Comments on: Logo design contests

By: Jestep

Jestep — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:51:48 +0000

Phenomenal article. I’ve used design contests several times, and haven’t found any egregious violations on mine, but I can see how easily it can happen. It’s so easy for some designer in Indiaor anywhere else to copy the best looking logo, or a major feature from one that they can find. Takes about 5 minutes, and could pay off several hundred dollars. There’s virtually no way to go after them once the money is sent. Best case you end up with a cease and desist, and worst case you end up with a major lawsuit. Just getting sued can cost $50,000 in legal fees without even getting to the judgement or settlement phase.

What I find particularly worrying, is when a designer copies a more abstract design or pattern, because it would be nearly impossible to search for it. Anyway, just found this article while looking at the design contest landscape. Great advice. I work with small business owners and other’s seeking low budget designs, and I will definitely bookmark and pass this on.

By: denis

denis — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 10:17:31 +0000

Thank you for bringing sanity into the business.

By: Bookmarks for January 19th through January 23rd | Buddy's Blog

Bookmarks for January 19th through January 23rd | Buddy's Blog — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 21:09:24 +0000

[...] Logo design contests | Bad for business. Yours | The Logo Factory design studio – 99designs [...]

By: Kimberly King

Kimberly King — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:17:28 +0000

Was and still am a new, up and coming designer fresh out of school and was looking for a way to cut my teeth on designing logos of which I really like to do from beginning to end and I fell prey to the slick concept of crowdsourcing while I was planting the seeds of a start up business.

It soon felt a wee bit like working in a rat infested flat in the Bronx, with all the rat fighting for the same piece of cheese and doing what ever it took to get it. I had many original works copied by other designers who did it better and slip under the deadline to grap the 250-1000$ piece of swiss. Then I was accused of copying a piece of clipart which I could prove I didn’t do by the layers I had in AI, but a panel of my peers voted 60% that I did use the clip art and so my design which I worked on for hours. (I happen to be a good sketch artist too) was removed from the contest. The Gurus running the controls on these sites don’t realy care much about creative rights they just see the $ signs.

They lure you in by making it a contest and awarding you points so in way you begin to vaule your abilities by the points you have and the contests you win, but after awhile the Gurus think you don’t measure up and they lock you of the site even if you have ranking designs pending. I have seen many designers disabled who were once invited to join and who had some status, but it became like a rat race and only the stoutest rats are even allowed to compete. so that site can boast they have the “prettiest girls on the strip” Fat girls need not apply anymore…but that’s not what they advertized in the beginning…

Those are some of the highlights. I only wished I had the insight to read this article and others like it before I dove into the seedy world of crownsourcing for graphic designers. It’s a painful lesson but I learned it early and now have endevored to employ a more studious work ethic and earn my clients business. Thanks for the reality check.

By: Cristal

Cristal — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 07:06:11 +0000

Thank you for a great and eye opening article. We had been given the url of a logo contest and were really impressed with the selection of logos that the friend had to choose from. His is a local restaurant, so if there is infringement it’s not likely to be noticed. We on the otherhand plan for global domination, so infringment is not an option.
Seeing the examples of copycats on this page are astounding! It’s too bad that you almost have to hire a watchdog to protect your work.