Sam Leith wrote in the FT recently about what he called ‘emotive calls to action’ being a key feature of the language of politics in 2016 – the year “rhetoric went away from optimism and towards aggression; away from argument and towards assertion”. About how politicians, political parties, collectives and lobby groups are using “simpler, impatient and more outsiderish language”. 2016 is clearly the year we got angry!
Is this a trend we anticipate will be picked up by brands in 2017? Does anger and pessimism sell? Not necessarily – but there’s no denying that impatience is becoming the new norm. This is why at Heavenly we focus on ideas for an impatient world, on adding value by making things simpler. With shorter attention spans, you need a shorter elevator pitch…
Though we should all relish this new breed of assertive, questioning and demanding consumer, hopefully the move away from optimism will be short-lived. And so it seems, in the world of fashion at the very least, where we hear that ‘Optimism Chic’ is THE ‘in’ look for 2017. Maybe ‘optimism branding’ will follow suit!