I've talked about design trends (and social media trends, content trends, and so many other trends) before with the express purpose of telling you not to follow them. Trends are just that: trendy!
A general tendency or course of events: synonym: tendency.
Current style; vogue.
The general direction of something.
Most commonly, trends refer to something that does not last. However, this time, I want to focus on the third definition from above. A general direction of something. This direction can sometimes still kick off and become more.
Having said that, this blog article is going to cover both new and old trends when it comes to design, and it is up to you to decide which ones are still active, popular, and (most importantly) relevant to you and your brand.
1. TYPOGRAPHY
Serif fonts are taking over the digital space. Firstly, some quick anatomy here, serifs are the little markers at the ends of letters in some fonts. They are there to help guide the eye to the next letter and make it easier to read large amounts of text. As technology evolves, sans serifs quickly took over the digital space due to being "cleaner" fonts.
With everything moving online and looking pretty much the same, additional font types came out and serifs slowly started making their way back into the digital space. In addition, pairing fonts became a very important thing to help differentiate between headings and the main content. As such, the most popular pair you will ever see is a serif heading with a sans serif body or reversed.
Is that still the case in your industry? Does it make sense for you to use serif fonts for your brand?
2. RESPONSIVE DESIGNS
Mobile is such a huge part of viewing websites, especially for all the users coming in from social media. As such, a responsive layout has become extremely important for any business in their web designs. Speed is very important as people can easily click out of your website if it doesn't load properly but appearance is a huge thing too. Make it accessible!
This is also the case for logos. A responsive design for a logo usually means having multiple variations of the same logo. This can mean a vertical, a horizontal, a square, a circle... a star? Whatever you want it to be but make sure it's something that connects to the primary logo of your business but can be easier to read tiny or looks absolutely epic when it's huge.
Is your web presence and logo easily recognizable and accessible through a mobile device? Does it matter if it's not?
3. PINK IS IN
According to a few studies, one of the most popular products to buy in 2022 was pink ||hidden||. Yea... I'm not going to tell you what exactly the product was because that doesn't matter. If I tell you, are you going to start selling that product within your brand? Or, going back to pink, maybe you will adjust your own products to reflect this trend.
What I can tell you though was that the rise of pink is not only a trend but a political movement. Whether we're talking baby pink, barbie pink, hot pink, or that beautiful Pantone Magenta (pink), it's on the rise. And, referring back to Pantone... that pink product was a big deal in 2022 but the Viva Magenta is the colour of 2023. So... is it an ongoing trend?
Now, are you adding a ton of pink in to your brand? Or are you keeping it cool and maybe only doing a campaign? Or neither?
4. BEHIND THE SCENES
As more and more content is being created, the creators are stepping away from the beautiful editorial and perfect shows and showing the nitty and gritty stuff that happens behind the scenes. Does this mean less use of filters? Not necessarily. But it does mean something more real that people can connect to better.
By creating content, especially visuals, that reveals the process and the work that happens behind the scenes, more people can relate and get to know the creators better. At least, that's what this trend is supposed to do. And yet, are you going to be sharing file-version7_final_FINAL_this-is-it_2023FINAL.png and all the others?
Consider how much your audience cares about seeing what is happening behind the scenes of your business and if it's worth it to share.
5. FAKE TRENDS
So... which of these "trends" will you follow? And what about if I told you that none of the above are actual trends? Does that change your opinion of them and how you want to use them for your brand? Just because something is in-style or trending right now does not mean you have to do it. Follow your brand strategy and listen to your audience instead. That is the only trend that matters to you.