Create ideas using: Make it nostalgic

How do I tap into nostalgia without just being a cheap throwback?

Connect the nostalgia to a genuine emotional truth about why that era mattered, not just surface aesthetics. Don't just slap on '90s fonts and call it a day. What was the feeling, the freedom, the innocence of that time? Capture that emotion and show how your brand delivers it now. Nostalgia is about longing, not just remembering.

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What if my target audience is too young to be nostalgic for anything?

Then create borrowed nostalgia--the appeal of a time they didn't live through but romanticize. Gen Z loves '90s aesthetics they never experienced. Or find their nostalgia: early internet, specific cultural moments from their childhood. Everyone's nostalgic for something. Your job is to find what resonates and connect it to your brand story.

Example: How it could look

A vinyl record subscription service doesn't just sell records--they recreate the ritual of Saturday record store trips. The packaging mimics old record store bags. The experience guide references listening to full albums, reading liner notes, discovering B-sides. They're selling the nostalgia of music as an event, not background noise.

Or like this:

Why is Make it nostalgic a great technique?

Nostalgia creates instant emotional connection by linking your brand to positive memories and feelings from the past.

Triggers powerful emotional responses and memory

Creates comfort through familiarity and safety

Differentiates through specific cultural touchstones

Builds community around shared generational experiences

Nostalgia works because it taps into a universal human desire to return to simpler, happier times. When you connect that longing to your brand, you're not just selling a product--you're offering an emotional time machine. Just make sure you're delivering the feeling, not just the props.

! When not to use the Make it nostalgic Technique

When you're using nostalgia as a lazy crutch instead of having an actual idea. Retro aesthetics without emotional resonance are just theft from better times.

Technique first described by www.deckofbrilliance.com

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