Discover more about the psychology of color in web design and learn how this can actually lead to better conversions. Impact the viewer in a different way!

color psychology has an important role in the world of branding and marketing.

colors have the ability to influence the perception and emotion of a consumer. Hence, marketers take a lot of care and effort when it comes to picking the color of a brand. This is once again true when it comes to website design. The use of a specific color is used to do provide a message to the reader.

Psychological Impact of color

The brain processes the information passed on by a color in a region known as the hypothalamus. Furthermore, pituitary glands and thyroid glands also play a role in the coding the information offered by the color. Once the information has been decoded by these three parts, they produce hormones that result in a change of mood, emotions, and judgement. It can even alter our behaviour. Plenty of scientific studies have revealed that it requires just 90 seconds for a person to be impacted by a specific color. From then on, around 80% of the interaction with the brand is made largely depending on the color of the product.

Meaning of Each color

There are only a finite number of common colors available today. Yet, each color has a different kind of impact with each person. This impact varies depending on the culture, personal preference, and much more. For example, yellow is a color that men find distasteful while kids are in love with the same. Purple color is used to denote elegance and luxury, but it is largely preferred by the female demographic. Red color has a direct impact on the pulse levels and it is used to signify passion. When there is a need to denote warmth without any clear of danger, orange is the preferred choice and it is no wonder that it is a common color among energy drinks.

Similarly, each color has a specific kind of impact. It should also be remembered that some colors convey different meanings when they are offered in different shades. For example, blue color is often used to signify serenity and intelligence. However, while darker blue colors signified luxury the lighter blue colors are used to promote intelligence. Similarly, there are different outcomes behind the impact of each color.

Understanding color Psychology

The use of psychology when it comes to the color of a business has grown in recent times. It may not be an actual science but plenty of studies have revealed that individual perception does change with respect to color. This knowledge will be able to help frame a color best served to attract the target audience. For example, if the website is being designed for women, it is important to go with colors that have a unanimous appeal amongst women. A good example of this trick can be seen in the L’Oréal Paris website, where can has been taken to enhance the elegance of the whole website by using black color in the header and footer. The black is a color that is synonymous with elegance and class. Hence, it will be able to convey a premium image to the buyer.

L’Oréal Paris also use white for the text and this was used to promote calmness. There are also purple patches on the website so as to denote luxury. Furthermore, purple is a color that is often held closely by the female gender. There is an element of stereotyping certain colors – like pink has become branded as a female color. Yet, it is important not to fall into this trap and overdo the colors in order to attract the target audience. The subtle, yet effective, way at L’Oréal Paris’ website holds a great example.

While L’Oréal Paris has been able to stand the test of time as one of the pleasing and attractive web designs, there are also several cases of people trying to master color psychology with less success.

Understanding the color Schemes

The website design is unlikely to be composed of just one color, as it needs to be multifaceted in order to be attractive. While picking up different colors in order to come up with a theme of the site, it is important to understand the impact of each. The secondary colors have to fit well with the primary color and it is important to understand the role played by different color schemes.

Triadic

The color complementation and vibrancy are the two major factors used by this method, which is regarded as quite balanced but also basic. The user can select three colors using a triangle placed on a 12-step color wheel. The primary color will be able to auto-select the secondary colors that go along with it, as they would be 120° aside from each other.

Compound

This technique is complicated but it can be highly effective under the right conditions. A total of four colors are used for this concept – two are regarded as contrasting pairs while the remaining two are seen as complementary pairs. The contrasting pairs are located near the wheel while the complementary pairs are located across the wheel.

Analogous

This is an option that only considers the complementary colors. The chosen color will be increased in terms of vibrancy. The colors can become exaggerated, but it is possible for the user to choose colors based on the overall theme of the site.

The process of picking a color based on psychology is not just about a standalone element, as one has to decide if the color along well with the supplementary colors on the page. The three major sections that need to be in sync:

• Background: The background color is often the largest in the design. The process of picking a background color should be made with a lot of care, as it should convey excellence, class, and corporate nature. This would suggest to the user that the site is very serious.
• Buttons: The buttons used across the site will have to blend in along with the background in such a way that they are not too intrusive. At the same time, they should be legible so that they serve their purpose.
• Text color: This is a crucial selection since the color should not hinder in the readability of the content. Many website designers make the mistake of going with a color option that looks good, but the looks can be superficial alone.

There are several tools that can be used to help choose a color. Most of the tools like Adobe Color CC and Mudcube Color Sphere will be able to offer a full-fledged solution for the user. Even though they may be for the experienced hand, it is better to go with an experienced person in order to pick the color choice. It should always be remembered that the color is a vital aspect of the brand. Once a color has been established for a specific brand, it becomes extremely difficult to change the same due to the difficulty in marketing a new color. Hence, care should be taken from the first instance to use the appropriate color.

Conclusion

The brand personality has to be studied extensively before picking the choice of color. Since the color must convey more information about the brand and also have a meaning, designers need to work with a lot of boards before they are able to find a proper solution. Designers also have to incorporate the color into an existing logo or an artwork. Even though this stage of the process can be quite tricky, the large number of palettes available at the disposal of a designer should help them in the process.

The importance of color in today’s marketing world is not a surprise, but the way it has been able to make an impact for the entire marketing industry is quite a surprise. color psychology is applicable for all walks of marketing – including web designs.