What Colors Tell Your Customers about Your Brand

The colors you use to represent your brand are very important because they can be the root of subliminal messaging and also influence the way the people feel.

The colors that represent your brand are not only your logo, but also the colors that you paint your office or retail outlet. Color can instantly convey a message and invoke feelings and it also has been shown to be able to influence office staff efficiency and productivity.

Your business logo design combined with color can immediately tell a consumer a great deal about your brand. In much the same way, you send a message to your employees, guests, and customers with the colors you use in your office or retail space décor.

Here is some information on what colors can mean to your brand so that you are getting the right message across to your target customers as well as employees.

Red

Red is a color that can have different meanings, so be cautious about how you use red; it should be done so sparingly.

Red is a strong color that has been said to activate the pituitary gland and increase heart rate and make people breathe rapidly. It can mean love, passion, sportiness, or aggression. In many cases it represents blood, danger, indebtedness, or means stop.

Red in a logo can show urgency or importance, as with CNN or BBC. Red in an office décor space can get people moving an increase action.

So if you want your staff to “get up and move around” use splashes of red in your design to increase employee productivity in physical activities.

If you are designing a retail space, using red designs can help keep customers moving in the direction you want them to.

Yellow

Yellow is an energetic color that represents fun, happiness, and sunshine. Yellow should be used sparingly in office or retail designs because it can cause eye fatigue since it is so bright.

If you are using yellow in your logo, it should not be on a white background since that is hard to see. Yellow is one of the colors that can have a dual meaning because in addition to being bright and cheery, it can also sometimes mean caution or afraid.

Depending on what shade of yellow you use, it can help your company convey positivity, hope, joy and warmth.

When you think about companies with yellow in their designs, think about McDonald’s golden arches, and Subway’s fresh logo.

Orange

Orange is the combination of red and yellow so it can be used to represent a combination of the same feelings brought on through yellow and red.

In most situations, orange represents youthfulness, brightness and warmth.

In the same way that red increases heartbeat; orange increases oxygen and stimulates brain activity of the person gazing at the color. In a logo, orange can represent fun, youthfulness, kids, fire, sun, or warmth.

Tropical travel destinations, health companies, and companies that cater to children should consider using orange in their logo and in their retail space.

Orange Theory gyms, The Home Depot, and Nickelodeon utilize orange in their logo and in their retail spaces.

Green

Depending greatly on the shade of green, it can represent Earth, nature, growth or money.

When used in an office environment or retail space, green can be relaxing and even give off a healing vibe. Many nutritional, safety, and pharmaceutical companies use green to represent healing.

While banks, finance companies and militaries use more of a dark green shade in their logos.

Like many other colors, green can also have a dual meaning, so be sure to test out your logo design or office décor to make sure that green doesn’t come off as meaning greedy or envious.

When green is used in the best way, it conveys freshness, calm, and environmentally friendly. The recycle logo, Sprite, and Cooking Channel use green in their logo.

Blue

The most popular color in logos and in business offices is blue. The reason why is because blue is a very calming color, but it also has many positive qualities including loyalty, strength, stability, wisdom and trust.

Of course, too much of a good thing is never the best and the same goes for a blue office. Since blue is calming, sometimes too much blue can be too calming and might make employees or retail shoppers feel tired or lazy.

The best way around this problem is testing out different designs and seeing what affect they have on your target customer or target market.

Too much blue paint in an office can easily be broken up with some fun orange, red, or yellow designs.

Many social media companies and tech industry companies use blue in their logo including Facebook, LinkedIn, Hewlett Packard, IBM, and Dell.

Takeaways for Your Business

Since many colors can have dual meaning, it is very important for you to test out colors and design with your specific customers or employees to see how they react to the logo, retail space, or office design.

According to branding experts at Brandme, an office or retail design is easier to change than a logo, so be sure before settling on a logo.

As for a retail location or an office, it is easier to add or change design colors. For example, if you decide on blue paint for your office walls, but some employees get lulled into too much calm, add orange or yellow décor to their desk or work space with a desk top or by hanging pictures.