Prize increased! Innovative logo for banking products!
That’s the headline of one of hundreds of design contests currently underway at 99designs.com.
The rest of the ad for this contest reads:
“There will be a number of banking products/services grouped into the ‘My Life My Money’ offering. Checking accounts, online bill pay, ATM, Credit Cards, etc. This is for a small credit union looking for a way to help younger people get into banking.”
The 99designs idea is simple. It’s kind of like “reality TV” meets “logo design.” If you need a logo (any design, actually), you go there and post a brief description of what you’re after along with how much you’re willing to pay. According to the site, there are “13,357 talented designers” ready to fight over 483 contests paying anywhere from $100 up to $700 .
This “My Life My Money” contest drew 104 entries in about a week (view them here). The top three finalists (see below) – as picked by the contest holder – were presented to the credit union’s marketing team last Thursday.
Reality Check: Out of 104 entries, about 100 of them are really weak. Even the final three aren’t all that great.
The person sponsoring the design contest for this Gen-Y banking logo has held six such contests. One of them was for Ultimate Financial Services, which received 116 entries. The winning design (shown right) received $150.
Reality Check: Designers submitting entries into contests at sites like 99designs are recycling their ideas over and over in multiple contests for multiple clients. Don’t be surprised if medical imagery or sports iconography creeps its way into the logo for your checking product. Also don’t be surprised if/when you see those logos used by someone else someday.
Bottom Line:
- You know the adage, “You get what you pay for.” But hey, it’s only $200.
- This isn’t “strategic design.” If you come up empty handed, you have to start from scratch.
Serious designers will tell you that this is the worst approach one could ever take to develop a new logo, but if you’re a marketer with almost zero dollars in your budget, then why wouldn’t you give it a whirl?
For Discussion: What do you think? Is this a good way to get ideas for a logo project, or not?
This article © 2012 by The Financial Brand and may not be reproduced.
Related Articles From The Financial Brand:
- BankUnited’s Brand Rebirth: From Collapse to Credibility
- Case Study: Fitzsimons Credit Union Rebranding
- The Visual Story of Marginalen Bank’s Colorful Brand Identity
Oh man,
I am really hope it is the credit union doing this and not some agency. Right now, Spokane Teacher’s is the only one I see that has this My Life, My Money product.
I wouldn’t call a CU out by name like that except I am hoping they have their google alerts set up and they see this, just in case they did pay an agency.
Oh wow, the list of reasons why this is a bad idea is neverending. Nevermind the potential trademarking issues or regurgitated designs. Part of hiring a professional extend beyond design.
Lets take a look at some of the taglines “Banking for my generation”? Are you kidding me? Why not just say “Super Dope Banking for you G-Money”? or “X-Treme Banking for X-Treme Teens!”
Having generational products and sub-catagory marketing strategies is fine, I recommend them. However you have to cater to those demographics without being condencending. Recently in my town a clothing shop opened called “Teen Zone”. No self-respecting teen in my town would hang out in or around a place called “Teen Zone” unless they were in need of doubleknit slacks, a nifty sweater vest or a swell pantsuit.
I like contests for amateurs to get exposure and experience. But, professionals bring much more to the table than the ability to wield a digitizer and a passing knowledge of Adobe Illustrator.
BAH! I am going to continue my rant on CUhype later. I have emails I need to respond to.
Good job Jeffry, you just wound me up into a mind-bending rant.
The contest holder is almost certainly an agency or design studio. It will be interesting to see if Spokane Teachers is the client behind the agency’s contest. I’ll check on them later.
Regardless of who the client is, I wonder:
1. Does the client know their logo work is being subcontracted in such a fashion?
2. Does the client care?
3. What is the client being charged?
A logo project through a professional designer or studio won’t cost less than $750-$1,000. There are plenty of shops selling logos for $5,000-$10,000, and some charge six figures. Take even the low figure of $1,000 and the agency makes a 500% markup on the design work, which makes it a lot easier for them to ignore any issues surrounding quality, appropriateness or originality.
JUNE 15, 2008 – UPDATE: The winner has been selected. It is the third logo option on the right, shown above.
UPDATE: The mystery has been solved. The logo was for Resource 1 Credit Union’s Gen-Y promo. There’s an article about it from The Financial Brand here.