So I might not be the best person to propose this, as I have been guilty of it myself as a designer. BUT I feel like a thread dedicated to this discussion is warranted and I think if some of us come to some form of consensus all of us will benefit.
There have been a ton of design competitions on this forum. And I'm not trying to criticize those who hold them. I think it is great that they want to open up design challenges/work to this community. But we all know the anti-spec position and it has some very valid points..
I'm not going to go on and on about the damaging effects of spec work. There are also some major benefits for the people hosting competitions, but I do think there is a better way...
Let's say for example, that you are willing to spend 3BTC.
SCENARIO 1:
You host a design bounty. 2BTC for the winner, and .5 BTC for 2 runner-ups.
10 people design something and submit it in the thread. Only 6 are even close to something you would want. You pick a winner and choose 2 others you like the most. This leaves 7 people who have put in some level of work for nothing. (Yeah you could argue it can be a portfolio piece or they got some sort of exposure, but that's not really a good argument. They did work and did not get paid)
SCENARIO 2:
Instead of asking for submissions, you request people post a link to their work in the thread, or insert images of past work into a post. Then, you look through and pick out the ones who showcase work you like and ask them to submit a proposal design. (Let's say you choose 5)
You choose the one design you want to use and be finalized, and you pay the others who had worked on a design .25 each.
The "Winner" get's paid 1BTC and then an additional 1 BTC after they have finalized/edited the work to your liking.
In this scenario, everyone is allowed to showcase their work in 1 post, and 5 people get some form of compensation from their work. Being guaranteed at least some compensation should motivate them to put more time into their submissions, and at the same time you get more communication out of a number of designers. You will still get a bunch of posts on your thread, and those who did not get chosen can spend their time on other projects.
That's one idea. But if anyone else has better ideas, or finds an issue, please respond! I want a discussion about this where we can actually hash it out. Maybe nothing will come of this, but if enough people agree on a better method of engaging designers etc, the community will get stronger.