Beige Branding: How outrage culture is smothering creativity
From ‘live and let live’ to ‘everyone must care’
It wasn’t that long ago that if you saw an advert, campaign, or message that wasn’t your cup of tea, you’d shrug and move on. “Not for me,” you’d think, and life went on.
Not anymore.
Today, everyone has an opinion on everything, whether or not it was meant for them. Instead of ignoring, people react. They share, condemn, pile on. A small spark of offence can turn into a firestorm within hours.
The old “live and let live” ideology has been replaced with “if I don’t like it, no one should.”
The cancel reflex
That shift has created a dangerous reflex for brands.
One wrong word, one clumsy piece of imagery, one misjudged campaign, and suddenly you’re not just ignored, you’re cancelled.
Sometimes the criticism is fair. Sometimes it’s wildly disproportionate. But either way, it’s risky enough that brands choose the safest option: say nothing, offend no one, stand for nothing.
The result? Campaigns so bland they disappear before you’ve even noticed them.
The beige effect
Fear of offence doesn’t just silence bad ideas, it smothers bold ones too.
Brands that might once have pushed creative boundaries now second-guess everything. Entire campaigns are watered down in endless rounds of “what if someone takes this the wrong way?” The end product is safe, beige, forgettable.
But here’s the irony: when everyone’s shouting about everything, the only way to actually be heard is to stand out. And you can’t stand out if you’re beige.
A call for bravery
Yes, brands have a responsibility to be thoughtful. Yes, they should avoid lazy stereotypes or harmful messaging. But there’s a difference between responsibility and fear.
If we let outrage culture dictate every creative decision, we’ll end up with a world where no one takes risks, no one says anything meaningful, and no one remembers your brand.
The future belongs to brands that are brave enough to resist the beige. We’ve seen it in action: Yorkshire Tea refused to pander when politics dragged them into the spotlight, and their honesty won them respect. Aldi built an entire personality on being cheeky and fearless online. Specsavers has turned quick-witted humour into a national institution.
None of them play safe. And that’s why they stand out.
Because the truth is: you can’t build a brand for everyone. And you shouldn’t try.
Author: Lance Corrigan
Creative designer with a passion for visual communication and brand development, and a vision to make a positive impact on the world through design.
