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Psychology of Color

October 26, 2009 | Good Reading, Our Insights |

by Kathryn Clark, Art Director

Color—a difference of a few shades can stimulate, depress, provoke, soothe, and even make us shiver or sweat.

crayonsIn fact, according to a study at Washington State University, people who are surrounded by the color green can endure more pain, and recover more quickly from surgery using fewer drugs.1 Pink, on the other hand, has been shown to have a subduing and calming effect on violent prision inmates.2

If color is this powerful, what is it saying about your brand?

Here are a few of the ways color can influence brand perception:

• People will make riskier bets and gamble more under red lights as opposed to blue lights. This is why you see so much red neon in Las Vegas.3

• Being in a blue room can lower your heart rate and suppress your appetite. Red and yellow have the opposite effect—which is why so many fast food restaurants use these colors.4

• Yellow and red are also the best selling candy colors. Dylan Lauren, the owner of Dylan’s Candy Bar in NYC says that “Yellow is nostalgic, and red is passion. It makes people hungry.”

• Recent studies suggest that nearly all sports are enhanced in blue surroundings—including weight lifting. This may be because people tend to be more calm and focused in a blue environment.5

• Purple stimulates the area of the brain used in problem solving.6

• White pills are the most effective at soothing ulcers, even if they are merely placebos. Green tablets reduce anxiety, antidepressants are best in yellow and blue ones make the most successful tranquilizers.7

While the response to color is altered by personal and cultural experiences, many are universal and can be used for more effective brand positioning. From the office to the candy store, from your house to the grocery store, color affects our lives in amazing ways. Why not harness this power for your brand?

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This entry was posted on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 7:11 am and is filed under Good Reading, Our Insights. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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  • http://www.weblogredux.com Hal

    Excellent post. Besides what you mentioned, there is a color association mentality, depending on your culture. Purple is usually associated with regality, yellow with cowardice, green with illness (or envy) etc.

  • http://Eisemancolorblog.com Leatrice Eiseman

    Thank you for your thoughtful perspective on color. As an author of 7 books on color, color consultant, teacher and speaker, i am always looking for credible information to be passed on. So much that exists out there is ‘urban legend” and not really proven. i do have to tell you though that the comment about pink having a subduing effect has been disproven in subsequent studies. The colors originally tested in prisons were Pepto Bismol pink, not a soft baby pink and many studies done after the first one did not show the same results.
    it is important to use newer information on color, as even cultural connotations have changed, especially with young people who have access to more information. White was considered the color of mourning in China or in countries of chinese origin such as Taiwan, yet today many young Asian brides are wearing white wedding dresses, just as they see in their current magazines, fashion runways and on the web.

    Thank you again,

    Leatrice Eiseman
    Director, Eiseman Center for Color Information and Training
    Executive Director, Pantone Color Institute
    Author of most recent book, Color Messages and Meanings

  • http://www.mikemccready.ca/blog/ Mike McCready

    This is a good topic that I wonder how much marketers, logo designers pay attention to. I think we forget the subtleties that impact brand reception.

  • http://www.newalliancemarketing.com Jeff Walden

    Great article! I had no idea that they’ve researched colors so extensively.

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  • teappeavy

    Lots of people write about this topic, but your article is one of the best I have seen.

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  • Erik

    Great article! Thanks for the information.

  • Travis

    Thank you for your explanation. This is really useful information.

  • Brad

    I enjoy reading the report, too. The effects of color are fascinating.

  • Amanda

    Thanks for the information. It’s nice to know I’m doing something right!

  • Joan McKnight

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    I searched for something completely different, but found your website! And I have to say thanks. Nice read.

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    You made some good points there. I did a search on the topic and hardly found any specific details on other sites, but then great to be here, seriously, thanks…

    - Josh

  • Eugenio Stilson

    That is a excellent point to bring up.

  • Kiara

    awesome …

  • Johnson

    Took the time to read the whole article, the article is great but the comments bring even more brainstorming ideas, thanks.

    - Johnson

  • Jordan

    Many thanks!!

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  • Barbara

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  • Alvaro Pacey

    thanks for sharing. nice post!

  • Shelly

    Very informative post. Thanks for taking the time to share your view with us.