Why it matters and how to use colour well…

Colour can draw attention to an image, evoke emotion, influence your mood and even communicate without the use of words. Within 90 seconds of their initial interactions people make up their minds about the brands or products they want to engage with.

Whether you’re starting your own business, launching a non-profit or cause, or refreshing your communications, understanding the impact of colour on the perceptions of your brand can build stronger connections and lasting impressions with your audiences.

Here are some ways to help you decide how to choose and use the right colours to communicate your brand better.

1. Choose your primary brand colour/s

Think about what colours mean to your brand and to your audience. Everyone attributes meaning and has their own associations to different colours. Choosing the right colours is not an exact science, but a good place to start is by exploring what associations people might have to the colours you want to use. That way your colour palette will reflect and shape perceptions of your brand and convey the kind of messaging and values that you wish to communicate.

Imagine that your business is a person. How would you describe them? Are there colours associated with the adjectives you come up with? Think about how you'd like your business or organisation to be perceived and what sets it apart from others. See some common colour associations in the image below - which suits how you want to perceived as a brand?

2. Explore the colour wheel and create a colour palette

Once you’ve picked a primary colour that reflects your brand best, you can begin to build a colour palette that supports it. It may be helpful to pick one primary colour, 1 or two accent colours (a secondary color for emphasising or highlighting certain aspects of your marketing) and 1 standard colour for text. You can find the perfect accent or secondary colour/s by brushing up on some colour theory (using the colour wheel below) and be inspired by some different colour schemes.

Try choosing a shade or tone of a Complementary colour, which are at opposite ends of the colour wheel. Use an Analogous scheme – colours next to each other on the colour wheel, so they are similar in feel and visual tone. Use a Triadic scheme, by creating a triangle using three colours equally spaced within the wheel. If all that sounds confusing, try sticking to one colour in different intensities but use saturation and shades to create variations of the same colour so everything matches perfectly. The fancy term for it is Monochromatic.

3. Adjust colours so they are legible, engaging and easy on the eye

A colour or two may look great on its own but can be jarring to the eye if the intensity or tone is wrong. When finalising your palette, it’s important to adjust your colours to work well together so you can create hierarchy, character and variation in your communications without hurting people’s eyes.

Sometimes images or text look harsh and blurry when using certain colours - particularly bright colours that can clash. Try adjusting the shade on one of the colours, choosing a different tone to add contrast and find a spot where colours don’t clash. Test how they work together and think about adding a neutral colour like black, white or grey to add balance to your colours and make the other’s stand out.

4. Try creating some colour usage percentages

You may not always want to use all your chosen colours in every piece of communication you create. Using colours for specific things can also help direct people and build hierarchy in your visual messaging.

Be inspired by a popular interior design technique - 60-30-10 rule. Use 60% of your chosen ‘dominant’ or primary colour, 30% of a secondary colour and 10% of an accent colour. If you’ve got more than 4 colours, have fun and try adjusting the percentages. Don’t be afraid to try different rules and create your own guides as ways to build a great colour palette.

5. Use colours consistently

Consistently using one colour palette on your logo, resources, digital content, and promotional material can increase brand recognition by as much as 80%. Distinctive colour ownership can only be achieved through meticulous consistency so it’s important to stick to the right colours across all your communication platforms.

Colour Codes
There are four types of colour codes you should be aware of to ensure your brand colours can be accurately applied. You don’t need to understand them completely but it’s helpful to note what your brand colours are in each format.

CMYK and PMS: CMYK stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key (black). PMS or Pantone Matching System can help you use exact colours. These colour codes are used for printing. Because printing is like adding layers of colour onto a page, some hues and tones will appear darker than on screen devices.

RGB and HEX: RGB stands for Red, Green, Blue and HEX stands for Hexadecimal Numeral System. These are for online or screen formats - like tv, websites and emails. They have a wider range of colours because they use light to create colour.

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Research links:
www.colorcom.com/research/why-colormatters

www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/00251740610673332/full/html

Choosing and using the right colours for your brand