What are colours saying about your business and brand?

Didn't think colour had much to do except for making things look nice? Well, don't feel bad, it's a very common thing to overlook when thinking about your business, especially for new businesses just starting up. Paying attention to colour and your brand is crucial for any business, advertisement, flyer or poster. Colours can say a lot about a business, and some colours are even trending in business and marketing effecting the largest companies to change things up.

It's all about the Colour

Think about "Green" being eco-friendly is very trendy in marketing right now, and companies have gone to great lengths to change and add green into their marketing, design, brand and products.

The Institute for Colour Research states the following about colour, and the way it effects people.

92.6 % of respondents said that they put most importance on visual factors when purchasing products. Only 5.6 % said that the physical feel via the sense of touch was most important. Hearing and smell each drew 0.9 %.

When asked to approximate the importance of color when buying products, 84.7 % of the total respondents think that color accounts for more than half among the various factors important for choosing products.

Lets take a look at some different colours and what they mean.

Red » Activity, Life, Passion, Strength

Red is a very common logo in food, as well as medicine. Its used by brands Such as Virgin to promote a sense of fun, and active, its used by the Red Cross to display life and strength. Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Wendys use the colour red very prominently. Its often associated with food companies.

Orange » Warmth, Optimism, Hope, Open, Liberated, Relatable

Orange is not a colour used often, but when it is used it can be very effective in conveying its intended message. Its often used with mobile phone companies (think open and communication), as well as charities and social/community groups.

Green » Wilderness, Free, Earthly, Invigorating, Luck, Educated, Wealth

Everyone has seen green advertising promoting the companys commitment to being eco-friendly, not all greens convey the same message. Lime greens are popular in fashion, a more clover green is popular with food stuffs, and candy, while a rich hunter green is associated with luxury, education and wealth. Both Rolex and Jaguar frequently use green in their branding and advertising.

Black » Powerful, Direct, Luxury, Recognition

Black is the most common colour used in logos, work marks and logotypes. Its conveys strength, and clarity in marketing and is commonly used by clothing companies especially luxury brands. Many companies use black with the Helvetica font to display clarity and strength behind their brand for example: American Apparel, Crat & Barrel, the Swiss Railway company. Black is often used in signage in airports, train stations and other public places for its clarity.

Blue » Trust, Experienced, Calmness, Serenity

Blue is used widely by many small and large companies to display its sense of trust. Chase Manhattan, HP, and American Express all use a strong blue to display the trust you can have with their brand as well as their experience. Social Media companies such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter use blue to convey a sense of calmness, trust and openness to their brand. All of those feelings are essential to a social platform of any kind.

Pink » Feminine, Friendly, Soft, Caring

Pink is often associated with women and girls. Many brands such as Victorias Secret and Roxy use pink to convey their message that their products are strictly for women.

Pink has become a clear colour in marketing for causes and charity, most notably the Pink Breast Cancer Awareness campaign.

Purple » Royalty, Forward Thinking, Strength

Purple is a rare colour in nature, and also in the Marketing and Branding world. It gives off a feeling of strength, exclusiveness and forward thinking.

Yellow » Happiness, Joy, Fun, Enthusiasm, Youth

Yellow is often used by food companies to promote a healthy lifestyle and a playful feeling to remind people that they will enjoy themselves when using their product. Its often used in marketing to children, and often used in spring marketing campaigns to mark the changing of the season.

Grey » Style, Innovation, Technical, Elite

The use of grey is very common with software and tech companies with its connotation to innovation and technical feelings. It's a strong colour, that is less strong and abrasive as black. Many motor car manufacturers use grey as it displays a stylish and innovative feel. Both of which are crucial to any car company.

Aqua » Dynamic, Fresh, New. Cleanliness

Meaning water this colour gives off a fresh and clean feeling. Commonly used in products new to the market or new in invention. This colour is common in younger companies wanting to be noticed. This colour is often used by cleaning companies to advertise new products.

Brown » Earthy, Stable, Reliable. Warmth, Experience

Brown can be sophisticated when it invokes the sense of experience and a feeling of trust. Its used by many Law Firms and companies in the Legal field, Doctors Offices, and Architectural firms. It also can also stimulate feelings of hunger, and is often used by restaurants, wine bars, and high end lounges.

White » Luxury, Hope, Clean, Open

White is used in conjunction with another colour, most commonly black. Its often used with black by luxury brands such as Hermes, Chanel, Gucci. Its simple, and clean, a look and feel sought after by Luxury brands.

Thinking about rebranding? Getting a new logo?

You may want to think carefully about the colours you use, and how they apply to your company or product. Don't try and re-invent the wheel with colour schemes, most colours seen in real life are typically the most effective. As a general rule, if the colour is not on the pantone list then its better to stay away from it.

If you need some help coming up with a new logo or brand for your company or product, don't hesitate to get in touch with us. You can email the Print and Design department at print@gocip.com or give us a call at 403-262-7224.

 

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