Enhance Your Brand Identity with Professional Graphic Design Services from Our Kansas City Marketing Agency
Graphic design has the power to catapult your brand visibility, creating lasting impressions with your target audience and ultimately contributing to lead generation. But like any aspect of marketing, your creative assets must be current to stand out for all the right reasons. Outdated design can send a message to prospective customers that you’re not relevant, negatively impacting how your business is perceived.
To give yourself a competitive edge, stay up-to-date on graphic design trends and how to use them effectively in your digital marketing strategy. We make it easy with top-tier creative marketing services. Our innovative designers are lifelong learners, constantly digging into the latest design developments and fine-tuning their skills to achieve the best possible results for our clients.
Q4 is right around the corner, but there’s still time to update your ad art and finish the year out strong! We asked our designers to share their expertise and the latest graphic design trends they’re seeing in the industry. Keep reading for a healthy dose of inspiration.
Out-of-Style Graphic Design Trends
Before we can talk about what’s “in,” we have to take a closer look at what’s “out.” Here are a few of the design practices losing steam with audiences:
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Invasive typography: CONSUMERS DON’T WANT TO BE TALKED TO LIKE THIS. We’re not trying to yell, but we do want to make a point. Whatever your message is, all-caps is rarely the best way to get it across. People have a harder time reading all caps, because they’re more rectangular in shape and lack the up and down movement of lowercase letterforms. When using text in design, opt for sentence or title case instead.
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Collages: Collages can be busy and make it difficult for viewers to focus on a central message. If you want a design to include several photos, consider a carousel or video format. This allows you to feature one image per slide, creating a more modern and polished look.
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False sense of urgency: If you plan multiple sales in rapid succession of one another, you’re not establishing a sense of urgency. Customers are more likely to put off redeeming an offer, because they feel they can wait for the next deal. By incorporating dates and regulations into a sale design, you can drive consumers to make a purchase in the moment.
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Skipping organic: Visual homogeneity happens when a brand’s designs all begin to look the same. Although you want your creative assets to look cohesive, too many similarities can cause consumers to lose interest in your products or services. Adding organic content unrelated to a sale to your digital marketing strategy is the best way to combat this and build trust with your audience.
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Busy imagery: Images that contain background noise or unnecessary objects are distracting, making it challenging to effectively place messaging. Removing items can instantly give an ad sleekness and make your colors and call-to-action pop.
Graphic Design Trends Our Kansas City Marketing Agency Can’t Get Enough Of
Graphic design trends aren’t just born out of creative minds; they’re also a response to cultural and societal behaviors. In 2023, we’ve seen how technological advancements have further shaped people’s desire for seemingly limitless online experiences. Yet at the same time, we’ve witnessed an increased longing for days past.
These and more developments have influenced what resonates with consumers here and now. By adapting how your brand visually communicates, you can spur more positive associations that drive customers to buy.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the graphic design trends our experts are embracing as part of our creative marketing services.
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Nostalgia: Emotional and nostalgic advertising are often confused, and although they share commonalities, they’re not interchangeable. Nostalgic design specifically refers to imagery that reminds customers of past experiences. (We’re looking at you, Barbie.) It can certainly trigger an emotional response, but the key difference is it’s on a personal level.
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Going green: As our world becomes more environmentally conscious, there’s been an uptick in conversations surrounding sustainability in almost every industry. Whether it’s your packaging, logistics methods, or manufacturing processes, more consumers are seeking out businesses for their green difference.
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Minimalism: We’re firm believers in the design philosophy that “less is more.” Although this practice has been a part of our graphic design services toolbox for a while, it’s especially prevalent now in the form of minimalism.
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Pop culture marketing: Your design shouldn’t just feel aesthetically current; pop culture references and topics can go a long way in connecting with your customer. Leveraging popular trends, events, and cultural phenomena in your digital marketing strategy is one of the most effective ways to garner attention and demonstrate relatability.
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M-commerce: M-commerce can be viewed as a subcategory of e-commerce and refers to any commercial transactions that take place via apps or mobile sites. According to Shopify, mobile devices were responsible for nearly 59% of web traffic in Q2 2022, meaning mobile optimization is more important than ever.
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Complex compositions: Complex compositions are visually dense while being stylistically minimal, drawing the eye in without overstimulating it. Because these designs include more graphic elements, they keep consumers’ attention longer, giving them additional time to absorb the messaging.
If you don’t have a green aspect to your brand, find other ways to make your audience feel like they’re making an impact. A customer is more likely to purchase from you again when they support a common cause.
This trend is all about using only the most essential elements of a product or subject and doing away with unnecessary components and features. To achieve the look, a design should prioritize simplicity, visual hierarchy, proportions, negative space, and simple typefaces.
By designing with a mobile-friendly mindset, you ensure a better user experience that makes ordering your products a breeze.
Develop a Look You Love with Our Marketing Agency in Kansas City
Knowing graphic design trends is one thing. Putting them into action is a whole other matter. Fortunately, our marketing agency in Kansas City is primed to transform your ideas into relevant, customer-converting deliverables. Our creative team designs with intention, working closely with you and your account manager to develop striking assets that tell your brand story.
In addition to our graphic design services, we provide copywriting expertise, so your creative materials aren’t just visually-pleasing, but well-written, too. Taking a comprehensive approach to your digital marketing strategy ensures your messaging is consistent and memorable, setting you apart from the competition.
For more information about our creative marketing services and planning an eye-catching, results-driven campaign in Q4, contact our team! Call (913) 578-8578 or fill out our online form to schedule a complimentary consultation. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Zarah Eads brings several years of marketing experience to her role as a digital copywriter at iFocus Marketing. With a bachelor’s degree in journalism, she’s a storyteller at heart, combining shrewd attention to detail and compelling imagery to bring a voice and personality to a brand. She’s passionate about helping small- and medium-sized businesses better market their products and services with interesting, meaningful, and SEO-rich content. When she’s not writing, Zarah enjoys exploring the local culinary scene with her husband and spending quality couch time with her hound dog, Luna.
