The rise of the AI flyer and why it might be hurting your brand

Over the past week or two I noticed a few people discussing the ‘AI flyers’. The conversation caught my attention because these flyers are almost everywhere. It is almost impossible to ignore how many barbecues, restaurant or dessert promos, sporting activities, fundraisers and promotions overall are starting to look almost identical. Once it is pointed out, it becomes difficult not to see it.

It makes sense why people are using them. AI tools are quick and for the most part, free. You type what you want, click and a graphic appears in seconds. For a small event or a quick promotion it feels like the easiest solution. However, this is where branding issues arise. When everyone is using the same tools in the same way, the visuals start looking identical and if everyone’s flyer looks the same, then none stands out.

A brand is supposed to do the opposite of that.

Marketing scholar Philip Kotler, describes branding as “the art of creating a distinct image in the mind of the consumer” in Marketing Management (Kotler and Keller, Pearson Education). The key word there is distinct. If your visuals blend into everything else on the timeline, that distinctiveness disappears.

What makes this trend even more interesting is that it is not just small businesses or small events using AI flyers. I have seen them from medium sized businesses and other organizations including non-profits. In some cases, these are organizations you would normally expect to have a designer involved. Let’s take a practical example. You are hosting a fundraiser, you might decide that it is more economical to use AI to generate the flyer because it saves money. However, the visual impression of your fundraiser still matters.

A well thought out design can communicate trust, credibility and purpose, which are essential for any non-profit initiative. A generic AI graphic may not fully capture the story or message you are trying to share.

This is why I always advocate that the human side of branding still matters. Your graphic designer does more than arrange images and text (at least a good one should do more). They think about the audience, they understand tone, mood and context and know how colours, typography and layout shape perception.

Martin Lindstrom, global brand strategist and New York Times bestselling author, explains in Brand Sense: Sensory Secrets Behind the Stuff We Buy (Free Press, 2005), that strong brands build recognition through consistent sensory and emotional cues rather than visuals alone. A flyer may seem like a small thing, but it is often the first visual signal people receive about an event or a brand. The colours, typography, imagery and layout all send subtle cues about what people should expect. A barbecue flyer should feel different from a corporate conference flyer or a charity fundraiser. Even a simple school bake sale has a tone and personality. In other words, it is the preview of the experience.

Additionally, your design must be scrolling stopping. When someone is scrolling through social media, their brain is making quick decisions about what deserves attention. If every flyer starts looking the same, the brain begins to treat them as something it has already seen. What does this mean? People scroll past it! In many cases they technically saw the flyer, but it never really registered. It is similar to something that happens with radio. You may have the radio playing in the background while you are working or driving. Later someone asks what song was playing and you cannot remember. The radio was on, but your brain had already tuned it out. The same thing happens on social media. If a flyer does not capture attention visually, it becomes background noise. People saw it, but it is almost as if they never saw it at all.

Saving money on design may feel practical in the short term, but branding is not only about cost, it is about perception. A flyer is not just information, it is often the first signal people receive about your event, your initiative or your brand.

AI can absolutely assist the creative process. Many designers are already using it to explore ideas, generate references and speed up parts of their workflow but that is why prompt engineering is becoming a skill. In those cases, AI supports the work rather than replacing the thinking behind it. The real problem arises when AI becomes the entire process.

In a digital space filled with instant graphics, the brands that will stand out are not the ones producing the fastest flyer but the ones producing the most recognizable one.

Candice Sealey is the Founder & Principal Consultant at Ignite! a Full-service Marketing & PR Consultancy that helps businesses/brands to stand out and communicate the right message to the right people at the right time through Strategy, Marketing, Media services and Design solutions. She is also a freelance content writer, advertising copywriter, voice-over talent, media personality. Follow us on FB & IG @igniteresults Phone:784-432-2223. Email: igniteresults@gmail.com