Logo Design and Tagline contest $75-$100

$75-100 Sport surfacing company Logo & Tagline

Hi guys,

For this one I need something professional, unique & Brandable.
The company name is 'Sport Surfaces'.

Contest is open for 60 hours.

Looking for a professional logo that shows what we do, not too abstract.
So the logo should graphically represent what we do and be in color.
Colors should reflect a professional business in our industry type.
This logo will be for use on Business cards, brochures & Website.

We will pay $75 for the winning logo, and only the one we choose to use.
We will also pay an additional $25 for a great tagline, but this is not required.

The company builds and resurfaces sports flooring, Our main type of work
in order of priority is Tennis Courts, Running Tracks, Basketball courts.
As well as any other hard surface outdoor sport court.

Logo must be in a professional graphics format, such as AI, CDR, Hi-Res PSD,
or similar level and quality of format.

If you have any questions please ask.
Payment Via Pay Pal Only.
I reserve the right not to choose a logo if it does not fit my client's needs.

Thank you!

 

http://www.no-spec.com/

Contests like this are not only non-professional, but they don't bring in as good results as taking the same limited budget and just working with one willing designer.

So, contest devalue the product *you* get, devalue the entire industry of designers by making many people work for nothing. You also own't attract professional designers, so if there was a sure way to have only amateurs respond to your project, doing a contest is a surefire way to never get a professional.

If you feel that you would get better results by having 10 people do work instead of putting all of your chances on one person, there is nothing at all stopping you from PAYING 10 people and then only using the one you like best.

Magazines like Time magazine often commission multiple artists to make cover art, sometimes as many as 5 covers per issue, and yet they only use one. They still pay each artist thousands for their work whether they use it or not.

So what this says to me is a few things about *your* character. You are either unaware of this simple fact, which to me would mean you're not a professional business person and haven't really been around this industry very long. If you're that new, I can forgive you a little bit, and offer you the chance to change this contest into a proper project.

BUT, if you aren't brand new to this, then it's sick that you are trying to exploit the work of other artists by getting them to do work, and then paying, or maybe not even paying the best one. If you want work done for you, you pay for it whether you choose t use it or not.

What this is like if design was a product and not a service:

I walk into the Apple store, I want a computer. So they ought to give me all of their computers, and I'll use them all and pay for the best one. But if I don't like any, I'll still keep them and just not pay them because it wasn't exactly what I was looking for.

How long to you think Apple would be around if they did business like that? What quality of product do you think a company would offer if they *did* do business like that?

I hope you understand my points here and change the project into a commissioned piece, and always ask for a portfolio, and then lookup what makes a good logo. Just because it looks nice doesn't make it a good logo.

For a good logo it must:

-Visually represent the company, with or without text
-work in one-colour (like mke the entire thing in black only, no gradients)
-must be recognizable at small sizes, like 16x16 pixels (the size of a favicon)
Apple's logo work sas a favicon because it's a good logo, Google is having logo issues
-must not be so 'trendy' that it's old in a year. The best logos are the ones by Paul Rand like the IBM logo that have been in use for over 40 years, and are still relevant today.

there are plenty more, but you really need to know these things if you're going to be paying for a logo so you don't get some 'web 2.0' shiny crap by an amateur designer who makes all of his logos in photoshop for cheap! A logo needs to be designed in a vector format, and the industry standard is without a question Adobe Illustrator. If your designer cannot use Adobe Illustrator he cannot make a proper logo at all.

Good luck, I'm right down the middle with being disgusted and wanting to help you, but I'm trying my best to reserve judgement and just help you because I'm not sure you know what you were doing when you posted this....

 

Contests like this are abosolutly professional. And I think you are way off base. Just because you don't like the idea, does not give you the right to take this away from otheres. There are dozens of contests like this on this forum. I actually got the idea from this forum. I have been in the Advertising and printing business for 18 years and understand it very well.
I actually contacted of couple of designers on this site to do a few concepts and pay them for the work directly. But after a couple of emails. Could not get anyone to give me a price. So after looking thru the forum, these contests seemed to be very common, so I tried to do one myself.
But since you don't like them, you have to take the time to insult what someone else does becuase you don't like the way it works.
I find you to be completely unpofessional in what you wrote and how you handled this.
And I would never want nor accpet you help in this type of design for the way you hanlded it.
If you would have sent me a PM and professionaly offered me your service, I would have reveiwed your profile and considered what you talent could offer. And considered a direct deal. Which you would never pay for up front. You have a contract price set up for work and pay upon completion of work.
Anyone that would submit an idea for a contest like this should be smart enough to post a low res version and usually put a copy protect screen over the concept. I would never use anyone's work without paying for it and would completely honor my agreement with anyone that tried.
Instead, you have to try to ruin things that some might want to partake in.
We live in a free county and if someone wants to invest some time in a logo contest to show their work and see if they can sell something, that is their right and choice.
And for you to try and take that away from someone that wants to do it, is wrong, controlling and and manipulative as you just don't like it.

If you don't like these type of contests, then don't enter them. That is your choice, but allow others to do what they want and don't try to impose you personal opinons to ruin a good opportunity for someone else.
As I do a lot of work in desing and graphics. If I found someone that did good work, I would contine to use them in the future. Maybe you should think more befoe you respond and try to force your opinons on others.

 

Wow, that's a shocker - this forum is certainly NOT the measure of professional conduct in the industry, and for somebody with 18 alleged years in the industry I wonder how you could possibly not know that! It's so mind-numbingly amateur and most work that passes here doesn't even approach professional minumum standards, but then again most compensation doesn't approach minumum professional pay either - you truly do get what you pay for I guess.

Wow, again,you obviously haven't been using *this* site alone for 18 years in the industry, because this site isn't that old. Where on earth did you find people of this level before you found digitalPoint? Have you ever really worked with professionally trained people? Do you not remember how professional clients work?

The industry for professionals is this: you submit a proposal, in that proposal you send them what you have to offer, the price you propose they hire you at, and also you outline the deliverables you will do for them. That's how the industry works.

I think you're missing the point - any work a designer does should be paid for. Period. Whether used or not. What you're trying to do here is get a bunch of designers to do unpaid work, and then reward the best one with sub-standard pay. The whole PREMISE of the thing reeks with poor ethics and business practices. I gave you the benefit of the doubt for maybe being inexperienced, but if you truly are as experienced as you say, you are sick and I would never CONSIDER doing work for you - please don't take my post as an appeal to be hired, I want nothing to do with you, and you couldn't afford my services with your pay anyway - I have studied design (how many others here have?) and I work for professional clients who pay professional wages. I posted my bit there to warn you and other amateur designers who you were (possibly unwittingly) exploiting. Your anger towards me trying to educate and explain the reasons why is totally unjustified unless you feel guilty about trying something shady.

Oh, and what country is it the 'we' live in Shawn? I live in a country where Spec Work is illegal. It's a serious enough issue that they bothered to make it a law to protect trained professionals from exploitation. Check the link again, read it

http://www.no-spec.com/articles/ten-reasons/

I think I made it ABUNDTANTLY clear that I was not even considering entering this contest - how deluded are you? I am not trying to procure work from you, I am NOT entering your contest, I am certainly not impressed with your business skills and I have a hard time believing you are truly a professional in this industry.

If you truly found reliable professionals with these contests in the past why are you not taking THIS work to them now? is it because they charge more than you are willing to pay the second time around?

A lot of things in the message don't add up, and I typically respect people's privacy, but I don't feel the need to protect the people here from you and from our discourse, I think they need to see you for who you are. This is out of character for me to do this, but you're out of character for DP.

 

Obvously from your comments, you do not repect the designers that are on this site, nor the work they do. I have seen some great logo concepts here.
You are obviouly very bitter about something that happened in your past.
And your views are extremely distorted.
You are rude, unprofessional and down right insulting.
I have owned my own printing company and advertising agency and have worked with some top professionals.
Now that I am starting a new business, I was just lookig for some fresh ideas, as my designer is out of town for 2 weeks.
I will no longer respond nor acknowlege your comments or input as it is obvioulsy a wast of time and falling on deaf ears.


Best of luck to you in your future career.

 

Actually, no, nothing negative has happened to me in the past, and I've only worked with excellent clients because of my standards. Everything I have done here is not for my own benefit, but for the benefit of the others here who might be younger or don't have the experience yet.

I can understand how you might take what I have said personally, but calling me unprofessional and insulting is a direct ad hominem attack. I have posted hundreds more messages on this board than you, and I think if you were to look through those messages they would speak for themselves. I do help people out here, with no thought of personal gain every day. I refer them to resources they might not know about, and I do that to help them save money, help them save buying software, and I help them empower themselves by giving them the tools they need.

I also encourage people who are doing good things, which I also do all the time - look at my past posts. I realize that what we have here at DP is a community, and I try to build that community. I see people who are exploiting the people thst work here as a disharmony in that community that I am trying so hard to build. That is why I bother to take the time to write these messages, trying to educate you about why your actions aren't right, providing the links to the no-spec website which explains it all. Hopeing that you'll read it and change your mind. That is why I have written everything here, trying to protect the younger people who might fall into a trap, trying to explain why it's a trap.

That's not the first time you've said this. so what is your Company? Where does it operate? Does it have a name? What are examples of 'TOP professionals' you ave worked with in the past that you're alluding to here?

I didn't bet you'd ignore this - I called you out in front of everybody and now you just want it to go away don't you? I think the only deaf ears these words are falling on are your own. I have certainly tried to explain in every possible way I can the reasons for my actions, and why I see hwat you're doing as wrong. You're the one who is not listening. Have you gone to the No-Spec site yet? Please do!

you too, all you need to do before posting work here is learn the proper way to go about it. Just because somebody else did it and it worked doesn't make it right. Learn why Spec work is bad, and in some places illegal, and then figure out a way to offer work that doesn't degrade the community, but actually builds the community and brings us together. I know you're new here, but the focus of this community isn't to make money from each other - but to help each other. Also, if you were a little more experienced you'd also realize that you posted this 'contest' in the total wrong section of DP too - there already exists a place for hiring designers under the Buy Sell Trade forums - this is the wrong location anyway.

I don't hope you disappear, I hope you take this and learn from it, and continue to post work here in a much more professional and ethical way. All said-and-done you need a logo still, your designer is still out of town for 2 weeks if what you say is true.

You are certainly welcome to post a new thread accepting bids for your project, and do this the right way. Or try a site like Elance where professionals go. Good luck to you, and good luck with getting your logo done the right way this time.

 

I completely agree. This kind of cheapening of design means a reduction in quality design and designers.
As a member of AGDA I agree that:
"FREE PITCHING IS BAD FOR DESIGNERS not only because it economically damages the
unfortunate design business that engages in it but also the entire industry by encouraging
clients to continue the practice." - AGDA National/ALPT/11.96, © AGDA 1996

and also" FREE PITCHING IS BAD FOR CLIENTS because it substantially reduces the probability of an
appropriate and relevant design solution. A free pitch situation is like a beauty parade –
decidedly superficial. The problem with a superficial solution is that it is not only a waste
of time and money at the design stage, it also jeopardises the effectiveness of any further
spend on downstream processes such as print, multimedia and distribution. Reproduction
processes are always, ‘garbage-in, garbage-out.’" - AGDA National/ALPT/11.96, © AGDA 1996

Just don't be a part of it if you value your work and design skills.

Di : )

 

I agree with innovati as usual, the only reason I believe anyone on this site should ever enter a "contest" is to have fun with it. i give such sub standard work in them that way if I don't get picked it was like my daily warm up sketch and if I do win, hey I get paid for it. But to say that the contests are professional are a joke, why would a professional designer EVER use a design forums contest to get work.

 

Ok, maybe because nobody wants to enter but just chat, I might actually win this one haha! if not I got my warm-up I guess...

I am about to finish the logo, wait for me...

CR

 

Here is the final product for everyone to see:



Any opinions, comments, or healthy critique is welcome...

Any changes? What do you think?

 

CRA88,
Thank you for the submission and for ignoring the drama comments.
The logo is good, but is lacking the professional level that we need for this company. Also, the format of the layout would be challening to incorporate into a business card as it is a bit spread out and maybe just a bit plain.
But, I do greatly appreciate your time and effort, if you want to give it another go based on doing something a bit higher-end, and can reflect what we do, but does not have to be so literal.
I will PM you with a further offer.
Shawn

 

Class, after all that arguing he ends up with a shit unprofessional logo

And have you b****cks owned an design and advertising agency, otherwise you'd be doing it yourself

And besides, you've posted the contest in the wrong section moron, it'll start an argument in here because its a DISCUSSION FORUM

 

Kye172, you speak of class and yet you show so little by the language you use and the insults you post.
I it quite rude and classless to insult someones attempt at a design, even if it needs help. Why now work with everyone here and give some constructive criticizm and help rathather than just throw insults and hurt those trying to improve their abilities.
I would love to post in the contest forum, but I am newer here. But even I know that you have to be on here for 14 days before you can post in that area, aside from some other requirements. You might want to know a bit more before making comments and telling someone to do something they cannot do.

 

The idea is to become an active member of the community, rarther than just go ahead and ignore the rules by posting in the wrong section.

If you have so much experience in advertising and design like you make out, shouldn't you have a wealth of knowledge to offer?

If you stopped giving it the bull, you might find people are a little bit more willing to help you - I'll start by telling you this - offer more information on your business

i.e Any old logos? Applications? (Van's etc? Does it need to be able to be recognisable in single colour cut vinyl for instance?) Any concepts ideas you like or have thought of? What makes your product different from your competitors? Who are your competitors?

Research is more important than anything else in design - art is making things look pretty, design is art with a purpose; in this case to elevate your company image above your competitions.

Stuff like this is why logo competitions are inherantly flawed - there isn't enough communication and good design involves a 2 way process of communication between the designs and the clients.

It also results in less wasted time - rarther than you being presented with several complete logos on concepts you don't like, working with good professional designers you usually end up being presented with concepts first - and probably not much design involved initially, you can then pick a concept and they'll work some draft designs around this concept which gets built and polished into what will become your final logo.

For instance I am currently designing a logo for a business from a meeting last week, this coming week when he pops into my office he'll be presented with zero designs but 5 sentences (and counting) - each of these represents an idea / concept for the deisgn. He'll pick one or two and these will then be developed into drafts and then a finished product. This way I dont waste my time (and his money) by presenting god knows how many different logos based on things he might not even like.

If you're insistent on a competition, it might be worth changing the competition to generate the concept ideas and taglines first, and then pay a designer whos style you like (from previously viewed portfolios) to make the final thing

 

ok what do you think is a fair price for logo design...because when I was at the Art Institute in San Diego this was great practice for up and coming web/graphic designers...

I think if you're a high end madison avenue graphic designer JUST DON"T answer to the ad IMO

 

Hey shawn, i think this forum here would be the best place for you to host this contest. I suppose you won't find these *** peeking into your contest and creating a drama. Good luck with your contest.

If you have the ability to do something then prove yourself, talking takes nowhere. Better go write some reviews instead of wasting those words here.

 

I have been in the industry for a long time. And I found this site the other day. I did see some good designs in several contests which attracted me to the idea. So I have little to no experience in this format. I tried the contest to see what I could get from it, as they did seem very inexpensive. Most of the contests I found were for $25-$50. Which I found to be just way too low. So I was offering more as I think that was needed. In the professional world as for what logos go for. It ranges greatly. A freelance artist could do 3-5 logo concepts for as little as $100. Or you could deal with an advertising agency with a full range of services, that would charge anywhere from $500-$1500 for a logo concept package and some go as high as $2500. But you cannot compare this type of work to an agency as that is part of a package, personal meetings, project managers and a wide range of services that you could never get here. Based on my experience this type of logo creation and concept service should range anywhere from $50-$250 depending on the level of work, number of concepts, experience of designers and a wide range of other issues.
I appreciate the positive and helpful comments to my post. I am currently PM'ing with a few designers who will do logo's and concepts for me directly and will not look to work in this forum with a contest as there is just to much drama here, and just not worth that much trouble.
I just signed on a couple of days ago, and I originally tried to post in the Buy,sell - Contest forum, but could not post there as they require me to have the account open for 2 weeks first. And I need a logo for this upcoming week. So, this seemed like the best place to post outside of that forum.
Once agian, thanks to all that gave positive and constructive input and try to help rather than insult.
I will look to see how to close this post and contest.

 

I looked to close the thread, but apparently from what I read, you cannot.

Just to clarify, because of all of the issues here:
I HAVE CLOSED THIS CONTEST.

I have contracted directly with a couple of designers directly.
If I do any future contests, the will be in the contest forum.
Thanks for all the comments.

 

you are correct when you say you are unable to close the thread, even though the contest is closed. That means that in the nature of good-hearted discussion (which is what we do in forums) this thread stays open, and on top until people are done talking about it.

Sit back and enjoy the community you love so much

 

Thanks so much. I am enjoying this forum more and more. I have PM'ed and gotten messages from some very nice people. I guess we just have to have fun with those we enjoy and deal with those that like drama.