The study of color psychology can greatly help a designer to create not just beautiful but also a profitable product. Using colors in harmony with each other, you can greatly affect a visitor’s behavioral patterns. Color is as important as text: when combined masterfully, these two tools can ease the perception of the image and contribute to better memorability; when the combination is wrong, the outcome may be funny and awkward like this.Color is CommercialIt has long been known that different colors evoke different emotional reactions. But how to use it for commercial purposes? I do not pretend to absolute, but I hope my observations and suggestions set out below will help you to understand the essence of color in marketing and boost your business. Need even more information? Welcome to DesignContest!Most people are visuals. Of course, you can’t get the desired emotions on the base of color only: the brand itself should satisfy needs and desires of customers. However, color can’t be underestimated. When hiring a web designer, most of the business owners have no idea what color would best fit their brand although it is one of the main questions to answer before starting work on a website design.Color psychology plays a very important role, although it may seem ephemeral. In the meantime, it is real, and it affects users. Note that persuading is not coercion, manipulation, or assertiveness – it just helps visitors to perform certain actions (at least, to remain on the website).To be efficient, color psychology should interact closely with the logo design, CTAs, and many other factors of a website.The Impact of ColorNumerous studies show that there is a close link between the product color and the human desire to acquire it. Every time we see color, our subconscious hypothalamus experiences a chain reaction: thyroid emits hormones that cause certain emotions that influence our behavior. According to research, from about 3/4th of purchase decisions are made on the basis of unconscious analysis of color. Therefore, if a designer understands the psychology of colors well, he can get much more profits from the design which immediately affects the conversion rate.The Proper Use of ColorYou have to be very careful when designing a commercial website as sometimes the standard solutions don’t work and you need to move away from the selected colors by adding new ones. As noted above, color can generate different emotions. Therefore, you have to know which colors will have the greatest impact on the target audience.
Red. It draws attention. If you want to highlight a button, it makes sense to use shades of red. However, red color must comply with the basic palette of the website.
Pink. If the target audience of the site is mainly female, shades of pink will be a good choice. Pink is a color of joy and romance.
Purple. It’s a color of sophistication and elegance. When combined with shades of yellow and gold, purple can be used on sites related to comfort and luxury.
Green. It’s a color of life, of peace, and tranquility. If you want to create a website dedicated to environmental issues or internet shop selling organic products, the choice in the favor of green and its shades is obvious.
Blue. Blue color is associated with reliability and tranquility. For major commercial sites, social networks and other web resources, which position themselves as reliable, the choice of blue is a correct decision.
Yellow. Marketers know that yellow color is associated with lack of concern. It best suits online shops selling toys and children's clothes.
Gold. As you know, gold is associated with the influence and prestige. "Metal" colors are not so popular today; however, they are useful to show elegance and stability.
Black. The universal color that goes well with all other colors. It is best when you need to get the contrast on the web page.
Brown. Furniture, construction, and ecology are the themes for a brown website.
Orange. Shades of orange, combined with contrasting colors, are often used for websites of high technologies and various electronic gadgets.
No doubts, color scheme affects the popularity of the site, especially if it’s commercial. Choosing the right palettes, you can maximize the conversion rate. At the same time, you have to remember that color perception can be different across different cultures. For example, In China, white is associated with death while in Europe it’s the color of purity and innocence; in Brazil, purple and violet recall the death while in most countries are considered feminine. So, don’t forget to take into account the target audience and choose such colors that will not cause negative emotions.
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About the Author:Brian Jens never moves away from the principles he established at the beginning of the career: explore only interesting market niches and provide useful content. Therefore, almost all Brian’s publications are of applied nature. Feel free to send Brian the ideas you wish to be covered.