I have to say I don't agree with fiverr at all. No one can make a living in rates like that. But if people want to do it that's fine I guess. The only problem is it pushes people's expectations of what a job costs down. Which means designers / coders etc end up working for hardly anything.
My hourly is considerably more than $15.
I couldn't agree more with you.
It's not just fiverr, it's in these forums aswell. And I don't mean to point or dename, as I think that us graphics designers need to stick together.
I'm only saying that the amount of Graphics design freebies and 1$ logo/banner threads have been fairly popular. And for these people, it's a matter of getting money, and I understand that. We all need to put food on the table. But in actuality, you're hurting yourself and others who design. These people need to understand that there is a pricing equilibrium. (Time, Resources, effort and then you have to consider the fact that your image will be used long after you are done, minimum wage). When you price your design irresponsibly, you're hurting the trade overall. These designers need to consider this more. And while yes, you may get work more often, you will encourage others to compete with your pricing and thus lower the value you can expect, and eventually lower the amount of work you will get.
At the same time, Entrepreneurs need to realize, company image is the first thing a company's value is based on in these days. If your branding looks bad, it will leave a negative impression, while a good branding leaves a positive impression. If you're willing to go cheapskate on something as important as the face of your company or service, that doesn't speak well for your company overall.
And yes, I understand, you need to conserve resources. Totally understandable. But one can argue, if you cannot afford proper branding solutions, then you probably and most likely will not have resources for the rest of the project. But again, I am speaking from my experiences.
When I look around in the service forum, I see start-ups and entrepreneurs trying to find the best branding for the least amount of money. And they will find it every single time. $10 logos, $5 banners. But they fail to realize, this will hurt them in the long run. Logos, banners, all branding should be an investment. And you won't find any halfway decent graphics designer who will work for you for $10.
Competition is very healthy and promotes a free market.
But alot of people are forgetting about wages. However, it would seem it balances itself out as the truly talented and experienced designers will always provide higher quality works. And while the few people who are talented and are willing to design under fair wage, eventually they will not.