Like all creative things, there are always trends that come and go. Some trends turn out to be quick, while others have a longer and more impact. One trend that has been raising eyebrows in a good way is flat logo design.

What is flat design? According to Wikipedia, it’s a design aesthetic that is minimalism and does not have that 3D effect. For example, you it does not have any drop shadows, gradients or textures in flat design because all stylistic choices give the impression of depth. There’s a website entirely devoted to showcasing flat design in all its wisdom.

Big Brands Switching to Flat Design

Apple is the perfect example of a massive tech company that was well ahead of the flat design trend that’s taking the logo world by storm right now. Its current logo, which meets all of the requirements for a flat design has been around since 1999. However, Apple has until recently embraced skeuomorphism, which explains why so many Apple buttons and icons in the company’s products and website were in 3D.

After iOS 7, it became clear that the Apple shifted more committedly to flat design than ever before. It did this at the right time, when this design aesthetic was just taking off. It has to be noted that Apple’s shift to a flat design is more slow instead of quickly. For example, the icons and buttons of iOS 7 simply look flatter than any other Apple user interface of the past; technically, they’re still not 100% flat…but it’s a work in progress!

Why Is Flat Design So Popular?

One reason a trend begins to gain popularity and pop up in increasing places is because of it’s coverage. Flat design has been covered in many outlets over the past few years. As more consumers get exposed to this design philosophy, it resonates with them.

But that doesn’t account for all of flat design’s “takeover” effect. Take Microsoft for example, In 2006 it played around with flat design with its now-obsolete Zune player; in 2010, it applied flat design to its Windows Phone 7. The availability of these products to their customer helped to make flat design take presidence in the collective consciousness of its customers.

The increased exposure to flat design also found it’s way to more brands adopting flat design for their own logos.

Look at Facebook and what it’s done with it’s= buttons and icons. Facebook just switched to flat design for the logo graphics of its various pages. Whereas pages for developers, privacy, security, universities and mobile once sported a noticeable, 3D look, they now proudly show a flat design aesthetic.

Google also jumped onboard the flat design. For example, this screenshot of Google Now, the company’s “intelligent personal assistant,” clearly shows a flat design aesthetic.

Advantages of Flat Logo Design 

One reason flat logo design has expanded in influence is because of the number of design advantages it has. These advantages are diverse and offer stylistic, but also very practical advantages. Let’s look at every flat design advantage in detail:

Vibrant Colours Make an Impression – One of the trademarks of any flat logo design is bold and striking colours. This is not just a stylistic choice; it’s driven by desire. Since flat design removes elements like drop shadows and gradients to present a 3D effect, graphic designers have to use another way to indicate where one border or line ends and where another begins. By increasing contrast by way of colours, flat design is able to achieve this.

Clean Look – Because of its emphasis on minimalism, flat design creates a clean look. An clean look is useful in logo design because it communicates what your brand’s about so much more effectively and quickly rather than a complicated logo. In the end, this helps your customers connect much more easily with your business.

Better on Mobile – Flat design is a lot more mobile-friendly than any other design approach. This is something of a contradiction because buttons and icons in 3D were very popular in the early days of mobile phones. But, as time has passed and developers have understood more about designing, it was discovered that flat design scaled a lot more easily on a mobile.

Final Conclusion

Flat design has already made a big impact, and it’s here to stay for at least a while. What originally began as a quiet move by Microsoft has now expanded to where more tech companies are jumping aboard the flat logo design bandwagon. It’s interesting to note that a lot of old economy business have already been using a flat design in their logos for some time.

If you think that your brand can benefit from this, then you should think hard about getting a DesignLab to design a logo for your business that uses this flat aesthetic. After all, it’s trendy to advertise this design on your logo. We know that trends don’t last forever, but it’s safe to say that flat design still has a long life ahead.