JUL 09 2018
How to select colors that suit your brand
Manikankana Das
How to select colors that suit your brand
The key to right branding is the right positioning and color of your brand plays a vital role in shaping your brand image.
But the question is how to know what color goes with your brand?
The answer to this is hidden inside your brand positioning. It is found that the choice of colors changes from men to women and young people to old people. While women are mostly fond of Reds, Pinks and Purples, on the contrary men mostly prefer Blues, Browns and Greys. So, it is clear that your brand color should please your target group. According to marketer, Neil Patel, Color psychology can be used to make an impact on your consumers as soon as they visit your website.
Now the next question is how to know what color stands for what emotion. When we asked our inhouse experienced designers, here’s what they had to say about each color:
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Red: The colour of passion, energy, danger, urgency, aggression and heat; red is perfect for brands that reflect these values and is also a great colour for food brands, since it stimulates appetite. Eg. Coca Cola
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Green: This soothing colour is ideal for businesses that aim to show freshness, naturality, growth and financial well-being. Eg. Starbucks
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Blue: Blue is mostly associated with ‘calmness’, ‘Trust’, ‘Unity’, and ‘Peace’. Brands with uniform community values mostly opt for the color blue. Eg: Facebook.
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Pink: Think “pink” and the first association is femininity. However, the colour can also be fun and flirty. It is also great to give a floral and fragrant feel. Eg. Barbie
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Yellow: Although this is a common sight on “caution” and “warning” signs, the colour is great to show feelings of warmth and joy, due to its sunny hue. Like red, yellow too is a great stimulator of hunger. Eg. McDonalds
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Orange: A feeling of youth, positivity, cheer, approachability and innovation is what this colour spreads. Eg. Penguin Publishers
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Purple: The rich hues of purple inspire the feeling of magic, mystery, wonder and royalty. It can even be used to show supernatural elements. Eg. Cadbury
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Brown: Associated with manliness, this colour can also be used to give an earthy feel. It can also be used to give a rural feel. Eg. FabIndia
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Black: Coupled with white, it gives the ultimate feel of sophistication. However, it can also denote death and other dark elements. Eg. Adidas
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White: Ideal to show peace, clarity, purity and simplicity. But like black, it too can denote spookiness. Eg. Calvin Klein
Many marketing researchers have emphasised that color is one of the responsive elements for brand recall too. For eg. Coca Cola's association with the color red is so predominant that the color red has become a part of their brand image. Similar examples can be drawn from Mc. Donalds’ association with red and yellow and Pepsi’s association with the color blue.
Whatever color you choose for your brand, it’s important that the target market you want to capture must associate with your brand color. Here are a few more points to remember:
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It is important to have a black and white logo for broader usage in places where a coloured logo won’t be suitable. Also, one of the first tasks of making an impactful logo is to convert your logo to black and white in order to check the prominence of the logo design.
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Multi Colour logos are not a good idea. The lesser the color, the more prominent your logo will look. Some of the examples can be drawn from Nike, Apple and Mc. Donalds. Your brand color should evoke emotions related to your brand image.
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If your brand is catering to a specified gender, it’s better if you choose the color according to the prefered colors by that particular gender.
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Be aware of the demography of the market you want to capture while choosing your brand color.
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The color chosen should look the same across all the mediums like digital and print. One good practise for this is referring to pantone shades while choosing colours.
Although there’s no hard and fast rule for the selection of colors when it comes to branding, with a little research and insights, one can always achieve the specific goal of choosing the right color that will be in sync with your brand value.
Still unsure about your brand’s logo color choice?
It’s always great to talk to industry experts.
Contact us at: info@01design.com
