EXPERIENTIAL GRAPHICS: TOP 9 TRENDS OF 2019

FEBRUARY 2, 2019| SpeedPro Boston North

The marketing buzzword of 2019 is experiential marketing. Marketing isn’t just about product and branding anymore – every touchpoint with consumers matters more than ever. Marketers are tasked beyond pushing products or services; they need to cut through the noise and create a fully branded experience.

Experiential marketing is brand activation through a visual medium. This means engaging with consumers in a memorable way to create long-term emotional connections. Watch the video and then read about the nine trends we see achieving widespread adoption in 2019.

1. Interactive Graphics

Wall murals, artwork and displays become community events when you invite others to draw, color, sign and share messages through visual displays.

Brands wanting authentic connections with their audiences are using this type of experiential graphics to cut through the digital noise, create engagement and generate media attention to draw attention to their organization.

2. Pop-Up Retail Brand Activations

Pop-up shops, bars, salons and more are showing up everywhere with a splashy limited-time-only promotional idea that draws in new customers and deepens customer loyalty. Businesses can transform any commercial space into an immersive brand experience.

3. Digitized Hand-Drawn Artwork

Engagement marketing must embrace authenticity when interacting with their target audiences. Hand-drawn artwork can be digitized through a high-quality scanner and printed in virtually any size on many different materials. The texture of the original artwork on paper in the scanned digital file comes through on the final product, adding even more authenticity.

The artwork transforms spaces from just ordinary into something welcoming, comforting and familiar.

4. Smartphone Imagery that Holds Up when Blown Up

A huge trend in branding is a shift toward authentic imagery integrated into a business’s marketing campaigns instead of relying on stock imagery.

Technology in smartphones has developed to the point where the images captured are as good as many professional cameras, resulting in the ability to use consumer technology in a business context. Businesses of all sizes can use images they’ve created for authentic experience in multiple environments.

5. Dimensional Lettering and Contour Cut Signage

Environmental graphics transform spaces to help people connect to a specific place. The combination of a flatbed printer and computer-controlled contour cutting machines opens up endless opportunities for customized signage décor and other products utilizing wood, acrylic, foam board, aluminum and many other materials.

Computer-controlled contour cutting allows SpeedPro to cut virtually any shape and size, whether it be dimensional letters or décor that requires multiple materials.

6. Custom POP

Point of purchase displays used to be a bland but functional way to display products, but now organizations are using these displays to convey brand personality.

POP displays created with computer-controlled contour cutting will increasingly be another marketing tool to capture your audience’s attention.

7. Textures and Textiles

In today’s digital environment, people lack a tactile and memorable element to connect them with brands.

Wall coverings are the ideal solution. Instead of standard vinyl, wall coverings can be printed in a variety of textures, including suede, felt, plaster, smooth and PVC free (which school systems and hospitals require). For companies with open office formats, felt panels can be made into a variety of shapes and sizes to not only add a visual aesthetic but also reduce sound levels.

8. 3D Wall Murals and Coverings

Brands looking to add a dynamic element to a specific environment frequently turn to wall murals and coverings. There’s a growing push for environmental graphics that integrate a three-dimensional element that’s not only eye-catching but fits a brand’s identity and communicates a message.

9. Treat Space as Branding Real Estate

Think of every surface as an opportunity for another place to create an entire brand experience with your consumer. The floor can be an interesting design element, and a billboard, ceiling, door or a mirror all can be a catalyst for a branded experience.

Determining Your Needs for Experiential Graphics in 2019

The most critical element of environmental graphics that has been developing is authenticity. Experiential graphics only work if they truly reflect your business and brand. Investing in engagement marketing tactics using interactive graphics has to be relevant and meaningful for it to resonate with your audience.

SpeedPro Boston North is your large-format printing partner, and ready to help you devise a strategy to push the envelope of what experiential graphics can do for your brand!