Feedback: Competition Idea

[PanToshi]

1. Do you enter design competitions? No
2. Would you pay to enter a design competition if the prize was big enough? No
3. Does a prize matter to you or would you enter anyway?No and no
4. Do you create artwork in your spare time? Yes

Originally Posted by jack2009

... I want my idea to be as beneficial to everyone involved as possible...

You have not yet explained how your business model is beneficial to contestants.

Originally Posted by jack2009

...added to the gallery and eventually printed portfolio...

Care to elaborate on the terms of intellectual property of contestants artwork? Royalties?

[jack2009]

Thanks for all your feedback, I do appreciate it.

Can I ask what the main reason is why you wouldn't enter?

I like to be paid for my work too and I make a nice living off it but I also like to experiment and take on pro-bono work in my spare time.

Is it simply that you want paying for your time?

This competition is aimed at people who would enjoy the monthly challenge and I'd hopefully be building a community around it. Does this not interest any of you?

[jack2009]

Thanks for your response PanToshi....

My initial hope was that people would enjoy a monthly challenge or creativity workout and a nice prize for the winner and runners up.

Beside each entry would be a link to the creatives portfolio and I would be inviting studios around the country to look through and vote for their favourites. And hopefully generate some commissions for the entrants. The money raised from the competition would go to promoting the competition and its winners.

Not sure if this is a viable business but I definitely want to be doing something to help creatives and I want to begin to build a community.

[Sarah]

1. Do you enter design competitions?
I have in the past, but high entry fees keep me from doing it often.
2. Would you pay to enter a design competition if the prize was big enough?
I paid $20 to submit 4 designs (all for the same contest).
3. Does a prize matter to you or would you enter anyway?
A prize could motivate some people.
4. Do you create artwork in your spare time?
Yes

[jack2009]

Thanks Sarah, I really appreciate that. Can I ask what your profession is? and also, the competition that you paid $20 for, what was the incentive?

Thanks

[kion]

1. Do you enter design competitions?
No. But, I have entered one contest and that was when I was younger, inexperienced, needed money, and didn't know better. I spent a lot of time on my entry, and in the end I did not win and wasted a lot of time. I was naive. I have learned my lesson. Now I get paid when I do work for a client. No questions asked.

2. Would you pay to enter a design competition if the prize was big enough?
Absolutely not. Why should I pay you to do work? You are still running a design contest that asks designers to perform spec work because the contest, in essence, becomes the client in this relationship.

3. Does a prize matter to you or would you enter anyway?
I wouldn't enter if there was a prize or not.

4. Do you create artwork in your spare time?
Yes. Personal work only.

Can I ask what the main reason is why you wouldn't enter?
I might be in a different place than some of the members, but I'm coming back to freelancing after three years of being an in-house designer. That story I told up there about the design contest I entered happened when I was fresh out of art school. It taught me a few valuable lessons that form the basis for why I would never enter a contest like this. But the main lesson I learned was that professionals get paid for the work they do. They do not do work in the hopes of getting paid. They most certainly do not pay a fee to do work in the hopes of getting paid.

Is it simply that you want paying for your time?
Think of it this way, these spec work contests do not happen in most other professional service industries. You do not see doctors paying to enter competitions to see which one of them diagnoses and treats a patient the best where only one gets paid. You do not see lawyers pay to represent clients for free and the one who manages to get the client the best sentencing is the only one who gets paid. Teachers do not pay to get entered into contests where they might get paid if their students do the best on an exam. Why should graphic designers be any different than these other professions?

[BJMRamage]

trying to remember the questions.

1. I have in the past. and won $180 worth of Concert ticket to Bonnaroo Music Fest. Since then, I have thought about them and decided not to do it.

2. no...but will detail later

3. No

4. Yep, for me, for non-profits, and for fun.


Referring back to #2. if there was a monetary prize that was 50-100 times the entry fee and there was a limit of one entry per contest, I would enter the contest.

[kemingMatters]

1. Do you enter design competitions?
No. The "prize" is usually not worth my time or the time required to design something I would deem worthy of attaching my name to.

2. Would you pay to enter a design competition if the prize was big enough?
No Hell no, actually.

3. Does a prize matter to you or would you enter anyway?
No. Again not worth the time, if there is no prize and you want to charge people to enter I imagine you'd have a tough time getting entries.

4. Do you create artwork in your spare time?
Yes, but it's for me, or one of the few local NPO's I choose to support.

[PrintDriver]

I'm sure you could make money doing this by appealing to the same crowd that does crowdsourcing.
Said crowd is not often made up of very competently skilled graphic designers.

Do you think art studios have the time to be judging this?
Are you going to pay them?
No serious studio is going to hire someone based on a game. There is a lot more at stake when it comes to handing out commissions. A competition website wouldn't even be on my list of places to look. Winning a vote based competition on a brief that doesn't involve real ROI for a real client isn't a hiring criteria, even if you managed to find a Big Name design studio to adjudicate.

For the serious designer, this is "a career, not a game."

[Bladez]

If I'm creating any sort of artwork for somebody else, they're paying for it, unless I'm doing it as a gift. But then, I'd better know you real well!

If you want me to enter into your competition, I need to be guaranteed financial compensation for my time and work.