A Discussion of Crowdsourcing Graphic Design

Yesterday I noticed a tweet from Chris Brogan telling designers that he had just put a logo design contest up on a popular crowdsourcing website. If you've heard me discuss crowdsourcing then you know I'm not a fan so I sent a quick reply letting him know that most reputable designers are against this type of design "contest."

Considering that Chris has over 135,000 followers on Twitter I thought that would be the last I heard of the issue. I was pleasantly surprised when Chris replied back asking me why. I responded with a link to NO!SPEC and a quick summary of my point of view that, "designers deserve to get paid for work they do and businesses deserve full attention from their designer."

It was clear from his discussion with me and others on Twitter that Chris was attempting to educate himself. He also asked if anyone had written any blog posts on the issue and said he might link to some in a future post of his. I happily sent him links to the two posts I'd made about crowdsourcing graphic design last year.

Soon Chris had a blog post up about his project and the strong reactions he'd been getting from Twitter, he also linked to one of my posts. There has been a great discussion in the comments on his blog about crowdsourcing benefits and why it might hurt designers and businesses. I'd recommend taking a few minutes to read his post and his decision to pursue a $300 logo over the $20,000 logo he had previously had done.

Of course I made my opinion clear although I don't particularly expect it to change many minds. What I do appreciate is someone taking the time to educate themselves and others about both sides of the debate. It's understandable that a business might just see crowdsourcing as a way to get a cheap logo but hopefully discussions like these will educate those people so that at the very least they are aware of what they are asking of designers.

Crowdsourcing Response

I got some interesting feedback after posting a link to my crowdsourcing blog entry on Twitter last week. Another designer said "the best thing a designer can offer is problem solving." I thought this was a great response because problem solving is such a huge part of what we do as designers. The general problem that we're solving is, "How can I best communicate the message to the desired audience."

Another user spoke up and suggested that the "community intelligence" in crowdsourcing makes it better and more efficient than the traditional designer/client relationship. Although it's an interesting argument, I disagree.

There's a relationship that's formed when I meet with clients. It starts at the very first meeting when I learn about their goals for their company and this project in particular. I'm able to ask them relevant questions about their business, their competition and their target customers. I have a hard time seeing this interaction being facilitated to an acceptable degree online when there is never any personal interaction. Of course a thorough creative brief will answer many of these questions but I think there's something valuable to be gained in the personal interaction.

Going beyond the initial meeting, as projects progress, a relationship is cultivated. As I present subsequent projects to the client, I'm able to gain a greater understanding of the way they think and the direction their business is heading. In the crowdsourcing model a client won't be sticking with one designer or design firm for all of their projects. Each new project brings a new set of designers that has no history with the company.

With all of that said, the point about multiple minds working on a project is a good one. It's true that different people bring different skills and backgrounds to the table. I think it's great to work collaboratively and that's something that I've tried to make sure we do with Adam Lee Design.

In the end I think there are positives and negatives to crowdsourcing. I believe that the negatives outweigh the positives for both the client and the designer but there will be those that disagree.

On a side note: I'm loving Twitter. I think it's awesome that a random person happens to see one of my tweets and can jump in with their opinion.

The Downfalls of Crowdsourcing

The topic of crowdsourcing graphic design is a much-discussed topic these days. It's typically maligned by designers and applauded by those small business owners with very small marketing budgets.

When crowdsourcing first came to the design world, we designers argued that our work was being devalued by this process and that the people paying for the work were not actually receiving quality design. Both valid arguments, if I do say so myself, but somewhat intangible and not convincing enough to change many people's minds.

Recently a more convincing argument has come up with regard to the originality of the designs that are being submitted to these contests. It seems that with increasing regularity, designers are pawning off the work of others in order to win the contests on various crowdsourcing sites. Given the anonymity the internet provides, the low likelihood of getting caught, and the fact that the designer most likely won't get paid in the end anyway, this shouldn't come as much of a surprise.

The practice of stealing artwork is a huge problem for the graphic designer that originally created the work as well as the person who thinks they paid for an original logo. This type of thefts opens up the door to lawsuits from all sides.

I really recommend reading this post from thelogofactory.com. It's a fascinating write-up of the several instances where work has been stolen for use in a graphic design contest. Although I'm not sure if this article or others like it have persuaded anyone to steer clear of design contests, I hope it encourages people to take a closer look at the practice and realize that it may not be worth the money they're saving.