The Sukaone definitive guide for entrepreneurs – Choosing colours for an online audience

Different colours have varied effects on people. It affects their state of mind and changes their decision making. Business owners usually make the mistake of choosing their favourite colours for websites and posters. This ends up in sending the wrong message to prospective clients. Persuasive power of colour works at the sub conscious or even deeper level.

What is colour

Scientifically eyes can see colours only when light shines upon various objects. Our brain tends to interpret colours. This means that colour is an illusion for the brain. Studies also suggest that people see colours differently. One thing is sure though, the brain gets signals from colours and responds accordingly.

Ancient humans used ochre to make pigment with colours ranging from red, yellow, deep brown and orange. Later as pigments were artificially created, led to massive use in various applications like clothes, boards and wall painting and art. Today we have the digital revolution and it is also all about colours.

Colours send instant messages to the brain. One colour can be perceived in a different manner depending on the mood of a person and his or her state of mind. Colours change people’s moods. All this happens in the subconscious mind.

Big brands all over the world invest heavily in colour perception but this point is missed by the small entrepreneurs or single person business owners in a big way. Logo is designed either by themselves or one of the smartphone savvy employees. Many cases it is also a part time designer. At times the logo is featured in the ad with a totally non contrasting colour scheme. This also happens because of the strong individual sense of perception of colours. Different people see the same colour differently. Then there is also the problem of colour blind people, many of them do now know that they are colour blind.

Basic Colours

Red – ​Colour of passion and anger. High energy and high octane. Red colour immediately signifies danger. But the reaction to danger is high quality response. Those emotions lead to action and aggression.

Using red helps you to increase attention levels of viewers, evoke confidence and vitality.

Red is a warm colour.

Brands which use red colour are Netflix, Coca-cola, CNN, Time.

Yellow​ – The second basic colour, yellow primarily means happiness and sunshine.The smiley is yellow! As the bright yellow sunlight enters the windows in the morning, we are brimming with confidence and energy. Yellow is warm, optimistic and gets attention easily. It is also the colour which is most visible from a distance.

See all those wet floor signs and commercial number plate vehicles, they all are in the colour which provides clarity and sharpness, increases concentration. In some countries and cultures, yellow is also a symbol of royalty.

Bright yellow is not liked by many people. Those who are colour sensitive and especially for women, yellow is too bright. It also makes babies cry to be cautious while using yellow extensively. Yellow is also the colour of ill health and cowardice. And the best of all. It is the colour of jealousy.

Nikon, Post-it, Best buy all use yellow as their main colour in their brand logo. Black is the most contrasting colour and most common combo.

Blue​ – The only cool colour in basic colour, blue conveys the most powerful corporate message, trust. The colour of sky, ocean and swimming pools, this colour gives an instant message of calmness as well as strength. It brings the message of peace to the brain.

Blue is used by financial institutions all over the USA. This colour signifies security and dependability. It is used to establish a link or communications channel. Since it is not a warm colour, it is not used to grab attention. Workplaces are given a paint of blue for workers to be more productive and because it curbs hunger and appetite. Also blue is universally liked by both men and women.

Blue is the only colour liked by both men and woman alike. It is used by tech companies like HP, Dell, IBM, Skype and Windows. Finance companies like Visa, Paypal, American Express, use blue. Other big brands are GE, Walmart, Tata, Ford, Unilever and Samsung. The most famous brand to use blue is Facebook. The only text colour matching blue is white.

Where ever there is a corporate structure and big brands, it is mostly blue to establish trust. Blue is also used in offices to create a calm effect to get maximum productivity. The food brands on the other hand use a combo of red and yellow. Lays and McDonalds are best examples. India’s most famous food brand, Maggi uses red and yellow on their packs. The notable exception to this rule is Flipkart which uses yellow but with a text of blue while Domino’s uses blue with a couple of red boxes.

Secondary colours

Orange​ – The colour of creativity, orange is also associated with curiosity. If blue colour is the colour of professionalism and seriousness, orange is the opposite of that. Fun, cheer, exploration, luck, it can spice up your life. But beware it is also the colour of whimsical people.

Orange sometimes invokes the feeling of aggression in some people because it has an element of red in it. In some cultures, it is a powerful symbol of faith and religion. It invokes a feeling of taking action.

Not too many brands use orange in their logo. Best examples are Sony used it in their Walkman logo and so does Nickelodeon. Others are JBL, Fanta and Harley Davidson. Though orange can simulate appetite and encourage activity it is not used by food brands.

Green​ – The colour of nature, landscapes, fertility and growth, green is the universal colour of healing. It signifies learning and balance. Means it is also associated with wealth and prosperity. The US dollar bill is green! So financial companies use this colour to remind customers that they mean business. Many companies do use a shade of green in their logo or advertisement to convey concern for the environment and being earth friendly.

Almost all organic and vegetarian brands use the green colour in a significant way.

Android and Spotify use green. Organic food brands like Organic India and many others use green. Land Rover, Sprite, Holiday Inn, Tropicana, Animal Planet and so on use it. But there is no trend here.

Purple​ – The colour of kings and royalty, this signifies wealth and luxury. It also invokes a feeling of mystery, magic, fantasy, castles and dungeons, horse carriages and romance!

Purple is favourite with children and artists alike because it promotes imagination and sometimes sophistication. This is why we have Cadburys as well as Hallmark using it in their logo.

Brands like Yahoo, Cadbury, Hallmark use purple. Purple is not easily available as a natural dye, hence it was used only by royalty and nobility. It is associated with fantasy world even today. That’s why it is used so much in children books.

Other colours preferred by brands

Pink​ – This colour is exclusively reserved for women. It is universally accepted as the brand colour for women. It does invoke girly feeling in the men folk but brands usually ignore it because of the decision making powers of women. Pink is associated with sweet food also like candy.

Pink is fun and spontaneity. It can also be used as a corporate colour to convey the same message. Best known examples are Barbie and Baskin Robbins.

Pink is the only colour which evokes gentleness and energetic at the same time. Pastel pink is used by spas and saloons for relaxing.

Black​ – A dark logo or dark advertisement will only spread gloom and hopelessness. It is a negative colour or lack of colours. But at the same time it is widely used to depict luxury. Sense of achievement and mystery. Black is for seriousness which is why Nike uses their athletes ads with pure black themes.

Blackberry is black! So is Gucci or Tiffany. Black is used by companies which want to depict a sense of absolute seriousness by not using flashy colours.

Black is bold. The most famous brand which uses black is Apple. Their first logo in 1976 was a complex sketch of Newton sitting under an apple tree. Then came the bitten apple muti-colour logo which lasted for 21 years. When a new line of devices came out which were sleeker and silver time had come to do away with the multi-colour logo. Steve Jobs himself brought in the all black design.

Black is also the preferred colour for women all over the world for many special occasions. Black is BOLD.

White​ – White is a totally neutral colour. It invokes a feeling of truth, purity and openness. Companies use white for medical purposes also, most of the medicine boxes being white. It is the presence of all colours. Apple uses white extensively. So does Google on their search page.

White is the colour of perfection and cleanliness. White is used in combination of blacks in logos.

Brown​ – Even through brown is an earthly colour, it has to be used with caution. Earthy colours look good in home decor and display products. But they can be dull and boring too. Using brown can significantly reduce the amount of brightness in the room.

As a corporate colour, brown is rarely used except in bars and restaurants. Park benches, open gyms, beaches are of course splattered with brown. But over these places also we see bright colours.

Conclusion

Colours are the most powerful way to send a direct message to visitors. They help making a buying decision. This simple guide will help you to make future ads and posters to get your point across.