Branding: The best creative trends for 2021

AGGIORNATO AL 04/03/2024

Branding trends must try to reinvent themselves if they want to stay fresh and young. Now, obviously, those same Brand trends which a few years ago were the leading ones, the most successful and which were the most requested by those who contacted a designer, appear antiquated and obsolete. If we want to always keep up in the market and want to remain relevant in the eyes of our users, it will be better to at least know the best brand design trends of this 2021. And who knows branding trends better than designers?!

Contents index

1. Let’s put a face to the name
2. Use whimsical art
3. Embrace the colors of the expressionist brand
4. Represent something
5. Extend the brand with geometric patterns
6. Let’s make it approximate on purpose
7. We create an immersive experience

1 -Let’s put a face to the name

There is one thing that users – as what we are, therefore humans – like to see: other people, other human beings, especially in posts on social platforms. Lately it has become increasingly clear that more and more images of people represent a brand; in particular they are faces and even more specifically, faces of people known to the general public.

After all, faces humanize a brand in a big way and there are many branding trends in 2021 that are oriented towards this area.

Companies often use an illustrated representation of a real person and this, in addition to allowing greater control over the final appearance, paves the way for different artistic styles to communicate “who we are” as a company.

2 – Use whimsical art

This can be a fundamental step for us, especially if we are addressing a segment of a young audience and if we want our materials to show a distinctive uniqueness: we are talking about the “extravagance” factor, the bizarre, so to speak.

In order to obtain recognition and ensure that our brand is memorable (two diamond tips) we must try to use unique, funny or extravagant images (in the vast majority of cases, it being understood that any artistic style, as long as it is linked to eccentricity, is good for the cause in question, brands use hand-drawn illustrations).

Let’s try to avoid the classic fear and not create any problems in experimenting, keeping in mind that standing out means feeling free to try an unusual style, if it suits our brand’s personality.

3 – Embrace the colors of the expressionist brand

Traditional branding is tied to the mindset that consistent, simple color schemes look better because consumers tend to associate that brand with those distinctive colors. Very true, but it is a “mentality” (or vision of branding design, or school of thought, if you prefer) that raises a boundary wall in front of our brand: what would happen if we wanted to express our brand identity through of more complex color schemes and use different colors to describe and give meaning to each of our products? What solution? Expand our brand color palette to a variety of expressionist colors.

And in this 2021, significant and intense colors express the very essence of the brand and everything that it expresses; this is the reason why we often see brands struggling with dressing the result of unconventional and non-naturalistic color combinations, with variations and intensity. These are impactful shades that work both separately and together, and that say a lot about the brand and (or the product) just through the color itself.

4 – Represent something

It is enough to do a bit of zapping during the hours when the various editions of the news are on television, or simply on the various social platforms such as Twitter to realize that something is happening in the world; apart from the COVID-19 epidemic and its consequences, people feel (and are at the forefront of all this) air of profound change, and therefore have more difficulty remaining neutral.

This also applies to companies; especially in those sectors where consumers are mainly Millennials or part of the so-called Gen Z, who expect the brands they love and follow to take on a social, environmental or economic position (I’ll give you an example: when there was a bill that affected connectivity, the Netflix company wasted no time in clowning government officials, via social media, openly saying, through infographics and biting posts, that with those Gigabytes expected in the bill to which all Italians were entitled, they would not have been able to enjoy even 15 minutes of an episode of their favorite TV series. This, just to give an example.)

5 – Extend the brand with geometric patterns

Large repeating graphic blocks, “wallpaper” effect: this is one of the most popular trends, in order to use patterns as an extension of the brand. Clearly, the models do not replace main images or logos but placed in the right place they can project our brand towards important places.

Generally, geometric shapes are used, which strike that middle ground between stimulation and distraction and are perfect for those brands that want to bring the logo to the center of the scene, as the main point of attraction. To capture its essence, our template should mimic an element of our logo (if this was minimalist we could even use it as a pattern.)

6 – Let’s make it approximate on purpose

There is that segment of the public who finds what we consider perfection imperfect (it happens, it is normal, it is part of life) and there are many consumers who prefer a rough appearance at the edges (doodles; asymmetry; non-proportionate images.) The younger audience, the one taking the reins left by the counterculture, prefers intentionally imperfect brand design (mixed with illustrations and hand typography.) An inversion of the pixel-perfect brand in short. For some it will adapt perfectly, while for others it will not connect with all the brand identities but it still remains an excellent opportunity to land on new shores and try to stand out.

7 – Create an immersive experience

We must fully understand that our brand is not just about the website, logo, merchandising or packaging; the user expects us to provide an experience and this is what we must be able to do. Now, in 2021, the unboxing experience is perhaps the most crucial of all and there are many brands that have created a real unboxing experience, from the first to the last moment ensuring that the customer, from the first from the moment he picks up the package to the moment he analyzes the product in his hand, he can enjoy an increasingly engaging experience.

Will we use these trends?

Personalization and connection: regardless of the choice we make, the brand design trends of this 2021 seem to be oriented towards these two factors; the relationship between customer and user is more of a human, empathetic relationship, rather than a cold one linked to money. Users talk about their favorite brands, open emails when they receive communication from them, and talk about them with friends and family. This is what a good brand must be able to achieve.

Good luck and good branding!