Psychology of Color in Branding

How does the psychology of color in branding affect your business? You might not realize it, but color plays a vital role in our everyday purchasing decisions. Companies and organizations harness the power of color every day to reap dramatic increases in sales and drive positive brand associations. In many cases, customers fail to recognize that they've been persuaded by a product's color as much as anything else.

Many of you may be unaware of the specific influence of each color when thinking about your branding. Thus, this article will give you a run-down, color-by-color, so you can make an informed decision when it comes to designing your website.

But before covering each color, it's worth explaining why the psychology of color in branding is so important when it comes to your business website.  

Why is the Psychology of Color in Branding So Important for Websites?

The psychology of color is a vital tool that successful businesses use all over the globe. From internal presentations to printed marketing materials such as brochures, the chosen colors have a tangible impact on the customers they are prepared for.

However, when talking about creating an excellent website design, the psychology of color in your branding takes on a heightened role. This is mainly because so much business is conducted online these days. Get your color choices correct, and you benefit from increased conversions and better sales. However, if you make incorrect choices, you could find yourself scratching your head, wondering what has gone wrong.

There are numerous examples whereby merely changing the color of a button can dramatically impact a company. For instance, one sizable European e-commerce site selling porcelain ran two identical marketing campaigns to equal numbers of visitors. The second time they ran it, they made one minuscule difference, they changed the color of the call-to-action (CTA) button. The result of the change was an astonishing 35.81% increase in conversions.

This is just one of the hundreds of examples demonstrating the power of the psychology of color in branding. The switch from a blue to green button instilled a much higher level of confidence and trust (associated with the color green) and better highlighted where customers were supposed to click to checkout against a white background.

As you can see, when it comes to designing a website for your Raleigh, NC-based business, you're going to have to think carefully about the color scheme you want to use. So without further ado, let's give you a color-by-color run of the psychology associated with each major color.

The Psychology of the Color Red

Perhaps the most powerful color of them all when it comes to branding, red creates urgency and focuses minds. That's why it's popular with fast-food chains and when retail store sales always use red for these discount tags. It's the color of love, passion, and romance. It's also proven that sports teams wearing red uniforms win more often. An excellent choice for forcing people to take action. 

The Psychology of the Color Yellow

This may surprise you, but yellow is one of the least frequently used colors in branding. That's because, despite being considered a cheerful color, too much exposure causes feelings of anxiety, stress, and fear. This is why warning labels are often yellow. However, the advantage of these psychological traits is that yellow can grab attention better than many other colors.

The Psychology of the Color Green

Unsurprisingly, green is associated with nature, health, growth, and harmony. It's also an incredibly restful and relaxing color that promotes a feeling of safety. This is a perfect color choice for your website if your products or services relate to healthcare, the environment, or general wellness.

The Psychology of the Color Blue

The epitome of a masculine color, blue resonates particularly well with men, which is why many shaving and grooming products have blue packaging. Other psychological associations include security, stability, reliability, and trust. That's why it's the color of choice for many banks, security companies, and investment firms too.

The Psychology of the Color Purple

Sitting at the cross-section of red and blue, purple can be viewed as both masculine and feminine, depending on the specific shade. In many instances, this color conveys wealth, wisdom, and luxury. It's commonly used in beauty and anti-aging products as well as more spiritual and other-worldly products and services.

The Psychology of the Color White 

The psychology of the color white is best-defined by feelings of purity, cleanliness, and safety. An essential color in web design, white space on a website helps increase the ease at which content can be read. It also highlights brightly-colored CTAs, and it keeps shapes, logos, and other crucial design features easily-distinguishable and well-defined.

The Psychology of the Color Black

At the opposite end of the color spectrum, black invokes a sense of power, sophistication, authority, strength, and stability. Of course, it can also convey grief and mourning, given its association with death. Villains also frequently wear black. In most cases, it's best to pair black with white to offer balance against these possible negative psychological overtones.

Final Thoughts

As a business owner, you should never ignore the psychology of color in branding. Remember, in many ways your whole online brand identity will be defined by the colors you use for your website's design. Your chosen colors can also dramatically impact other aspects such as conversions and how long a visitor spends on your site (known as dwell time). That’s why it makes sense to consult the help of experts such as Faith Web Designers when making your choices.
So, if you're new to the world of web design in Raleigh, NC, then don't hesitate to reach out to me (Carlos) to receive detailed advice concerning the implications of the branding color choices you're thinking of making for your website.