Winning crowdsourced logo design by Greg Scott

Two weeks and 122 logo design submissions later ...  success! I actually found the perfect new logo design for my company, Integrated Website Solutions Inc., and I couldn't be happier with the results of my crowdsourcing experiment!

Crowdsourcing this project allowed me to tap into a rich pool of international design talent and ask "creatives" to provide me with their designs "on spec". The award I offered to the winning designer in this logo...

I'm now one week into my quest to find a new logo for my company using www.crowdspring.com, a well-known crowdsourcing website.

For the uninitiated, crowdsourcing is a way for anyone to tap into a large pool of skilled workers and international talent at a reasonable cost. You can crowdsource anything these days from graphic design, research and development, computer programming to photography.

Detractors of crowdsourcing mock it as a poor substitute for hiring "true professionals" such as those...

IS THE WORLD FLAT OR ROUND?

IT ALL DEPENDS ON THE PRICE OF OIL

     In my last blog, The Last (Man)-ufacturing Standing Strategy, I argued against Canadian manufacturers liquidating their factories and becoming strictly importers and distributors from Asia.

To me, maintaining your ability to make product on this side of the pond  makes good sense as a hedge against unforeseen events that could change the cost structure of your imported goods literally overnight.

In his recent Canadian bestseller...

Jeff Howe is a writer at Wired magazine and a Neimann Fellow at Harvard who coined the term "crowdsourcing" in 2006. In this video he explains the basic concept behind crowdsourcing and its impact on the way companies do business.

What is Crowdsourcing?

Wikipedia, which is itself a crowdsourced online encyclopaedia, says "crowdsourcing" as a combination of the words "crowd" and "outsourcing". It is defined as,

"the act of taking tasks traditionally performed by an employee or a contractor, and...

There is a cost to participating in social media. Although social sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are "free", before jumping on the social media bandwagon, a company must understand the supporting costs involved in 1) launching a presence and 2) maintaining a following on these sites.

Costs include the dedication of staff to this social media effort. Employees must be trained in the effective use of social media for promotion and, more importantly, human "conversational" contact...

THE LAST "(MAN)-UFACTURER" STANDING STRATEGY

     When you enter the lobby of Custom Leather's 60,000 sq. ft. men's belt manufacturing company in Kitchener's new Bingeman Industrial Park, the unmistakable smell of leather greets you.  For me, this smell takes me back to my early days of selling cutting dies to Kaufman, Greb, Bauer, Savage, New Balance and the many other local companies that once converted leather hides to shoes back in the 70's but no longer exist today.  Then I ask myself. ...

In 2010, the B2B social media discussion has advanced far beyond "Should our company play?" to "How do we get started?" More savvy B2B companies are well out of the starting gate.

Research shows that social media is increasingly viewed as not just a passing fad or a "new shiny toy", but a viable and indeed valuable element of a company's marketing strategy. Social media has become mainstream over the past couple of years.

If you're still on the fence about whether the "big three" social media...

The "000's" are officially over. And frankly, some of us are probably relieved to turn the page on 2009 with its grim economic recession and job upheavals.

But  on the threshold of 2010, I don't need the prospect of a new decade to get me going. Any regular "new year" has loads of potential for change, personal development, professional growth and new adventures. In this new year, the possibilities are endless for any of us to...

TOYOTA'S MADE IN CANADA CAMPAIGN

     I don't know if you noticed but Toyota Canada came out with some big news the past few weeks.  Their Canadian November total car sales beat all brands for the first time in their history.  As well, they announced the addition of a second shift of production at their year old RAV4 plant in Woodstock which will require the hiring of 800 additional employees.  While Toyota's quality, reliability, pricing and overall fuel economy are obviously key drivers of ...

Chris Brogan is perhaps one of the most celebrated and prolific thought leaders in the area of social media, online community building and digital marketing.

Brogan is President of New Media Labs, a new media marketing agency just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. He is a "power blogger" ranked in the top 5 of the Advertising Age Power150, a much sought-after conference speaker, and co-author recognized on the New York Times and Wall Street Journal  bestselling lists for his book "Trust Agents:...