Hey guys…the much anticipated results of the comment contest on GDB are finally out. I’m sure you all must be ecstatic to know who the winners are. But before I reveal the name of the 3 lucky winners, let us take a brief recap of the entire event. We started this contest on 24th January 2012 with an aim to increase useful discussions and gain healthy feedback about our blog. The contest ends today on 3rd February 2012. In this short span of time, we received over 200 valuable comments from our loyal readers.

The 3 Lucky Winners:

It was a close competition as several participants commented with a lot of enthusiasm and commitment. But in the end, 3 lucky winners were selected for the Grand Prize and will receive a FREE Text advertisement to their website/blog on GDB.

Many congratulations to our three lucky winners from the entire team at GDB. Stay tuned for the next edition of this comment contest as we plan on holding it on a regular basis. So, for all our readers who did not participate in this contest, be sure to enter next time around. J

A couple of weeks ago, I enlightened my readers on the controversial Big Ten Logo redesign. Following severe criticism by the Big Ten fans, several contests were launched to re-redesign the logo. One of the most actively participated was the Unofficial Mycroburst Contest, with prize money of $500.

Within days, more than 1000 entries came in from numerous talented graphic designers. The contest has come to a grand finale, with the best 5 entries up for polls. The winner will be decided by a public voting. Here are the final designs with a brief description of the concept behind each of them:   ————————————————————————————————————————————

Logo #1 – Designer: Anthronx The designer has innovatively replaced the letter ‘R’ with the number “12” in the word.

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Logo #2 – Designer: Aerey The designer has tried to emulate the previous Big Ten hidden logo concept by creatively hiding the number “12” in the logo.

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Logo #3 – Designer: Tensix This is yet another unique way of incorporating number “12” in the logo. If you turn your head to the left, you will spot number “12” within the letter ‘N’.

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Logo #4 – Designer: Atscherne The crest style of this logo gives a “sporty” feel to the design, considering the company.

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Logo #5 – Designer: Logozone In a completely different approach, the designer has used 12 stars to denote the number of playing teams in the Big Ten.

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Official BIG TEN Conference Logo

In order to create a fair competitition, the current logo redesign is also included in the voting.

Many of you might be quite familiar with crowdsourcing and its revolutionary impact on the graphic design world. Albeit controversial, it has proved to be an enormous success for both clients and graphic designers who are unable to transact on an individual basis. Crowdsourcing serves as a perfect intermediary between clients and graphic designers who need to transact in a simple and affordable manner.
Lately, Logo Design Guru, one of the leading names in logo design world has radically shifted from the custom-made logo designing to logo design contest. This firmly proves that the crowdsourcing trend is gaining immense popularity over conventional logo designing.

Below are few productive features which will help graphic designers progress with their creativity

1. Hundreds of projects launched:

Most graphic designers complain that most of the famous crowdsourcing websites are crowded with designers and the chance of winning the prize money is microscopic. This doesn’t get them the right exposure, leaving minimum chances of earning. Over at Logo Design Guru, there are more than 120 design projects awaiting talented graphic designers.

2. Earn up to $2500 on a Project:

The biggest prospect for graphic designers is that Logo Design Guru has a low designer:project ratio so there is a guaranteed surety that you can earn between $179 to $2,500. The more contests you participate in will multiply your earnings.

3. Guaranteed Projects:

The most exciting part of crowdsourcing with Logo Design Guru is that it provides guaranteed projects. This secures a graphic designer’s hard work and the client cannot steal a designer’s ideas or designs.

4. The field is wide open:

As I mentioned earlier, there is ample opportunities to vie for at Logo Design Guru. Since there are more projects than designers, your chance of winning is manifold. The field is wide open folks! So go ahead and pounce on this lucrative opportunity to earn yourself a name in the graphic design world.

        Today, I announce the launch of a new logo design contest site but hopefully you won’t tag me a spec work supporter by the end of the post. There are two sides to every coin and I believe this subject to be a matter of perspective. If you are a well-established designer with number of projects lined up, then you surely don’t need to participate in such contests.

However, considering the striving graphic designers, crowd sourcing sites are a blessing for them. They get a platform to promote their work, improve their skills, communicate with peers, and win new clients. Cutting the long story short:

           Main Advantages of Contest Sites:

•	It gives confidence and experience to the new talented graphic designers to move further into the design world.
•	Although, many designers leave from such sites without earning a dime but talented designers looking for the right exposure, can get a terrific start here.
•	It is a bitter fact that many big names of design industry are not capable designers but make good money as they have their name out in the market. Doing small projects or winning contests is all part of marketing yourself.

  Main Disadvantages of Contest Sites:

•	Big designers, who are earning their living in design field, get insecure because of young designers doing work much cheaper.
•	These types of sites damage the reputation of career designers as they already have strong clients on list.
•	Client get to see all the entries for their project and instead of rewarding a designer, they do it themselves.

  Anyhow, getting back to the topic….couple of months back, I mentioned a “New Warehouse for Graphic Designers” which was in beta version but now it is LIVE, finally. Yes….MycroBurst.com brings a genuine platform for designers to introduce their talent in the world of graphic design.    

Launch or Submit: MycroBurst.com allows a client to come and set up a “contest” where designers can drop their designs and enter the contest. Presently, 2 contests are running live accepting entries from graphic designers all over the world. The good part is that the contest holders’ offer guaranteed prize money within the defined time of the contest.

Your turn to talk: For my readers, who strongly believe crowd sourcing to be a blemish on the design community, I want to remind them of designers in remote areas—even third world countries, where they have very few means to support their families. Always remember, “Me and My Work” should not be our tagline …it’s time to think for others too Still, I am open for all kind of responses.