Two options : same idea.
Consensus building for a logo is never easy – especially when there are paying stakeholders involved. Most decision-makers tend to think from their personal taste point of view – what are their favorite colors, etc. Most of the time not even consciously realizing why they are making those choices. Crowd-sourcing design when there are multiple decision-makers at the client’s end is even worse. The number of permutations and combinations multiplies exponentially. Stick to one logo designer and create guidelines for decision-making – what are the criteria that will be used to pick a final logo.
It’s times like these when I want to completely turn away from non-profit and pro bono work. But of course I won’t.
4 comments
Don’t like either of these. The WordCamp India logo is my favourite among the logos that I’ve seen from you. Beautiful, timeless and Indian.
Thanks for your opinion Nikhil. Glad that you like the Wordcamp logo. Are you aware of the brief behind each of these logos? Because I find it impossible to comment on how good / bad a logo is without understanding the client requirements and the creative brief behind the engagement!
Nope, not aware. I don’t need to know the brief behind a design to comment on whether I like it or not; that’s a reflection of my preference, not the designer or the brief given to the designer.
It’s not like you can look at a painting and say you like / hate it. Logos aren’t artwork, hence opinions on just visual appeal / dislike are not even constructive criticism. Thus, deciding on a brand’s identity should never be a consensus building affair – and if it has to be, then it’s the end customer who should be asked, their opinion valued. Most businesses don’t even understand the importance of a logo, they don’t feel the need for a better design that solves their brand’s issues and they definitely will not see the value in asking their customers’ opinions. It’s easy to say “don’t like either of these” and then say that it’s a reflection of your preference 🙂 Since you’re aware of BarCamps, I’m sure you also know that the committees that run them don’t have any idea about ‘briefs’. And they almost always want the logo day before yesterday – pro bono of course. Enough ranting 😀
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