we'll see more design contests and many people will choose them over custom design work. However I also think there will always be people who do see the value of quality design. For some design will be a commodity and for others it won't be. For those designers you see entering contests that do have talent, I prefer to see them get away from the contests as soon as possible, even if it means stumbling along the way to set themselves up in business or land a good job. They need to get away from commodity design status as soon as possible.

[Burn Creative]

Crowdsourcing is bad news for everyone involved. Except of course for the actual crowdsourcing sites since are the ones making all the money.

Crowdsourcing Sucks (http://www.crowdsourcingsucks.com)

[cbscreative]

Wow, Burn, long time, no post. Welcome back!

[KristineS]

Interesting post, Jason. I didn't see this one the first time, don't know why. I think you had some great insights into the potential pluses and minuses of the process.

[Blessed]

Well - I finally had a few minutes to read the post and your experience almost exactly mirror's what mine was 3 years ago when I first started freelancing and entered a few just to see if it was a viable way to gain new clients. I decided it wasn't a good option and I dislike the sites in general. My general opinion is that the sites devalue a designer's work, time, creativity and knowledge while at the same time do a dis-service to the clients they seek to serve - who might never learn the true value of finding a designer and marketing expert to work hand-in-hand with them to grow their business.

I like your point that this business model has potential - it's just figuring out how to make the changes that need to be made in order for it to work effectively.