crowd-sourcing design: the last frontier by steven heller for print magazine

bring up crowd-sourcing in a design community, and you’re sure to get an uproar of protest against it. bring it up with fledgling small businesses, and it’s seen as a cost-effective alternative to professional design services by many, though i wouldn’t say there’s a majority opinion. i think it’s important to address this topic beyond the design arena, and i think heller took great care in pointing out the you-get-what-you-pay-for facts.

if you really believe you need a logo before a brand strategy, and you’re willing to sacrifice the process that might make it meaningful to your business, by all means, hire yourself as art director and crowd-source away. here’s a tip though: some very successful businesses out there got started with a small client base, getting recommendations on the merits of their work before they ever had logos. put your work first, use the materials you can afford at startup, and make identity design a savings goal. there’s no need to rush, gaining all the setbacks that rushed behavior brings in the process.