Ever walked into a store and seen a huge red sign with the words S-A-L-E blaring at your eyeballs in large text? Chances are, you might have walked in because of that sale sign. Especially if it has the words CLEARANCE or 50% OFF or HUGE DISCOUNTS. What triggers a client to make a purchase? Colors have been known to produce a psychological effect that influences buying decisions. It’s why we often see huge, chili red banners plastered over the glass of storefronts, hollering FINAL DISCOUNT/SALE in bold white letters.
This red color actually gives us the impression that it’s super urgent – buy buy BUY! And when it’s paired with some text that probably says something along these lines: FINAL SALE, we get an urge to step inside the store and look at what’s going on. There’s a sense of urgency. This is final! You won’t get this anywhere else! Get this right now!
If it’s something you only want a client to look at once – bold, bright colors can produce that effect for you. They can pull your client in to take a look at your products, or see what the big deal is about. However, they do trigger visual fatigue, which then leads to boredom. That will leave your client going, so now that I’ve seen that, what’s next? That’s why sales banners always have a time period.
Basically, it’s all in the visual appearance. And that triggers a reaction. It’s a reaction you want. Use colors to your advantage. 🙂
The Color Of Your Brand Identity
From Spotify, Nike, Amazon to Taco Bell, the colors of your brand should speak your identity. In a sea of brands clamoring for attention, take advantage of color usage to make your brand’s identity instantly recognizable.
Consumers automatically associate your brand’s logo with its colors. Take 123RF’s logo, for instance. Yellow exudes an energetic and creative vibe, where it’s also associated with our products – affordable, easily available, and fast. Everything in our stock library is ready to use with one quick download. It’s straightforward.
A couple more examples would be Nike’s logo – the straightforward black swoosh, or Adidas’ logo – the famous three white stripes. These neutral tones are meant to represent that they are an established, reliable brand.
Similarly, think of the colors of your brand’s logo as the clothes it’s wearing. Choose colors that your consumers can relate your brand to. If you’re still deciding on your brand’s identity, this post helps break things down for you to easily digest.
Color In Your Product
Here’s the general idea: most people underestimate the psychology of color when it comes to marketing products to a consumer. Truth is, colors definitely have a big influence on consumer moods and emotions.
Take purple, for example. Different shades of purple can evoke calm feelings, which is why we often see this color in the spiritual and wellness industry. Spa and beauty products can also have shades of purple in their logo or as part of their brand identity. One more example: Cadbury’s milk chocolate packaging is a deep purple hue – representing royalty and relaxation. The color chart below shows the general representation of the respective colors.
Make color combinations work for you. Your product colors should reflect your brand’s colors, too. Brands like FedEx, Lego and Amazon have incorporated a maximum of two color combinations for their logos. Depending on what your brand is promoting, using more than one logo color can help make it more memorable. Colors can be refined to suit the purpose of your brand’s marketing – whether it’s in a product or overall brand awareness.