If there’s ever been an issue that ignites passion in the design community, it is Spec Work, its repackaged cousin Design Contests, and its cousin-in-disguise, Crowdsourcing. There are two sides to the issue, and neither seems willing, or able, to give the other much sway. As with most passionate debates, a lot of the oxygen is sucked up by hyperbole, from both sides (guilty as charged), and there’s very little attention focused on the true benefits (it there are any) and the true pitfalls (if there are any). Some people behind crowdsourcing sites will state that “businesses are ignoring the debate” and that’s very true. They are. It’s boiled down to a “more for less” proposition that’s a terribly effective marketing gimmick. Designers aren’t “ignoring” the debate, because they’re the ones who ostensibly have the most to lose and are the ones most affected.
So what’s the real deal? Seems time to look at both sides of the equations, warts and all, and take a somber, sober and partially impartial look at spec work, design contests and design crowdsourcing. From all angles. While I’m fundamentally opposed to spec work and design contests – my old lefty leanings, hammered into my psyche by my union advocating father – I think I’m well enough versed in the issue to tackle the issue pragmatically and without railing against the practice as is usual with my scribblings. We’re going to take a look at things from the client’s point of view first. Then follow up with a look at how these things work for designers later in the week.
Would anyone ask their dentist to perform work for free? You might ask, but I think we all know what the answer will be. Same goes for your mechanic. Your accountant. Lawyer. Hell, even the kid that cuts your lawn on Saturday morning for ten bucks. When it comes to design, seems lots of people aren’t similarly predisposed and requests for free work, spec work and discounted work are the rule rather than the exception. Not sure why it is. Perhaps because most end-of-project tasks are carried out on computer, there’s a notion that any design task only takes a few minutes and there’s some magical “design this” button. Or perhaps it’s because design isn’t what most designers do, but what they are, that leads to a perception that because (in theory) we enjoy what we do, we shouldn’t expect to get paid for the time we spend doing it. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: business, design, free, graphic design, spec
I’ve owned the Steve Douglas domain for a few years now. Actually, it’s a lot of years. For most of those, it’s sat on a lone server with a splash page and some random HTML pages talking about my wedding, a pond that I built and other personal ramblings that don’t mean anything to anybody (save the Mrs., who did like the wedding stuff). With the advent of social media, Twitter, Facebook and what have you, I found myself representing my company publicly, while spouting off some fairly personal points of view.
Tags: personal, steve douglas, story
Just testing some stuff. Don’t bother reading. I mean it. Stop now. Okay, now you’ve gone too far. There’s no turning back. Might as well read to the end. And here it is.
Had to remove the “hello world” default post. Not much better, but it’s a start. The stuff at the bottom isn’t me speaking in tongues, nor some funky language. It’s Lorem Ipsum.
