It’s no secret that colours can have an influence over us. How many times have you changed before an important meeting because you thought all black was too harsh or powerful or you realized light pink could come across as wishy-washy…
When it comes to your website and the “face” that your business or your blog puts out there, you will want to strategically choose colours according to what you want to portray.
Take for example this site, Financial Freedom Footsteps.
I chose navy blue and lime green with the accent colour of a muted pink. Navy is associated with security, trust and reliability and zingy lime green is associated with calm and also trust, however in this instance, it’s a zingy green and studies show that a colour like this tends to stand out – and therefore, be remember more easily. And the pink was chosen with my main audience in mind – women – since this site’s content is mostly by women for women, but of course it still benefits men — if they can look past the pink ?
Also, a colour psychology study showed that women generally prefer blue, purple and green too! However – in the study it found men to prefer blue and green hues too, so you see, this site is still for them too!
Depending on your actual audience, you will want to strategically choose the colours that brand your site. The colours you choose will attract your ideal visitor and can ultimately influence whether they would like to stay or run from your site. For example, as a healthcare professional, trust is very important so the colours you choose can impact this greatly. Whether we are conscious of this or not, colour sways our thinking and decision making. It’s always important to keep in mind your purpose and target audience.
What colours SHOULD you choose?
The first few seconds that someone enters your site they should be able to trust your business and feel welcomed in right away. There are a couple of colors that can help you achieve this. Firstly, bear in mind that lighter colors are usually associate with positivity. With that in mind, you’d want to choose one of the lighter versions of the acceptable colors for your business. Again for example, the colour green can be represented in many ways. A dark green is seen as masculine and very powerful whereas a lighter green is closer resembled to nature which has a calming aspect to it, with a touch of fun, depending on the hue.
Yellow
Yellow is no doubt one of the happiest colours. Because yellow is associated with sunshine, it can bring about a feeling of positivity and optimism. You won’t go wrong by having your audience view your website as positive and optimistic! Yellow can also be associated with warnings, so rather than base your entire site on the colour yellow, sprinkle it around a little throughout your site and get your visitors feeling cheerful.
Blue
Another amazing colour for your website, blue, is most often associated with security, peace (depending on hue) and trust. Which is EXACTLY what a website visitor is searching for when looking for a business solution or information you’re imparting via your blog. Blue on your site will reinforce that you are a reliable and trustworthy source.
Although blue does have the power to manage stress, overuse of the color can actually cause a depressive feeling. But usually, this colour can be good as it’s mostly related to loyalty and trust.
Green
Ideally for natural blogs and brands, the colour green automatically reminds us of nature and the outdoors. Also great for health-related brands as it’s the natural element that green in all of it’s shades brings to the party.
According to Neil Patel, green is a great call-to-action colour (although many other colours can also be, it’s a matter of choosing a shade that stands out). Read more about what he says about all the colours in his detailed blog post here: https://neilpatel.com/blog/psychology-of-color-and-conversions/
Orange
Orange is a warm and vibrant color. This can be very welcoming as it represents friendliness. It’s best to use a neutral orange color instead of a darker shade as it could potentially become too powerful. Keep in mind, orange is part red though, and red is usually associated with danger. Keeping the orange light and fun will give you the best results. Again, like yellow, best option is to sprinkle it around your site rather than have it as the most dominant colour in your colour scheme.
White
White symbolizes purity and balance. In times of turmoil, this can give a person clarity. However, white can be overpowering and even dull if used too much. White is a great secondary colour to add along with another more vibrant colour.
What colours to AVOID
Black
I don’t think this is big surprise but black is definitely on the do not use list – or use very sparingly. Although at times it can be used to symbolize elegance, too much black on your website can be dull and even bring about a depressive feeling. Imagine visiting a site that largely black – the font has to be a lighter one, usually white. It usually doesn’t look professional and can be harsh on the eyes.
Red
As stated a little earlier, red is a threatening colour because it is commonly used to represent danger and anger. Red’s vibrancy can also overstimulate your visitor causing them to feel intimidated.
How should you use these colours?
There are several ways you can implement colour onto your website. Your page doesn’t necessarily have to be filled with the colour to get the results you desire. Your main page background should be a neutral color – consider what was said above about the color white – it reflects balance. Instead of white, you can also opt for a beige or light grey tone. An eye-catching location of your website is the navigation menu. Here you will want to choose the color that you are most wanting to represent.
Most sites these days have two to three main brand colours. You can either choose a single color and use a variation of hues, or choose complimentary colours. To add extra pops of colour, you can assign your navigation links, subscribe or other call-to-action buttons, or even bolded words in specific colours, to name but a few options. Always remember anything used too much can quickly become overpowering and may defeat the purpose you are trying to accomplish. With all decisions, make sure to use colour sparingly and strategically in order to achieve the best results.
With all these colours in mind, what to use, what to avoid and where to use them, just remember that whatever you choose, should be your aesthetic and what you like too. Just because you like dark brown doesn’t mean your site should be this colour as it may alienate your target audience. On the same hand, if your favourite colours are baby pink and silver, that’s not going to bode well for your website if your target audience is powerful business coaches, for example.
So, the best bet would be to choose a set of colours you like, that match with who you are trying to attract, how you want to make them feel about your business or blog – AND that you find pleasing. Play around with colour choices and do further colour psychology research to get the balance just right!
This colour psychology is not only limited to websites and clothing choices though – it relates to a multitude of other areas including branding and logo design.
Speaking of logo design…
Have you ever wanted to get what’s in your mind’s eye out onto the screen exactly how you see it?
Sometimes, working with a designer can be difficult unless you can clearly articulate your idea, perhaps even draw it out for them.
But have you ever thought of designing your own?
It’s a lot easier than you think ?
Here is a link to my course which walks you through how to create your own logo easily, without the need for super special software!
After the course you will be able to create your own logo and use it on our own blog, business page, social media, printed materials like business cards… anywhere!
Any questions about it, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
