The COVID pandemic and global lockdown has changed consumer psychology and behavior. As it adjusts to the new reality, a successful business should restructure its operations, add services, and change the design and type of communicating with the audience.

5 trends to look out for:

1. Staying optimistic

Getting tired of bad news makes you want visual content and texts to provide positive emotions.

This can be achieved through quality composition and color, bright or natural lighting in photos, light music, texts styled after a casual convo with appropriate wit, friendly chats with subscribers, an updated loyalty program, unexpected gifts, and bonuses. Elements of gamification also may help brighten the customers' mood and distract them from their anxieties.

2. Feeling safe

A concise visual incorporates the need to find a safe space away from the disturbing reality. Simple shapes, tidy lines, and ascetic style create a sense of openness that hides nothing to be afraid of. Show your product or service as clean, 'sterilized,' and safe for the customers as possible, especially when it comes to food, restaurants, medical care, and household services.

3. Wellness trends

Health care and support of immune system have come to the fore. That's why visuals and texts should emphasize the natural ingredients, health benefits, and environmental safety of services and products.

4. Showing emotion

Under circumstances of the lack of live, person-to-person communication, it may become important to use available channels to get emotions. High-quality visual content can encourage imagination, spark feelings and an emotional response, as well as the desire to share ideas and thoughts. Social media platforms provide an opportunity to talk to strangers on any topic of interest. The content should be aimed at encouraging the desire to discuss it with others.

5. Accessibility and fast pace

Consumers are focused on how fast a product or service can be available. Your brand's social media accounts should make it possible to buy right here and now. In particular, they should offer an option to get to know the product in detail, see it from all angles, find out the price, see the reviews, get recommendations or advice, place an order with delivery, and leave feedback.

Still, it is important that user experience of engaging with your brand is the same for all channels, be it offline, on a website, in an app, or in social media – everything should be visually recognizable and well organized.

We at Greenwich agency help brands build a unified visual and semantic strategy.