Colours are powerful tools that shape perceptions, influence emotions and communicate your brand’s identity at a glance.
Understanding colour psychology can unlock the secret to resonating with your target audience.
In this guide we’ll dive deep into the psychology behind 16 unique colours, uncovering how each can influence your branding efforts through the principles of color psychology.
Whether you’re designing a logo, website or marketing materials, this knowledge will help you make informed decisions and create a brand that stands out in the competitive market.
How Colours Affect Emotions & Behaviour
Colours can evoke a wide range of emotions and reactions, influenced by personal experiences, cultural backgrounds and individual preferences.
For example, the colour blue is often associated with feelings of calmness and serenity, making it a popular choice for brands that want to convey trust and reliability.
By understanding how different colours affect emotions and behaviour, businesses can strategically use colour psychology to enhance their marketing and branding efforts.
16 Unique Colours & Meanings
Let’s take a look at 16 of the most popular colours in today’s world and uncover their deeper meanings.
Red
Action, courage, desire, determination, energy, love, passion, potency and power.
Red is a warm and energetic colour with its high energy and strength drawing attention to itself and demanding action be taken.
This colour can inflict psychological effects that stimulates and energizes the body, raising your blood pressure and heart rate.
It increases your appetite and therefore can be a great colour for any food product or restaurants and cafes.
On the other hand, red is a universal sign of danger and it can also create anger or aggression when used in the wrong areas.
Orange
Competition, courage, determination, force, productivity, strength, success and vitality.
Orange is a warm, vibrant and flamboyant colour.
It is optimistic, sociable, suggests affordability and inspires enthusiasm.
In business orange gives the impression of affordability, depending on the shade chosen and its combination with other colours but too much can suggest cheapness.
Yellow
Caution, curiosity, happiness, intellect, joy, optimism, vision and warmth.
Yellow is an illuminating and uplifting colour which assists with mental clarity.
Lemon yellow in particular, is a bright and cheerful shade that stands out, though it is often overshadowed by more unique and creative color names.
It promotes wisdom and inspires original thinking and creative ideas.
Overused, yellow can cause anxiety and nervousness while also making some overly critical or judgmental.
Green
Environmental, growth, healing, luck, nature, tranquility, peace, rebirth, relaxation and youth.
Green is a colour of growth and vitality, associated with new life and renewal.
Darker shades represent wealth and prestige while lighter shades represent growth and freshness.
Too much green can lead to feelings of envy, greed and selfishness however.
Turquoise
Balance, calmness, clarity, communication, compassion, healing and inspiration.
Turquoise balances and recharges the emotions and inspires good communication skills and self-expression.
It can be a good colour for health clinics and practitioners as it balances the emotions and calms the spirit.
Too much turquoise however can can create indecision.
Blue
Authority, confidence, integrity, intelligence, loyalty, peace, reliability, trust, truth and wisdom.
Blue is the most favoured colour globally and is therefore the safest to use.
It relates to trust, honesty and dependability and therefore helps to build customer loyalty.
Blue works well for more conservative businesses such as accountants, insurance companies, banks and other financial companies where trust and reliability are important.
However, too much blue can encourage boredom or a rigid outlook.
Indigo
Faithful, idealism, integrity, obedience, selflessness, sincerity, structure and visionary.
Indigo is a powerful and strong colour which conveys integrity, sincerity and stimulates creativity and intuition.
It imparts a message of great responsibility and high ideals but some see it as depressing or boring.
Purple
Creative, fantasy, humanitarian, intuitive, inventive, mystery, psychic and selfless.
Purple implies wealth, quality, fantasy and creativity.
It heightens people’s sense of beauty and their reaction to more creative ideas.
Too much of the colour can promote or aggravate depression in some individuals.
Magenta
Compassionate, emotions, harmony, imaginative, innovative, kind, love, spiritual and supportive.
Magenta represents compassion and kindness, it encourages a balanced outlook based on common sense.
Lots of magenta can generate arrogance making us feel overwhelmed or irritated.
Pink
Calming, compassion, feminine, hope, innocence, love, nurturing, sweetness and understanding.
The pink colour inspires compassion and calmness as it is a non-threatening colour used most often in feminine businesses.
It is feminine and youthful in its softer shades, with more passion and energy in its darker ones.
However it can represent a lack of will power or self-worth when overused.
Gold
Abundance, beauty, expensive, luxury, prestige, quality, value, victory and wealth.
Gold is associated with value, luxury, prestige and reflects wisdom, beauty and generosity.
Paired with purple it can indicate wealth and beauty, with dark blue it suggests trustworthiness and success, black suggests extreme opulence and wealth and white creates an elegant impression.
It can induce great feelings of happiness and bliss or alternatively, deep anxiety and fear.
Silver
Balancing, conservative, distinguished, glamorous, illumination, modern, scientific, sleek and sophisticated.
Silver is a modern and sophisticated colour while still being calming and uplifting.
On packaging it looks sleek, with a coolness that relates well to science and technology.
However, it can be seen as dull, lifeless, cold and insincere.
Black
Authority, contained, control, formal, mysterious, power, protection, seductive, sophisticated and strong.
Black is the colour of power and authority but in excess it can be intimidating and unfriendly.
It is intimidating and controlling, although its power can instill confidence in some.
White
Cleanliness, equality, immaculate, innocence, neat, new, pristine, purity and simplicity.
White amplifies everything and implies efficiency, simplicity, fairness and order.
Its strongest feature is equality, implying fairness, neutrality and independence.
Too much of it can give an impression of sterility, coldness and disinterest.
Grey
Conservative, dignified, inconspicuous, intellect, knowledge, neutral, refined, security and wisdom.
Grey is neutral and conservative but does imply security and reliability.
It serves as a good backdrop for other colours as it doesn’t attract attention, allowing the other colours to take prominence.
It does however lack energy as it is neither reassuring, soothing, stimulating or exciting.
Brown
Comfort, friendly, homely, natural, practical, reassurance, reliable, stability and wholesome.
Brown is a strong, reassuring colour that is comforting and reliable.
It relates well to businesses that promote down-to-earth and outdoor products or activities.
Be aware that many find brown to be boring and too earthy, even dirty.
Wrapping Up
Your brands colours is not something to be taken lightly, what they represent and mean to your business is paramount.
You’ll want to spend some time deciding what best represents your business and evokes the emotions you’re after.
If you’d like to try some different colour combinations yourself I’d recommend you visit Coolors for free and easy to use colour palette generator.
Knowing your brand colours is especially important when it comes to your websites design.
Did you know that 35 – 40% of small businesses don’t have a website?
If you’re one of them, check out this post of ours about 20 benefits a website has on your business or you can reach out to our web design Brisbane team directly!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is colour psychology in branding?
Colour psychology explores how different colours affect human behavior, evoke emotions and shape perceptions of creating a strong brand identity.
2. How do warm colours impact branding?
Warm colours, such as red and orange, are energetic and can draw attention, making them great for marketing and branding that evokes excitement.
3. Why is the colour blue popular in branding?
The colour blue, often associated with trust and calmness, is widely used to create a reliable and professional brand personality. Blue tones also have a calming effect and can influence consumer confidence.
4. How do cultural differences affect colour meanings?
Colour perception varies between cultures. For example, while the colour yellow may symbolize happiness in Western cultures, it can carry different meanings elsewhere.
5. How do cool colours differ from warm colours?
Cool colours like blue, green, and purple evoke feelings of calmness and stability, while warm colours are more energetic and attention-grabbing.
6. Can contrasting colours enhance branding?
Yes, using contrasting colours can make designs more visually appealing and help highlight key brand elements on the color wheel.
7. What role do colour preferences play in branding?
Personal preferences and cultural associations influence how audiences perceive a brand’s colours, making it essential to align colour choices with target demographics.
8. How do specific colours, like pink or lemon yellow, affect emotions?
The pink colour is often associated with softness and nurturing, while lemon yellow symbolizes optimism and energy. Both can evoke specific emotions tied to a brand’s identity.
9. How does the color spectrum influence brand perception?
The color spectrum offers a variety of shades, from cool blues to warm reds, allowing brands to communicate diverse emotions and personality traits.
10. How do different colours impact marketing success?
Understanding colour theory helps brands choose colours that evoke emotions, create environments, and communicate brand values effectively.
To your success,
Jackson
