2009
The crowdSPRING experiment
Updates
April 01, 2009
Here is the feedback I got in the last month. Thank you very much!
March 03, 2009
As I did some math I realized that my success rate is 2.94%. This means that I am actually paid (if I do get paid in the end) for about 3% of my work. Funny, no?
February 28th, 2009
Today I found out I won one contest. I am very happy about that, but still, I don't think this is "the right way" we should go about designing logos for customers. I still feel there is something fundamentally wrong in the very basic setup of what is now called crowdsourcing as long as graphic design is involved. But, to be fair I did win one. So, my decision is this: I'll come and participate ONE MONTH a year. As an exercise. As in "to keep in touch with the real world" as harsh and as cold it may be sometimes. That's only fair I guess.
See you in February 2010...
The Original Article
Feb. 26th 2009
An introduction
Hello and welcome.
Some of you may or may not be familiar with crowdSPRING. I am now, and I will try to document what happened to me in February 2009, when for a few weeks I too became an active member as a "creative". The whole experience is actually very educational and as you will see for yourself, if you read this document, an eye opener. Or not.
I wish to make it clear, from the beginning, that this is not an "insider" information type of research, and I, as a designer (at least @ crowdSPRING) am just trying to document my own feelings about it, my work I did for customers (buyers, to be more exact). The rest is up to people to judge for themselves, I am not bitching or looking for validation. I am perfectly OK with everything I do and I am not affiliated to any organization in the field of graphic design.
So, a little background... Quoting from the website:
We're the marketplace for creative services.
Benefits of crowdSPRING
Name your price.
Launch your project on your budget, not someone else's.
Name your deadline.
See entries within hours and be done in just days.
Ridiculous choice.
The average project gets a whopping 68 entries.
Money back guarantee
25 entries or your money back.
15,000+ creatives
Your virtual creative team in over 140 countries.
We're here to help.
Seven days a week. (although we occasionally sleep).
Exceptional quality.
Never sacrifice quality for budget or deadline.
Free contract.
So you know you have full ownership of your final design.
End quote.
I guess you already understand how it works. At least for the buyers, it's easy, cheap, fast and packed with action. Safe too...
But, what about the "creative"? Well, other than a radio box option on the join page, nothing much about that side of the deal. That's OK, I guess.
Why, oh why??
Anyway, how did all this happen? Why did I do it? How did I do?
Well, as times are hard, work is infrequent and I live in the Middle East, where I usually get paid 3 months (most likely up to 4) after I finish a job, it is only natural that an experiment like this may come into play. That's how it works here. So, end of January, we has no money. No work. I start searching the Internet (that's how I am) and I land on crowdSPRING.
While there is quiet a discussion amongst designers about it, and most designers feel crowdSPRING is a joke and/or a method of "cleaning the field" of junk and bad designers, I looked at it. My first impressions were almost the same, especially when I realized logos are bought for as low as $200, but believe it or not in my situation even $200 is something. At the same time I did think that it is a good thing that even I, or any other person around the world may get a chance to earn money in this field using the Internet. I even consulted my wife, because I was not sure what to do, and she said that it could be a good exercise in design and, in general, understanding what's going on in the field. I listened, thought about it and agreed. Why not? Let's see where I stand. Or not.
Work
February 5th, joined. Since then I have participated in 34 projects with 1 and sometimes 2 proposals.
Here is some of the work:
1. Ignoring the brief, being playful, serious, going with my first instincts or just laying it down straight from the "napkin doodle"... (I watched Paula Scher speaking about being solemn and being serious as a designer).
My work is certainly not anywhere near hers but I took the advice...
Completely ignoring the brief in terms of colors and everything else. Going with my first instinct.
the power in me: brief | other proposals
buyer's comment(s):
"Do not like color scheme. As stated in the initial work description - looking for very earth tone and nature theme to come through. This is way too busy..."
Again, the same, going with my first vision of what rendering looks like in action.
render plus: brief | other proposals
buyer's comment(s):
"The color change is a little better."
render plus: brief | other proposals
buyer's comment(s):
"I can definitely envision this being animated, but it seems too plain-jane for the project. Layers of the same font, etc.
Here is a rough cut of the intro sequence to the show, which may give you a better idea of our aesthetic.
http://blip.tv/file/1818326/
Thanks
Adam"
2. Being good, not necessarily original (what Paul Rand used to say).
Reading the brief carefully and doing my best to serve symmetry, tension, balance and drama...
intilaq: brief | other proposals | winning entry
mikro systems: brief | other proposals
element condominium project: brief | other proposals | winning entry
new media school: brief | other proposals
stone / purdy: brief | other proposals | winning entry
3. Playing with typography
abird 4 logos: brief | other proposals
3source: brief | other proposals
Bricks Basics / Thorsten Black: brief | other proposals
buyer's comment(s):
"Hi,
We are looking for something much more sleek and minimalist. I think this looks too much like graffiti and focused towards a younger, less professional demographic.
Best, Evan"
4. Stealing, everybody imitates and then going for the complete opposite :)
intent media: brief | other proposals
5. The bleeding obvious or "fuck it, I'll just jump on it".
art from the heart: brief | other proposals
buyer's comment(s):
"Not where I'm headed"
star talks: brief | other proposals | winning entry
blush: brief | other proposals | winning entry
6. Not giving up, still trying to do something interesting!
A Single Step: brief | other proposals
buyer's comment(s):
"While I can appreciate the simplicity of this entry...it is a bit more stark than we had in mind. Although I am not absolutely sure, I think we want something with an image in addition to text...or at least text in a more distinctive font."
The Meaza Group: brief | other proposals
nsight: brief | other proposals
Enough is enough.
February 26th. I stopped submitting proposals. After 20 days and 34 projects I've taken part in (19 of them shown here) I am done. Enough is enough.
I really put some serious work into more than a few projects. Some of them kept me occupied for days before I did anything. Some of them I did in 15 minutes. I swear, I tried almost everything. All of them represent me in a way and I am happy with the results. I think I did some decent work. Nothing revolutionary as far as buyers were concerned. I'm OK with that. As I said in the beginning this is not about me bitching. It's about design.
About design? What about design?
Well, to be honest, nothing. There's nothing about design there. Really?
OK, OK a few little notes and observations:
1. I think this is a good exercise for designers. A reality check. I went from feeling utterly superior to feeling really bad and being depressed about myself and my goals in this profession about 3 times in the last 20 days. I am even seriously considering leaving graphic design for good. After 15 years of plowing through numerous versions of software, staying updated about the standards constantly, keeping an eye on trends, breaking the rules and learning and then learning some more; what have I really achieved in the real world (of crowdSPRING)? Nothing. My designs have not been chosen. Not one of them yet. There are still 12 more competitions running on February 26th while I'm writing this. I am pretty pessimistic about winning at least one competition. I mean, I am supposed to get something based on simple statistics aren't I? :)
2. While this whole setup on the Internet and an idea of doing this kind of work online is perfectly fine with me, I am sure there can and should be numerous improvements concerning communication between designers and clients. I do think this should be a more personal relationship rather than "I like where you're going with this..." type of comments. This helps nobody. I feel that the PROCESS of getting something done in a good way has been forgotten here and/or put aside as opposed to "buyer" comfort. Just a thought.
3. Last but not least, and not connected to this system at all (maybe), is a simple observation about customers in general and their view on graphic design. While I can understand that taste is something that cannot be understood fully because it is a combination of so many things, then why isn't everybody designing their own stuff? I mean learning how to work with Photoshop or Illustrator is a thing that doesn't take more than a month and it's fun. I still try to explain to my customers (even ones I meet in person) that when a mechanic fixes your car you basically let him do his job. You don't tell him which wrench to use on which bolt. But that's easy. Bolts are something we don't look at every day. A logo or a website design is something that a customer looks at every day and must have a strong relationship with it. It's THEIR image. Over the Internet or not, design has much bigger issues that need to be solved unless you or I become as big and as respected as Paul Rand or Paula Scher. Until then (which is most likely never) I'm still seriously considering a change of profession. crowdSPRING has succeeded in one thing and that's letting me know and understand that graphic design is most likely not a profession for me. I thank you for that.
Conclusion
I tried. It didn't work.
If you want to respond to this article/experiment, feel free to write to renderedred [at] gmail [dot] com. I may publish your reactions here, so take that into account and give it to me, good or bad, I can take it.
Moreover, I will update this page about the rest of the projects that are still running. Here is the whole list of projects I participated in. You can take a look for yourself if you want to.
Thank you for visiting,
Ivan