Is your brand image only worth two hundred bucks?
1 Comments Published by Clifton on Friday, August 14, 2009 at 1:18 PM.
Commentary by Clifton:
Quickbooks and 99designs team up to provide uninspired logos for a couple hundred bucks.
Intuit (makers of Quickbooks) have teamed up with a website called 99designs.com to help provide logos and branding materials through a vehicle called "Intuit Creative Solutions".
Description of how it works (in their words):
Getting something designed at 99designs is easy. We help you run a “design contest”, where thousands of designers compete to create the best possible design to meet your needs. All you need is a clear idea of what you want designed and how much you're prepared to pay for it ... amounts generally range from $100 to $600 depending on the type of design you require.
I see Intuit as a company that promotes professionalism in small business. Doing it the right way, etc etc... So why on earth would Intuit officially support a "contest" approach to branding a company. Here are my thoughts on the matter:
Some of the logos on 99designs look fine, some are even quite nice, but how can the "designer" know enough about the business to make sure the logo is appropriate for their market and audience and culture. In a contest setting like that, it's just not possible. So while it may look nice, does it accomplish any goals of actually branding a company?
There is a point at which I understand how newly formed businesses with no start-up capital can be tempted by getting a nice-looking logo for less than $200. But I see professional, well managed companies on here that are running these design contests. Ask yourself this question: "Would I, as a professional, ever enter a 'contest', and give away my work for free in the hopes of winning $200." Probably not.
But going back to my main point, why would Intuit support this practice with their so-called "Intuit Creative Solutions". I'm not convinced that anyone on that site is getting a solution. Intuit is certainly not going to use 99designs when they are ready for a logo redesign. I just don't understand a company like Intuit supporting and promoting 99designs.com, where professional businesses can get a logo and brand from an amateur. It's sad, really.
PS, In this blog post, I'm not even getting into why this would be considered speculative (spec) work and why spec work is bad for the design community, devaluing what we do as professionals. That's another post for another time.
Quickbooks and 99designs team up to provide uninspired logos for a couple hundred bucks.
Intuit (makers of Quickbooks) have teamed up with a website called 99designs.com to help provide logos and branding materials through a vehicle called "Intuit Creative Solutions".
Description of how it works (in their words):
Getting something designed at 99designs is easy. We help you run a “design contest”, where thousands of designers compete to create the best possible design to meet your needs. All you need is a clear idea of what you want designed and how much you're prepared to pay for it ... amounts generally range from $100 to $600 depending on the type of design you require.
I see Intuit as a company that promotes professionalism in small business. Doing it the right way, etc etc... So why on earth would Intuit officially support a "contest" approach to branding a company. Here are my thoughts on the matter:
Some of the logos on 99designs look fine, some are even quite nice, but how can the "designer" know enough about the business to make sure the logo is appropriate for their market and audience and culture. In a contest setting like that, it's just not possible. So while it may look nice, does it accomplish any goals of actually branding a company?
There is a point at which I understand how newly formed businesses with no start-up capital can be tempted by getting a nice-looking logo for less than $200. But I see professional, well managed companies on here that are running these design contests. Ask yourself this question: "Would I, as a professional, ever enter a 'contest', and give away my work for free in the hopes of winning $200." Probably not.
But going back to my main point, why would Intuit support this practice with their so-called "Intuit Creative Solutions". I'm not convinced that anyone on that site is getting a solution. Intuit is certainly not going to use 99designs when they are ready for a logo redesign. I just don't understand a company like Intuit supporting and promoting 99designs.com, where professional businesses can get a logo and brand from an amateur. It's sad, really.
PS, In this blog post, I'm not even getting into why this would be considered speculative (spec) work and why spec work is bad for the design community, devaluing what we do as professionals. That's another post for another time.
Labels: branding, Commentary, logo
I think it is a great idea! Many small businesses cannot afford to spend thousands of dollars getting a logo created by a professional. This offers an affordable alternative. I tried it out and here's a link to my blog post about my experience with it: http://qbconsultant.blogspot.com/