Are you kidding me!?

Crowdsourcing is a hot topic these days. (Here's a cool infographic that explains it and offers lots of examples.) Many have abused it, and continue to do so, particularly in it's manifestation as community-based design. Is it really evil? In my opinion, it is if it requires spec work, or work done for free before a work agreement is established. But, there are good ways to crowdsource, too. For instance, Simple Shoes recently put out a call via Behance for designers to submit logo portfolios (work previously done) to compete for a paid opportunity to design the new Simple logo. The exclamation used to title this post isn't because I'm frustrated with Simple's crowdsourcing tactics. No, not at all. But we'll get to that. Back to the competition...

It's called the Identity Design Showdown. 

The judges select five designers from the pool to proceed to Round 2 of the competition where they design and submit logo comps. From there, the judges select the final Simple logo. 

The top five were chosen from 700+ entries. 

I'm one of them.

(See my tiny name on that list above?)

One of the original five had to bow out. I'm the lucky alternate.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? 

I'm stunned. Shocked. Scared. Honored. Thrilled.

It's me vs. the other designers and the company's agency of record. 

Holy smokes.

Wish me luck. 

If I don't answer your call or respond to your email this week, you know what I'm doing. Because the finals are due Monday.

Yikes.