Does Flat Design Affect The Overall Attraction of A Brand?
A Shop Talk Show Response
At the 2013 Front End Design Conference, a question was proposed to The Shop Talk Show while they were doing a live podcast by Travis Miller: “Do you think that the flat design trend affects the overall attraction of a brand?” The response went something like this:
“Maybe. If you established your brand on beveled buttons, and that’s the crux of your organization, does that affect it? Yes. It affects it like design affects everything. If you change the way it’s designed, it will make you feel different. MailChimp uses flat and it looks well. Your organization can lose a little character if everything goes flat and square. You have to time it, be the guy that is willing to change it when the time comes.”
They used Mailchimp as an example of a company that uses flat design and implements it well, and I couldn’t agree more.
The thing I found interesting though, was Mailchimp’s use of real life object to compliment the flat design. GASP. I know, and it actually looks freakin’ awesome.
Overall, their look is still flat, but their integration of real objects give the site an awesome, extra element to play around with. They couldn’t have been a more perfect example of a company that timed the flat design trend perfectly and added their own personal flare to make it something special.
If you have any sites that have integrated flat and non-flat elements together well, post them in the comments. I’d love to see more.
