Crowdsourced Logo Design – Is it Right for You?

Crowdsourcing your logo design: Is it your best option? It’s a good question. What are the options, anyway?

3 concepts Local Degenerates

1) Full Agency Service

One option for logo design is to consult a marketing and design agency. This is expensive, but you’ll get individual attention and professional service.

Typically, agencies serve mid-sized and larger businesses that don’t have the expertise in-house to do a professional logo design. Clients like this value a cohesive brand image enough to pay the price, which can range from 60 to 120 USD per labor hour for a moderately-priced agency. The customer benefits from having an agency manage their brand assets, such as letterhead, business cards, office paraphernalia, and slag.

This is a good option if you have considerable brand assets, you’re looking for a long-term relationship, and you have the budget.

2) Hire a Freelancer

Freelancer logo designers are easy to find online, and easier than ever to hire. Without a doubt, some are extremely talented, so you can (and should) expect quality work.

The challenge in hiring a freelancer is this: without the intermediacy of an agency that has seen fit to hire the freelancer, even if only part-time, the vetting is up to you. Can you evaluate the aptitude and professionalism of the person you want to hire?

For most businesses, sourcing a logo design is not a regular transaction; it’s usually a one-time deal. Consider whether you’re willing to invest the time required to select someone to work with, and if you have the skills to evaluate what they produce.

3) Crowdsourcing logo design

In traditional crowdsourced logo design, you present a request (a “brief”) that provides enough detail about the identity of your business and what you’re looking for in a logo for freelancers to propose a design to you.

You decide upfront what the award will be for your top choice. For example, at 48hourslogo.com, the award ranges from $100 to $300 USD. The higher you bid, the greater the number of designs you can expect to receive, and the greater the likelihood you’ll get the attention of the very best designers. You pay a small fee to present your brief to the community, but you don’t pay the award money unless you actually receive a logo design you intend to use.

With an unlimited number of professionals vying for your selection, designs tend to be excellent, and you’ll find great variety. This may be just what you need – you may find yourself quite impressed by a surprise concept.

Expect this process to take a few days, and to cost upward of 119 USD. All-in-all, this option is economical, fast, and easier to manage than hiring a freelancer. You have the added benefit that the crowdsourcing site has pre-vetted the designers for you, and is present to manage the process and the payment.

4) Crowdsourcing with a Twist

Some sites, such as freelancelogodesign.com, offer crowdsourced logo design with a difference: A very small number of freelancers offer a design, and the turnaround time is as short as it gets – only sixty minutes!

Because each designer has a reasonable chance at earning money, the price you pay for the rights to use the logo is low: only 49 USD. So, for $49, you could have a professionally-designed logo in an hour or less.

This is ideal if, for whatever reason, you’re absolutely out of time. It’s also a rock-bottom price for a custom logo. At a lower price point you’d be considering stock or generated logos, and I won’t talk about that here (except to say please don’t do this – your image is at stake).

It’s also economical if you can pinpoint what you want and are content to choose from a few good designs. It’s a deal on the designer’s end too, so you know you’ll be working with top talent.