The Learning Center

It’s not something we often think about but when it comes to branding but color plays a subtle but also very important role. The important thing to remember about color is that more is not necessarily better. Consider some of the best known brands in the world. Coke a Cola focuses on red and white and Pepsi uses red, white and blue. Both brands have always used the same colors for their core brand even if other elements such as the logo have changed over the years. Colors are meant to trigger memory and emotion and both brands have that part nailed down.

The basis of most brand’s is the company logo. Whatever your product or service may be your logo helps send a key message to consumers about what makes you different from your competition. On a local level this can be very important because many small businesses having little or no branding to begin with. So having a logo at all can make you stand out. The idea is not to complicate it with to many colors. The more colors you have the more confusing the message you are sending may become. Most successful brands also focus on one predominant color. Using the Coke and Pepsi examples again Coke uses red as the dominant color and Pepsi uses blue. Some brands may balance two different colors when creating their band but very few use more than two as a focal point. If you’re in the process or branding or re-branding a business this is an important fact to remember.

When creating a brand and choosing colors consider these four questions:

1. What will my primary color be and is it distinctive? We have a client we’re working with in a new website and some brand enhancements. Our initial website design draft used very soft family friendly colors. Exactly what they wanted except for the fact that it looked too much like one of their main competitors! So we picked a new color scheme that was more distinct yet has the same feel, now we have a winner. You must make sure you stand out from your competition.

2. What message are you trying to convey to your audience? Depending on the audience you’re trying to reach you may want colors that convey a more corporate look, a family feel or something else entirely. All elements of your brand need to work together to reach your target audience.

3. Are my colors good for the long haul? Depending on your audience you’ll want a color scheme that has staying power. Some color schemes do and some don’t. You’ll need to decide whether yours does or not.

4. How does your color translate to other materials? Your color scheme will be used everywhere so you’ll need to make sure it works everywhere and you’ll need to determine what other complimentary colors go best with it. Consider your website, letterhead, business cards, vehicles and literally everything else that might one day need to incorporate your colors.

Once you determine your color scheme then you’ll need to focus on consistency. Everywhere you put your brand stay consistent with your colors so that your message remains consistent as well. Remember when choosing colors for your brand less can often mean more.

If you are interested in branding your business and need help please call our office at 615-890-3600 or email us. All of our consultations are free and we always love meeting new people.