Now you’ve identified the benefits of small business outsourcing and enthusiastically downloaded your free logo design brief, we need to switch on our search lights and scout for a great logo designer. Time to do some easy research from the comfort of your chair. Grab a coffee.
Finding a Great Logo Designer is Easy if You Know How
How Not to Find a Logo Designer
First it’s worth covering how not to look for a small business logo designer. Pursuing these options will leave you staring at mediocre results.
Logo Design Contests Suck
As Jacob Cass wrote in why a professional logo design does not cost $5.00, canvassing your logo design through a logo design contest is counterproductive. As the logo designers who participate aren’t guaranteed funds, their efforts will only be minimal. Upon the close of the competition… voila, a set of substandard logos.
If you want your small business to be represented by a logo that took a few minutes to create without considered critique… head straight over to a logo design contest.
Giving Logo Design To a Relative
Being able to navigate Photoshop by beveling and merging layers does not make your relative a stellar logo designer. Just like cooking a mean roast with a secret gravy doesn’t earn me the title of master chef. Unless you have a relative who is a great logo designer with results, resist the urge to tap them on the shoulder. Also bear in mind it’s harder to give criticism to a relative that’s served you up a half cooked logo design.
Steps to Find a Great Logo Designer
I am a big fan of the outsourcing website Elance. You can post any graphic design project to the site and have thousands of providers compete against one another to offer you their services. And it’s totally anonymous on your part. What an idea! After a small $10 (100% refunded) verifying transaction, Elance is free to use. Thumbs up!
Below is an overview of the process to post your logo design project to Elance:
The Process to Post Your Logo Design Project to Elance
Posting Your Logo Design Project to Elance
I’ve used Elance on over a dozen outsourcing jobs, including three logo design projects. The process is very simple, below is a short video which takes you through all the steps.
When initially posting your logo design project, keep in mind that your project will be publicly accessible, both at the time of posting and after your project is complete. For privacy, I would advise against publishing your name or identifying details of your small business. Just post a short simple project overview such as:
“Hi, I’m looking for a graphic designer to provide a logo design service for my new small business. My small business operates in the retail industry, focusing mainly on clothes. I require three concepts and a turnaround time of 1-2 weeks. I will supply a full brief upon acceptance.”
Tip: Keep your English simple to avoid confusion as there are some great outsourcers from around the World who use English as their second language.
Once your job is posted you’ll quickly receive interest from many providers from around the World. Some may send you a tailored response to your brief, others may send a standard response. All will indicate a price they are happy to charge to work on your logo design project.
Assessing The Best Logo Designer on Elance
Now it’s your move. You need to choose the best logo designer for your small business project. To do this you need to consider:
1. The responses each provider gives
2. The bid each provider pledges
3. The feedback given on each provider’s past work
4. Each provider’s portfolio
5. Each provider’s skills
I normally develop a shortlist of 2-3 providers after paying attention to their project bid, their response and their feedback rating. After assessing these three items I hone in on assessing their portfolio and skill sets. You should be in a position to make the final decision within 5-15 minutes of assessing the bids. If you’re still unsure, you can even email them to ask them further questions.
Awarding Your Elance Job
Once you award your logo design project, send a congratulatory note to your provider, letting them know you’re looking forward to working with them. It’s only polite, and it sets a good tone for the project. Then you’ll need to send them the final logo design brief along with the timeframes.
If all is well the provider will accept your terms and your logo design project will start. You will then work with the provider via email/MSN or Skype. Good luck for your project. Let me know how you go.
Check out Elance. It’s free to use and browse
Growing your small business,
David Moloney
sbp.strongerbranch.com
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Thanks for the article.
I am a graphic designer specialising in logo design and have to add that I never use Elance. I find the prices far too low with many ‘clients’ choosing the cheaper bids over more experienced designers offering higher bids. Also, in order for a designer to acheive positive feedback (on which they are usually judged), they would need to work on many very low projects by winning with low bids. Maybe it is right for some people, however, it isn’t right for me.
.-= VictoriaAnn Design´s last blog ..Is this the craftiest banner ad? =-.
We also never use Elance. Their customers employ preliminary screening by price so the lower the price, the more likely one is to be selected which completely ignores the quality of the designers portfolio. Logo design that makes a difference for a company requires talent and research. Examples of award winning logo designs if you want to get some inspiration, http://bit.ly/c62nPN and here’s what you should expect of a logo design, http://bit.ly/9TGSLj
Hi VictoriaAnn,
Yes, if you’re looking at Elance from the other side of the fence (trying to become an provider and win jobs rather than trying to post a project) it is very competitive from a pricing perspective. Being able to win basic projects is a tough ask. Bidding on more advanced (and expensive) projects where you can demonstrate your skills and can add value will offer you more of a chance. Good luck.
David, have you thought of giving us a video of this process? I love reading your fact by fact approach and all the while creating my own inner video. Maybe you could provide this video to people who opt in to a subscription?
.-= Wal Heinrich´s last blog ..The Secret Of Healing The Shadow Self And Tapping Into The Riches Of The Dark Side =-.
Hey David – you only have to look at the bottom of your post to know how affective logos can be – digg, stumbleupon, facebook, etc – they all have great logos. Hadn’t heard of Elance – wealth of info there!! Thanks.
.-= Jan Littlehales´s last blog ..Learn Typing =-.
What a great topic for a blog post, David. Thanks for sharing your hot tips. Your logos look pretty cool! Not a 5 buck job, hey? I’ve heard a lot about elance, although haven’t yet tried it myself. You’re doing well with the blog, David. Keep up the great work.
.-= Lina Nguyen´s last blog ..Why you should get slapped on the head for logic thinking =-.
Hi David, I’m really enjoying your posts. Very clear, and practical advice for those who (like me) could use a more professional touch when it comes to branding.
Interestingly, when I saw Armind Moran speak in Sydney recently, he said his preferred method was using logo design competitions, but that he would always ensure that he was offering the highest prize money at the time on whichever site he was using (I dont’ think it was elance). No doubt with more money on the table, there would be a much larger number and quality of responses.
.-= Tom McEwin´s last blog ..The Top 10 Article Directories =-.
Thanks for your comments Wal, Jan, Lina and Tom.
@Wal have you had check out the Youtube video I linked to. It’s quite good at going through all the steps involved. I even learnt something that I wasn’t aware of after all this time.
@Tom interesting feedback about the logo design competition. I’m still not a fan though. You can’t expect people to give you their best results if they’re not guaranteed payment.
Thanks for the nice post. There is something quite nice about the “Where to Find a Great Logo Designer”. I like the idea and can see it working well printed on sportswear. I guess the introduction of this new logo design has gained more attention probably because it has a famous person’s name attached to it. If all graphic design had this advantage then it may be noticed more. Celebrities are followed and noticed a lot by the media and the general public.