5 Myths About Crowdsourcing Creative Work

culled from:crowdsourcing.org

It seems almost every person involved in the creative service industry has a strong opinion on platforms that allow clients to crowdsource creative work — ranging from the viability and sustainability of the model, all the way to its ethics and morality.

Sites like 99designs, although extremely successful, have passionate and dedicated advocates both for its model and against.

When I initially launched CopyShoppy, a platform where businesses and creative agencies CopywriterSource brand names and business writing, I received a lot of mixed opinions.

I encountered individuals that would take a portion out of their day to send me a very articulate message, encouraging me to stop what I was doing. Here are some snippets of some of the most negative comments I received when I launched an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to initially fund the development of the platform:

    “Bad. Immoral. Wrong. Unnecessary. Destined for failure.”

    “It was probably a great idea on the back of a coaster at 3am, but although it no doubt will find a market (both desperate would-be writers and undiscerning cheapskate clients) I can’t see that you’ll find anywhere near the amount of crowd-sourced capital your seeking [in your Indiegogo campaign].”

    “You say in your profile that you want to “create a business that adds value to the world and changes people’s lives.” But just keep in mind that disruptive technologies that break down market barriers, like dynamiting a dam, may flood those downstream with resources, but leave those upstream with less”.

Although these are negative and discouraging opinions on the CopyShoppy business model and marketplace, I respect and acknowledge the passion behind the comments, and I took them into account.

But then I began to wonder, why these individuals, who make up a minute minority of seasoned freelance copywriters, were so passionately (and rudely, at times) encouraging me to stop my pursuit of developing the CopyShoppy marketplace further.

I then began to realize that it’s due to a set of myths about crowdsourcing creative work that these individuals either truly believe, or perpetuate for fear of industry change.
Myth #1: Crowdsourcing creative work takes advantage of creative people

A very small minority of vocal creative freelancers claim that sophisticated crowdsourcing platforms take advantage of creative people.

However, the exact opposite proves to be true — crowdsourcing platforms are meant to be taken advantage of by their users.

Why this myth is false:

(A) Creative crowdsourcing platforms provide an easy to access, frictionless opportunity for aspiring writers and designers to break into the creative industry.

Many people dream of a career in the creative industry – I was one of them. While in university, I explored many career options in the creative field (including copywriting), but it was almost like an exclusive club — it was difficult to get interviews at advertising agencies and even more difficult to land a job. Why should something like creativity, which everyone has (it just needs to be tapped into), be so hard to break into as a career?

Crowdsourcing platforms provide an avenue for people aspiring to earn a living in creative industries to dive head first into a career, sharpen their creative skills, and build a portfolio as they work with real clients and receive valuable feedback on their work.

It provides a platform to stop dreaming and start doing, right away – no applications and no interviews. After building skills and a portfolio on the platform, one then has a greater chance of being hired at an ad agency or company if they so choose, using their earned credentials and confidence.

So the question arises:

Does this vocal minority of creative freelancers really worry about crowdsourcing platforms taking advantage of fellow freelancers? Or are they more concerned about the influx of newly trained freelancers via creative crowdsourcing platforms, who otherwise would not have an avenue to build their skills and portfolio, entering the market and competing with them for clients?

(B) Creative crowdsourcing platforms provide easy-to-access clients for veteran creative freelancers

Usually, when searching for a new client, a freelancer incurs two different costs: (i) marketing costs to find the client, and (ii) selling costs to close the client to begin work. Through creative crowdsourcing websites, the platform incurs both the marketing and selling costs on behalf of the freelancer.

Now, after a freelancer meets a client on the platform, if the client loves the creative work submitted by the freelancer and a connection is made on a personal level (which happens often), the freelancer can maintain an ongoing relationship with the client inside and outside of the platform after their project is completed, earning repeat work and income.

Thereby, creative crowdsourcing platforms become a client lead generation tool for veteran freelancers.
Myth #2: Crowdsourcing creative work devalues the creative process

Why this myth is false:

Crowdsourcing platforms, if done right, create a sense of competition that produces a breeding ground for innovation.

Creatives on the platform “learn by doing” instead of “learn by reading.” Learning by doing is proven economically to be a far better method of practicing and perfecting a craft rather than learning by reading — freelancers on the platform view entries other freelancers have made, learn from them, incorporate others style into their own style, receive feedback from clients on their work, and as a result, get better.

They learn from their past mistakes and successes and improve their game.

Moreover, crowdsourcing platforms that integrate professional briefing processes on the client-end in no way devalue the creative process. Creatives on the platform still go through the exact same process when submitting work then they would when working with a client individually – reading the brief thoroughly, taking notes, researching, brainstorming, formulating work that makes the right impact, presenting, and revising work based on client feedback.

Of course, a freelancer on the crowdsourcing platform can choose not to follow a professional creative process, but then chances are that they won’t win the contest due to lower quality work, and they will learn to develop and employ a professional creative process the next time around.
Myth #3: You don’t get paid for submitting entries to a contest unless you win

By only investigating the surface, it’s easy to assume that freelancers using a contest-based crowdsourcing platform only get paid when they win a contest. However, if we dive deeper and look at the model through an analytical lens, a different picture is painted.

Why this myth is false:

Aside from the many other benefits of participating in contests on a creative crowdsourcing platform mentioned, a freelancer also earns an income on every contest entered, whether they win or not, given that they eventually win one contest.

This can be proven true with a basic example taken from economic theory. Let’s say a freelancer enters 5 different contests, each with a $500 dollar prize (CopyShoppy prizes typically range from $100 to $1000, often with multiple winners selected per contest).

Let’s say she doesn’t win the first, second, third or fourth contest, but she learned, grew and got better after each contest. In the fifth contest, she wins and earns a $500 dollar prize. On average, the creative tends to win 1 out 5 contests she enters for a prize of $500.

This means she earns $500/5 = $100 for every contest she enters, although she only realizes the income from lost contests when she wins a contest.
Myth #4: Crowdsourcing creative work is morally wrong

Those who are fearful of industry change have perpetuated this myth — they are worried to see a disruptive platform change the rules of the industry and train a new generation of creative freelancers, and so as a last resort they brand the platform as morally wrong.

Why this myth is false:

Morality doesn’t depend on one’s objective opinion, especially if there is a clear ulterior motive behind the statement.
Myth #5: Clients who crowdsource their work are “shoddy”

This is another myth propagated by certain players within the creative industry who are so ingrained in the current way things are done, that a change seriously worries them.

I take personal offense to this statement because I have conversations with many of our clients and I know firsthand that this is absolutely not true.

Why this myth is false:

Clients who crowdsource their creative work are savvy, not shoddy. They know they get a better bang for their buck compared to when dealing with an individual creative freelancer, by being able to explore a wide variety of options from a diverse group of freelancers before making a final decision on the approved option. They harness the creativity and innovation that has been created through competition to further their business objectives.

Finally, they realize that crowdsourcing is an alternative path to receiving creative work, not the only means. They know that for some projects, crowdsourcing is the best way to go, and for others, working with an individual freelancer or a full service agency is a better path.

They use crowdsourcing as a valuable tool in their creative toolkit, but realize that it is not meant to replace the toolkit in its entirety.