Perhaps no choice is as important to marketing as color. Whether you are choosing the color for a product or for your email marketing campaign, color has a tremendous impact on all of us. Subconsciously, we join different colors with different things.
This infographic checks the psychology of color and looks at some common associations of different colors. It shows the overall importance of color to consumers and characteristics of many individual colors, and it also helps show the connection between graphic design and psychology. The numbers are pretty fascinating!
While color can be appealing to us visually, a lot more is going on behind the scenes than just an aesthetic. Powerful psychological cues are triggered when we view different colors. Colors evoke emotions, moods, and feelings. Whether you are a designer or a consumer, knowing the power of the psychology of color can help you make better decisions.
85% of consumers cite the color as Primary Reason they buy a particular product.
When people buy
93% of consumers look at visual Appearance, 6% look at texture, and 1% Decide on Sound/Smell.
80% of consumers think color increases brand recognition, and 52% of consumers did not return to a store due to overall aesthetics.
Research reveals that people make a subconscious judgment about the environment or product within 90 seconds of the first viewing. Between 62% and 90% of that is based on the color alone.
Ads in color are read up to 42% more often than the same ads in black and white.
Color can improve
comprehension 73%
Learning 55% – 68%
Reading 40%
How color works
Primary colors: Red, Yellow, and Blue
Secondary Colors: Orange, Green, and Purple
Red (Primary Color)
Red color impact on:-
Personality/Emotions
- Evoke strong emotions
- Encourages appetite
- Increases passion and intensity
Marketing
- Increase heart rate
- Used by restaurants to stimulate appetite
- Creates urgency often seen in clearance sales
- Used for impulsive shoppers
Politics
- Represents communist or socialist parties worldwide
- used for republications in the USA
Chakra (Root Chakra)
- Located at the base of the spine
- Related to survival safety, physical self
Companies using Red color
Coca-Cola, Kelloggs, Netflix, Toyota, Target, lego
Yellow (Primary Color)
Personality/Emotions
- Increases cheerfulness, warmth
- Causes fatigue and strain on eyes
- Make babies cry
- Stimulates mental processes
- Stimulates nervous system
- Encourages communication
Marketing
- Represents optimism, youthfulness
- used to grab the attention of window shoppers
- Shows clarity
Politics
- Represents liberalism
Chakra (Solar Plexus)
- Located in Upper abdomen between navel and sternum
- Related to personal power, self-esteem
Companies using Yellow color
Best Buy, DHL, IMDb, Mcdonalds, and National Geographics
Blue (Primary Color)
Personality/Emotions
- Associates with water, and peace
- Most preferred by men
- Represent calmness or serenity
- Curbs appetite
- Known as a “cold” color
- Perceived as constant in human life due to sky and ocean being blue
- Most used color for offices
Marketing
- Often used in corporate business because it’s productive and non-invasive
- Creates a sense of security and trust in a brand
Politics
- Represents conservative parties worldwide
- Used for Democrats in USA
Chakra (Solar Plexus)
- Base for throat
- Related to communication, truth, and self-expression
Companies using Blue color
Facebook, Oral-B, Pepsi, Skype, Walmart
Orange (Secondary Color)
Personality/Emotions
- Reflects excitement, and enthusiasm
- Show warmth
- Warns of caution
Marketing
- Signifies aggression
- Creates a call to action: Buy, Sell, Subscription, etc
- Found in impulsive shoppers
- Represents a friendly, cheerful, and confident brand
Politics
- Orange is the national color of the Netherlands and its royal family
Chakra (The Sacral Chakra)
- Located around the lower back and reproductive organs
- Related to sexuality, creativity, and pleasure
Companies using Blue color
Amazon, Fanta, Harley Davidson, Nickelodeon, Discover
Green (Secondary Color)
Personality/Emotions
- Constitutes health, tranquility
- Symbolizes money
- Denotes nature
- Alleviates depression
- Workers in a green environment have fewer stomach aches
- Green is used in night-vision goggles because the human eye is most sensitive to and able to discern the most shades of it
- Represents new growth
Marketing
- Used to relax in the stores
- Associated with wealth
- Green M&M’s are said to send a sexual message
- Has long been symbol od fertility
- Was once the preferred color choice for a wedding in the 15th century.
Politics
- Connected to environmentalists
Chakra (Heart Chakra)
- Center of body, heart level
- Related to unconditional love healing
Companies using Blue color
Eleven, Monster Energy, Spotify, Starbucks Coffee, Tropicana
purple (Secondary Color)
Personality/Emotions
- Show royalty, wealth, success, and wisdom
- Many kings wore purple robes
Marketing
- Used often in beauty or anti-aging products
- Used to soothe or calm
- Represents a creative, imaginative, wise brand
Politics
- Used for royalty, but hardly used in modern politics
Chakra (The Crown Chakra)
- Top of the head
- Related to spiritual life and experience, connection to the divine, pure consciousness, transcendence
Companies using Blue color
Yahoo, Hallmark, Craigslist, Welch’s, T Mobile, Crown Royal
