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It's only gonna get tougher
- Thread starter Colin
- Start date
Dan Antonelli
New Member
I have a BA in Communications/Advertising. I worked as a graphic designer in NYC upon graduation for 5 years, eventually running the in-house graphics division of a marketing communication department for a large health insurance company. Lot of work with ad agency, and while I was there, I started the company and did a lot of truck lettering, primarily. When I was first featured in SignCraft in 1997, I had just quit the 'day' job to do it full time.
CES020
New Member
I don't know who's getting all their files for $150. In the case I entered, I had to specify up front the use of the logo. I did something like business cards, t-shirts, and something else. If I wanted to use it for anything else or to modify it, I did NOT own the rights to it. They offered the ability to buy the rights to whatever was designed, but it was more in line with the $1,500 price tag. So by paying that $250 or whatever it was, I was buying the limited rights to reproduce on 3 or 4 items. Anything else, I had to go back to the designer and work out and agreement to buy the rights to use it for something else.
I didn't look at the site you mentioned, but I feel pretty certain you don't get the logo and the rights for those prices.
Would I love to have a smoking hot, Dan or Rick designed logo. You betcha! Can I afford them? Probably not. So I'm not Dan's customer or even potential customer at this point, so what's it matter if I get my cousin's sister's brother's uncle's mother's kid's neighbor to work on it? He's lost nothing.
Will my logo be so great I can use it on anything from a business card to a billboard or anything in between? Probably not.
There are many car makes and models out there. If you sell Ferrari's, your target customer probably isn't looking at Ford Focus'. It's apples and oranges. You sell oranges and those people are shopping for apples. Just make sure you keep telling people about your oranges and why they are better than apples and you'll be fine.
Colin
New Member
I'm not sure, but I think a person gets the rights to the artwork on 99Designs. I have a very busy evening, so maybe somebody can look into their policies.
Deaton Design
New Member
Heck, Ill do em a logo for 98.50, then there is the design fee, cd fee, burning fee, usage fee, pia fee, and lunch fee. I wont tell em about that until I get em signed though.
Rick
Certified Enneadecagon Designer
Kinda curious... Colin, are you self taught or have you worked at different shops?
I'm in a small town, no degree. But I have been very, very lucky at where I have been employed. I have worked at shops where they gave away design, and worked on jobs with 250k sign design budgets... thats just design. I'm not handling that kinda work right now, but I am a small part of it.
Very similar to Dan, I came to a realization about 11 years ago... I had 4 kids, wife at home, and all the bills that go with it. And I realized that I'm not gonna work as hard as I had to make someone else's dream come true or pay for someone else's short-sightedness. I went for a job I thought I could never get... and I got it. After my last job, my eyes were opened... my rate is nothing compared to what they charged.. not even close. They do work way beyond any person on any sign forum I have been on. And there are hundreds of these design firms around doing work... obviously the economy has hit them, but 99designs is not even in the realm of what they do, so I have the attitude that my work will not be either. As Dan said, it is an opportunity, but habits are hard to break... I had to be shown... if I was not, I would probably be slapping cut vinyl on license plate frames right now.
I'm in a small town, no degree. But I have been very, very lucky at where I have been employed. I have worked at shops where they gave away design, and worked on jobs with 250k sign design budgets... thats just design. I'm not handling that kinda work right now, but I am a small part of it.
Very similar to Dan, I came to a realization about 11 years ago... I had 4 kids, wife at home, and all the bills that go with it. And I realized that I'm not gonna work as hard as I had to make someone else's dream come true or pay for someone else's short-sightedness. I went for a job I thought I could never get... and I got it. After my last job, my eyes were opened... my rate is nothing compared to what they charged.. not even close. They do work way beyond any person on any sign forum I have been on. And there are hundreds of these design firms around doing work... obviously the economy has hit them, but 99designs is not even in the realm of what they do, so I have the attitude that my work will not be either. As Dan said, it is an opportunity, but habits are hard to break... I had to be shown... if I was not, I would probably be slapping cut vinyl on license plate frames right now.
Rick
Certified Enneadecagon Designer
um....You actually do have one.... :ROFLMAO:
CES020
New Member
Well yeah, but I didn't pay you for it, so I can't use it
I've opened it up and admired it dozens of times, wishing, hoping one day I'll have a logo like that
Tried getting inspiration from it many times. Just reminds me I have a lot more learning to do
CES020
New Member
I'm not sure if anyone looked into this site, but here's what I saw in my 2 minute tour.
No designs are $99 (just the name of the site).
They have various levels of design, for example, on a logo, you have 4 options:
Logos :
Basic - $295
Standard - $495
Premium - $695
Customer - You set the price and see if anyone is interested.
It says the Standard is the most popular, so that's $500.
The problem comes when you click past the first page. You get a page with options on it. To increase the visibility of your contest, you have to pay for various options, like bold titles or Featured Listing, etc.
So that's another $85.
So we're at $380 for the basic, $580 on the Standard, and $780 on the Premium. The difference in the packages is how many design options you get.
I still cannot tell from their legal mumbo jumbo who owns the rights. They appear to wash their hands of it saying that's between you and the designer, but I admit, I didn't quite understand some of the terms.
So $780 for the premium logo package. That's a long way from $99 bucks which was mentioned a few times in this thread.
No designs are $99 (just the name of the site).
They have various levels of design, for example, on a logo, you have 4 options:
Logos :
Basic - $295
Standard - $495
Premium - $695
Customer - You set the price and see if anyone is interested.
It says the Standard is the most popular, so that's $500.
The problem comes when you click past the first page. You get a page with options on it. To increase the visibility of your contest, you have to pay for various options, like bold titles or Featured Listing, etc.
So that's another $85.
So we're at $380 for the basic, $580 on the Standard, and $780 on the Premium. The difference in the packages is how many design options you get.
I still cannot tell from their legal mumbo jumbo who owns the rights. They appear to wash their hands of it saying that's between you and the designer, but I admit, I didn't quite understand some of the terms.
So $780 for the premium logo package. That's a long way from $99 bucks which was mentioned a few times in this thread.
Colin
New Member
It might have been mentioned on this thread, but I don't think the people at 99Designs imply that it means 99 dollars at all. I think it suggests that one will be able to pick from about 99 designs for their logo or whatever; and from what I've seen, one does get to choose from a lot of different offerings.
One of my main points in the O/P was just how heavily they are advertising now.
Locals Find!
New Member
In a way there increased advertising is a good thing. They aren't lowballing the market like many other logo mills out there.
I got an email from one the other day offering 15 different designs for $50 with unlimited revisions and a money back guarantee. Now that is hard to compete with. Like it was mentioned before this was somewhere overseas. Probably designed by some college kids looking for beer money or something.
artbot
New Member
the other day, my 12 year old daughter asked if she could have a workstation. she's been designing nonoba pages (kind of a myspace for kids) for the past year. i wouldn't be surprised if half the competing designers are under 16 years old and of that also half in india or elsewhere.
logos have become legos.
xenophobia is the cause of so many failed businesses. when you see the beginning of the writing on the wall, run like hell and transform your business. don't wait for the inevitable.
logos have become legos.
xenophobia is the cause of so many failed businesses. when you see the beginning of the writing on the wall, run like hell and transform your business. don't wait for the inevitable.
Logos are just the end result, design is the process. Good clients realize that and pay for the process. Bad clients don't and pay for the logo.
You choose which you'd rather compete for. As most of this forum is "sign shops" with an emphasis on products not design agencies, yes, most of this forum will be out competed on the design front.
You choose which you'd rather compete for. As most of this forum is "sign shops" with an emphasis on products not design agencies, yes, most of this forum will be out competed on the design front.
MikePro
New Member
they also imply there's fees for withdrawls from your "account" of prize winnings... and don't actually say what your piece of the prize really is. I wouldn't be surprised if you won a $500 contest, but only actually see $99 of it in the end.