How to Choose the Perfect Brand Colours

Est. reading time: 6 minutes

 

What do people feel when they see your brand? Perception is a great aspect of branding and starts with as little as your brand’s colour. The colours you choose for your brand greatly influence how people perceive it. Brand identity colours also influence your audience or consumer’s decision about your brand.

While colour is important in branding, we can’t overlook the challenges that come with choosing the right brand colours. The purpose of this article is to help you as a business or individual choose the right brand identity.

Understanding the Psychology of Brand Colours

Colour theory in branding has existed for centuries and has evolved significantly over time. Brands began using colour to attract attention as far back as the late 19th century, with iconic examples like Coca-Cola’s red. Also, after World War II, colour psychology gained recognition, with research suggesting that colours could influence consumer behaviour.

Over time, the digital age transformed colour usage, which has been consistent across screens and devices. And today, brands use data-driven strategies to choose colours that resonate with modern values, such as sustainability and inclusivity. This evolution reflects the growing importance of colour in shaping brand identity and consumer perceptions.

How Do Different Colours Affect Emotions and Perceptions?

What we see has a powerful impact on emotion and perception, often influencing our feelings and behaviours without us even realizing it. Here’s how different colours evoke various emotions and perceptions:

Warm Colours

1.  Red

Red evokes emotions such as passion, excitement, urgency, and sometimes anger. Perceptions about the red colour include an increase in heart rate that creates a sense of urgency, making it effective in marketing to stimulate quick decisions. It is also associated with love and energy.

2. Orange

Orange often evokes enthusiasm, creativity, warmth, and encouragement. Seen as a fun and energetic colour, it can inspire a sense of adventure and vitality. It is also associated with affordability and friendliness.

3. Yellow

The emotions that come to mind when you see the yellow colour are happiness, positivity, and optimism. Yellow grabs attention and stimulates mental activity. However, it can also cause feelings of frustration if overused.

Cool Colours:

1. Blue

Blue is a cool colour, and it depicts calmness, trust, and serenity. Blue is associated with stability and reliability, making it popular in the corporate world. It can also promote feelings of security and productivity.

2. Green

Relaxation, growth, and health are emotions that come to mind when we see the green colour. The perception of green is that it is strongly linked to nature and renewal, making it a calming and refreshing colour. It can also symbolize wealth and tranquillity.

3. Purple

Luxury, creativity, and royalty are emotions the purple colour gives. Purple often conveys regality and mystery, associated with high value, sophistication, and imagination.

Neutral Colours

1. Black
   

Black evokes emotions of power, elegance, and sophistication. It appears both formal and intimidating, often conveying authority and luxury while sometimes evoking mystery or fear.

2.    White

White is a sweet colour which depicts purity, simplicity, and cleanliness. It often represents minimalism and new beginnings. It can make spaces feel larger and convey clarity and freshness.

3. Grey

Neutrality, balance, and calm are the vibes the grey colour gives. Grey often creates a conservative and composed feeling. It appears professional and formal but can evoke dullness if overused.

4. Brown

Brown conveys earthiness and stability, depicting warmth, reliability, and comfort. Brands often use it to express tradition, wholesomeness, and a down-to-earth quality.

In branding, understanding these emotional and perceptual effects of colour is crucial for effectively communicating the desired message and connecting with the target audience.

How Important is Aligning Colours with Brand Values?

When it comes to branding, colours are far more than a visual component, they are a powerful tool that can communicate your brand’s values and message at a glance. Picking the right colours that communicate your message as a brand can be quite challenging and we at Kian can help you overcome that challenge by talking to us.

The right colour palette can evoke emotions, build recognition, and influence consumer perceptions, thus emphasizing the importance of aligning colours with the core identity of your brand. 

To align your brand’s values with a suitable colour, you might want to start by doing the following:

1. Define your brand’s core values and mission

Doing this is essential for building a strong and authentic identity. Core values are the guiding principles that shape your brand’s actions and culture.

Start by identifying what matters most to your brand, understanding your audience, and aligning your values with your business strategy.

A clear mission and strong values not only differentiate your brand but also create a foundation for meaningful connections with your customers.

2. Translate your brand’s values into colour

This involves selecting colours that reflect the core principles of your brand. Identify your key values and research the emotions tied to different colours. Align these colours with your value. For example, blue for trust, green for sustainability, or yellow for happiness. 

Here are a few examples of brands that have effectively aligned their colours with their core values:

1. Coca-Cola 

• Colour: Red
• Values: Excitement, energy, and happiness.
• Alignment: The vibrant red colour of Coca-Cola’s branding evokes feelings of excitement and energy, which align with the brand’s message of joy and refreshment.

2. Apple

• Colour: White and Silver
• Values: Simplicity, innovation, and elegance.
• Alignment: Apple’s use of clean white and sleek silver colours reflects its emphasis on minimalist design, great technology, luxury and premium quality.

3. MTN 

•  Colours: Yellow and Black
•  Values: Innovation, connectivity, and energy.
•  Alignment: MTN’s bright yellow symbolizes energy and optimism, aligning with its mission to connect people and provide innovative solutions.

4. First Bank of Nigeria

• Colours: Blue and White
• Values: Stability, reliability, and heritage.
• Alignment: The blue colour represents stability and reliability, while white suggests purity and integrity, reinforcing First Bank’s long-standing reputation and trustworthiness.

5. Jumia

• Colours: Orange and Blue
• Core Values: Innovation, excitement, and customer focus.
• Alignment: Jumia uses orange to convey excitement and innovation, while blue adds a touch of trust and professionalism, reflecting its dynamic and customer-centred approach.

These examples illustrate how colour choices can effectively reinforce a brand’s values and create a strong, consistent identity.

Practical Things to Note When Selecting Your Brand Colours

When selecting colours for your brand, consider practical factors to ensure they work effectively across all mediums. Ensure consistency and adaptability across platforms, and prioritize readability and accessibility. Consider colour-blind individuals as well.

Likewise, be mindful of cultural perceptions and choose colours that fit your brand’s context and industry. Go for a classic palette rather than following trends. Also, test your colours with your audience to gather feedback and refine your choices. 

The Basics of Colour Palette

The basics of colour palette are colour harmony and balance and they are essential for creating effective colour mix.

Colour harmony involves using schemes like complementary (opposite colours), analogous (adjacent colours), triadic (three evenly spaced colours), split-complementary (the base colour plus adjacent to its complement), and monochromatic colours (variations of a single colour). 

On the other hand, colour balance helps you manage visual weight and proportion effectively, providing enough contrast to maintain readability and interest. Apply your palette consistently and test it across different mediums to confirm that it works effectively.

Tools and Resources for Selecting and Testing Brand Colours

Many tools can help you in selecting suitable colours for your brand. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Colour Wheels and Colour Schemes

A colour wheel is a visual tool that organizes colours around a circle, showing relationships between them. It typically includes primary, secondary, and tertiary colours:

• Primary Colours: Red, Blue, Yellow.
• Secondary Colours: Green, Orange, Purple (formed by mixing primary colours).
• Tertiary Colours: Combinations of primary and secondary colours, like red-orange or blue-green.

However, colour schemes, on the other hand, use the relationships on the colour wheel to create harmonious palettes.

Let’s see some examples:

• Complementary: Colours opposite each other on the wheel, such as blue and orange, creating high contrast and vibrant looks.
• Analogous: Colours next to each other, like blue, teal, and green, offer a harmonious and cohesive effect.
• Triadic: Three evenly spaced colours, such as red, blue, and yellow, providing balanced contrast and vibrancy.
• Split-Complementary: A base colour plus the two adjacent to its complementary colour offers a contrast with less tension.
• Monochromatic: Variations of a single colour, creating a subtle and cohesive look.
• Tetradic (Double-Complementary): Two pairs of complementary colours, offering rich and diverse colour combinations.

These tools and schemes help in creating balanced and visually appealing colour palettes for design projects.

Digital Tools and Apps for Brand Colour Selection

1. For selecting and testing colours, use tools like Adobe Color, Coolors, and Paletton to create and explore colour palettes. 
2. For testing, you can use Contrast Checker for accessibility, Color Oracle and Sim Daltonism for colour blindness simulations, and browser extensions like ColorZilla.
3. For colour management, design software such as Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator and Figma will be useful.
4. For colour trends and theory, refer to resources like the Pantone Colour Institute.

Conclusion

Choosing the right colour for your brand identity involves understanding colour psychology, aligning colours with your brand’s values, and ensuring practical aspects that are usable.

Colours significantly impact brand perception and recognition, so it’s crucial to approach colour selection strategically. Take time to thoughtfully select and test colours to enhance your brand’s visual identity and connection with your audience.