We can all admit that sometimes crowdsourced design contests end in disappointment (if not disaster), but I have to say that I’ve finally noticed the crowdsourced Chiquita banana sticker and I am completely charmed. The 18 finalists that Chiquita fans selected were from a pool of more than 1,000 original designs submitted to replace the iconic Miss Chiquita in 2010 (Chiquita was actually very specific in that all sticker designers could NOT include her at all in their submissions).
And the reviews of the sticker designs have been pretty positive, too. So I’ve started to think of what might have made the Chiquita sticker such a successful crowdsourcing project. Some designers have suggested that what’s truly great about the Chiquita contest is its specificity: a small canvas to work with, a very clear palette, and a distinct feel. The result was a wide variety of thoughts on a SPECIFIC theme. I think that it not only helps in the design/submission part of the process, but in the voting as well. If you know what you’re looking for and you understand the boundaries of the brand, people feel more confident about their vote even if they haven’t been working in the food marketing industry for the past ten years. All told, there were more than 100,000 votes cast that helped to select the final 18 designs. And Chiquita, in return, received a fair amount of buzz, cute designs, and an ongoing self-design sticker studio that fans can continue to engage with. Not to mention a couple of design blogs that noted the sticker for some of 2010’s most successful design.
What other things help to make a crowdsourced design a success? Which one is your favorite Chiquita sticker?
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