Guy Kawasaki is running a $1,000 design contest. The rule(s) are simple:
Submit a design entry 5 1/4 x 8 1/4 inches before August 13th and if selected, you win $1,000 and your work is used as the cover for Guy Kawasaki’s new book, “Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions.”
There’s 178 design entries so far.
The contest is similar to the one Chris Brogan ran when designing his newest project, Man On the Go. And as with Chris Brogan’s contest, designers are uproar against Guy Kawasaki’s contest arguing against “Spec Work.”
The AIGA’s Position On Spec Work:
AIGA, the professional association for design, believes that professional designers should be compensated fairly for the value of their work and should negotiate the ownership or use rights of their intellectual and creative property through an engagement with clients.
AIGA acknowledges that speculative work—that is, work done prior to engagement with a client in anticipation of being paid—occurs among clients and designers. Instead of working speculatively, AIGA strongly encourages designers to enter into projects with full engagement to continue to show the value of their creative endeavor. Designers and clients should be aware of all potential risks before entering into speculative work. – Source: AIGA, The Professional Association for Design
I get it. You should value your time and your work and people interested in your services should pay for your time and work accordingly. There’s even a site dedicated to the fight against spec work: No-Spec.com. How many times have you been approached by someone asking you to do something for them for FREE in exchange for free press? It happens all the time and often times you can argue that it’s a Win-Lose scenario (the designer loses out).
BUT, What If…
- You’re a designer with a small or no portfolio?
Could this be just the type of publicity/opportunity to launch your portfolio? Guy Kawasaki is considered a “high profile” individual in social media circles. Does that justify entering this contest? The benefit in this case is the publicity/notoriety that comes with winning the contest. The risk of course is that you’re up against ~178 other designers (and only one will win out).
Where do you draw the line on spec work? Is it ever ok to do some spec work if the benefit outweighs the monetary reward? Does it ever? Have you ever done any spec work? Your thoughts in the comments please.
PHOTO CREDIT: twicepix
Designers enter for fun (assuming they have other income), for a chance to name drop Guy when they present their portfolios to potential clients, and some actually do it because they are super competitive and want to win. I think those are all valid reasons to enter the contest and they all have the potential to get what they want out of the project.
On the other hand, doing spec work encourages potential clients to give this model a shot and can lead to a competitive low-win situation for the design industry.
At the end of the day, it's all about expectations. If every designer who enters expects to get money from their efforts then all but one will be disappointed. But if they are entering for the reasons mentioned way up above then this could be a fun project and could lead to work down the road.
I *don't* think Guy is intending to screw anyone over and is likely to do the right thing and use his name and influence to thank all contributors and share the love. That would be good marketing.
Jesse: appreciate your insights and agree. The expectations seem pretty clear to me and if you're a designer entering the contest, and you can accept that, then fair game.
I do see their point in and the AIGA's stance on Spec Work but gain, if you're a newbie designer looking for some recognition, a a chance to grow your portfolio, isn't this a good way to give it a shot? Now if it's all that you're doing, then that'd be cause for concern because entering contests all day long isn't going to bring any solid work.
Always bad. The only time it is good, it is removed from the model enough that it can no longer be called spec (volunteering for a church you go to, for example).
Andrew: so if it's not in competition with a larger group, and it's done for a good cause, then it's fair game?
What about the designer who has little to no portfolio and no work, isn't this a good way of getting some good publicity that can be turned around for more work?
I have mixed thoughts on this. I would rather get paid less and know I am getting paid.
I see the point of the upside though, but you could be the “best” out of the 178 and still not get picked (sometimes it comes down to taste) so it would be hard to do any significant work on such a gamble.
I like the idea of this as a format to launch a young hungry upstart, but if they waste time on 5 or so of these projects and DO NOT win, perhaps sometimes because a more “famous” name entered material, it could actually shatter their confidence.