Producing Compelling Visual Content In 2019

Visual marketing has been in the ascendency online for some time.

Senior Facebook execs predicted the demise of the written word online, a few years back. More recently Mark Zuckerberg announced that visual sharing, via formats like Stories, was growing fifteen times faster than anything else.

The challenge for marketers when it comes to more visual formats, like Stories, aside from updating creative workflows and sign-off processes, is often around ideation. Bringing content to life with visuals which are eye-catching, but effective. And, doing this at scale.

The Story format is quite distinct, particularly on Instagram, with a highly informal, often quirky, authentic feel. A study released last year, by Instagram, spelt out the differing expectations between Stories and Feed in detail.

If you could use some help with visual storytelling, check out Shutterstock’s new report.

2019 = Bright Colours, Cartoon Faces, & Jazzy Animal Patterns

If you’ve ever used stock imagery, you’ve probably used Shutterstock.

With over 1.9 million creatives using the service, and housing 225 million images, it knows a bit about creativity and design.

This week it’s revealed the 2019 Creative Trends Report, which explores the major design trends for the year ahead. The data gathered and analysed across images, video and music includes billions of searches and downloads within Shutterstock's collection.

In its eighth year, this year’s eleven design styles, many of which echo the past in a playful and in a decadent way, predict the top influences for design and visual production in 2019.

The top three major trends from the report are:

1. Zine Culture – The raw, homemade aesthetic gets a digital update, with a 1376% increase in searches for "contemporary art collage."

Zine culture is built on principles of collage, think photocopier effects, paper cutouts, noise and grain textures, and rough-edged layers that define this trend.

2. 80s Opulence – The '80s are back and ready to party, with the term "chain print" up 731% and "elegance pattern" searches increased 1060%.

Forget good taste; this is about good times. Clashing is the key word for this trend. Think leopard print (up 167%) and snakeskin (up 157%), peacock feathers and gold chain belts, soft fur and hard metal textures.

3. Yesterday's Tomorrow – What's old is new again. With interest in terms like "Synthwave" increasing 717%, "Retrowave" up 676% and "Duotone" up 230%.

It's all about the looks and sounds that defined futurism at the dawn of the digital age like bold purple, blue, and pink duotone gradients, basic vector graphics, and dreamy synth music.

To find out more about all eleven 2019 design trends check out the report now.