Colour is one of the most important elements of your brand identity. It can help you stand out from the crowd, communicate your values, and evoke emotions in your audience. But how do you choose the right colours for your brand? How do you use colour psychology to influence your customers? And how do you keep up with the latest colour trends?
In this blog post, we will answer these questions and more. We will show you how to use colour as a powerful tool to create a memorable and meaningful brand experience.
What are Brand Colours?
Brand colours are the specific hues and shades that you use to represent your brand across all channels, from your logo to your website to your packaging. They are part of your visual identity, along with other elements such as fonts, shapes, and icons.
Brand colours go beyond aesthetics. They have a strategic purpose: to establish brand recognition and identity, to evoke emotions and associations, and to differentiate your brand from your competitors.
According to research, colour can increase brand recognition by up to 80%. That means that when people see your brand colours, they will instantly associate them with your brand name, values, and personality.
For example, think of Coca-Cola. The company has been using its signature red and white colours since 1886. Red represents excitement, passion, and energy, while white represents purity and simplicity. These colours have become synonymous with the brand and are instantly recognizable by people worldwide.
How to Choose Brand Colours?
Choosing brand colours is not a random or subjective process. It requires careful consideration of your brand strategy, target audience, industry, and competitors. Here are some steps to help you choose the right colours for your brand:
Define your brand personality.
What are the core values and attributes that define your brand? How do you want your customers to perceive you? Are you playful or serious? Modern or classic? Innovative or traditional? Your brand personality will guide you in selecting colours that match your tone and voice.
Understand colour psychology.
Colour psychology is the study of how colours affect human behaviour and emotions. Different colours can evoke different feelings and associations in people, depending on their culture, context, and personal preferences. For example, green can signify growth, health, and nature, while red can symbolize passion, excitement, and urgency. You can use colour psychology to choose colours that align with your brand personality and message.
Research your industry and competitors.
What are the common colours used in your industry? What are the colours of your main competitors? You want to choose colours that fit your industry standards and stand out from the crowd. You don’t want to look too similar or too different from your peers. You want to find a balance between familiarity and uniqueness.
Create a colour palette.
A colour palette is a set of colours that work well together and create a harmonious visual effect. You can use online tools such as Coolors or Adobe Color to generate colour palettes based on your preferences or inspiration. A typical colour palette consists of three to five colours: a primary colour, a secondary colour, and one or more accent colours. Your primary colour is the main colour of your brand, used for logos, headlines, buttons, etc. Your secondary colour is the complementary colour of your primary colour, used for backgrounds, borders, etc. Your accent colours are the contrasting colours that add variety and interest to your design, used for highlights, icons, etc.
Test and refine your colour palette.
Once you have created a colour palette, you need to test it on different platforms and devices, such as web browsers, mobile phones, print materials, etc. You also need to get feedback from your target audience and stakeholders. You want to make sure that your colours look good on different screens and formats, that they are accessible and readable for people with visual impairments or colour blindness (you can use tools such as Contrast Checker or WebAIM Color Contrast Checker), and that they resonate with your customers.
How to Use Colour Psychology in Branding
Colour psychology is not an exact science. It is based on general principles and trends that may vary depending on individual factors such as age, gender, culture, mood, etc.
However, it can still provide useful insights into how people perceive and react to different colours.
Here are some common meanings and associations of different colours in branding:
- Red is a powerful and stimulating colour that can evoke feelings of excitement, passion, urgency, danger, or aggression. It can be used to attract attention, create a sense of urgency, or convey confidence and energy. Some examples of brands that use red are Coca-Cola, Netflix, YouTube, and Red Bull.
- Orange is a warm and vibrant colour that can evoke feelings of creativity, fun, optimism, adventure, or enthusiasm. It can be used to express a friendly, playful, or innovative personality, or to appeal to a youthful audience. Some examples of brands that use orange are Fanta, Nickelodeon, and Amazon.
- Yellow is a bright and cheerful colour that can evoke feelings of happiness, joy, curiosity, hope, or positivity. It can be used to communicate a positive, optimistic, or cheerful message, or to stimulate curiosity and interest. Some examples of brands that use yellow are McDonald’s, IKEA, Snapchat, and National Geographic.
- Green is a natural and soothing colour that can evoke feelings of growth, health, nature, balance, or harmony. It can be used to represent environmental or social causes, to promote wellness or sustainability, or to convey a sense of calmness and stability. Some examples of brands that use green are Starbucks, Spotify, and Impact Marketers.
- Blue is a cool and professional colour that can evoke feelings of trust, security, reliability, loyalty, or intelligence. It can be used to establish credibility or authority, to create a sense of trust or safety, or to communicate a logical or rational message. Some examples of brands that use blue are Facebook, IBM, PayPal, and Samsung.
- Purple is a royal and mysterious colour that can evoke feelings of luxury, elegance, creativity, spirituality, or magic. It can be used to express a sophisticated or premium quality, to stimulate imagination or inspiration, or to convey a sense of mystery or uniqueness. Some examples of brands that use purple are Cadbury, Hallmark, Twitch, and FedEx.
- Pink is a feminine and romantic colour that can evoke feelings of love, affection, beauty, compassion, or sweetness. It can be used to appeal to a female audience, to express a soft or gentle personality, or to communicate a caring or nurturing message. Some examples of brands that use pink are Barbie and T-Mobile.
- White is a neutral and clean colour that can evoke feelings of purity, simplicity, clarity, innocence, or minimalism. It can be used to create contrast or space in your design, to highlight other colours or elements, or to communicate a clear or simple message. Some examples of brands that use white are Apple, Nike, Google, and Dove.
- Black is a bold and sophisticated colour that can evoke feelings of power, elegance, mystery, luxury, or sophistication. It can be used to create a strong or dramatic impression, to express a high-end or exclusive quality, or to convey a sense of mystery or intrigue. Some examples of brands that use black are Chanel, Gucci, Netflix, and Mercedes-Benz.
- Grey is a neutral and balanced colour that can evoke feelings of professionalism, practicality, reliability, maturity, or neutrality. It can be used to create a subtle or understated effect in your design, to complement other colours or elements, or to communicate a neutral or objective message. Some examples of brands that use grey are Apple, Honda, and Wikipedia.
Are you having difficulties choosing the right colours for your brand? are you thinking about rebranding? Our Graphic Design Services can assist you with all your branding needs.
