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99designs Reviews Summary
The company has garnered a mixed reputation, with many customers praising the platform for its ability to connect them with a diverse pool of talented designers and for facilitating a creative contest process that often yields satisfactory results. However, significant concerns have been raised regarding the quality of designs, with accusations of reliance on stock imagery and lack of originality. Additionally, customer service appears inconsistent, with reports of inadequate support and difficulty in resolving issues, including refunds and communication problems. Overall, while the platform offers valuable opportunities, the execution and support may require improvement to enhance customer satisfaction.
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I'm a college design student who has been using 99designs for the past 3 weeks, as a way to potentially make some money because I couldn't find a summer job... I participated in three contests, and was chosen as a finalist for two... one of them was about to end, and based on the customer's feedback it seemed like he was definitely going to choose mine... and then today I received an email saying "Your account has been suspended forever for the following reason... after reviewing your 99designs portfolio, weve found that you do not yet meet our minimum quality standards"... the customers liked what I was submitting, but because the people running the website didn't like it, I got suspended and automatically lost the contests. DON'T waste your time like I did!
99 design is very harmful site designers dont use this site after you won the contest they suspend your account and stole your prize money. They are very worst and bad site STAY AWAY FROM 99 DESIGNS
Hi Sathya,
Sorry to hear you did not have the best experience with 99designs.
99designs is a professional marketplace, and we are dedicated to cultivating a community of designers who are consistently creating unique, well-crafted designs. To this end, each designer account is reviewed personally by a 99designs staff member. In order to remain objective, we do not judge quality on things like education, certifications, or even contest ratings but rather on the actual quality of the entries themselves. We use these basic, universal graphic design principles as our forms of measurement: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204862935-What-are-99designs-quality-standards-
We also have a strict Designer Code of Conduct that we expect all of our designers to adhere to (https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204761605-Guidelines-and-policies-at-99designs). If this is breached, 99designs reserves the right to suspend their account.
We do always pay the winning designer the prize amount, except in rare cases in which it breaches our copyright rules where we would have to allow the customer the option of choosing another design to legally protect them. You can read more about these rules here: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204761075-What-are-the-rules-for-participating-on-99designs-
If there are any earnings in the designer's account when it is placed on hold, usually our payments team will do a final payout on their behalf.
If you feel our Support Team needs to take a closer look at your account, or if you have any additional questions, please let us know: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs
DON'T DESIGN FOR THIS SITE!
I submitted a couple of designs and got good feedback from the client for one of them, the other was given 4 stars along with 3 other peoples efforts. This suggests the design was shortlisted seeing as they were the only designs even given ratings out of the 50 something. I then got suspended from the website before the competition was completed so my design have been removed. This is a joke. I've read some of the comments on here and people are being suspended for the quality of their work even though they have won competitions. Sort it out 99designs you cretins.
Hi Tom,
I'm sorry you had a negative experience on 99designs. We certainly did not mean to demean you in any way, shape or form, however, it must be understood that our platform has quality standards that we must adhere to and if those standards are not met, then we make the decision to delay contest participation on 99designs: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204862935-What-are-99designs-quality-standards-
Your suspension is *not* permanent, please make note of this. You will be able to re-apply once we open the application period, so you have a chance to reinstate your account.
Best of luck - we hope to see you in the next application period. Feel free to contact our support team with any further questions: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs
I had big projects to complete and a ton of money to spend and I needed a company that had it together. From what I saw in the reviews, I was scared to take a chance on unprofessional losers. One of the designers from 99designs that got suspended, ran into him at Starbucks, showed me some of his work and we are investing in him. Sometimes it pays to go to the real designer and their studio.
Rules should not disappoint the Contest Holder?
Without warning or self-defense suddenly 99design lowered my level.
Some CH gave me repeated messages wanting revisi while I can not submit or send the messages to CH.
7 years more with 99design I finally returned as a entry level. LOL
Hi Kiki,
I am sorry to hear you are disappointed in our new Designer Levels (https://99designs.com/designer-resource-center/designer-levels).
99designs is a professional marketplace, and we are dedicated to cultivating a community of designers who are consistently creating unique, well-crafted designs. To this end, each designer account is reviewed personally by a 99designs staff member. In order to remain objective, we do not judge quality on things like education, certifications, or even contest ratings but rather on the actual quality of the entries themselves. We use these basic, universal graphic design principles as our forms of measurement: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204862935-What-are-99designs-quality-standards-
If you feel your current Level does not represent your potential, we will be holding application periods throughout the year.
Best of luck, and if you wish to get in touch with our Designer Support Team, feel free to message them here: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs
The site is full of lawlessness.
I am a designer and participated in the contest. Only my work had 5 stars my work was chosen the winner. But...
After a while, a letter comes that my work was chosen erroneously. What is it like?
About the restrictions in the competition. I know that I still have contests in reserve before the limit is reached - but I am informed that the limit has been exhausted. And I can only participate in 6 days! Why create rules that themselves violate?
Once they withdrew my work from the competition, they said that my work is a copy of the work of a previously successful contest. The only thing that was similar in these works is the color of the logo. Photo and design are completely different. Communication with support led to nothing.
These are not isolated cases, there are many such cases. I have described only a few of them.
What is there for the nonsense going on!
Hi Anna,
Sorry to hear you did not have the best experience with our platform so far.
We have recently gone through some Contest Limitation changes, with restriction being lowered depending on your Level as a designer. You can read more about the limitation here: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204953225-Why-is-my-contest-participation-being-limited-
In addition, if you have had a dispute brought against a concept, we do require evidence and you are given the chance to offer any additional information to our Designer Support Team.
If you would like to contact our Support Team about any of the issues you are experiencing, feel free to do so here: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs
I knew of 99 designs for quite a while, but this is the first time using them. I was blown away by the quality of designers - This is the go to logo service - Will be using 99 designs again!
Hi Michael,
Thanks so much for trying us out! We are thrilled to hear you had a great experience:)
-Rosalie from 99designs
Easy to use. Brilliant designs submitted. Extremely satisfied with the whole process and final design.
Can't wait to use again.
Hi Andy,
We love hearing such positive feedback- thanks so much for sharing your experience! Can't wait to help with your future design needs!
-Rosalie from 99designs
Great company, easy to use website, talented designers, fast turn around, excellent product. I was very happy and will use this company again.
Hi Misty,
So great to hear you had such a great experience and found our platform easy to use! Can't wait to help out next time you have graphic design needs:)
-Rosalie from 99designs
This went really well for me. The designers who took part were friendly, talented and responsive. The winner deserved to win, but I felt sorry for those who had worked hard and missed out in the final round.
Hi Jeremy,
Thanks for the positive feedback! We really love to hear about such great experiences, and couldn't agree more with your tips for future clients. Giving the designers a good starting point with your Brief, and then collaborating with designers via feedback is the way to go!
-Rosalie from 99designs
I entered 4 contests this week and got rated 5 out 5 stars by the clients for 2 of my designs, a potensial winner in these contests and then I got an e-mail that say "You've been suspended forever". Thanks for the bad experience.
Hi Bill,
I understand how disappointing it is to see your account placed on hold. We certainly did not mean to demean you in any way, shape or form. Hopefully you can see by our email correspondence that this is not a permanent hold. We only ask that you submit a portfolio because your current entries do not appear to represent our minimum quality standards.
99designs is a professional marketplace, and we are dedicated to cultivating a community of designers who are consistently creating unique, well crafted designs. To this end, each designer account is reviewed personally by a 99designs staff member. In order to remain objective, we do not judge quality on things like education, certifications, or even contest ratings but rather on the actual quality of the entries themselves. We use these basic, universal graphic design principles as our forms of measurement: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204862935-What-are-99designs-quality-standards-
If you feel these designs did not represent your potential, we encourage you to submit your portfolio during the next application period. Feel free to contact our support team with any further questions: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs
Hi,
I've been suspended recently. I'm designer in 99designs from 2015.
I don't understand why i've been suspended, i was chosen as the winner more than 5 times and get final round more than 14.
I through final round right now and this is really frustrating to get suspended at this time.
I think the staff and team must thinking before suspend the loyal designer.
Note: 99DESIGNS WAS CHANGE BECOME WORST WEBSITE FOR DESIGNERS.
AVOID!
EDIT (15/06/2017):
MY ACCOUNT WAS OPENED AGAIN BUT AFTER THE WINNER SELECTED, I MISS MY CHANCE AS FINALIST AND MISS TO REPLY FEEDBACK FROM CLIENT.
I MUST SAY SORRY IN COMMENT AND PRIVATE MESSAGE TO CLIENT FOR BAD EXPERIENCE BY THIS SYSTEM AND CONVINCE "THIS IS NOT DESIGNER FAULT. THIS IS 99DESIGNS, BLAME THE STAFF AND SYSTEM"
In working with desigI heard of the service on Tim Ferris Podcast and decided to take a shot. It was an awesome experience.
Use them you won't be sorry some of the most best ideas I've seen. They were easy to work with. Fast and reliable with answer all messages very professional
Hi Julio,
We're so happy to hear you've had a great experience! Thanks for coming to 99designs for your design needs:)
-Rosalie from 99designs
I worked hard for two days on two design competitions achieving 2 and 3 stars, which was the highest that any of the designs were awarded. The guidelines on the site were to be original, not use stock imagery etc, which I worked hard to adhere to, only to find myself surrounded by designs ripped off of the web wholesale, hardly any original thinking. Then on the second day I was 'suspended for ever' as the quality of my work was not up to standard. To be honest I think that I was submitting too many ideas, whatever the reason I think that designers and clients are being royally ripped off, don't touch them, it's a waste of time and/or money.
Hi Tom,
I understand how disappointing it is to see your account placed on hold. We certainly did not mean to demean you in any way, shape or form. Hopefully you can see by our email correspondence that this is not a permanent hold. We only ask that you submit a portfolio because your current entries do not appear to represent our minimum quality standards.
99designs is a professional marketplace, and we are dedicated to cultivating a community of designers who are consistently creating unique, well crafted designs. To this end, each designer account is reviewed personally by a 99designs staff member. In order to remain objective, we do not judge quality on things like education, certifications, or even contest ratings but rather on the actual quality of the entries themselves. We use these basic, universal graphic design principles as our forms of measurement: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204862935-What-are-99designs-quality-standards-
If you feel these designs did not represent your potential, we encourage you to submit your portfolio during the next application period. Feel free to contact our support team with any further questions: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs
The team at 99Designs is excellent. Their customer service is top notch and very user-friendly - even in the middle of the night as I was trying to figure out the next steps. From a design standpoint, I was skeptical of using this process - but it was totally amazing. The quality of the designers - top tier. The quality of the design options - amazing. The work product - second to none. I don't think I will go back to traditional single design options again. Having multiple options just open the possibilities. Excellent process and outcome.
Hi Maggie,
Thanks so much for your wonderful review. We do strive to deliver not only great design from our designer community, but also love to hear you've had such a great experience with our Customer Support Team.
Thanks again for coming to us for your design needs!
-Rosalie from 99designs
Just joined this company as a designer. My first two designs were rated 5 stars by the client then after the contest I was told I was suspended for poor design quality. Such BS. Don't waste your time as a designer or a client.
Hi Alice,
I'm sorry you had a negative experience on 99designs. We certainly did not mean to demean you in any way, shape or form, however, it must be understood that our platform has quality standards that we must adhere to and if those standards are not met, then we make the decision to delay contest participation on 99designs: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204862935-What-are-99designs-quality-standards-
During this period of absence we encourage you to work on your designs skills. Your suspension is *not* permanent, please make note of this. You will be able to re-apply once we open the application period, so you have a chance to reinstate your account.
Best of luck - we hope to see you in the next application period. Feel free to contact our support team with any further questions: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs
When starting a new business, I knew I needed to concentrate on the parts I was experienced with, but graphic design was not one of them. Using 99designs.com was a smart decision as it allowed me to create a brand based on my business vision/mission, while having an artist create the visual part of it. The response from the artists was prolific and varied, and in the end I had at least 4 quality logos to choose from. The winning artist then proceeded to exceed my expectations by filling out the rest of the branding package I purchased with high quality designs for print and social media.
Hi Edwin,
Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us! We are thrilled to hear our designers were able to make your brand come to life, and that you were able to work with your winning designer to create those additional branding materials for your company.
-Rosalie from 99designs
I'm currently fighting over my refund. I butted heads with my logo designer and decided I couldn't work with her. During my dispute I tried contacting my project manager (which I paid extra for) and she was not available for the whole thing. I decided it was just best to part ways and go a different route. I know they have a money back guarantee on their website but they will not honor it. My project manager told me I already picked a winner so the project is completed. I chose a winner but never clicked to finalize it because my designer sent me mock pictures of my logo, which looked nothing like my design I picked. That was the whole reason I would not finalize it yet they told me just because I picked the designer that it was completed which is false.
Hi Rett - We are sincerely sorry to hear that you had this type of experience. As you can imagine it is not the type of experience we would like any of our customers to go through. We are attempting to contact you directly so please look out for a phone call and email from us. We would love to be able to help turn around your experience and assist you in getting a design you love.
I want to share my awful experience in 99 designs here, their website seems so promising to designers, so last week, I just gave it a try on 99 designs. I participate my 1st contest, stay up late, draft idea and made a lot of effort, the design I summit got 4 stars (out of 5) I got into final! During the final, the interactive with Contest Holder was good, and she gave positive advise, and I revised my design for her and I got rated from 4 stars to 5 stars, but I got suspended immediately after the contest ended for the reason that my design is not meet their standard. That is outrageous! I got an art degree and I am an experienced designer for over 5 years. Also I sensed something not right during the contest, I felt some of the competitors' designs are almost the same, just fonts in circles or squares, and they summit the same design multiple times at the same time. And the other 2 finalists, their designs are exactly the same shape same colour. But since this is the 1st contest I entered, so I can't judge that so early, and I keep focus on my design. Even I did not win at last, but I feel happy I got in final at my 1st contest. But when I got suspended for reason that lack of quality, I was shocked. It proves my sense is right, it really obvious that they deliberately banned potential designers who are really professional and creative, and protect those so called designers in their 99 designs team.
I have to speak it out, to all the designers who made so much effort, don't waste your time in this scam platform!
From the business
99designs is the global creative platform that makes it easy for designers + clients to work together to create designs they love.
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- Sitejabber’s sole mission is to increase online transparency for buyers and businesses
- Sitejabber has helped over 200M buyers make better purchasing decisions online
- Suspicious reviews are flagged by our algorithms, moderators, and community members
Hi Rachel,
We understand how disappointing it is to see your account placed on hold. Hopefully, you can see by our email correspondence that this is not a permanent hold. We only ask that you submit a portfolio because your current entries do not appear to represent our minimum quality standards.
99designs is a professional marketplace, and we are dedicated to cultivating a community of designers who are consistently creating unique, well-crafted designs. To this end, each designer account is reviewed personally by a 99designs staff member. In order to remain objective, we do not judge quality on things like education, certifications, length of experience, or even contest ratings/feedback but rather on the actual quality of the entries themselves. We use these basic, universal graphic design principles as our forms of measurement: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/articles/204862935-What-are-99designs-quality-standards-
If you feel these designs did not represent your potential, we encourage you to submit your portfolio during the next application period.
Feel free to contact our support team with any further questions: https://support.99designs.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
-Rosalie from 99designs