The visual nature of websites demands choosing colors deliberately to better make your brand more recognizable. A new report titled, How to Choose a Color for Your Website by WebsiteBuilderExpert, looks at the importance of colors on websites, and how it impacts viewers.
Picking Colors for Your Website
Colors have an immediate impact on people. The emotions and psychology of colors are very much real. And according to the report, 85% of them claim color has a major influence on what they buy. Not only that, but colors also boost brand recognition by an average of 80%. So, understanding the color that best represents your business and industry can go a long way in building and increasing that recognition factor.
With that in mind, the next step is to choose a color scheme that best suits your brand for your website. According to Duncan Lambden, who wrote the report, “You have to get a good understanding of what you are selling/providing.”
A quick example he gives is, choose purple if you trying to achieve a more premium, high-end image as people associate it with royalty, high quality, and intrigue. And if you want to reach a wider audience blue is the color because it is a reassuring, gentle color. Lambden says it fits well for more delicate subjects, like healthcare or financials.
Here are some examples of colors, brands, and what they covey:
- Red: Coca-Cola or Nintendo – Implies excitement or happiness
- Orange: Nickelodeon or Fanta – Implies a friendly, fun time is ahead
- Yellow: Nikon or McDonalds – Implies optimism and happiness
- Green: Whole Foods or Animal Planet – Implies freshness and nature
- Blue: Walmart or American Express – Implies dependability and reassurance
- Purple: Hallmark or Cadbury – Implies a distinguished brand that has a history of quality
- Brown: Nespresso or UPS – Implies a reliable product that can be used by anyone
- Black: Chanel or Adidas – Implies luxury or elegance
- White: Apple or Nike – Implies sleek, user-friendly products
The Colors for Your Website
The report suggests choosing a primary color and following it with additional colors that complement it. Follow this with a background color and typeface color.
For more on the importance of colors, not only for your website but your brand as a whole, take a look at the infographic below.
The Colors for Your Website
When it comes to your website, the colors you choose play a crucial role in shaping the perception of your brand and influencing the behavior of your visitors. Understanding the psychology behind colors and their impact on people can help you make informed decisions about the color scheme that best represents your business. Here are some key takeaways to consider:
- Choose a Primary Color: Select a dominant color that aligns with the essence of your brand. For a more luxurious and high-end image, consider using purple, which evokes feelings of royalty and intrigue. If you aim to appeal to a broader audience, blue is a safe bet, as it exudes reassurance and gentleness, making it suitable for subjects like healthcare or financial services.
- Complement with Additional Colors: Once you’ve chosen your primary color, incorporate complementary colors that harmonize well with it. These additional colors can be used for accents, buttons, or other design elements, adding depth and visual interest to your website.
- Background and Typeface Color: Pay attention to the background color and typeface color. These should be chosen to ensure readability and overall visual cohesiveness. A clean, unobtrusive background color can create a pleasant user experience, while the typeface color should contrast well with the background to enhance readability.
- Brand Associations: Consider the associations that certain colors have with well-known brands. For example, red is often associated with excitement or happiness, as seen in Coca-Cola and Nintendo logos. On the other hand, white represents sleek and user-friendly products, as exemplified by Apple and Nike.
| Aspect | Description |
|---|---|
| Primary Color | Choose a dominant color that aligns with your brand's essence. Purple evokes luxury and intrigue, while |
| blue provides reassurance and appeals to a broader audience. | |
| Additional Colors | Complement your primary color with harmonizing accents and buttons, adding depth and visual interest. |
| Background and Typeface | Select background and typeface colors for readability and cohesiveness. A clean background enhances user |
| Color | experience, while contrasting typeface improves readability. |
| Brand Associations | Consider the associations certain colors have with well-known brands. For example, red represents |
| excitement and happiness (Coca-Cola, Nintendo), while white symbolizes sleek and user-friendly products | |
| (Apple, Nike). | |
| Impact on Your Brand | Carefully select colors to enhance brand recognition and evoke desired emotions, creating a visually |
| compelling and memorable online presence. | |
| For More Information | For a detailed exploration of color psychology and its impact on your brand, refer to the infographic |
| provided by WebsiteBuilderExpert. |
By carefully selecting and implementing colors on your website, you can enhance brand recognition, elicit desired emotions from your audience, and ultimately create a visually compelling and memorable online presence. For a more detailed exploration of color psychology and its impact on your brand, refer to the infographic provided by WebsiteBuilderExpert.
Conclusion
The visual impact of colors on websites is undeniable, with a significant influence on people’s emotions and purchasing behavior. The report, “How to Choose a Color for Your Website,” emphasizes that 85% of consumers consider color as a major factor in their buying decisions, while colors boost brand recognition by an average of 80%. Understanding the right colors to represent your business is crucial for building and increasing brand recognition.
Selecting a primary color that aligns with your brand essence is the first step, with purple conveying a premium image and blue appealing to a wider audience with reassurance and gentleness. Complementing the primary color with harmonizing additional colors adds depth and visual interest to your website, while background and typeface colors should be chosen for readability and cohesiveness. By considering the associations certain colors have with well-known brands, such as red signifying excitement and happiness, or white representing sleek and user-friendly products, you can make informed decisions to create a visually compelling and memorable online presence. Carefully implementing colors on your website will not only attract visitors but also leave a lasting impact, making your brand more recognizable in the long run.
Image: websitebuilderexpert
All good advice. I would add that if you’re in an industry that has followed this religiously, you could stand out from the crowd by going against the grain.
The color of a corporate identity can seriously change the balance of power in the market. This is one of the main means of fighting for a place under the sun.