Branding Trends to Boost your Brand in 2021

Last Updated on November 21, 2023 by DesignerPeople

When we say branding, it means we want to distinguishing our product or services from competitors and achieve competitive advantage in market. It is a combination of unique symbol, design, messages, colours, brand story, positioning, personality and many more elements which will contribute in effective branding trends. Many business owners still think branding is just a logo, whereas logo is just the tip of the iceberg. Brand is much more than just a logo.

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In year 2020, COVID may have forced your business to pivot, your core brand shouldn’t have to change if your branding is done correctly.

The pandemic has forced many small businesses to significantly change their operations and offerings to adapt to stay-at-home orders and social distancing guidelines. Hence to stay connected with your customers emotionally and physically also it is important for brands to stay true to their mission and values, no matter how much they need to pivot.

The year 2021 will be more focus on making your brand purpose driven, authentic and humanistic with least touch through advance technology involvement.

The branding agency has thought us how to stay in new normal environment how to be prepared for any upcoming unfavourable situation hence 2021 will be a tough yet interesting year for those who will review their branding elements strictly.

Be the change which you want to bring, motivate people, inspire customers, rejuvenate your brand ethics and values as this will be a good direction for your company’s new journey.

Also Read – Branding Trends That Will Impact Businesses Scenario In 2023

What are branding trends and why it is important for your business?

One thing which is constant in day to day life is “change” it is very important to adopt upcoming changes, trends, updates as per changes in order to fuel growth for your business. Customers preferances, taste, behaviour changes each year as per internal and external environment hence its is very important to stay in sync with them and trends help to stay relevant.

It also acts as blueprint for companies to understand small changes happening in market and this will keep you aware how to lead the correct direction with confidence and proactive nature.

Let us go through some game changing branding trends in upcoming year 2021.

1.Social Media Branding

It’s no doubt that 2020 has seen unprecedented change in social media usage, alongside a whole host of other customer behavioural factors. Highlights from Data reportal’s July 2020 Digital snapshot confirm that nearly half of respondents have spent more time on social media due to COVID-19.Source

Hence the value of the social media platform will be more in the upcoming year 2021. To cut through in 2021, social media marketers must invest in their relationships with employees, customers, and influencers, to ensure our key brand messages are backed up by the voices our customers value the most. There will be more energy put in making brand voice authenticity, along with increased video content.

2.Use chat bots for better engagement

Due to coronavirus pandemic ongoing, the customer’s preferences are also changing. Since so much has turned digital and online, people want connection – including with brands. Still, with a least human touch which is known as contactless hence brands must be updating the customer experience to involve more personal experience.

Chatbots are the best type of computer program with artificial intelligence (AI) to understand and respond to spoken or written language. Chatbots are seen in many service industries to answer customers’ questions without human interaction and help them as a roadmap through a company’s website.

They allow access to a way for customers to further engage with your company activities. Consumers want more; hence chatbots are projected to be a continuing trend in meeting those expectations.

3.Online communities

It is the best place which will come into focus in 2021 where people discuss, tips, advice, suggestions and give feedback about brand-related topics and provide advice and information. Hence this will then allow your brands to talk about products and understand customers’ needs without trying to sell.

It ensures access to a limitless globe to connect and exchange knowledge with similar mindset people. It provides that the users come out with a quick and easy way to navigate and find a resolution to a problem.

Contribution from the members is what will help foster and grow the organization, and encouraging participation among the community will help the organization strengthen its reputation and credibility.

You can create your online community on website like https://tribe.so/

4.Micro-Influencer marketing

It is the same concept as influencer marketing but done at a micro-level that is on a smaller scale. Here the brand’s partnership with individuals with smaller followings on social media, and they will then promote products with authentic, visual posts instead of sponsored ads which looks very real and honest review.

It will value authenticity more in 2021; hence the influencers reviews as given by real people will add value to the brand and develops a sense of trust.  The recommendations of their peers influence 70% of millennial consumers in buying decisions. Source

More and more people now being available in social media and hence micro-influencers will open huge horizons for possible influencers for your brand.

As per Mention report, around 15.7% of Instagram users are having 1,000 and 10,000 followers, which is right in the niche of micro-influencers. Hence the percentage to Instagram’s one bn user count, that means there are 157 million micro-influencers to choose from, and that’s a great bulk of opportunity.

 

 

 

 

 

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5.Visual Content

The content in 2021 will play significant role brands will start focusing more on providing consumers with more realistic content to satisfy the information voids with a particular focus on content over style.

Now brand should focus on creating personalized content targeted to drive engagement, and ultimately the results into sales.

Hence this will shape the direction of 2021 on the foundation of 4 Cs of Covid-19 content

– Community

– Contactless

– Cleanliness

– Compassion

Therefore make sure your brand messages are seen with a correct positioning statement that stays in the mind of the audience.

The year 2021 is expected to bring even more opportunities for remixing, with brands engaging with new audiences and creating additional content that stands out from the crowd.

Also Read: 9 Best Creative Packaging Design Trends 2021

6.Technology in Branding

The technology industry thrives on change, requiring constant experimentation and innovation.

Traditionally the wave of technology will now take a fresh wave introducing many new tech-oriented processes.

It will now introduce immersive technologies like artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality, wearable devices, and conversational interfaces which can be a voice-controlled speaker and chatbots. The industry for AR/VR is expected to grow by $100 billion by 2021, which will be great news.

7.Dark Mode in Branding

Dark mode has been taking over new dynamics in the online sphere this year and beyond. Apps, operating systems, and social networks are all offering dark mode options for their user-interface.

The sleek, compact, modern design elements will take over the new season of designing which will allow you to explore new options.

The dark backgrounds allow the designers to play and show their creativity compare to white background. A dark shade will let your visuals to be comfortable at night and less harsh compared to other light colours.

8.Brand loyalty and customer experience

Customers are no longer based their loyalty on the price or product. Now they believe in staying loyal with companies due to the experience they receive.

After pandemic now, customers focus on the brand, which not only focuses on selling but also to focus on the customer’s pain point, show empathy and concern towards their issues through excellent customer service.

An excellent customer experience in your customers will spend more. Around 86% of customers are willing to pay more for a great customer experience.

In 2021 the customer service and loyal building customers will consider takeovers factors such as pricing and product.

You will require to invest in a long-term relationship because when you understand who they are, you can deliver a personalized experience across the entire customer journey.

Brands will focus on interacting with their customers across multiple channels, preferably contactless looking at their safety norm. It can be through forms on their website, live chat, social media and more.

9.Motion & Responsive Logos

Anything which is moving is engaging compared to something static. The logo here is having a bold font with playful forming a pattern that elicits fingerprint and turns into the focus sign of a camera.

Professional logo designers can turn a static logo into creatively new concept-oriented animated logo while many enjoy sharing an animated version of the logo to the world.

Modern technology expands its arms with great opportunities, and experts need to take benefits of it. To bring a fresh wave into a logo, the design experts decided to add some motion.

The motion or animated logo is a modern way to present a brand in the form of an advance audience. It can display a brand character and transfer a specific brand message attracting clients. At the same time, it is an excellent way to stand out from competitors since animated logo guarantees originality.

Responsive logos are simple, yet the enhanced versions of the same brand mark, communicating with essential elements of your visual identity in distinct ways depending on the various channel’s your user prefers.

Hence such logo is capable of shape-shifting that can get changed in any size, complexity or even colour to accommodate the correct platform visibility. It is given to a primary logo that exists in several, slightly different and easily scalable variations.

Responsive logos ensure companies to hold onto their brand recognition and familiarity across multiple resolutions and channels. Hence the versatility will become important for businesses of all shapes and sizes

source: 99designs.com/blog/trends/responsive-logos/

CONCLUSION:

Irrespective of anything the world doesn’t stop it is always going moving at a faster pace with every time a next new exciting innovation that’s how the next big thing happens. The world of branding is a world that is experiencing unprecedented growth, a world in which if you are not updated with the latest brand design trends; then you don’t deserve to stay in it.

Tastes change, preferences differ, situations changes as technology moves forward, and we either sit back and let changes happen or we need to take charge of our ride is up to us. Above said are few branding trends of 2021 are here for you to see, to inspire you, to access you in the right direction is our primary motive.

The year 2021, will all interesting get going and grab each opportunity that comes in your way. DesignerPeople is always there to guide you if you need any professional advice to connect us, and we will ensure you lead the race of 2021. 

Author: Anush Malik

Being a strategist’s head and a long term visionary personality aims to achieve excellence in branding, packaging and digital marketing field. My 15 years of design experience and masters degree ais my strength which keeps me motivated and keep me going positively. I have participated in extensive branding design conquests in India, USA, Australia and New Zealand with winning zeal. My objective is to encourage start-ups and hence involves actively in the articles which will act as a productive intake of knowledge for them. Do connect me personally via my LinkedIn and I love to share my expertise with you.