Crowdsourcing (aka how low can you go?)

Crowdsourcing is not unique to graphic designers; it's any sort of outsourcing that involves a large group of people actively participating in the project. At it's best it encourages open-innovation models and collective intelligence.(1) The Netflix Prize is an example that worked. In October 2006 Netflix announced that it would pay $1 million to the contestant who could improve the movie recommendations made by Netflix’s internal software, Cinematch, by at least 10 percent. The contest lured experts worldwide not only because of the prize money but also because it offered a daunting challenge. The ultimate key to success was when expert teams joined forces.(2)For graphic designers though it has become a contest about "how low can you go?" It basically means that clients can send a project "out to bid." This means that they say how much they are going to pay for a design, and any number of designers can submit work for consideration. Clients can then decide after time and effort have been spent by one, or many, which design they like and are willing to pay for. The graphic designers whose work has not been chosen receive no compensation at all. Graphic designers aren't joining forces; they are being pitted against each other.Steven Heller's blog post for Imprint, "Crowd-Sourcing Design: The Last Frontier," speaks directly to the idea of joining forces, or conversely, not joining forces—with either other designers or the client. Designers read a mail-in brief and have no opportunity to meet or talk with the client about needs or wants. The discovery process is truncated at best.In Steve Douglas' recent blog post "The grim realities of spec work and crowdsourcing" he analyzes how graphic designers fare financially with crowdsourcing. His results show that 9.5% of work done through crowdsourcing is paid work. A whopping 90.5% is unpaid.Proponents of crowdsourcing argue that it’s a free trade system and actually gives young designers who don’t have a big client list or portfolio filled with work a chance to be judged on merit alone. In an article for Communication Arts, creative arts management consultant David Baker says, “I have a client with 64 employees, all but 4 of whom are in Colombia doing web development for Fortune 500 companies. All the while making roughly one‐third of what their U.S. counterparts make, and twice what their fellow citizens make.”(3)What do you think about crowdsourcing? Does it open up opportunities for designers and clients or is it taking design to a new low?Sources:(1) http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/technology/internet/19unboxed.html(2) http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2009/09/how-the-netflix-prize-was-won/(3) http://www.commarts.com/Columns.aspx?pub=2836&pageid=1125