Nostalgia While Looking to the Future
Trends may come and go, but to gain exposure in the now over-saturated market, companies need to pay attention to them. And sometimes, it’s just fun to see how altering a certain element of your brand can capture your audience, so we decided to compile some popular trends that can help you modernise and revamp your brand in 2023!
Rekindling the Familiar Past
It was 2020 when we found ourselves in lockdown. Having locked in for an extended period of time, the internet has engaged in a plethora of new activities, as reflected by the 39 billion views on TikTok relating to the category “D.I.Y.”. As everything gets bigger, bolder, and more vibrant, the once all-too-familiar minimalism takes a backseat as maximalism sweeps social media by storm, accompanied by our reminiscence of the brighter eras. This trend has not gone unnoticed, as brands find themselves travelling back in time to adopt the once-popular trends of the 1980s and 2000s. The dramatic comeback of the Y2K trend for example features chunky fonts and brash patterns, which prove to be eye-catching elements that can help brands stand out from the crowd and make a statement. Upon entering a new era, bright and inviting visuals is just what we need as encouragement to welcome and celebrate the future.
Colour More with More
Recalling the use of Pantone’s Colour of the Year, Viva Magenta in our Chinese New Year WhatsApp Stickers, this year we see brands building on top of maximalism with stimulating colour palettes to represent their newfound positivity for the future. With a whole list of rules and restrictions over the past few years, it seems only fitting to incorporate playful and loud colours to recapture some much-needed fun. Retro, Neons and Gradients are amongst the top elements brands use to spice up their designs in 2023. Gone are the days of minimalistic white, beige and browns, it is time to embrace the new era with joy, optimism and, a little quirkiness.
Stepping into the Unknown
On the opposite side of the spectrum, brands are also experimenting with futurism after the explosive popularity of the Metaverse and the influx of AI visuals. The trend draws inspiration from combining magical realism and technology, unlocking a brand new world of tech-assisted branding.
AR- and VR-powered experiences found themselves in the fashion and art industry as well. The Hong Kong Museum of Art for example formed exhibitions that incorporate the virtual with the physical, a trend that is likely to osmose into the ever-creative branding industry. In a purely artistic lens, bold colours, glass morphism and isometric shapes all contribute to this bigger-than-life imagination that we’ve created to represent our desired future. We see this trend coexisting with the discovery of AI for a long, long time.
Bringing Static to Life
Following the recent promotion of videos on social media (Instagram reels for example), the top company giants have hopped on the trend of transforming their branding with a little motion. Motion graphics prove to be the next enhancement for brands, visible from Google and Meta (previously Facebook)’s new animation logos. Not only does it catches up to the technological futurism that we’ve previously mentioned, it significantly improves brand recall and generates higher customer engagement. This trend has been appearing on websites, illustrations, transitions and social media, of course. Animoto has found that 93% of brands got a new customer from video content, and with so little time to grasp the attention of users, consider using motion graphics to modernise and solidify your branding!
Artistic Infographic
Every year Spotify releases Spotify Wrapped, a visual representation of all the songs you fell in love with over the year. Spotify Wrapped was successful for two reasons, it gained traction from all the music lovers intensely sharing their music tastes on the internet, and it did it in an engaging, aesthetically pleasing way. Artistic Infographics have always been a trend and will continue to participate in the branding scene. Combining this trend with any of the four aforementioned trends could not only help brands deliver their information in a fun, and concise way, but also establish rapport with their audiences. Expect bright colour palettes, animated graphics and illustrations to dominate these illustrations.
If you find yourself craving new experiences for your brand this year, get in touch with us at Point of AC! We’re just a step away.
