Let’s be real — everyone wants to stay relevant and capture the attention of the modern consumer. By jumping on the latest design fads and marketing trends, you can get your brand in front of many eyeballs.
But in truth, chasing trends risks a brand identity that’s here today, gone tomorrow. Constantly getting stuck on the trends hamster wheel can dilute your brand identity, confuse your customers, and weaken brand loyalty.
So, how do you use trends thoughtfully without making them your brand’s core identity?
The pitfalls of trend chasing
Trends have a notoriously brief lifespan — remember when neon was the future, and ‘YOLO’ and ‘swag’ tees were on everyone’s wishlists? What’s trending today might give people the ‘ick’ tomorrow.
If you rely on trends to keep your brand relevant, you’ll blend into a sea of sameness among your competitors. It can make your brand seem inauthentic, confuse your customers, and damage your credibility — all big no-no’s.
I like to say ‘one size never fits all’. What works for one brand might not for another. Consumers crave authenticity and consistency, not a brand that changes with every passing trend.
Current graphic design trends dominating our feeds
Brands are ditching minimalism and brewing a new romance with a more maximalist approach. We’re seeing more and more brands turning the volume up on colour, adding layers of textures, incorporating funky patterns, and experimenting with helium-inflated typography on their marketing materials.
Catching eyes with one of these trends on a poster on the streets of Richmond can stop you in your tracks (even when you’re running late for work). But do these trends fit every brand? If you’re a finance firm, maybe skip the hot pink bubble text for now. Maximalist trends are perfect for fashion brands targeting young consumers, lifestyle brands wanting trolley jams at supermarkets, or entertainment and events brands wanting people to immediately send their latest event announcement to their bestie paired with ‘we NEEEEDDD to go to this!’.
Conversational brand voices are in – that doesn’t mean they’re right for you
Your tone of voice is key when it comes to brand identity. How you talk to your customers will affect how people perceive and engage with your brand.
A brand that’s ditched the rulebook on brand communication with their bold, unconventional tactics (like threatening to kidnap their customers) capturing a lot of attention? It’s Duolingo. This strategy has certainly resonated with their Gen Z audience who appreciate meme-worthy content.
But what works for them won’t necessarily work for you. You might have a completely different audience and it won’t hit the mark. Stay authentic: your tone should connect with your audience, not just follow trends.
Know your audience well (like reaalllll well)
You need to dig deeper beyond age demographics. You need to consider what their lifestyle is like, what their behaviours are, what they care about, what their values are, and how they communicate.
You might be thinking ‘that’s a lot’, and ‘how on earth do I go about collecting this information?’. You can’t go DMing every follower asking if they’re a pancake or waffle person.
Instead, take a look at your brand’s social media interactions, start collecting first party data (if you haven’t already), and you can even start to create customer personas. By doing this, you can better tailor your brand’s messages and strategies to fit their preferences and needs.
Consistency is everything
Repeat after me: consistent branding is the path to long-term success. When you constantly change your brand’s look or offerings to follow trends, it can leave a sour taste in your audience’s mouth, leaving them wondering, “am I being punk’d right now?”.
Consistency creates trust. Customers are loyal to a brand that shows up time and time again. Stick to consistent fonts, colours, and design elements to ensure instant recognition. And stay authentic to your brand. Make decisions with a focus on your unique selling point and the emotions you want your customers to feel. This approach will build your brand a timeless identity that deeply connects with its audience.
Combining timelessness and trends
Think of your brand identity as a crisp white shirt — it will always be timeless and classic. Does that mean you can’t tweak it? You’ve probably noticed how the classic white shirt has evolved in its shape and cut, but never lost its core essence.
Your brand can continue to evolve over time to ensure it continually meets the market and resonates with your target audience. But the core values and brand personality are what stands the test of time. It’s just like with us humans — our style might change, but who we are at our core stays the same.
Maintaining your identity and appeal across decades
Ever wonder how brands like Apple stay popular for so long without losing their identity? It all comes down to sticking to their core values. These values guide who they are and why they do what they do. Even as they innovate and adapt, they never stray from these core principles.
Plus they truly understand their customers and build strong relationships with them. They think long-term and make decisions with future goals in mind, not through trend chasing.
It’s this strategy that has helped the world’s best brands keep their appeal throughout the years.
Dreaming of a timeless brand identity to take you all the way? We can help with that.
