Colors

Color Psychology: How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing? (Part: 2)

Color Psychology: How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing? (Part: 2)

Colors & branding go hand in hand. Have you ever noticed how you can recognize a brand instantly just by its color or silhouette? Perhaps you experience sensitivity towards certain colors and how they affect your mood. That’s because our brain uses colors & shapes to remember & distinguish. You don’t have to take our word for it, but you can try the infamous Button Test by Mark Hemeon. Additionally, the button test claims that users can recognize brands by their button design. Cool, right? How about you give it a try yourself? We have 20 figures below. Let’s find out how many of them can you guess correctly!

The Button Test By Mark Hemeon

Color Psychology

Color Psychology

So how many could you guess? Check out the answers at the end of this blog! Now that you know the importance of design & color let’s find out the color psychology behind some of the most common branding & marketing colors.

How colors affect mood & their psychological impact on us?

1. The Color Psychology of Blue

Blue is known for its calming & soothing effect on the mind. The color also exudes a feeling of trust, dependability, maturity, reliability & intelligence. Further, it curbs appetite, stimulates productivity & offers a sense of security. Unlike the color red, blue lends a mental stimulation rather than a physical one, allowing the viewers to relax & destress. Overall, blue is the most liked color worldwide and is used by brands looking to promote trust & security. However, it’s also the last color to be noticed, and overuse could lead to feelings of indifference & detachment.

How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing?

Find blue in

  1. Uniforms involving customer service industries: hotels & air hostesses
  2. Gyms & spas
  3. Hospitals
  1. Facebook
  2. HP
  3. Pfizer
  4. American Express
  5. Ford

2. The Color Psychology of Orange

Based on its origin, orange comprises yellow & red. So, from a color psychology standpoint, it combines the power & energy from red along with the friendliness & fun from yellow. This exciting mix makes orange an inviting, warm, friendly, cheerful & confident color. Moreover, orange exhibits warmth, positivity & freedom. The color is also known to stimulate the appetite. No wonder most chip packaging is orange in color!

How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing

Find orange in

  1. Sporting events
  2. Board games
  3. Energetic brands
  1. Nickelodeon
  2. Fanta
  3. Amazon
  4. Harley Davidson
  5. Gulf

Related: Color Psychology: How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing? (Part 1)

4. The Color Psychology of black

Undeniably the color of sophistication, independence, success & control. Although black is used to show darkness, mystery & evil, the presence also denotes high quality & sharpness. Examples in pop culture such as the little black dress & the powerful black suit prove how black symbolizes confidence & power. Additionally, black is devoid of color, which makes it a great choice for high contrast & legibility. However, overuse of this color could cause seclusion, negativity & sadness.

How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing?

Find black in

  1. Business wear
  2. Luxury brands
  3. Limos & luxury cars
  1. Nike
  2. Cartier
  3. Luis Vuitton
  4. Apple

5. The Color Psychology of white

White is known for peace, purity, balance & innocence. Therefore, in marketing & branding, white is used in composing simple, striking & minimalistic designs. Furthermore, white represents new beginnings(the phrase blank slate), simplicity & cleanliness. However, an overuse could create isolation & emptiness; use sparingly and in high contrast for impactful branding & designs. White, when used with black, leads to formal, simple, functional & mature expressions!

How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing?

How Colors Affect Mood & Behaviors In Marketing?

Find white in

  1. Background color for many logos, website, app interfaces & design
  2. Weddings
  3. Product shoots
  4. Wall paint
  5. Hospitals & clinics
  1. WWF (World Wide Fund)
  2. BBC
  3. Gucci
  4. MAC

Eskimos use 17 words for white as applied to different snow conditions, wherein the Northwest United States there are only 4 or 5.” – Joe Hallock

Answers to the button quiz by Mark Hemreon

  1. Google
  2. Twitter
  3. Facebook
  4. Microsoft
  5. Pinterest
  6. Yahoo
  7. Instagram
  8. Flickr
  9. Spotify
  10. Rdio
  11. Svbitle
  12. Medium
  13. Basecamp
  14. Square
  15. Amazon

That’s all for today, but we have more coming up! In our next blog, we will discuss designing the perfect UI that accommodates the needs of the visually impaired.

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Shubham Kulkarni
Design, Write, Edit videos, and Publish Content. Built For Teams.

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