Attention 99designteam, just keep your community secured and your success is GUARANTEED!

This makes designers happy and happy designers equate to happy clients!

I am 2 days in to holding a 99designs contest and, while it is hard work, I am delighted with the outcomes so far.

I too have wondered about the deal for designers, but the fact that there are so many designing there means there must be something compelling about the offer.

Obviously some who have a bad experience or difficulty being chosen will become embittered. But I have had conversations with others who have been working with the site for a long time, profitably (and based in well-off Western countries so not just playing the exchange rates).

Contrary to Stan Lee’s rather sweeping assertions, there are many who are highly talented. Of course there are also those who make you want to cry. The bottom line is that, over the course of a decently-paid comp, you will get a range of great designs to choose from (and possible strike up a relationship with one or more favourites for future comps/work).

I would emphasise to anyone thinking of going this way – it is a VERY involved process, and to get a good outcome you will need to put in some hours. The people at 99designs say you get out what you put in and it is very true – I’m spending hours each day on feedback. Your reward is a breadth of designs far greater than could be achieved with a single person/agency on a conventional contract (IMO).

All up I think it is an excellent way to go for those commissioning design work, as long as they have a firm idea of what they want (and can write a strong and clear brief) and the time to invest in collaborating.

crowd sourcing sites are still a gamble, but they offer more time and money.

Don’t try entering you’ve find its a waste of time.

No 99 designs doesn’t work for real designers. A designer can’t build a career off it or not even get quick money from doing a contest even if they are professionals. The contest holders don’t know anything about design, have poor taste, bad eyesights and low expectations. Contest holders will write a brief report on what they expect but its unreliable as they always backstave it. A designer can design over and over for the same project but won’t get chosen and you can even try designing for different contest/projects but its unlikey you get chosen rather a person who barely knows anthing about designing will get chosen because the contest holder like the color scheme or some lame scheme to that design.In their brief reports or design descriptions they never stick to their word or say what they mean. They give standards but usually pick designs that go against their standards. Designers will design hundreds of designs for one project and get eliminated though they put alot of effort but in the end a red text thats shining will get picked though they claimed they wanted something great, spectcular. They, contest holders, are picky until the end of the deadline and will keep changing their minds until its over. Some thing will be eliminate because it had a wrong color scheme but they don’t care. These contest holders are usually the ones with bad designed websites. Some of these people, contest holders, are lazy people who are to lazy/dumb to use microsoft fronts to get same results for the designs they pick at the end though they claimed they wanted something great but don’t stick to their word. Their is a reason design companies don’t use 99 designs cause they would go broke and likey wouldn’t get chosen. The only loser are the real designers and a person who barely knows how to design will get chosen because of the bad taste of these contest holders.

Designers on 99 designs are not a liablity to them, contest holders,like a firm/design company would have with a client company so they can eliminate you without any worries and backstave their own requirments in their brief reports they had when the contest began without any legal stipulation against them.

Yes they are those poor, lousy fonie designers who have been on 99 designs and already know how to win and keep on submitting until the dim-witt finds what he likes.