Why Choosing Your Brand Colors Is Important

Studies in purchasing behavior have determined that color heavily influences what we buy. In fact, according to a study done at the University of Loyola Maryland, around 85% of people make final determinations on everything from what cheese to purchase, what books to read and who to hire based on color. While that exorbitant statistic might not stand up in future studies, it does exemplify how heavily influenced we are by color.

Colors mean different things to different people and across different cultures but, here in North America, there are generalities that we can trust. For instance, many studies over several years have determined that the most popular ‘favorite’ color in the US and Canada (as well as in many other countries) is blue…by a lot. An exhaustive study on the psychology of color and it’s uses by Joe Hallock found that 42% of people chose blue as their favorite color: 57% of men and 35% of women. The second most popular color was purple at 23% then green at 14%.

How Colors Affect Consumers & Clients

Broadly, cooler colors are calming and warmer colors are invigorating; darker colors are more trustworthy and lighter colors are airy and optimistic. These broad categorizations give us a jumping off point to discuss how color shapes people’s responses to design.

Color shapes:

• Perceived trustworthiness
• Brand recognition (increased by 80%)
• Purchasing decisions
• Emotional connection to a product
• Mood
• Physical factors including heart rate, blood pressure, even hormone levels

How To Choose Colors For Your Brand

When choosing colors for your brand or practice the first thing to ask yourself is How do I want people to feel? The answer to this question can give you a starting place. Work with a branding expert, if possible, to identify color combinations that communicate effectively and will work across different mediums. When building color palettes I start with a primary and a secondary color then select a contrasting color and a neutral color that all work together to create an emotional response. A final color palette will usually be between 4 and 7 colors but I almost always start with these:

• A primary color
• An unsaturated version of the primary color
• A secondary color
• An unsaturated version of the secondary color
• A color (or 2) that contrasts with those
• A neutral color

A note: these are generalities and do not prohibit any color or combination of colors that may be appropriate for your brand.

Color Palettes Created For Therapists & Healers