Simply because Sometimes Less is More
The world of social media is diverse.
There will be some who just can’t post without prefixing a Hash Tag before each and every word they write;
#Source : https://www.hashtags.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/hashtag2.jpg
#OVERUSED
But then, there are exceptions too; who manage to wrap up more thoughts within 140 characters than what a thousand words can ever convey.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/terriblytinytales
From blogs to memes, from scraps to tweets, the world of digital media is dynamic. Coping with this volatility, the trend of using minimal text and evoking maximum thoughts in the reader’s mind is now at a boom.
These minimal posters are simple, clear, accurate, catchy and CLEVER. Gone are the days when people cherished reading long texts. Now with a thumb sliding over the touch screen of a smartphone and too many posts flooding the newsfeed every second, these minimal posters have been successful in stealing the show with their unique and eye catchy templates.
In the past few years, a large number of companies, blogs and websites have actually designed their social media campaigns with minimal content along with unforgettable info-graphics. Let’s have a look at some of the brilliant ones that went viral!
- The Happy Page; which brought smiles on millions of faces simply by putting the reasons that made people joyous.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/itsthehappypage/photos/a.142156025981336.1073741828.142144982649107/314877378709199/?type=1&theater
- Zomato’s food porn: There has not been a single image shared by Zomato which failed to tempt the taste buds. Celebrating the love for food, Zomato’s posters with minimum illustrations can be related by every food fanatic.
- Minimal Bollywood Posters: When the entire world is going gaga over minimalism, how can Bollywood be far behind? The content developers of this Facebook Page illustrate the crux of an entire movie with just a simple graphic. Have a look!
- Teach for India: NGOs like Teach for India which aims to spread awareness on promotion of education for underprivileged have also gone minimal. The ‘Find Your Light’ campaign started by the organization was promoted through intellectual, accurate and influential posters and have been appreciated by all.
- The Minimalist- Hat’s off to their fantastic team which comes out with eye opening illustrations that projects a social issue with a different perspective.
Keeping their description minimal, let’s have a look at the brilliant posters they design.
Thus, it is very clear that Minimalism is now all pervasive on social media platforms. An interesting observation is that even though these graphics are extremely easy to create, ideating them is the toughest task! Conveying complex ideas with simple designs no doubt demand a lot of intellect and wit.
Interestingly, there is also a completely other side to the success story of these minimal posters. For some, the pace at which they are gaining popularity reflect that people are actually getting LAZY. Some believe that just because this trend is ‘IN’, graphic designers have started adopting it blindly. Excess of anything can be damaging, be it minimalism. While it is true that too much clutter can create a messy design, but going too minimal fails to reach targeted audience and convey the very basic.
Irrespective of the apprehensions and criticisms that follow, minimal posters have been lauded by all. Seems that Vinci’s saying ‘Simplicity is the Ultimate Sophistication’ has been taken too seriously by the designers and advertisers of the 21st century. Undoubtedly, Minimalism is here to stay. But considering the ever-changing world of social media, the question that arises is till when?
By Vaibhav Agarwal
