Noooooo! Not another trends for 2020 piece. Ok, we’re not the first, and we certainly won’t be the last, but it’s an important process if you want to ensure you stay ahead of the curve, and the end of the year is a naturally suitable time to do this kind of thing. That’s why we've taken a dive into the internet's content banks to get to grips with the creative trends set to impact B2B and B2C marketing campaigns in the new decade.
Below, you’ll find six of our favourite creative trends that we’ve started implementing into client campaigns (and our own!), and that you’ll surely see a lot more of next year.
1. 3D depth
Flat design has sat firmly on the creative throne for the last few years, but now 3D is making a comeback. While flat design is visually appealing and easy to develop, from a user experience point of view, it isn’t always the most friendly. In contrast, adding depth to your design can help to draw the eye, emphasise key design elements and improve a user’s understanding of the hierarchy of the page.
2. Monochrome
Just a couple of years ago, brands like Spotify and Instagram led the charge from a duotone perspective, making their brand instantly recognisable by utilising a simple two-colour gradient. Simplicity has always been popular in the design world, so in many ways it comes as no surprise that many brands are going a step further and taking on a monochrome-style approach to colour design.
From a UI perspective, it makes perfect sense. Utilising the same colour tones across a site allows you to make particular elements such as text or buttons stand out. Our recent blog about CTA design is testament to this – selecting a single colour across your site that contrasts to the rest of your design allows you to drive the user where you want them to go, and monochrome is an excellent canvas on which to do this.
3. Metal
We’re not talking about getting sweaty in a mosh pit here. Like magpies, we’re naturally attracted to shiny things, and on a dark matte background, shiny metal looks great, especially on print materials. Combined with minimalistic design they’re trendy, clean, and look high-quality, so it’s no surprise a lot of brands are going for gold in 2020.
4. Masking
Speaking of minimalism, masking is another creative treatment that’s universally popular, and has been for a few years. While not a new trend, it’s showing no signs of slowing down and you can expect to see it in force next year too.
Masking images and text refers to using an image or video being utilised to fill an element on a page. This gives the impression that there’s a full image behind the content that’s being masked, teasing the viewer, adding a sense of mystery, and prompting the viewer to continue down their journey.
5. Typography
Sure, suggesting “typography” is a creative trend is quite a broad stroke, but what we’re referring to specifically here is the placement of increased emphasis on the styling of the content, and little to no additional visual input such as images or icons. Being creative with placement, font, colour and more can result in some bold, memorable creative without needing to fall back on additional elements on the page.
6. Simplified Illustration
And, last but by all means not least, simplified illustration! Illustration is an excellent way to inject personality into a brand, especially when the drawings are bespoke or developed in-house. We’re using quirky line-based illustrations in our new brand to support our key brand messages, without drawing away too much from the content.
These six trends are just the tip of the creative iceberg. Retro is big right now, as are repeating shapes and patterns, amongst so many other things. We can’t wait to see what 2020 has in store from a creative perspective and how we can apply some of these designs to our IT and Fintech clients next year!
