Regardless if you’re hiring a professional designer or designing your brand new logo on your own, there several factors you need to consider if you want it to stand out. Logo color is one factorIt needs to be memorable, simple, innovative, contemporary, and flexible enough to use across multiple platforms.
But, before you get too crazy with your logo design, you first need to think about the colors that you’re going to use. Why? Because the colors that you’re going to use are going to influence other others emotional connect with your brand, which in turn will improve your cash flow.
As James Craig perfectly writes in Designing With Type, “Color is perhaps the most dramatic means of attracting attention and enhancing a design.”
If you’re still skeptical, imagine if the logos for Facebook, Virgin, Intel, or Starbucks were black or gold. I don’t think you would trust those brands as much.
So, how can you choose your logo color so that it fits you brand perfectly?
Understand the Meaning of Colors
First things first, you should do some research and understand the meaning behind specific colors:
- Red implies energy, passion, action, ambition, danger, anger, and determination. Red can stimulate appetites, as well. This is explains why so many food brands use red in their logos.
- Orange represents creativity, fun, youth, optimism, affordability, and approachability.
- Yellow is an illuminating and uplifting color. This stimulates people’s analytical processes and even appetites. However, there are some negative associations like impatience, criticism, and cowardice.
- Green symbolizes nature, health, and healing. Although green can be soothing, some associate the color with envy.
- Blue is a common logo color because it suggests trust, loyalty, and peace.
- Turquoise balances and recharges emotions. It can also inspire communication and self-expression.
- Purple typically implies creativity, wealth, quality, and fantasy.
Other Color Meanings
Beyond the primary color palate, other colors stand out for specific meanings:
- Indigo is the color of intuition. It also represents structure and rituals.
- Pink is fun and flirty. The color is regularly used for feminine products and brands.
- Magenta is often seen as practical, yet spiritual.
- Brown is friendly as well as serious and down-to-earth. That’s why it’s used as a logo color for many outdoor products.
- Black is associated with power and authority. When used in excess, it can be intimidating and unfriendly. However, it can be used for a dramatic effect or emphasis.
- White symbolizes purity, cleanliness, simplicity, and naiveté.
- Gray is neutral and conservative. However, it does also imply security and reliability. It’s often used in the background.
- Silver is considered modern, sophisticated, and mysterious while also calming.
- Gold is the color or achievement, success, luxury, and prestige.
Keep in mind that the meaning of colors can vary across the world.
For example, India views white as the color of death and mourning while China sees red as lucky.
If you plan on entering into the global marketplace, you should be aware of the acceptance and variation of beliefs, before selecting your logo’s color. You can read more about color and cultural design here.
Choosing The Right Logo Color Scheme For Your Brand
Know that you’re familiar with the psychology of colors, here are some pointers on finding the best color scheme for your specific brand.
- What color works best in your industry? For example, the banking industry uses calming and trustworthy colors like green or blue. Also, see what colors your competitors are using.
- What color reflects the energy of your brand? If your brand is energetic and exciting, then you would use bright and vibrant colors like yellow or orange.
- What colors do you like, wear, or reflect your personality? Your brand is an extension of you as an individual. Consider using your favorite color, or a color that matches your personality, when choosing your logo color.If you’re a freelancer or face of the business, incorporate this color into your wardrobe so that your personal brand is indistinguishable for your company’s brand.
- Which colors compliment each other? If you have more than one color, make sure that the colors are eye-catching and complimentary to each other.You can use this handy color calculator to see which colors work best together.
If you answered the questions above and you’re still stuck, then take this company color quiz from Grasshopper to help you choose your logo color.
