Colors have a vital impact on our daily routine in so many ways. Its effect on us not only physically but also psychologically and we tend to be unaware of it. Same as it has a huge impact on our business too. Many businessmen consider color psychology before establishing their business and profile. We can use colors as empowering our self and our business.
A better understanding of colors and their meaning can help you to market your brand in a proper way. These business color psychology are natural, unconscious and powerful and they can easily convey both negative or positive image of you and your business. Most purchasing decisions are made emotionally and then justified logically. So it will be great if you understand their impact and emotions of each color. None of the colors are bad, it’s just the color that is most suitable for that particular business in order to get the response you want.
Here are some color’s psychology which may help you to choose your business color.
Black And White
Black and white are neutral colors. Black represents power, authority and strength. Using too much black can become devastating. In stories, mostly black represents evil but in other hands it is intelligence, professionalism, sadness and mystery. For example “Ralph Lauren’s Polo Black uses black as overwhelming, but in a very powerful way.
White is honest, good and peaceful color. It also represents clarity, purity and salvation. White is considering promoting creative thoughts and also a fresh beginning. Apple has consistently used white as their marketing campaigns and for good reason. It also represents that company cares about cleanness and have creative thoughts.
Now I am going to discuss the psychology of basic colors which included blue, red and yellow.
Blue
Blue is known as men favorite color. Blue represents loyalty, reliability and justice. Blue is also related to precision and intellect making it common color to choose. Many electronic companies for example HP, Samsung and Phillips they all use blue in their corporate brand. Many airlines such as JetBlue, Continental have incorporated with blue. They designed it to suggest security, stability and safety. Many law enforcement is seen wearing blue. Blue is suggested for any business involved in the area of cleanliness. Blue should not be used for food related businesses. This list goes on and on of corporations that use blue color. Ford, Walmart, The Weather Channel, Gap, American Express, AT&T etc.
Red
In color psychology red is a warm and positive color. It is also means energy, passion, action strength and thrill. Red also consider as an appetite stimulant. Think about the fast food industry, you will quickly remember dozens of names of restaurants. Such as McDonalds, Burger King, Denny’s KFC etc. The main idea using this color is speed and quickness.
Yellow
Yellow is a warm and happy color. It’s represents a sense of joyfulness and liveliness. It is optimistic, inspiring and instructive. Yellow motivated brain and mental clarity. It also promotes wisdom and academic proficiency. Too much yellow can cause anxiety and nervousness. It is also very stressful because of the high amount of light. Yellow is a great color for children’s product. If you combine it with other primary or secondary colors. Using yellow where you want a movement is good. It is also a very good promotion tool. Some brand examples that used yellow color are: Shell, MacDonald’s, Subway etc.
Secondary colors that are green, orange and purple has their own psychological effect. Here are some of them.
Green
Mixing blue with yellow makes green. Green is natural and healthy color. Generally, it is considered as a cool color. Because of this, it also considers primary color. The best example of this is Google logo. Either green is not the main color in it but it shows how well green go with other primary colors. To create a calming effect or growth image, green is the best color. One type of green can have a totally different image than the other. Green is usually the best color to use anything to do with health and healing. Different brands also use green color. Such is: Google, H&R Blocks, Bp, Starbucks etc.
Orange
In secondary colors orange made by adding yellow and red. Orange is an adventure, optimism and self confidence color. Orange represents energy and creates enthusiasm. Too much can suggest cheapness. It considers most dislike color in the western world. Orange is a precious color on sale in restaurants, café, bar and bistro. It stimulates appetite. Orange is appealing color for the youth market. As is also represented adventure and suggest affordability.
A softer version of orange like a peach is considered favorably for saloons, spas and treatment center and upper class restaurant.
Purple
Purple is a combo or red and blue. It suggests wealth and lavishness. It also represents loyalty, wisdom and celebration. Purple is often connected with the age 18 – 25 years old target market. As they see purple as sexy and seditious. Web sites related to women and/or children usually use purple color. Medium version of purple mostly used by the academic institution as they inspire intellectual thought and achievement. Children are also attracted to purple along with the primary colors. Brands that used purple color are Crown Royal, Yahoo, Monster.com
Always remember colors do have meaning. Meaning of colors also varies on culture, race, gender and age. So before choosing any color keep that in mind. Your target market is also very important. Using the right color for your brand can lead you to success.
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