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Everywhere we look we see elements of design. With industrial design, we see civil engineering, we see art, and we see architecture. We see it in every single aspect of our lives. What we don’t know about design is that it lays the foreground for decisions. As much as one thinks that they are completely independent in their choice, there is an influence affecting the outcome.

This kind of sway is rooted deep in the psychology of why and how we make decisions. That, overwhelmingly, exists in design. Have you ever passed by an advertisement every day? Of course, you have. People pass 3D signage all the time. It gets to the point where if you pass by a restaurant’s ad and you’re craving burgers, there’s a statistically significant chance that you will choose the burger that you see every day. You don’t even have to be aware that the ad exists. It can be completely subconscious.

Principles In Motion

The new forefront of advertising is with three-dimensional ads. You know, the ones that you see for video games and Internet promos. Those same principles can be applied to anything. Gone are the days where one can just throw an ad copy to a flat image. We want things that pop. We want things that catch your eye in a way that is both appealing and otherworldly. This is why 3-D ads are so powerful.

You can be flipping or scrolling and stop just to admire the artwork. There’s a level of futurism and fantastical layout that is simply beautiful. Do you want a giant shoe against the background of the city? 3-D can make that happen. Do you want an image of your favorite cartoon characters popping out of a TV screen? 3-D can make that impact for you. Three-dimensional art and design make for demographic-bending and fun pieces. This is perfect for advertising in the modern age.

Here, we will explore the basic principles of design as applied to 3-D advertisements. We’ll look at how the hours and hours put into refining these principles make for a superior product. Lastly, we will take a look at the psychological impact of these ads, and how it relates to the expansion of the business. These tools are extremely powerful. Some of them are not quite understood yet. But the undeniable truth is that if you use them, they will up your sales numbers better than any kind of flat image on a glossy, forgotten page.

Syntax

Advertising is essentially target communication. It’s Conveying an idea through different mediums in speech. Although moving ads and commercials employ speech, basic designs as applied to 3-D advertisements, or primarily visual conversations. Because of this, the concept of visual syntax becomes very important. The visual syntax is the straight line between what the designer wants and what the audience perceives. Between the two is the art itself and what the audience sees. It is then that the audience formed their interpretation and conclusion based on what is presented to them.

This poses a bit of a conundrum that we often see in the design. Can the designer accurately deliver what is in their head? Can the intent that the designer wants to put out there consistently hit the right interpretation points? This is the core of visual syntax. So when it comes to 3-D ads, you still need to employ this basic notion. Just because the technology is improved doesn’t mean that communication has changed.

Context and Environment

Context is huge when it comes to 3-D ads. This becomes apparent when marketing is brainstorming, trying to find the target demographics for a product. One is not going to sell adult diapers to 30-year-olds? But adult diapers can be sold to 30-year-olds with aging parents. The product itself didn’t change at all. They’re still diapers. You still poop in them. The intended user didn’t change either. They are still meant for older individuals who have lost a bit of smooth muscle tone that allows them to keep in bodily fluids. What changed this was going to spend it. That is where the context in design meets marketing.

In the same light, cultural and environmental context works to increase sales within a locale. A perfect example is the use of colloquialisms spelled out in a 3-D form. To take a piece from two-dimensional art, “Yo! MTV Raps” was not targeted for the older, predominantly Caucasian demographics. It was targeted towards youth that was entrenched in hip-hop culture in the late 80s. That context that translated individual media still holds up. You need to understand the demographic.

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Drawing from Nature

The three-dimensional design doesn’t have to be pigeonholed. It doesn’t have to be a fantastical video game you’re advertising. It doesn’t have to be graffiti art around the city selling a sneaker. 3-D art can be whatever the correct context is. We receive and accept visual design based on form. We take from nature and we morph it. More often than not the abstract prevails in three-dimensional design. It doesn’t necessarily have to. We just see that the original adopters of 3-D advertising used it to promote the abstract.

Organic forms and shapes can lend to texture in the 3-D space. It doesn’t have to be vines growing out of a woman’s dress. It can be very literal. Drawing from nature in that literal sense can be a useful tool in advertising to people in large cities. There’s a reason why every Brooklyn apartment has 1 million plants. They’re trying to re-create something. Their organic movements in places that are primarily concrete. So taking a literal in terms of visual design is not the worst idea. It works more often than not.

Design is everything in three-dimensional ads. You don’t have a good ad without the design and the people behind the work. Because of this, focusing on the artist and the ability of the artists to convey an idea should be your number one priority. Design is capable of speaking for itself. Give it a chance, and I can speak to you. You won’t regret the investment.