The psychology of color

Companies have learned the lesson of how important the use of color is in their branding.  After all, what is Tiffany's without it's famous robin egg blue or Post-it notes without it's patented canary yellow.  On a fundamental level, we take in information about a brand, product or service by it's color.  Once the color is established for the brand, it has a presence everywhere - packaging, marketing, store or display decor.  This is done to forever associate the product with the color on our brains.  These colors are not chosen hap-haphazardly.  Using the psychological meaning of the color to support the product gives branding more weight.

Case in point, the color red.  Used by Coca-Cola, but also by Virgin and more recently on the soles of classy Christian Louboutin shoes.  Why? Because psychologically red represents power, passion, energy and courage. 

Blue is color that is largely used in branding because it represents trust, integrity logic and communication.  It is the popular color with social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) as well as banks and energy providers. 
Brands that use yellow are expressing happiness, optimism and friendliness.  McDonald's capitalizes on the fact that yellow is also the most visible color in daylight, making it nearly impossible to miss their giant "M" signs thus provoking an immediate response from the kids. In the case of the 3M Post-it note, the color yellow was chosen because it is the cheapest color of paper, next to white.  However, the color stuck (literally) and even though post-it notes exist in hundreds of fun colors, the image associate is still yellow. 

The same color psychology that companies use to brand themselves can be brought into the home using paint, wallpaper or fabric.  For example, the colors: red, orange and yellow are popularly used in rooms where we congregate and socialize because they are colors that represent contentment, energy, and movement.  While cool colors such as: blue, purple and green will make us feel more comfortable in our private rooms (bedrooms and bathrooms) because they support an atmosphere of zen and contemplation.  

www.relookinteriors.com

Color is a powerful tool when you know how to use it.  Finding the right colors, dosage and balance in every room of your house can be a daunting task.  If you are wanting to add color to your home, struggling to find the right mix for your rooms, or just want to know more about how to use color in your home, give me a call! I'd be happy to help you with your color dilemma.