Colour Psychology in Marketing

Humans are visual beings- so visual that colors play a much larger role in subconsciously affecting our purchase decisions than we think. The way in which a person may react to a certain color may differ from person to person, however, in most cases they remain almost similar. Color is known to impact a consumer’s perception of a product or brand based on things such as personal experiences, cultural differences, and personal preferences, which may vary from person to person. These experiences and preferences impact the way people perceive things, including colors.

It is because of this impact of colors that companies test the colors of things like advertisements, banner ads, and call-to-action (CTA) buttons. A button color test here at HubSpot revealed that a red CTA button outperformed a green CTA button by 21%.

What is color psychology?

Color psychology is the study of colors with respect to human behavior. It is an area of research that studies how colors affect our way of thinking and decision making. A factor as small and seemingly simple as the color of a product or branding may compel or discourage a consumer from a purchase or cause them to choose one brand over another.

Color psychology in Marketing

Color psychology is important when it comes to branding because it helps boost brand recognition and awareness. Consumers resonate certain colors with certain emotions and aspects which influence what they feel about the brand and in turn affect their buying behavior. There are two types of colors on the color wheel, warm colors, and cool colors. Warm colors, such as reds, oranges, and yellows are ideal for creating energy and emotion in your designs. Cool colors, such as blues, greens, pinks, and purples are best for creating a design that is more calming and soothing. Some of the most recognizable brands in the world rely on the colors used in their logos to help with recognition. Let us look at a few brands and how they have used color psychology to appeal to their target audiences.

Red

The colour red is often associated with fire, anger, danger, etc but when it comes to branding it might represent power, passion, fearlessness, and strength. Red colour triggers powerful emotions both positive and negative creates a sense of urgency which is why it is effective with sales. It also encourages appetite, hence is frequently used in the fast-food sector and also gets the pulse racing which is why it is synonymous with fast cars. It depicts a bold, adventurous, and energetic personality.

Blue

Blue has a very calming effect on the mind and is the colour of reason. It’s the colour of strength, wisdom, and trust which is why it is used so widely. There are no blue foods in nature which is why it suppresses the appetite. Blue is a safe option but consider if it will help you stand out in your space. The blue colours relate to loyalty, dependability, serenity, and logic but on the negative side, it represents coldness, emotionlessness, unfriendliness.

Orange

Orange is the colour of courage, confidence, warmth, and friendliness. It generates a feeling of warmth as it is associated with the Sun. It is considered bright, light, and fun so it may suit a non-corporate brand. We associate darker shades with autumn which lends itself to ‘earthy’ brands. It gives out an adventurous, competitive and disaffected personality. Unfortunately, many people consider this colour cheap but that may work if that’s your angle.

Yellow

The colour yellow tends to make people feel happy and optimistic. Youthfulness, happiness, fun, and sunshine are represented by it. The strong positive emotions are offset with logistical challenges (eg contrast). Shades of yellow can look dirty while tints can challenge your eyesight. It can look powerful when used as a seasoning with a darker colour.

Green

The colour of nature, growth, health. Freshness and prosperity are known as green. It is a very relaxing colour that is easy on the eye and synonymous with health. We have a strong primitive relationship with green as it represents life. This colour is very common amongst ‘healthy’ brands from pharmaceuticals to organic food. It can also be linked to the growth of power eg. money, military, banking, finance, etc. It gives out an open, friendly, and authentic personality.

Purple

Purple is the symbol of wisdom, wealth, and sophistication. History shows that purple has long been the colour of supremacy such as royalty. It lends itself to the brands that want to position their offer as prestigious. Excess and extravagance are also associations with this colour so brands have to tread carefully. Its shades can be quite moody while tints can be used to showcase femininity. Sensitive, dignified, and understanding are the personality traits of this colour.

Black

Elegance, power, sophistication, and authority are easily related to the colour black. But on the other hand, negative traits like evil, mourning, and oppression are also related to black. Black is a powerful colour which is synonymous with luxury and power. High street brands are renowned for their simplistic black and white colour palette. The sparing addition of any bright colour with black can add energy to sophistication. It is well suited to some industries (eg fashion) but not too well suited for others (eg health). It has a confident, decisive, and serious personality tone.