Edward Boatman • May 9th
It’s a simple thesis, really. Brand color matters. Think about Tiffany & Co. — that sprightly aqua, dubbed Tiffany Blue, is an icon in and of itself. The cherry red of Coca-Cola is practically the color of Americana itself. When you hear these brand names a color pops into mind.
That phenomenon is powerful. That means that when you see these colors out in the world, completely abstracted from the brand in question, you draw an association to it. It’s a little bit of magic, really. All brands strive towards this level of lasting, elevated association. But looking at a color wheel or palette of technicolor swatches, it’s dizzying and daunting to know just where your color, the color, lies.
Understand that the goals of that iconic color should aim to:
Think about your brand. Before getting started, work on a brand identity questionnaire so that you get to know intimately well the intentions, inspirations, and ideals of your company. Even if it’s your personal project and you might feel like you know this already… do it anyway!
How do you feel when you think about your brand? How do you want others to feel?
Write down descriptive words that come to mind when you think about your brand. From there, look at colors that conjure those feelings or moods through color psychology.
Did you use optimistic words to describe your brand? You might want to explore sunny and upbeat hues.
Is your brand environmentally-minded? Consider colors that make us think of nature.
Is your brand sophisticated and modern? Rich jewel tones might be right.
It sounds simplistic, but this game of association is an intuitive way to discover what colors might work for your brand.
Think about your audience and intended consumer. Understanding them — their age, their interests, their cultural touchstones. This can help inform the colors you ultimately use in your branding.
While quirky brights might appeal to a younger generation, they might feel garish and intimidating to an older group. Meanwhile, tapping into an “of-the-moment” color might be a way to position yourselves as relevant.
For example, Facebook and X, are two social media services whose target audience is all ages. They can go with universal blue tones, while Snapchat, which appeals to younger generations, opts for a decidedly younger lemon yellow. Glossier, a cult favorite beauty brand for the Gen Z and Millennial Generations, has turned its sassy pink hue into its own hashtag (#GlossierPink)
Get inspired. Think about artists, works of art, even places, whose color palettes inspire you. Josef Albers, Agnes Martin, Johannes Itten, Picasso, Monet… countless other artists have spent much of their careers ruminating on color and have lessons to share!
It’s okay to reference other brands here, too. Gut instinct in terms of what colors attract your eye can help lead you further on the path to settling on your brand’s colors. Make a mood board (or a Pinterest), and edit, edit, edit.
Expanding your color palette to secondary or even tertiary colors helps create visual hierarchy throughout your brand’s experience. For instance if your primary color is red, you may not want all your CTAs, type, illustrations and marketing to also be the same shade of red. It’s nice to add complementary colors into the mix to add more dimension and interest.
Think of your primary color as the main act — the secondary palette is your supporting actors on stage. If you are stumped for colors to complement your chosen primary color, we have found the site Coolors to be extremely helpful. You can enter in any color and it will give you complementary or interesting colors to pair.
But, do what’s right for your brand. Not all brands need supporting color (think of Pinterest’s confident use of red, for example). This works because while red is used throughout Pinterest’s brand experience, user photos (pins) from their website really pop in place of a secondary palette.
Also, not all brands need color.When paired back and done well it can look highly sophisticated. Uber, Sonos, Chanel, and GILT opt for a colorless brand identity. Due to the paired down palette, they exude confidence, sophistication and luxury.
You might not realize it, but colors play a key role in the success of some of the most widely recognized brands. From some of the biggest apparel brands to restaurants and beverages, brands that use colors effectively tend to be more recognizable and trusted. Check out some of these examples of effective brand color usage to see what we’re talking about.
When it comes to effectively using brand colors, McDonald’s is easily one of the best examples out there. The iconic red and yellow color scheme McDonald’s uses isn’t just light and fun — these colors were specifically chosen because they’ve been shown to increase energy and stimulate your appetite. You might think it’s the iconic branding of the Big Mac or Double Quarter Pounder that encapsulates the McDonald’s brand, but the red and yellow color scheme is what truly makes McDonald’s one of the most instantly recognizable brands.
On the surface, a can of Coca-Cola might look like a standard red color you’d see anywhere else. However, the shade of red that Coca-Cola uses isn’t found in the list of Pantone colors. This unique shade of red sets Coca-Cola apart from other beverages that use standard shades of red. That’s why Coca-Cola is one of the first products you recognize when you look at the selection of soda at your local grocery store.
Source: Reddit
Coca-Cola isn’t the only beverage company whose colors are a key element of the brand identity. Almost every popular beverage you can think of — from Mountain Dew and Pepsi to Red Bull and Monster — has its own unique color scheme that makes it easy to spot at the store.
When Microsoft released the first Xbox gaming console in 2001, gaming as a whole was entirely different. The first Alienware gaming computer with LED lighting hadn’t been released yet, and gaming consoles like the N64 and PlayStation were pretty simple in terms of colors and design.
The release of the Xbox marked the beginning of a new age of gaming aesthetics highlighted by bright, flashy colors. The neon green Xbox logo looked like something out of the future, and the sleek packaging of the console only further enhanced the experience.
Xbox still uses the green logo today, but the old lime green has been replaced with a more standard shade of green. Gaming hardware companies like Razer have taken inspiration from the neon-style aesthetic of the original Xbox, featuring bright LED lighting in gaming keyboards and mice.
Brand colors are some of the most powerful elements of a brand’s identity. Choosing the right colors for your brand can make or break your brand experience, and understanding how color can affect perceptions is an important tool for designers when deciding which brand colors to use.
In addition to choosing colors, the application of those colors is also important. For example, what are your primary colors vs. the secondary colors in your brand’s color palette? How and where will your colors be applied? When it comes to your communications and marketing, what colors will be the most consistently used and therefore associated with your brand?
First, it’s important to understand why color is so crucial for brands and brand identity. This is the foundation of building out your brand’s color scheme. Color evokes emotion and there has been extensive research around the role color plays in decision making, particularly when it comes to purchasing decisions. Brand colors also help with brand recognition, which directly influences consumer confidence.
In addition to filling out a brand identity questionnaire, to start thinking about what your brand colors should be, ask yourself questions like:
These questions will help you narrow down the types of colors you might want to consider when choosing your brand color palette.
How customers feel about a brand often has more influence than what they think about a brand. When choosing your brand colors, keep in mind your brand’s personality and what you’re trying to communicate. It’s also critical to understand what colors convey to ensure you’re picking appropriate hues.
It’s easy to get lost in all of the information out there about Color Theory, but here are some of the most common colors and their meanings to help you get started:
Colors that are considered “cool” tend to appear more calm and relaxing. They also affect depth perception by appearing to “recede.” Shadows, for instance, are made up of dark blues and purples.
Colors that are considered “warm” tend to appear more vibrant and remind us of light or the sun. Warm colors “advance” or “pop” a little more.
Neutral colors tend to have low-contrast (except black and white), and appear a little dull. However, when combined with other colors and careful application they can really work well.
There are rules when it comes to choosing a color palette, but there are countless ways to create color schemes that work. Let’s explore some of the different ways you can combine colors to create a unique color palette for your brand.
Complementary colors are found on opposite sides of the color wheel. Orange and blue, green and red, and yellow and violet are all examples of complementary colors that work well together. Any two colors that are found on directly opposite sides of the color wheel are considered complementary, so you have numerous options to choose from.
Unlike complementary colors, analogous colors are directly next to each other on the color wheel. Since these colors are right next to each other, they’re a good match if you’re looking for a simple color scheme.
A monochromatic color scheme is when you don’t combine different colors, but different shades of the same color. You wouldn’t use blue and orange together in a monochromatic color scheme, but you could combine one shade of blue with a different blue tint or tone.
To understand monochromatic colors, think of black and white photographs and videos. There were no colors, but you could see each detail clearly because of the different tints, shades, and tones of black.
When you’re choosing a triadic color scheme, you want to look for three colors that are evenly spaced on the color wheel. Red, blue, and yellow is one common triadic color combination, but you can create lots of different triadic color palettes. Triadic colors offer a nice balance that can complement your branding, but their slightly more complex nature can make them a less favorable option compared to complementary and analogous colors.
Tetradic colors are just like triadic colors, only you’re using four colors that are each an equal distance apart on the color wheel. This might sound a little complicated, but there’s an easy way to come up with different tetradic colors using a color wheel. Simply place a square in the center of the color wheel — in any orientation — and the colors the corners point to create your tetradic color scheme.
You can find split complement colors by starting with complementary colors. Take one color and find its complementary color. Instead of combining those colors, combine the first color with the two colors surrounding the complementary color to create a unique but balanced color scheme.
Once you’ve selected your brand colors, the next step is to create a digital brand guidelines to help ensure that your color palette is used correctly and consistently wherever it appears. To create your brand style guide, you can use a tool like Lingo. The first thing you’ll want to do is create the sections of your brand style guide. These sections can vary depending on your brand, but here’s a common section structure:
The color section is where your official brand colors will live. Typically, you would include your color palette, as well as the values of the colors (Hex values: #ffffff / CMYK values: 255 255 255 255). The values are important to include so you can ensure everyone is using the correct colors for your brand.
In addition to the color values, you should also include guidelines for how your color palette should be used. The guidelines should focus on how your official brand colors should be used and where. Consistent use of your color palette is important for maintaining a strong brand image. Make sure the guidelines are easy to read and understand so that people actually read them!
Your brand colors are a core part of your brand identity, so you should use them everywhere you can to build a strong brand identity.
When customers visit your website, they should immediately make the connection between your website and your brand. Using the brand color scheme your customers recognize is one of the best ways to make sure they can make that connection quickly.
You can also use your brand colors when you’re designing your products and packaging. McDonald’s uses red and yellow packaging that strikes a chord with customers as soon as they see it, while jewelry brand Tiffany and Co. are known for the color in their branding, Tiffany Blue.
Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide where and how you want to use your brand colors. The more you integrate these colors into your branding, the more they become a recognizable part of your brand’s identity.
Okay, if you’re still not confident that the colors you’re gravitating towards work, don’t despair. There are a slew of nifty tools and color generators that may help ease the process. A few of our favorites below…
Lingo offers one of the most flexible solutions to digital asset management for creatives like you. Store your brand colors, identity, and brand guidelines alongside photography, videos, and digital assets created for your marketing efforts. Invite your team and agency to collaborate with you, but limit visibility to full brand kits with direct links to specific assets.
With Lingo, you can focus on building a brand with a loyal customer base while maintaining consistency across teams. Book a demo or contact us to learn how Lingo can help you build your brand guidelines into an accessible account for your entire team.