Branding - Quantity or Quality?
Posted by Jaci Russo
The Australian Ministry of Tourism decided to invest $20 million to build a brand plan that would change the conversation around their country. They decided to start with a new brand identity.
Rather than hire a branding agency that specializes in research and strategic thinking that would build all of the elements of a brand campaign including the identity to accomplish the stated goals of the campaign, they decided instead to have an online logo contest.
This isn’t a local minor league sports team with a mascot contest that is one part public relations initiative and one part community involvement project. This isn’t a small non profit with no budget looking for student work to improve their image.
This is a country. This is a continent.
And they are going to trust their $20 million investment in the hands of amateurs who are willing to work for the slim chance of winning $2500 for a designing a logo.
Check out the results from the contest and you can see the quality of the submissions. Out of almost 400 submissions, these are the ones that the committee has decided are the best. Take a look at the plethora of taglines submitted along with the logo designs:
The future is bright
The heart of many nations
Everything happens here
Make it real
A remarkable journey
Get down under
Pure geniaus
We’ve got it right here
Discover the land down under
The directions for submission were as follows:
“Designers and contest participants should submit ideas for a contemporary Australia brand that captures the essence of the nation and presents Australia as a great place for living, holidaying, education, business, manufacturing, agriculture and investment. Submissions should articulate as clearly as possible Australia’s brand position in the context of the global marketplace and help the Government capture “the vibrancy, energy and creative talents of Australia. Designers and contest participants may choose to spend time researching Australia and its current brand.”
What ‘brand position’? There was no strategic brief. No creative direction. No consumer insight. Just a suggestion that designers ‘may choose to spend time researching’ the current brand. “May choose to”. Really.
Is there ever a time that quantity has been the same thing as quality? Crowdsourcing delivers more, but not necessarily better, options.
