Colour doesn’t care if you like it
Why choosing colours in your projects, brands or products should never be subjective
Why does reason fly out the window when it comes to colour preferences?
Your smart, you know your business inside out, you’ve got your growth strategy working like a charm, and nothing stands in its way…
Until that is… when it's time to refresh/rebrand or create an identifying visual system. Suddenly, the fact that your ex-girlfriend’s mum had a cat that was ginger means you don’t like orange, or that particular shade of green looks like pea soup from the exorcist, so that’s a no-go.
“It does not make a material difference to your business if you or someone in the team subjectively dislikes a colour. That shouldn’t ever be the reason you pass it over.”
One critical element of design that often goes overlooked is colour psychology.
As a leader, you understand that design is more than aesthetics. It's a strategic tool that can evoke emotions, convey messages, and ultimately drive success for your brand.
A study by the Institute for Colour Research found that people subconsciously judge a product or brand within 90 seconds of initial viewing, and 62-90% of that assessment is based on colour alone. The psychology of colour is a fascinating area of study that explores how different colours can impact human emotions, behaviours, and perceptions. When used strategically in your brand's design, colour can powerfully influence your target audience, helping you create a memorable brand identity and enhance customer engagement.
Colours are not pretty; they're powerful.
Colours profoundly affect human emotions and can trigger specific feelings and associations. For example, warm colours like red, orange, and yellow evoke excitement, passion, and optimism, while cool colours like blue, green, and purple convey calmness, trust, and serenity. Neutral colours like white, black, and grey can represent simplicity, sophistication, or even mystery.
According to the Pantone Colour Institute, did you know Red and yellow stimulate the appetite and are commonly used in fast-food restaurant logos and signage to create a sense of hunger and urgency?
Understanding the emotions and meanings associated with different colours is crucial in creating a design that aligns with your brand's personality, values, and message.
By selecting the right colour palette, you can evoke the desired emotional response from your audience and create a visual language that speaks to your brand's identity. A study conducted by the Seoul International Colour Expo revealed that 85% of consumers believe that colour is the primary factor when choosing a product, and 92% said they put the most importance on visual factors related to colour.
Tools to ignore your own bias.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of diagrams, whitepapers, and books about colour. But as a business engaging with an agency to create on your behalf, they should be the ones that provide that insight.
Concept rationale should always allude to the subconscious stimulation within a design – sure, it must look good. That’s a no-brainer. And you definitely should not need to over-explain the concept itself, but colour can unify audiences and align sentiment because psychology is so universal. Nature has been doing it since the dawn of time, and we, too, are a tune to the emotive connection to the colour spectrum. So, any visuals that rely on colour as a key component should complement, not contradict, that subconscious connection.
So, before you dismiss that hot pink or particular shade of sea foam green, ask the creatives why and what that colour symbolises and then try to be objective.
If the colour does what it needs to do – you’ll soon learn to love ‘ex-girlfriend's mum's cat orange’.