I don't know if this topic should be here, but I think here it would have more exposure. Based on the topic here: http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?p=8562785#post8562785 I would like to suggest something for the Contests forum. It happens often for the designers not to be paid as much as they would have to be. Some great designs are sold with very low prices and that is not normal. So how about putting a minimum price for some designs? ... doesn't have to be necessarily an exact amount, but an estimative idea on how the minimum price should be for a certain design. Also, for the designers who accept these low prices ... if people would start realizing that the work they do should be paid accordingly, it will benefit everyone: contest holders will start to offer the fair price and all the designers (you included) would take that price. So would it be possible to settle some amounts based on established criteria? What does everyone think?
wow 5$ thats insane.. I dont enter any contests that are lower then 100$ unless it's super simple and I can do it in less then an hour or 2. If when your finished with your work and you divide the money and the hours you work and it ends up being the price you would get paid for working at mcdonalds.. it probably isnt worth it ;-)
dimitri, unfortunately you're not the only one in this situation. And as I seen from the forums, you're really among the best designers around, so the 5$ it's an insult. Hopefully more designers will realise what you just said Dark Rider. Let's see if we can make a change. The most important is for everyone to be aware of their hard work.
Yeah, that sad thing is too. I see some of the contest holders saying that their client doesnt like the design.. how much do you think the client is really paying these guys? trust me folks it's probably a lot more then what your getting. although it's not the contests holders fault. I'd do the same thing if I knew I could make my client happy with little or no work on my end and still get paid
Many offline clients pay as much as 200 for a logo design and the "designer" AKA. Contest holder pays the designer here at DP only $20 so he keeps $180 for him without work, not bad at all but we as the REAL designers get screwed, besides the Quality of the designs here at DP is declining, Why? because of the very low prices. We as the real designers have the power to change this if we form a common front against this pseudo designer aka contest holders and don't accept prices below the $100 mark or at least $75. That's my own point of view. I thin DP administrators should consider this because other forums are having even more contests with a lot of quality in the designs, this situation only hurts us as designer and obviously Digital Point Forums, even though the Administrators don't want to consider it.
Yep. It's getting worse everyday here in DP. Here are my 2 cents suggestions: If you don't like the prize - don't join the contest - only contest holders with generous prizes deserve to have the best quality designs List of contest holders scams - this is to blacklist those contest holders who don't announce a winner even if "he/she" has a lot of submitted entries from different designers. The contest holder can always request an unlimited revisions from the winning entry if he wants to. It's sad to see DP going down on a spiral staircase both for the contest holders and designers alike.
I'm new here.. but any time I see a contest that says deadline over 2 days, or that the winner will be announced after a week... I ignore it. If people are incapable of designing, they really shouldn't take on design projects. And if they do, outsource it to one place. A contest is no way to show work to clients. I wouldn't say all low-budget contests are bad, though... some people just don't have the money for a big-budget logo for their semi-personal blog. And I've noticed that they're not particularly fussy about the details... they're actually grateful for the work... I'd rather do some low-budget logos that interest me and the contest holder.
at the end of the day here is how i see it, if people come here and offer 20$ its 20$ you wouldnt have if it wasnt offered so for the sake of throwing something togther in your spare time its a little extra beer money plus helps you build your portfolio at the same time, so beats doing a lot of free work as a lot of designers do. i outsource work for my company also now here but through contacts i have this mainly to keep up with my own demand but i give a little back here by entering competions myself usually web ones, but you no 20$ is bettter than nothng in my opion, but you know hope this post isnt taken wrong jsut my opion guys mikey
Im sorry to say I agree with lilmikey. I also feel that if you don't like the contest you shouldn't enter. Some people like designing to the extent they wouldn't mind doing some work for free in their spare time and therefore enter contests (no matter how much the prize money) for the satisfaction of winning. Its not all about the money for everyone. Some people like the experience. So forming a front whereby each contest should be over $75 is great if you want to as a group, but shouldn't involve the whole of DP. I hope that makes sense. Just my two cents.
Let's face it guys! I totally agree with you! it can help you build your portfolio, or the "experience" or maybe just because its fun for some, but I mean, let's face it, it obviously can't involve the whole DP designer community, not all of them have the same quality! but of course I can't be the judge of that! ... Best regards.
I don't have a problem with people offering contests for small prizes, but I do have a problem with them expecting amazing work for that. Web and graphic design of any real quality has never been cheap, and there is a reason for that. If you offer $20 for a logo, you can't expect the entrant to spend over 15 minutes on it realistically. Yet people expect revision after revision for this money. The designers who frequent the contests forum as a way to make their sole income really need to change their business model and find clients in other ways, because you are selling yourself very, very cheaply. If the best designers don't enter the cheap contests, then the cheap contest holders will never get good results and will be forced to put their rewards up. If you are just learning the trade and want the experience and maybe make a little money, then by all means enter the contests. If you are a serious designer, start respecting your skills and work a lot more.
No offense to anyone, but look at it this way: a designer from USA, UK, Germany, etc. wouldn't even consider making a logo for 20$, cause it's worth almost nothing for them. On the other hand there are designers from India, Egypt, Indonesia, etc. and those 20$ are more than a paycheck for a full day work. Can't do nothing about it really. Start a contest for a logo at 10$ and you will still have entries.
Agreed with above, that is why I encourage people to look for work away from the forums on the internet or anything like that. Try and find work locally where the economy is the same as your own, and you will be able to command the kind of prices that you deserve/need.
I agree with everyone here. Also consider what the logo will be for, someone getting a logo for a personal blog will (most likely) not pay $xxx, just as someone getting a logo for a large corporate company will not pay $xx. I usually only enter the smaller contests ($20 or so) when i try to reuse some of my designs that were never used, or if i think of a good idea really quickly. Though i must say the prices of contests are starting to increase IMO, i remember this place used to be full of $5 logo contests, now minimum is usually $20, going up to $250 or so. These days I usually only do my own paid work, and enter contests in spare time.
I won a $100 contest but never been paid until now. It's already 2 weeks after I sent them the winning logo. I'm doing this for living. It's my full time job. So when something like this happen, its very frustrated.
The thing is, 2 weeks isn't an unreasonable time to wait in the real world. You can wait upwards of 2 months for payment after invoicing a client. That is worst case, but not unheard of. Recently I had to wait approximately 3 months for payment of one large project. On the web it is different, because you cannot offer as much trust as it is easier for the clients to disappear. Try and offer a degree of leniency when it comes to being paid though, because if you do hassle people they won't use you again.