Color can make or break your brand, but with so many options, how do you pick the right ones? Choosing the right color palette is a tricky part of the branding process, but there are a few questions that can guide you in this endeavor.
Who is Your Audience?
Color isn’t just about aesthetics, it’s also psychology. Your audience’s experiences, culture, and personal tastes shape how they react to color. Before you start choosing colors, it is important that you understand your target demographic.
- Who are they? Age, gender, industry, and lifestyle influence color perception.
- What do they love? What brands do they follow? What products do they buy?
For example, gender plays an important role in how we perceive color. Studies on color perception and preferences have concluded that men tend to prefer bolder colors and shades (colors with black added) while women prefer softer colors and tints (colors with white added). As this study from infographic by KISSmetrics shows, 57% of men consider blue to be their favorite color, while only 35% of women chose blue. In contrast, 23% of women chose purple as their favorite color, and 0% of men did. Also, women can more easily distinguish changes between hues. Therefore, a subtle color palette may be more effective on a female audience.
Cultural backgrounds also affect color associations. Pepsi learned this the hard way when they changed the color of its vending machines in Southeast Asia to light blue in the 1950s, which had disastrous results due to light blue representing death and mourning in that region. As a result, Pepsi lost much of its market share to Coca-Cola. If you’ll be marketing to other countries, it’s important to do your research and be careful not to offend international audiences.
What is Your Brand’s Personality?
Your brand’s colors play a major role in shaping customer perception and influencing purchase decisions. A well-chosen color palette should reflect your brand’s voice and attract the right audience.
While specific emotional reactions to colors are dependent on the individual, certain colors do have general associations, which is why they’re consistently used by certain industries. Green is often used in eco-friendly brands while pink is used for feminine brands.
What’s most important is that your color palette supports the brand image you want to portray. For example, a fun, bold brand would be best suited by bright, loud colors while a more calm brand might be better suited by soothing pastels.
Study the Competition
Take a look at your competitors. What types of colors are used in your industry? You don’t want to stray too far away from the colors already associated with your type of business because it will confuse your potential customers. If your business is a bank, the standard colors associated with those brands are blue, red, and green. If you choose a neon pink and yellow color palette, you will definitely stand out, but the associations may not be positive. You may come across as unprofessional or untrustworthy if your brand doesn’t fit within the conventional color palette for that industry.
While you usually want to stick within the expected colors for your brand, you still can make your brand distinct and unique. One way to do that is through an unexpected and interesting accent color.
TIP: Print out logos and advertising materials from big brands in your industry. Then print out your brand’s color scheme and compare. Do your colors fit into the same color scheme or do they clash?
How to Choose Multiple Colors?
In order to choose colors that will be harmonious together, we need to understand how colors interact with each other. So let’s take a brief look at color theory 101.
The Color Wheel
The color wheel is a tool used to illustrate the relationships of colors to each other.
The color wheel is made up of three primary colors (red, yellow and blue), which are colors that cannot be formed by any other color. All other colors on the wheel are derived from mixing these three colors together.
When you mix two primary colors together, the resulting color is a secondary color. These three colors are orange (yellow and red), green (yellow and blue), and purple (red and blue).
When a primary and secondary color are mixed together, the resulting colors are tertiary colors.
Monochromatic Color Scheme
Monochromatic colors are all the tints and shades of a single color.
Monochromatic color schemes are cohesive and pleasing to the eye, and they work well in conjunction with white, black and gray. However, they can be very limiting and less dynamic than other color schemes due to only one color being used.
Analogous Color Scheme
Analogous colors are colors adjacent to each other on the color wheel.
Analogous color schemes are often found in nature and are very pleasing to the eye, and they offer more variety than monochromatic color schemes. These colors are more impactful when used in differing amounts, so be sure to choose one dominant with a second supporting color.
Complementary Color Scheme
Complementary colors are pairs of colors that cancel each other out, which means that they create black when mixed together. On the color wheel, complementary colors exist directly opposite of each other. These three pairs are purple and yellow, orange and blue, and red and green.
These opposing colors create maximum contrast, which can result in a vibrant and dynamic color scheme. However, this color scheme must be managed well so it is not jarring. For example, placing red text on a green background is difficult to read.
Triadic Color Scheme
Triadic colors are three colors that are evenly spaced on the color wheel.
This color scheme can be vibrant, even when using pale colors. The colors should be carefully balanced, with one color dominating and the other two used in smaller amounts.
Tetradic Color Scheme
Tetradic colors are made up of two complementary pairs.
Balancing this color scheme is a challenge, but when done effectively, it offers a rich variety of color. Avoid using all four colors equally and instead, choose one color to be primarily used.
How to Apply Your Colors?
For any color palette, you will want to choose at least two colors minimum. One color should serve as the primary color, with another as an accent color.
Design professionals tend to use at least three colors: one primary, one secondary, and one accent. A color ratio of 60-30-10 is a standard often used by designers, so this is a great point to build off from.
While you can choose as few as two colors, you should not exceed five colors. Keep your brand colors simple and targeted.
TIP: Print out pieces of paper in the colors of your color scheme. Cut them into different sized pieces to figure out which colors should be dominant in your scheme. Try out multiple options!
Ready to Pick Your Palette?
Color is the first thing people notice about your brand—it sets the tone and creates an immediate impression. That’s why your color choices should be thoughtful and strategic. By combining the basics of color theory with a clear understanding of your audience and brand personality, you can build a palette that not only looks great but also connects with the right people.
Need expert guidance? From logo design to full-scale branding strategies, First Ascent Design can help you craft a visual identity that truly resonates. Let’s bring your brand to life—reach out today!