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Good Morning all designers and contest holders.
For those that don't know, RJ has elevated my mere mortal status by allowing me to look after the Design Contest Forum (DC Forum) within NamePros. I will endeavor to sort any issues out that people have and generally be the "new Sherriff" in town
I don't bite, so please come forward and ask, suggest and give feedback on whatever you feel needs to be addressed. All being well, as a community, we can pull together and make this the best DC Forum on the net.
So, let's get down to business
From my experiences so far over the last 3 years, I would say there are potentially 3 concerns people have at present.
1) Contest Holders posting the thread, offering a prize and are never heard from again (possibly even taking one of the designs as well!).
2) Contest Holders posting a thread, and the deadline not being held and the competition effectively dying out (similar to #1).
3) Designs that are submitted, being used in someone else’s design (Rare, but has happened).
4) Lack of Feedback on Designs entered.
There are no doubt additional concerns people have, so please, post them within this thread, and I'll modify it as we go along. I'm not expecting all the answers to drop out of thin air and be resolved by the end of the weekend, however, I do think over the next week / 10days, we can get safeties in place to secure everyone involved in DC's. So, let's address the first potential situation:-
1) Contest Holders posting the thread, offering a prize and are never heard from again (possibly even taking one of the designs as well!).
There have been several suggestions on this situation. It's not an easy one to control and in many cases it is down to common sense and judgment as to whether the thread starter is likely to do this. In the VAST majority of cases, it doesn't as communities like NP will self regulate itself and thus, if someone tries it on, the other members will warn the community. However, it CAN still happen so we at NP are taking suggestions.
The most likely one being considered at present is a form of "Deposit" made by the contest holder. The recommendation is that when a competition is held, %10-20 is held by either a NP staff member or an agreed "Treasurer" of the forums. This obviously ties the contest holder into the thread / contest financially and thus, should eliminate them running off. Then, when the eventual winner is declared at the agreed time, that 10% is passed over to the competition winner as well as the difference paid by the contest holder.
If, in the unlikely instance the contest holder vanishes, either NamePros staff and/or the viewers of the thread can make a vote as to who has the best design and declare a "winner". That person would then receive the deposit as a form of compensation.
Obviously, the person that held the contest and vanished would be banned from the DC Forum and never be entitled to post a contest thread here again. It may be harsh, but a 1 strike ruling tends to get the message out to the community very quickly and efficiently.
Another option that was put forward is to include the above, but also allow people to post in certain "levels" depending on their feedback, trader rating and post count. So, for example:
This would be more of an addition to the deposit aspect; however, it could also become a stand alone requirement if the community feels this is better than a deposit.
2) Contest Holders posting a thread, and the deadline not being held and the competition effectively dying out (similar to #1)
Again, very much linked with the first situation. The only thing to really add to this is that now I'm here as a forum leader, I WILL expect contest holders to stick to the times given in their original post. I will include some guidelines in another thread as to what should be included in ALL design contests. I do appreciate that there are some designs where you really don’t know what your after (especially for logos!) where it's a free reign. That’s fine, however it is imperative that you give feedback to the designers so they can start afresh, modify or leave the contest.
3) Designs that are submitted, being used in someone else’s design (Rare, but has happened).
In my eyes, and I'm sure most of the designers out there agree, there is nothing more frustrating and down right annoying than a design you have submitted being "used" within someone else’s design and then submitted to the same contest. In all honesty, I have only seen it happen a couple of times in as many years. In the latest instance, it was all settled amicably and monies were shared. However, it should never happen.
So to those out there that may try to do this, please do NOT. Threads and competitions will be monitored fairly well from now on. If it happens, I feel that they have a single warning and the entry is removed immediately. They are not allowed to continue in that thread / contest. If it happens again, they are banned from the DC Forum. There is clearly a large degree of common sense that needs to be used here. I do not want to see people complaining due to someone else using a Circle or a Square. Or they also used a black/white image of a cow that's standard clip art. We're all grown adults here, let's use common sense and all should be well.
4) Lack of Feedback on Designs entered.
Again, with 99% of comps, this is rarely a problem. As the contest holder, please respect the fact that all of the designers here put in a lot of their own time and effort in making these designs. They are not paid a commission or a deposit, there is no money for them if they do not win. The least you can do is give some feedback. Even if it's one or two lines just saying "wrong colors, to dark, not getting the message across" it can help the designer improve themselves and the design.
I know some people are very busy, and thus don’t have a lot of time. You managed to make the time to post a thread and hold a competition. Feedback is part of the competition as much as explaining what you are after or making the final payment to the winner. Please remember what I've said above. These guys and gals have spent THEIR time entering a contest as you have ASKED them to.
IMPORTANT NOTE: These are NOT RULES at present. These are Discussion points before we cast them in stone.
Ok, well, that's enough of a first post from me. Please post away in here with your comments, feedback, suggestions and criticisms. That's the point of this thread. As a community, we will find the perfect balance and move the DC Forum to new levels of thrilling contests and superb design work.
Keep up the good work everyone!
Additional Ideas by Members - Open to discussion
For those that don't know, RJ has elevated my mere mortal status by allowing me to look after the Design Contest Forum (DC Forum) within NamePros. I will endeavor to sort any issues out that people have and generally be the "new Sherriff" in town
I don't bite, so please come forward and ask, suggest and give feedback on whatever you feel needs to be addressed. All being well, as a community, we can pull together and make this the best DC Forum on the net.So, let's get down to business
From my experiences so far over the last 3 years, I would say there are potentially 3 concerns people have at present.
1) Contest Holders posting the thread, offering a prize and are never heard from again (possibly even taking one of the designs as well!).
2) Contest Holders posting a thread, and the deadline not being held and the competition effectively dying out (similar to #1).
3) Designs that are submitted, being used in someone else’s design (Rare, but has happened).
4) Lack of Feedback on Designs entered.
There are no doubt additional concerns people have, so please, post them within this thread, and I'll modify it as we go along. I'm not expecting all the answers to drop out of thin air and be resolved by the end of the weekend, however, I do think over the next week / 10days, we can get safeties in place to secure everyone involved in DC's. So, let's address the first potential situation:-
1) Contest Holders posting the thread, offering a prize and are never heard from again (possibly even taking one of the designs as well!).
There have been several suggestions on this situation. It's not an easy one to control and in many cases it is down to common sense and judgment as to whether the thread starter is likely to do this. In the VAST majority of cases, it doesn't as communities like NP will self regulate itself and thus, if someone tries it on, the other members will warn the community. However, it CAN still happen so we at NP are taking suggestions.
The most likely one being considered at present is a form of "Deposit" made by the contest holder. The recommendation is that when a competition is held, %10-20 is held by either a NP staff member or an agreed "Treasurer" of the forums. This obviously ties the contest holder into the thread / contest financially and thus, should eliminate them running off. Then, when the eventual winner is declared at the agreed time, that 10% is passed over to the competition winner as well as the difference paid by the contest holder.
If, in the unlikely instance the contest holder vanishes, either NamePros staff and/or the viewers of the thread can make a vote as to who has the best design and declare a "winner". That person would then receive the deposit as a form of compensation.
Obviously, the person that held the contest and vanished would be banned from the DC Forum and never be entitled to post a contest thread here again. It may be harsh, but a 1 strike ruling tends to get the message out to the community very quickly and efficiently.
Another option that was put forward is to include the above, but also allow people to post in certain "levels" depending on their feedback, trader rating and post count. So, for example:
This would be more of an addition to the deposit aspect; however, it could also become a stand alone requirement if the community feels this is better than a deposit.
2) Contest Holders posting a thread, and the deadline not being held and the competition effectively dying out (similar to #1)
Again, very much linked with the first situation. The only thing to really add to this is that now I'm here as a forum leader, I WILL expect contest holders to stick to the times given in their original post. I will include some guidelines in another thread as to what should be included in ALL design contests. I do appreciate that there are some designs where you really don’t know what your after (especially for logos!) where it's a free reign. That’s fine, however it is imperative that you give feedback to the designers so they can start afresh, modify or leave the contest.
3) Designs that are submitted, being used in someone else’s design (Rare, but has happened).
In my eyes, and I'm sure most of the designers out there agree, there is nothing more frustrating and down right annoying than a design you have submitted being "used" within someone else’s design and then submitted to the same contest. In all honesty, I have only seen it happen a couple of times in as many years. In the latest instance, it was all settled amicably and monies were shared. However, it should never happen.
So to those out there that may try to do this, please do NOT. Threads and competitions will be monitored fairly well from now on. If it happens, I feel that they have a single warning and the entry is removed immediately. They are not allowed to continue in that thread / contest. If it happens again, they are banned from the DC Forum. There is clearly a large degree of common sense that needs to be used here. I do not want to see people complaining due to someone else using a Circle or a Square. Or they also used a black/white image of a cow that's standard clip art. We're all grown adults here, let's use common sense and all should be well.
4) Lack of Feedback on Designs entered.
Again, with 99% of comps, this is rarely a problem. As the contest holder, please respect the fact that all of the designers here put in a lot of their own time and effort in making these designs. They are not paid a commission or a deposit, there is no money for them if they do not win. The least you can do is give some feedback. Even if it's one or two lines just saying "wrong colors, to dark, not getting the message across" it can help the designer improve themselves and the design.
I know some people are very busy, and thus don’t have a lot of time. You managed to make the time to post a thread and hold a competition. Feedback is part of the competition as much as explaining what you are after or making the final payment to the winner. Please remember what I've said above. These guys and gals have spent THEIR time entering a contest as you have ASKED them to.
IMPORTANT NOTE: These are NOT RULES at present. These are Discussion points before we cast them in stone.
Ok, well, that's enough of a first post from me. Please post away in here with your comments, feedback, suggestions and criticisms. That's the point of this thread. As a community, we will find the perfect balance and move the DC Forum to new levels of thrilling contests and superb design work.
Keep up the good work everyone!
Additional Ideas by Members - Open to discussion
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