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A B L O G A B O U T A N A LY T I C S , M A R K E T I N G A N D T E S T I N G

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How to Use the Psychology of Color to

Increase Website Conversions
Color wields enormous sway over our attitudes and emotions. When our eyes take
in a color, they communicate with a region of the brain known as the
hypothalamus, which in turn sends a cascade of signals to the pituitary gland, on
to the endocrine system, and then to the thyroid glands. The thyroid glands signal
the release of hormones, which cause fluctuation in mood, emotion, and resulting
behavior.

Research from QuickSprout indicates that 90% of all product assessments have to
do with color. “Color,” writes Neil Patel, is “85% of the reason you purchased a
specific product.” It’s a no-brainer fact of any website that color affects
conversions. Big time.

So, the bottom line is: use the right colors, and you win.

What is Color Psychology?

In order to really appreciate the tips below, you’ll benefit from a little information
on color psychology.

Color psychology is the science of how color affects human behavior. Color
psychology actually is a branch of the broader field of behavioral psychology.
Suffice it to say that it’s a pretty complicated field. Some skeptics are even
dismissive of the whole field of color psychology, due to the difficulty of testing
theories. My own research on the topic, as this article conveys, lacks scientific
evidence to back up every claim. But that alone is no reason to dismiss the
profound and unarguable effect that color has on people.

There are key facts of color theory that are indisputable. In a peer reviewed
journal article, Satyendra Singh determined that it takes a mere 90 seconds for a
customer to form an opinion about a product. And, 62-90% of that interaction is
determined by the color of the product alone.

Color psychology is a must-study field for leaders, office managers, architects,

gardeners, chefs, product designers, packaging designers, store owners, and even
expectant parents painting the nursery for the new arrival! Color is critical. Our
success depends upon how we use color.

Where Should You Use Color?

Let’s get oriented to our context. Since color is ubiquitous, we need to understand
where you should use these color tips. This article discusses the use of color in
website design. Specifically, we’re talking about the color scheme of a website,
which includes the tint of hero graphics, headline type, borders, backgrounds,
buttons, and popups.

In the example below, NinjaJump uses a green-yellow-red color scheme in their

logo, phone number, video C2A, menu bar, graphics, category menu, sub
headings, and sidebar. The tips that we discuss below can be applied in similar
ways — menus, sidebars, color schemes, etc.

Using the Right Color in the Right Way

Color is a tricky thing. You have to use it in the right way, at the right time, with the
right audience, and for the right purpose.

For example, if you are selling bouncy jump houses — those things that kids play
in — you don’t want to use a black website. Props, NinjaJump.com.

For the jump house site, you want lots of bright and vibrant colors, probably some
reds, greens, and maybe a splash of yellow for good measure. If, on the other
hand, you’re selling a product to women, you don’t want to use brown or orange.
Maybe that’s why L’oreal uses black and white, with purple overlay, in their e-
commerce homepage.

I’ll explain all the tricks below. In order to succeed at using the right color
psychology, you need to follow these core principles:

The right way

The right time

The right audience

The right purpose

Here are some tips that the pros use when dealing with conversions and color.

Color Tips that Will Improve Your Conversions

1. Women don’t like gray, orange, and brown. They like blue,
purple, and green.
The sociological differences between color preferences is a whole branch of study
unto itself. Patel got it right when he cited the colors preferred, and disliked, by
the two genders.

Image from: https://blog.kissmetrics.com/how-colors-affect-conversions/

In a survey on color and gender, 35% of women said blue was their favorite color,
followed by purple (23%) and green (14%). 33% of women confessed that orange
was their least favorite color, followed by brown (33%) and gray (17%).

Other studies have corroborated these findings, revealing a female aversion to

earthy tones, and a preference for primary colors with tints. Look at how this is
played out. Visit nearly any e-commerce site whose target audience is female, and
you’ll find these female color preferences affirmed.

Milani Cosmetics has a primarily female customer base. Thus, there’s not a shred
of orange, gray, or brown on the homepage:

Woman’s Day uses all three of the favorite colors of women (blue, purple, and
green) on their homepage, thus inviting in their target audience:

Most people think that the universally-loved female color is pink. It’s not. Just a
small percentage of women choose pink as their favorite color. Thus, while pink
may suggest femininity in color psychology, this doesn’t mean that pink is
appealing to all women, or even most women. Use colors other than pink — like
blue, purple, and green — and you may improve the appeal of your e-commerce
website to female visitors. And that may, in turn, improve conversions.

2. Men don’t like purple, orange, and brown. Men like blue, green,
and black.
If you’re marketing to men, these are the colors to stay away from: purple, orange,
and brown. Instead, use blue, green, and black. These colors — blue, green, and
black — are traditionally associated with maleness. However, it comes as a slight
surprise to some that brown isn’t a favorite pick.

3. Use blue in order to cultivate user’s trust.

Blue is one of the most-used colors, with good reason. A lot of people like blue.

Read the literature on blue, and you’ll come across messages like

The color blue is a color of trust, peace, order, and loyalty. (source)
Blue is the color of corporate America and it says, “Chill . . . believe and trust
me . . . have confidence in what I am saying!” (source)
Blue calls to mind feelings of calmness and serenity. It often is described as
peaceful, tranquil, secure, and orderly. (source)

There is wide agreement in the research community on the psychological effects

of the color blue. Its subtle message of trustworthiness and serenity is true. You
can use this to your advantage on your website and landing pages.

The world’s biggest social network is blue. For a company whose core values are
transparency and trust, this probably is not an accident.

A company that serves as a conduit for billions of dollars, PayPal, also prefers the
color blue. Chances are, this helps to improve their trustworthiness. If they were
to try, say, red or orange as the theme color and branding, they probably wouldn’t
have the same level of conversion.
Blue is, in fact, a color heavily used by many banks. Here’s CapitalOne.com, a
major Internet bank:

Although blue is pretty much an all-round great color, it should never be used for
anything related to food. Dieters have used blue plates to successfully prevent
them from eating more. Evolutionary theory suggests that blue is a color
associated with poison. There aren’t very many blue foods — blueberries and
plums just about cover it. Thus, never use blue if you’re selling foodie stuff.

4. Yellow is for warnings.

Yellow is a color of warning. Hence, the color yellow is used for warning signs,
traffic signals, and wet floor signs.

It seems odd, then, that some color psychologists declare yellow to be the color of
happiness. Business Insider reports that “brands use yellow to show that they’re
fun and friendly.” There is a chance that yellow can suggest playfulness. However,
since yellow stimulates the brain’s excitement center, the playfulness feeling may
be simply a state of heightened emotion and response, not exactly sheer joy.

Color psychology is closely tied to memories and experiences. So, if someone had
a very pleasant experience with someone wearing a yellow shirt, eating at a fast
food establishment with yellow arches, or living in a home with yellow walls, then
the yellow color may cause joy by memory association.

One of the most-cited “facts” about the color yellow is that it makes babies cry and
people angry. To date, I have not found any study that backs up this claim, even
though everyone is fairly comfortable repeating it.

I’ve even read that “the color yellow can cause nausea,” though I’m doubtful about
this.

If you find the study about cranky babies and angry people living in yellow-walled
houses, please let me know. I’m pretty sure that babies are going to cry and
people are going to get ticked, regardless of the paint color. Whatever the case, it
does seem true that “yellow activates the anxiety center of the brain,” as reported
by one color expert.

A heightened anxiety level during any website experience is never a good thing,
unless it comes in small doses. Thus, a yellow call to action may create just a touch
of anxiety that’s needed to make them click the desired call to action.

Use yellow in small doses unless you want to cause unnecessary anxiety.

5. Green is ideal for environmental and outdoor products.

Perhaps the most intuitive color connection is green — the color of outdoors, eco-
friendly, nature, and the environment. Green essentially is a chromatic symbol for
nature itself.
Apart from its fairly obvious outdoorsy suggestiveness, green also is a color that
can improve creativity. Labeled “the green effect,” one study indicated that
participants had more bursts of creativity when presented with a flash of green
color as opposed to any other color.

If the focus of your website has anything to do with nature, environment, organic,
or outdoors, green should be your color of choice.

Green isn’t just about nature, though. Green also is a good call to action color,
especially when used in combination with the “isolation effect,” also known as the
von Restorff effect, which states that you remember things better if they stand
out. You remember the Statue of Liberty because it’s big, tall, green, and there
aren’t a whole lot of them in the New York harbor. In color psychology, the
isolation effect occurs when a focus item, such as a conversion step, is the only
item of a particular color. The technique works wonders for calls to action, and
green is an ideal choice.

Here’s how Conrad Feagin uses it:

All of Dell’s conversion elements are green.

The word “green” itself is a buzzword for environmental awareness and

appreciation. Using the word and the color itself can lend an environmental aura
to your website, improving your reputation among those who are passionate
about environmental concerns.

5. Orange is a fun color that can create a sense of haste or

impulse.
The positive side of orange is that it can be used as the “fun” color. According to
some, orange helps to “stimulate physical activity, competition, and confidence.”
This may be why orange is used heavily by sports teams and children’s products.

This logo should be familiar, in light of recent events:

Click here to see the logo

Here’s another team that proudly uses orange:

Click here to see the logo

In fact, there are a ton of sports teams that use orange: Florida Gators, Clemson
Tigers, Boise State Broncos, Syracuse, New York Knicks, New York Mets, San Diego
Chargers, etc.

Amazon.com uses orange in their “limited time offer” banner. The color suggests
urgency, which makes the message more noticeable and actionable:

It makes sense. Orange means active. Orange means fun. Orange means
togetherness. Because it’s a loud and warm color. However, orange can be slightly
overwhelming. An article on Psych.Answers.com advises, “Orange will be used
sparingly to bring your attention to something, but not so much as to overwhelm
the actual message of the advert.”
Sometimes, orange is interpreted as “cheap.” (Compare this to black, which is the
color of luxury. See below.) Forbes posed the question, “Does orange mean
cheap?” in an article on the “Effect of Color on Sales of Commercial Products.” The
resounding answer was “yes.” If your product offering is cheap, or if you want it to
be seen as such, orange may be a good choice. Vive la Big Lots.

6. Black adds a sense of luxury and value.

The darker the tone, the more lux it is, says our internal color psychology. An
article from Lifescript describes black as “elegance, sophistication, power,” which
is exactly what luxury designers and high-end e-commerce sites want you to feel.
The article goes on to describe black as the color of “timeless, classic” which helps
further explain the use of black in high-value products.

In a Business Insider piece on color and branding, the author relates the
significance of black:

“Black can also be seen as a luxurious color. ‘Black, when used correctly can
communicate glamour, sophistication, exclusivity.’”

Louis Vuitton handbags are not cheap. Absent from the site are colors and designs
of whimsy and fun. This is serious value:

Citizen Watch, better than the average Timex, also uses the dark-tone website
design:

Lamborghini does the same thing. Black is the name of the game:

If you are selling high-value luxury consumer items on your website, black
probably would be a good choice.

7. Use bright primary colors for your call to action.

In strict testing environments, the highest-converting colors for calls to action are
bright primary and secondary colors – red, green, orange, yellow.

Darker colors like black, dark gray, brown, or purple have very low conversion
rates. Brighter ones have higher conversion rates.

Women’s Health uses a bright mauve-tinted shade for their popup call to action.
They’ve got the female-associated purple/pink tint going for them, along with a
bright tone.

GreenGeeks uses a yellow button:

The biggest retailer in the world uses that famous “add to cart” button. It’s yellow:

Some of the best conversion colors are the “ugly” ones — orange and yellow. An
article on ColorMatters.com states, “Psychologically, the ‘anti-aesthetic’ colors may
well capture more attention than those on the aesthetically-correct list.” Since the
goal of a conversion element is to capture attention, then you may do just fine
with that big orange button (BOB). Or yellow.

8. Don’t neglect white.

In most of the color psychology material I read, there is a forgotten feature.
Maybe that’s because color theorists can’t agree on whether white is a color or
not. I don’t really care whether it is or not. What I do know is that copious use of
white space is a powerful design feature. Take, for example, the most popular
website in the world. It’s basically all white:

White is often forgotten, because its primary use is as a background color. Most
well-designed websites today use plenty of white space in order to create a sense
of freedom, spaciousness, and breathability.

Conclusion
The Internet is a colorful place, and there is a lot that can be accomplished by
using color in the right way, at the right time, with the right audience, and for the
right purpose.

Naturally, this article leads to questions about making changes in your company’s
context. What about if your company has a specific color style guide? What if the
logo color dictates a certain tint? What if the lead designer dictates color
requirements? How do you deal with that?

You may not be in a position to rewrite your style guide and pick your own website
color palette or font colors on the email template. So, how can you use color
psychology in these situations? There are a few options:

If the colors really suck, campaign for change. In some situations, you may
need to make a difference. If you’re a high-heel designer selling to upscale
women, but have a crappy orange logo, share your concerns with the decision-
makers. People sometimes make stupid color decisions. Kindly show them why
and how a killer color scheme can make a conversion difference.
Use psychology-appropriate colors that match the existing color scheme. Sure,
you need to adapt to the color scheme, but you can still use a splash of
strategic color here and there. Let’s say, for sake of example, that you have a
blue-themed website. Fine. You can create a popup to harvest email addresses,
and use a bright yellow button. The button is psychology-appropriate, and it
doesn’t do damage to the company’s color branding.

The more freedom you have in your color scheme, the better. Here are some solid
takeaways as you implement color psychology into your website:

colors. Despite what some may say, there is no right color for a
Test several colors
conversion text or button. Try a green, purple, or yellow button. Explore the
advantages of a black background scheme vs. a white background. Find out
which works best for your audience and with your product.
Don’t just leave color choice up to your designer. I have enormous
respect for most web designers. I’ve worked with many of them. However,
don’t let your designer dictate what colors you should use on your website.
Color is a conversion issue, not just an “Oh, it looks good” issue. Color
aesthetics is not everything. Color conversion effects are important! You should
be heavily involved in the color selection of your landing pages in order to
 improve your conversions.
Avoid color overload. I’ve just spent over 3,000 words telling you how
important and awesome color is. Now, you’re going to go out and color
something. But don’t go overboard. Remember my final point. I put it last for a
reason. White is a color, and it should be your BFF color, too. Reign in your
color enthusiasm with a whole lot of white. Too many colors can create a sense
of confusion.

How have your color changes affected your conversions?

About the Author: Jeremy Smith is a conversion consultant and trainer, helping
businesses like Dow Chemical, American Express, Panera Bread, and Wendy’s
improve conversions and strategically grow their testing culture and digital
presence. Jeremy’s experience as the CMO and CEO of technology firms has given
him a powerful understanding of human behavior and profit-boosting techniques.
Follow him on Google+ or Twitter.

Related Posts
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Paul Graham Apr 01, 2014 at 2:20 pm

The psychology of colour is indeed complex. I have studied it in some depth in a

previous career and would just add a couple of qualifiers. 1/ Context and shade
are both important. The colours women are not supposed to like are frequently
used in various shades for interior decor. 2/ Other studies have shown there to be
cultural impacts on preferences 3/ With the exception of yellows for happiness
and red to stimulate action or hunger, there appears to be a cycle of colour
preference in merchandising as well as in fashion. I concur with all of the advice
provided so long as one bears in mind that the specifics are fluid and its important
to remain current. Thanks for a very good post on a topic seldom covered !

Reply

Jeremy Apr 02, 2014 at 5:30 am

Hi Paul. Thanks so much for the comment. I completely agree. The specifics
need to remain fluid and current. There is also a vast disparity between online
 and offline interaction and how your brain processes different elements. What
may cause friction online may be completely irrelevant offline and vice versa.
And yes, cultural impacts wreak havoc on conversion optimization processes
and obliterate any notion of “best practices”(a word we hate to use in
conversion optimization). Thanks for the in-depth comments. I appreciate it.

Reply

Pamela Scott Jan 09, 2017 at 10:29 am

Hello thank for your article, however I notice that you did not mention the
color red? Not a whole page of course but a splash?

Reply

Chris Apr 01, 2014 at 6:10 pm

Definitely agree about bright colours in CTActions. It’s simple but it works.

Reply

Jeremy Apr 02, 2014 at 5:33 am

I agree too, however I have seen the complete opposite working while a/b
testing. Although, more times than not, the brighter colors seem to have a big
impact on CTA’s.

Reply

Oliver Apr 02, 2014 at 1:24 am

Interesting article. We should use this theory more often – even when we’re just
creating documents. I’d like to see this in a WHY Map (www.whycode.com).

Thanks for the read.

Reply

Jeremy Apr 02, 2014 at 5:35 am

Hi Oliver. I am glad you found it interesting. Thanks for sharing.

Reply

Rupal Sathavara Apr 02, 2014 at 2:57 am

Good post and very helpful,Funnily enough, when I started out in

advertising/direct marketing many years ago, we were always told that sending a
mailing out in a yellow envelope increased results.

I was also really pleased to discover from your post that our logo and site colours
incorporate all three colours women love. Given our target audience is female, our
instincts are clearly working fine!

Reply
 Jeremy Apr 02, 2014 at 5:37 am

Hi Rupal. Thanks for the comments. It’s true, whatever is different and ugly
stand out the most, even more in direct mail. It’s just how our brains process
these things. I am glad your logo colors are working. Those are definitely
important for your user base.

Reply

Ivan Apr 02, 2014 at 4:19 am

Jeremy,

Good article but… this applies mostly to US/Europe in particular.

However, if you’re developing for an international audience, for example, China,

look at different color combinations. Red, for example, has different connotations
there.

You agree?

Ivan

Reply

Jeremy Apr 02, 2014 at 5:40 am

Ivan, I completely 10000000% agree. Cultural differences play a vital role in

trying to optimize for conversions. It’s something we run into every day and are
currently running many tests on these. I look forward to sharing those results.
Thanks for the comments.

Reply

andres Apr 02, 2014 at 4:59 am

is funny…

My question would be…Why so many call to action buttons are Orange???

The article show us, women and men don’t like Orange. so…..????
Besides, if Gray is a color that women hate…..you show us the Facebook Example,
there i can see a combination of Blue and Gray ( what about women’s) the study
talks about women hate gray???

Reply

Jeremy Apr 02, 2014 at 5:44 am

Andres, thanks for the question. I believe that so many call to action buttons are
orange because there are tons of blog posts out there that say use BOB, the big
orange button. While this may prove true in some scenarios, it should be no
means be considered best practices. It’s something you have to continually test
for, no matter what site you are on. I have even seen button color affect
conversions based on seasonality. Make sure you are always testing for the best
results.

Reply
Alan Apr 02, 2014 at 6:06 am

Wow, what a post. Thanks. I think I’ll be reading and re-reading this again.

What a lot of insight and find most fascinating the revelation that white will help
the user breathe. Too often there is much flashing and distraction, even if it may
be from a slightly grey background. It is so true to suggest that white will provide
some space.
Thanks

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:31 am

Thanks for the comments. I love white space and typography in design. Reread
as often as you like. :)

Reply

Judith Apr 02, 2014 at 6:18 am

I stopped eating M&Ms when they added blue to the otherwise beautiful, earthy,
harvest-colored mix. It just wasn’t as much fun.

Reply

Dennis Ruggeri Apr 02, 2014 at 6:28 am

Look also into the Luscher Color Test.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BCscher_color_test

One of my senior theses in college compared the personalities of the characters in

the Great Gatsby to the color imagery used by Fitzgerald. Using this test I found a
striking comparison to the personalities of the characters and the color imagery
used to describe them.

I wish I went into this field after college because it still intrigues me today.

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:33 am

Great info Dennis. Thanks for sharing. This field has room for many more like
you. There is so much to continue to learn about online web behaviors and
color associations with conversions. It’s a never ending story. :)

Reply

Jewel McKeon Apr 02, 2014 at 7:23 am

Excellent, comprehensive and inspiring. One question, what do you think of the
Color Marketing Group development of the new trending colors for the upcoming
year?

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:35 am

 Jewel, good question. I think this answer may be much more in-depth than this
comment box will allow. They have a ton of good insight backed by researched
data. However, as much as I have seen this time and time again, each industry
and persona is different and that’s why testing is imperative on any site. I love
reading things like this though, thanks for sharing.

Reply

Ros Apr 02, 2014 at 8:46 am

Thank you so much for this article, Jeremy. It has come at the right time as I’m just
experimenting with colours for a new website. It’s given me great pointers in the
opposite direction as I was about to flood it with about five colours!

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:36 am

Glad you like it Ros, let me know how it turns out.

Reply

Ricardo Zea Apr 02, 2014 at 8:58 am

Good article, but the author is disappointing.

“Don’t just leave color choice up to your designer. […] Color is a conversion issue,
not just an “Oh, it looks good”… ”

Dude, who the hell have you worked with before? Hehe.

A GOOD designer will school you in color theory in less than 5 minutes, and that’s
a good thing because it’ll teach you an s-load of stuff that you can try/test/use on
your projects.

If you’ve worked with designers that have said to you “Oh, it looks good” then
please amend this article explaining that this has been your personal experience.
Stop misleading your readers about good and professional designers with generic
comments like that one.

If you happen to know color, great, pair up with a good designer and the results
can be highly positive.

And if you’re going to talk the talk, then try walking the walk and make your
personal site responsive (http://www.jeremysaid.com/).

Contradictory fact: You have an orange (gradient) “Learn More” (bad SEO text link)
button on your home page as your main CTA… According to your article neither
men or women like orange.

Here’s a screenshot for everyone’s reference: http://tinypic.com/r/27yu5ck/8

Yes, that button is orange (gradient) and not yellow as some may think. See here a
clear comparison between the exact gradient colors used in that button vs. orange
vs. yellow: http://jsfiddle.net/7XsFb/

So, what’s your strategy sir?

Reply
Allen Matsumoto Apr 02, 2014 at 9:17 am

I’d modify the advice on your designer a bit. You suggest that since your designer
is primarily concerned with aesthetics, you should not blindly follow their color
choices.

I would suggest that if your designer isn’t leading on color psychology, you should
fire them and get a real designer, because what you have is a would-be fine artist
that doesn’t have the guts to starve in a loft and is just getting your to pay them to
play.

Design is problem solving. The role of aesthetics in design is extremely specific in

that context, and “designers” who think that unfettered aesthetic direction is their
role really dont belong in any serious enterprise.

Apologies for the blunt tone; I had the perception that this kind of designer was
becoming a thing of the past, but since you work with many and still see this as an
issue, perhaps this old refrain still needs to be sung, with feeling.

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:39 am

Allen, I love the bluntness. It’s perfect and spot on. I just responded to a tweet
with almost the same thing. I have seen tons of designers and many still don’t
understand conversions. I vehemently applaud those that do and those are the
ones I love to work with. They just get it. It takes time to find the right ones
though. Thanks for the honest feedback.

Reply

Alberto Medrano Apr 02, 2014 at 10:48 am

Wow, did not know how much study was put into colors. Makes alot of sense
though, I am thinking of redoing my color scheme on my website.

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:39 am

Good luck Alberto, let me know how it goes.

Reply

Sue Brettell Apr 03, 2014 at 1:18 am

A great article, Jeremy! Choosing a colour palette for a personal brand or business,
both online and in print, is quite complex. Hiring the right person makes a big
difference. A good graphic designer who offers branding as part of their skills set
should know about colour theory and psychology, along with typography. Many
web “designers” are experts in coding but not necessarily trained or skilled in use
of colour and typography.

When I put together a colour palette for a client’s personal brand, the first thing I
do is ask for their personal preferences as a guide. Then I consider the colours
that suit their colouring (skin tone, hair etc) and their personality. Finally I look at
the psychological profile of their target audience(s). Putting all this together I
select two or three complementary colours that form the core of their brand
palette and add a range of light and dark tones of those colours (to use for text,
links, backgrounds etc). Complementaries are not chosen arbitrarily. I use colour
algorithms to select exact shades from the colour wheel.

The resulting selection of colours is put together as a palette, with the references
for RGB, CMYK, Pantone and HEX to assist web developers and printers. That all
sounds very technical, I know, but believe me psychology plays the greater part.

The most important element of strong branding is consistency. Virgin spends a

small fortune to ensure that the Virgin red is exactly the right shade, whether it’s
used on a printed leaflet or the side of a plane.

If you’re wondering why I take my client’s skin tone into account, it’s because I
recommend they wear their brand colour(s) to make an impact …a shirt, tie, scarf
or other item. It’s a nice touch when getting head shots taken for their website.
They must LOVE the colours I choose, and so must their audience. It’s a fine
balance!

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:41 am

Sue, thanks for the comments. They were very interesting to read and I haven’t
seen that approach often when dealing with design and branding. Brand
managers keep me in a box, which is good. I tend to push the lines because my
focus is solely on moving the revenue needles with conversions. That said, I
loved reading your comments and how you approach things. We can never
stop learning from one another.

Reply

Sue Brettell Apr 03, 2014 at 9:40 am

Thanks for your reply Jeremy. As you might have figured, I’m a freelancer
used to working with solopreneurs and small business owners. We’re all
cash-strapped so my perspective is offering the best service possible within
a limited budget.

A visual identity comprising carefully chosen logotype and colour palette is

one of the most valuable design assets a small business owner can invest in
because it will inform every decision they make about their brand
communications, from business cards, to website, to the colour they paint
their shop or office.

Reply

Winnie Anderson Apr 03, 2014 at 4:45 am

A fascinating discussion and primer on the psychology of color and its impact on
branding. Thanks for sharing it and thanks to the other professionals who’ve
chimed in to expand the discussion.

Vetting a designer — or any other vendor / professional — is a critical part of

building a brand as well. I can’t tell you how many friends, colleagues, and clients,
have come to me — some actually in tears — because they’ve spent money on
branding and brand elements that don’t communicate who they are and that are a
massive waste of money.

Don’t just take a recommendation from a colleague. Just as your friend’s hair
stylist, doctor, or other professional may be good for them and not you, the same
is true for a designer.

Reply

Sue Brettell Apr 03, 2014 at 5:42 am

Winnie, you raise a great question. Anyone can call themselves a designer, even
if their skill is actually coding and technical building. The lines have become
blurred. A qualified designer – in any discipline – will have learnt about colour,
composition and technique. But that’s only part of the story. Branding involves
marketing, coaching, psychometrics and a touch of magic dust – that
indefinable ingredient that great logo designers and tagline writers possess.
Experience counts for a great deal; seasoned designers learn a great deal from
each project they work on. Here are a few pointers to finding the right fit:

Do your research – find designs you love and copy them to an online scrapbook
or moodboard. Be sure to note contact details for the design originators. The
scrapbook will also serve as a valuable part of your brief for whoever you hire
to work with you.

Ask others for recommendations but remember that one person’s perfect
designer may not be yours.

View a designer’s website, portfolio or LinkedIn profile to check their

credentials and to see if you like their style. Create a shortlist and then contact
each one and ask them to give you a rough ballpark for a simple vector logo
with a colour palette and a three page responsive website. This will give you a
rough comparison of pricing for a basic service. If they don’t know what a
vector, a colour palette or responsive website is, cross them off your list
straight away.

Once you have two or three candidates, put together a good design brief,
listing as much information as you can about your brand attributes, target
audience, competitors, goals and preferences (with examples). Be clear about
what you want your brand to communicate and what the project scope actually
entails.

Ask questions about the way that they work and pay attention to the questions
that they ask you. They should then provide a quote and you can choose the
best person for the job (not necessarily the cheapest one!).

Design, as Allen rightly says above, is problem-solving. Any designer who

doesn’t dig down to define the problem is unlikely to find a successful answer!

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:45 am

Sue, Winnie, excellent discussions here. I love where this is going. :)

Reply
Maciej Apr 03, 2014 at 6:23 am

Colors can play a huge role when it comes to website interaction and conversion
rates. You have to really put yourself in the shoes of your audience and find out
what colors would resonate best with their collective personality.

Reply

Jeremy Apr 03, 2014 at 6:44 am

Agreed, but I would also add that you have to test test and never stop testing.
What might win today, tomorrow could be different. Seasonality plays a huge
role in colors and conversion as well. Good thoughts here. Thanks for
commenting.

Reply

Gary Familathe Apr 06, 2014 at 5:18 pm

Madison Avenue used color before computers guys…they did well.

Reply

Dustin Heap Apr 08, 2014 at 6:41 am

Great article Jeremy. I’ve passed it along to several colleagues and friends in digital
marketing. It will definitely be used in some upcoming conversion tests in various
settings.

Reply

Jeremy Apr 14, 2014 at 9:12 am

Thanks Dustin. I am glad you liked it. :) Thanks for sharing as well.

Reply

Anne Apr 09, 2014 at 12:04 pm

Really enjoyed this! But I’m wondering about red? I’ve heard it’s a “power” color…
but what else? Not a big player when it comes to website interaction and
conversion rates?

Reply

Sue Brettell Apr 10, 2014 at 8:29 am

Hi Anne …Red is a wonderful colour for excitement …it’s shown to raise blood
pressure, speed respiration and heart rate. It’s used in restaurant interiors to
stimulate appetites and conversation. It’s sassy, sexy, daring.

Red needs to be used with caution because it’s also related to anger and
irritation …the way it stimulates our senses can be both positive and negative,
depending on the context.

Red has accessibility issues. For those with restricted colour vision, red is the
most common colour to be affected. For them it looks like grey, so if red links
and buttons etc are too similar in tone to general text, they won’t show up. For
 that reason I recommend avoiding red as a link colour altogether.

Reply

Scott Sep 07, 2014 at 10:12 pm

The pros and cons of color in web design is quite interesting. I found it very useful.
Thank you.

Reply

Altaf Gilani Sep 07, 2014 at 10:28 pm

I love this article. The tips given in the article are very valuable to make
exceptional color combinations. This article analyzed each and every part clearly
and crisply. Great Job Buddy…

Reply

Anonymous Oct 01, 2014 at 11:18 am

Choosing right color for a website is more than an aesthetics. It became a whole
science on which depends the conversion rate of a website. Thank you for sharing
this with us.

Reply

Mau Peralta Nov 15, 2014 at 11:06 am

Great article. Nothing else to say but, lets get to work!

I’ll start making changes now.

One last question: What colours should I use in my landing page if the products
we offer are custom home decor intended mostly for new borns and kids, but also
for couples… But the ones that make the buy desicion are the mothers or women?

Thanks!

Reply

Tina Jan 23, 2015 at 7:35 am

FYI tried to share your post on G+, but your sharing app will not display the full
share box, which prevented me from changing who I was sharing with. So I
couldn’t share. Just FYI.

Reply

Manuel Mar 27, 2015 at 9:06 am

Though there is some worth in this article, there’s a couple of issues, which makes
me wonder how relevant some of these points are.

First of all, blue being the colour of trust, loyalty etc I would have to strongly
disagree, in particular with the comparison for Facebook. Whilst blue may have
been a colour that stands for all this, Facebook have massively tarnished their
reputation with its users. Trust is the last thing that comes to mind when thinking
of Facebook (think selling of user-information behind the scenes, anything but
trustworthy and transparent.) I think our association with blue in terms of digital
media is turning towards the negative.

Another big issue i have is the studies saying that blue, purple and green are
women’s favourite colours….yet, how many women do you see with blue and
green lipstick on? Probably not that many.

Reply

bernard Jun 02, 2015 at 6:51 am

Awesome article! Definitely gonna follow some of the given advices when I
customize my forum :-)

Thanks

Reply

Murtaza Jun 28, 2015 at 8:53 pm

I am making new website for my company, your article is just great and definitely
going to help in making my website.

Reply

joey Jul 06, 2015 at 6:08 am

well, the only reason why facebook is blue is because mark zuckerberg is
colorblind and so the blue color is the color he can see the best.

Reply

Ali Jul 09, 2015 at 6:03 am

I’ve recently bulit color conversion website that converts hex, rgb, cmyk, hsl,
hsv/hsb using fast and reliable algorithms. You would face no corruption or
malfunction in your outputs. It is free and fun to use :)

Reply

Guest Sep 14, 2015 at 5:50 am

Color are so important but designers sacrifice them for the sake of functionality
and end up losing both. Designers and developers should sit down and brainstorm
the color scheme from the very beginning.

Reply

Vladymir Rogov Dec 15, 2015 at 3:22 pm

“Don’t just leave color choice up to your designer.” Very interesting statement. Isn’t
color supposed to be a primary knowledge skill of a designer. Would you want to
confer with the book keeper? Or, a designer of gear wheels and sprockets…

Color psychology is a unique knowledge of the broader field of artists and

designers–call it behavioral psychology or whatever you want.
Reply

Peter Feb 23, 2016 at 4:53 pm

Hi, Jeremy!
Great article about color psychology! I’ve learned a lot about the use of color in
conversions, engagements, and site designs. I will try out the things that you’ve
mentioned here. Thanks a lot!

Reply

Zoli Mar 11, 2016 at 1:31 pm

Jeremy, this article had no flows, no precise structure, its a shit, actually. I am
disappointed…spent a lot of time translating it…and ahh it sucks. never ever read
anything from you again

Reply

Glenn Mar 14, 2016 at 3:32 am

Thanks Jeremy, awesome read. I found it helpful, although a bit long. Still, can’t
wait to test it.

Reply

Shakaran Apr 23, 2016 at 1:05 pm

It’s scary to think how powerful this tactic has been for Micky D’s, which might not
have been the same ridiculously big chain it is today without using red and yellow
so effectively. McDonald’s sure wouldn’t be so popular trying to market all that
unhealthy food using the color green!

Reply

Kurt May 08, 2016 at 9:35 pm

Great article. It’s interesting to note, though, that while orange may supposedly be
one of the least liked colors by either sex, Home Depot has done quite well making
it their primary hue.

Reply

Tim Brown Jun 25, 2016 at 10:16 pm

It’s all about the contrast – if you grab their interest with a strongly contrasting but
complementary color for key elements like Call-to-action buttons you’re golden. :)

Reply

Aslam Nov 24, 2016 at 2:27 pm

Thanks to share your knowledge.

It’s been very useful to recolor my website from a “scary” gray to a white color
background. I’ve also defined the Triadiac Color for my logo and overall website
giving a professional look and brand which people can remember.

I’m not a professional designer like you, but in 20 minutes I’ve re-branded my
website. I wrote down the process step by step so everyone can benefit from it.

Keep up the good job, I will stick around.

Reply

Sandra Feb 16, 2017 at 8:40 am

What color can I use to design my website is a health and beauty website, my
target audience is both male and female. Thanks

Reply

Mukesh Mali Feb 17, 2017 at 9:15 am

Great article about color psychology! I’ve learned a lot about the use of color in
conversions, engagements, and site designs.

Reply

Susie Sep 23, 2017 at 11:28 am

Actually the reason Facebook uses blue isn’t because of what it represents, but
because Mark Zuckerberg is red-green colorblind. He’s stated that blue is one
color he can see without a problem.

Reply

Kyle Oct 23, 2017 at 3:03 pm

How do we know you’re not just lying and using blue to make us trust you?

Reply

Zach Oct 23, 2017 at 11:53 pm

Good point, Kyle.

When we published this (years ago) blue was not one of our brand’s colors. We
have since updated our brand where blue is the primary color, and I can assure
you it is not in an effort to increase conversions.

Reply

James Nov 21, 2017 at 4:36 am

Your denver broncos link is compromised – tries to install a search bar. You should
disable or remove it.

Reply

Zach Nov 21, 2017 at 9:39 am

Thank you!!!
 Link has been updated.

Reply

intcore Dec 14, 2017 at 6:17 am

Thanks, Jeremy it was very helpful, I will start to share it with my team to use it in
our new projects.

Reply

Sophie Chamberlain Jan 22, 2018 at 1:46 am

This is great! Thanks so much! I really enjoyed this read. Color is so incredible. It’s
power is almost scary because it is so unexpected. I am inspired to change colors
on my own website so that it is more professional and inviting. It’s good to know
that certain colors send a certain message. I feel that the colors I have on my
website now do not represent my company properly. Thanks so much for the
read, I think you helped me out of my rut. It’s also crazy to think that even
McDonald’s uses color to have almost a power over us. Insane.

Reply

anwitasinha Feb 13, 2018 at 5:11 am

Good one on colors… it is one of the important part on the design this article
helps a lot to choose a color code. And for the one who are not familiar with color
codes this article is the right one. Each color has its uniqueness. Finally, just follow
the steps from earlier to set it as your default color scheme.

Reply

Brandi Mar 23, 2018 at 5:00 pm

Wow who knew color had such an impact on emotions and mood. Especially when
it comes to what we buy. I will be doing an analysis of this for my own brand.

Reply

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