DISCOVER THE HOTTEST 2022 TRENDS IN BRAND IDENTITY AND VISUAL IDENTITY, INCLUDING NOSTALGIC AND HUMANIZED BRANDING AND HOW THEY ARE LIKELY TO EVOLVE IN 2023
As 2022 comes to an end and we look toward 2023. It’s an excellent time to take a look at what was popular last year and emerging trends in the world of branding. Over the past year, the branding world has continued to evolve rapidly with new techniques that will likely shape the marketing landscape in 2023.
When it comes to a company’s branding, there are many things to consider, which can be challenging but rewarding. The most difficult part of branding is adapting an established brand identity and visual identity to the constantly changing times.
Regardless of a company’s success, new branding trends and strategies can always prove advantageous and beneficial. However, what was once considered old can sometimes cycle to new in branding. Going into 2023, there are many branding techniques worth exploring.
Nostalgic Branding
The best branding of the future could be a blast from the past. Nostalgia is the sentimental feeling of personal affection toward something in the past that a person has experienced. It brings people comforting memories of where they came from and their experiences. Whether it be someone’s favorite childhood meal, a go-to TV show as a kid, or even certain smells — nostalgia is a powerful stimulant.
Nostalgic branding is a great way to gain attention from older audiences as they have more memories than younger crowds. Companies can invoke nostalgia in their customers to create positive associations between branding and a person’s past. The development of customer relationships and trust can form by creating a subconscious feeling of a positive experience between a specific company and a person.
Implementing Nostalgic Branding
Companies that would like to adopt a nostalgic branding strategy have different ways to approach their brand and visual identities.
Visual Nostalgia
One of the most successful examples of nostalgic branding in 2022 was through visual nostalgia. Many sporting franchises succeeded with their branding by making throwback logos more commonplace.
NBA teams implementing visual nostalgia through throwback jerseys in 2022 include the Phoenix Suns, Miami Heat, and the Detroit Pistons. A few NFL teams that also utilized visual nostalgia are the Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints, and New England Patriots. The throwback jerseys had real logos and color schemes used in the past or had retro styling. The majority of these throwbacks came from the 1960s through the 1990s. The strategy was to invoke nostalgia in fans between 30 and 60 years old.
Audio Nostalgia
Another way that companies can incorporate nostalgia into their branding is through audio nostalgia. The highest-grossing film of 2022 was “Top Gun: Maverick.” This film is a sequel to the original, “Top Gun,” released in 1986. The film’s name alone invokes visual nostalgia in everyone who grew up in the 1980s and loved the film. However, chills ran through viewers’ bodies when hearing the iconic song “Danger Zone” in the movie’s trailer.
Nostalgia audio was a massive reason why over 55 percent of moviegoers for the film were over 35 years old. When looking at the overall box office performances of 2022, “Top Gun: Maverick” beat out all other films and grossed $300 Million more than the next closest film. With its success in 2022, nostalgia will be a popular branding trend going into 2023 and for the foreseeable future.
Humanized Branding
Humanized branding was all the rage in 2022 and is expected to be a hot trend in 2023. It is intended to build customer trust while making a brand stand out. Humanization in a branding context is the process of making a company’s branding have human-like characteristics.
One way this is achieved is by having advertisements rooted in everyday, real-world interactions. Another is by portraying a company’s social media presence as a real person. Creating a mascot is also a great way to show a brand with more human characteristics.
Humanized Branding Personality
It has been shown that consumers tend to trust companies more when they have a humanized personality. Most everyone enjoys hanging around people with great characters, which also applies to companies with great characters.
One way in which a company can further humanize its personality is to make advertisements more playful. Humorous advertising and branding can make a company seem more lifelike to many consumers, increasing customer loyalty and trust. The strategy makes a company more approachable, which can be helpful in many situations.
Another way to incorporate personality into a company is to have a strong brand mascot. Some of the most well-known company mascots worldwide are Mickey Mouse, Tony the Tiger, and the Kool-Aid Man. They help with brand recall and recognition and also help to humanize the company from a consumer perspective.
Humanized Social Media
A humanized social media account is a great way to further companies’ brands and gain consumer trust. One of the best examples of humanized social media is Netflix’s Twitter account. Netflix uses this platform in a very humanized manner. It retweets popular posts on Twitter as an average person would. It also posts humorous content, such as memes and GIFs, which is extremely popular with people of all ages. These relatable and humanlike social media posts cause people to feel a connection with Netflix subconsciously, which in turn builds trust.
Humanization of social media accounts could be the next big step for many companies’ branding in 2023. Based on its success in 2022 from top brands like Netflix, the humanization of social media should be here to stay.
A Bright Future for Branding
With 2023 knocking on the door, companies are excited about their branding ideas for the future. The nostalgic and humanized branding trends from 2022 will most likely become a staple of the branding game in 2023.
There will always be innovative and unique concepts to experiment with in branding, and while strategies are essential, finding the proper branding technique for each company is equally as important.
Call in a Professional
Employing nostalgic or humanized branding in marketing enables a business to accurately portray the message of its branding with a unique, fresh, and fun approach, which attracts audiences with the help of targeted marketing campaigns.
POLA Marketing’s team has extensive knowledge of branding techniques and trends. We employ our expertise to represent our clients’ brands with proper branding and visual identity to convert target audiences into viable leads. For more information, contact us at (www.polamarketing.com).
