| crowdSPRING, LLC | |
| Type: | Private |
| Foundation: | May 2007 |
| Location: | Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Area Served: | Worldwide |
| Industry: | Design |
| Products: | Custom Logo Design, Website Design, Illustration, Marketing Materials, Industrial Design, Copywriting |
| Num Employees: | 70[1] |
| Homepage: | www.crowdspring.com |
Crowdspring (written "crowdSPRING", legally crowdSPRING, LLC) is an online marketplace for crowdsourced creative services.[2]
Crowdspring was co-founded in May 2007 by Ross Kimbarovsky and Michael Samson.[3] Crowdspring launched its online marketplace publicly in May 2008. Crowdspring is based in Chicago.[4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
More than 200,000 graphic designers and writers from 200 countries work on Crowdspring.[10]
Crowdspring maintains a blog which was launched in mid-2008.[11]
Crowdspring has faced ongoing criticism regarding its speculative business model, which involves asking designers and writers to submit completed work with no guarantee of payment unless their submission is selected.[12] Critics argue that this practice can result in many contributors effectively working without compensation, despite Crowdspring collecting fees from clients.[13]
In some cases, participants have expressed frustration with delayed or missing payments, further fueling criticism about fairness and transparency on the platform.[14] Crowdspring has responded to such feedback by stating that they provide a global platform to connect creatives with businesses and offer opportunities to grow their portfolios.[15]