1- Antiblanding

A new trend towards simplicity and neutrality that results in brands with very similar identities. We call this phenomenon blanding.

This year Zara has taken another step forward by proposing a new logo countertrend, seeking to get away from all those fashion brands that are still in the Blanding current.

2- From sustainability to efficiency

Sustainability is no longer an ideal or added value, it is a basic requirement for all types of brands. Because it is key to growth and resource optimization. Changes in the company’s internal culture, processes and way of thinking will be necessary.

Adidas converts the plastic waste from the ocean into sneakers and sportswear, with the help of Parley for The Oceans.

3- Value Proposition

New positions that emphasize the category above the brand. New, but common, value propositions. Value propositions that, deep down, have little in common with the brand.

Concept of “mobility” as the center of its value proposal. An accessible and sustainable mobility, for all. The differentiation, therefore, they work it from their verbal and visual identity.

The growing awareness of climate change and the environment reaches the fast-fashion brands. All of them bet on positioning themselves as sustainable brands with their pieces of clothing, but they have not differentiated their value proposal based on this concept. H&M has launched its 2019 collection with clothes made of materials that are respectful of the planet, but this action is not far from other cases such as “Join Life”, by Zara, or “Commited”, by Mango.

4- The end of the tyranny of usability and SEO

To propose a web model focused on the story and not on the digital positioning, generating new points of contact with the user with the aim of deepening the brand.

Rolex is not just a brand of watches, and it demonstrates in each place. Their website is a portal of inspiration where celebrities from different worlds meet to share ideals of exploration, improvement and excellence. All of them are deeply rooted in Rolex.

5- Parameterization

This year we will see more brands that, having developed a strong visual system and code, feel they no longer depend so much on their logo for people to identify them. These brands will open a new space for debate: as the parameterization grows, what will be the space and role destined to the logo?

Doritos launches an anti-ad, without a name and a brand logo. However, it keeps the color palette and its triangular icon. This campaign intends to give strength to the shape in an ingenious way, presenting the brand without naming it. All this, thanks to a graphic system.

6- Relevance gains consistency

As the data grows, customization increases, and therefore consistency decreases. The new algorithms allow us to personalize the service more and speak more directly to the user. In this way, the way we offer it is beginning to be more relevant than what we offer, often stopping projects of standardization or diversification of supply.

Spotify analyzes your musical tastes and does you a favor by offering you in folders the

different playlists that fit you. Browse through the 40 million songs and filter only those that are relevant to you. All this, thanks to the algorithms that combine data and the tastes of others listeners similar to you.

7- What’s mine, for me

Brands no longer want to be all they can be. In a world where relationships are increasingly important, brands will place strict limits on who they target and what problems they solve. What will we see? Hypersegmented single product brands. Brands that want to be everything for someone, not something for everyone. Brands that, in short, seek relevance more than ever.

Platforms like Netflix have imposed a streaming model based on extension of the offer and massification of the public. This trend has been dominant, but little by little competitors are appearing with a different model like Disney+, with a decided commitment to the micro-segmentation and family entertainment. The launch of Disney+ opens the door to see streaming as “long-tail” of content.

8- Without you, or with you

We live in the era of union and integration. Therefore, many rival brands will choose to join to reach, with a common value proposition, even the same user. In times of saturation and indifference, collaborative and democratic brands, open and transparent, have the doors open to success. These brands will bring a new look, transforming “competing” into “co-peting”.

Samsung and Apple are teaming up to give Samsung TV users access to Apple TV video content. In this way, Apple makes its products available to many more users.

9- Don’t yell at me that I don’t see you

Brands must speak. The voice is an unexplored dimension that is gaining strength year after year, in a world where the podcast is a mass reality and where we have less and less time to write, and more and more time to listen.

Marvel launch a podcast series based on superheroes, where the design of

sound and imaginative writing will make listeners create fascinating scenarios.

10- Fiction as an accelerant

In the era of the brand story and the cult of content, branding is becoming integrated into consolidated fictions in pop culture, or creating them directly. This phenomenon results in “advertainment”. Fiction understood as corporate narrative constitutes an accelerator for those organizations that want to go further and achieve their objectives in a relevant way.

If Stranger Things enthusiasts want to continue dreaming about the world upside down, they only have to look at the new collection launched by Pull & Bear, the retail brand of the Inditex company. From t-shirts with the 80’s logo, with character names or with the face of Eleven.