Last week, iStockphoto announced that they were going to start selling logos; they are looking to pay designers $5 for the first 10,000 logos that they approve of. For those of you who don’t know, iStockphoto sells stock photography for a fraction of the cost of other larger stock photo houses. They pioneered the micropayment system of selling photos for less then $20, which resulted in them selling a lot of photos for a lot less. Contributors receive a commission of between 20% and 40% of each sale, which collectively is a large sum, but individuals probably average less then $20 a year.

Anyway, this same model is now being used on designers instead of photographers. This of course, is part of a continuing trend to undervalue the good work of designers. As I have talked about before, there are plenty of websites out there that offer logo work for less then $100, so this is not exactly a new idea. This particular offer from iStockphoto gives designers an outlet to send in all of their rejected and unused logos from their portfolios, and get a whopping $5 for them.

Part of the problem with this is that professional designers are paid by clients to use their talent, degree, and training to create logos. The work that the client pays for is essentially their work, they paid for it and it would be unethical to re-sell that work. Sure, it is a disappointment to let unfeatured work go to waste but part of being creative is producing multiple ideas that fit a specific strategy. I would liken it to a tailor selling tailored clothing to the public, they are never going to fit the buyer quite right.

iStockphoto is definitely a product of the culture that we live in. People want as much as they can get for the lowest price possible (Hello! Big Box stores). The marketplace is evolving, the average person is probably not going to be able to see the difference or the value between a cheap logo and a strategic one, but you pay for what you get. A logo is just a logo and not a brand. Smart companies still need designers and strategists to successfully market.

I would like to think that it is not going to hurt the industry too much, it’s hard to say. If I were to guess I’d say it is going to be the mediocre and amateur designers that will take the most advantage of this kind of opportunity. I don’t think any designer worth their salt is going to think $5 is an acceptable price for logo work. Here’s to hoping. In the meantime, if you are looking for a logo, or better yet a brand, that is thoughtful and strategically driven, give us a call.