Color your market, market your color...

Where do you begin when choosing colors for your marketing materials? What were your reasons for making that particular choice? Was it because you liked those particular colors? What did the colors you chose, say to you? Do you know what your choice of colors say to your audience.

Yes colors do talk! In fact they say more than you might think. The choice of your color palette not only enhances the appearance of a poster, website or brand mark, but in fact they also influence our behavior.

Take for instance a hospital. Hospital walls are usually covered in colors such as white, green and blue. White is the most common color to be seen on a hospital wall due to the peaceful and calm mood it provides as well as denoting cleanness. It implies sterility, which has the effect of making patients feel reassured. Blue and green are considered to be the most relaxing and refreshing colors, promoting peaceful atmosphere, which encourages concentration and healing.

Another example…fast food restaurants are decorated with vivid reds and oranges... Studies have shown that reds and oranges encourage diners to eat quickly and leave - and that's exactly what they want you to do.

Keep in mind - Not all colors mean the same thing throughout the world. Different cultures have different meanings. In Brazil purple signifies death or a loss, Yellow signifies sadness in Greece, and red in Asian cultures, is a traditional color for celebrations or weddings. So they key is to know your audience and know the culture before finalizing any color choices.

“Color is an intense experience on its own.”

Jim Hodges

Here is a listing of the most common colors and their meaning according to North American mainstream culture:

Red --excitement, strength, passion, speed, danger.
Blue -- trust, reliability, belonging, coolness, calming.
Yellow --warmth, sunshine, cheer, happiness
Orange -- playfulness, warmth, vibrant
Green -- nature, fresh, cool, growth, abundance
Purple --royal, spirituality, dignity
Pink -- soft, sweet, nurture, security
White --pure, clean, mild.
Black --sophistication, elegant, mystery
Gold -- prestige, expensive
Silver -- prestige, cold, scientific

“Colors, like features, follow the changes of the emotions.”

Pablo Picasso

What do you want your message to say? Do you want to calm your market and let them know you are stable and secure? Do you want to scream in their faces and tell them that you have the best rates around. Color can be a huge factor, in so many ways, it is sometimes overwhelming and can make or break a response. If you need some advice or information on how to put this information to use, just give us a call.