Color and emotion are very intricately linked, and this is how most designers understand and leverage them. It makes sense to think that the use of color in design is so prevalent because color has such a powerful impact on user behavior.
Even a small change, like changing the color of a button, can lead to the desired behavior, sometimes doubled or even tripled. Every reputable UX designer keeps the importance of color psychology in mind when working on a project.
What is Color Psychology?
Simply put, color psychology is the effect of different colors on human behavior. This applies to all aspects of what we do, but most generally how we interact with brands and marketing.
Color psychology is an important focus of branding and other design disciplines. A lot of research has been done on the effect of color on design. Designers consider the psychological impact on human behavior to ensure that design leads to the best user-her experience.
Why do colors affect emotions?
It’s not simple why color affects the emotions of most people. Many factors influence how people feel when they see a particular color. Important factors are color and personal relationships.
Due to universal human experience, it is fairly possible to predict how a large number of people will react to a particular color. For example, green is associated with nature and growth because most people see plants growing. Blue is a universally calming color as it is associated with things like the sky and water.
Some other effects are also cultural. For example, purple is associated with luxury. This is due to the fact that purple dye was used by royalty in many ancient cultures as it was expensive and rare in ancient times.
How does color psychology apply to design?
Especially when it comes to branding, we can choose a color palette that reflects our emotions and how our customers feel when they engage with us. When a consumer chooses a product, service, or brand, it all comes down to a series of decisions.
There are some conscious and comparable decisions we make, such as product pricing and technical specifications with competing products. But some decisions are made unconsciously. These decisions are made by your brain long before you realize it.
Color plays an important role not only in the selection of products and services, but mainly in all unconscious decisions made in everyday life. For example, road signs, mostly red, are also serious signs that call attention to things like ‘stop’.
Color choices are never accidental. For example, consider a sign that says “FLAT 50% OFF”. This sign is mostly seen in red because red evokes caution, attention and urgency. When used properly, color can be a clever marketing tool and evoke certain emotions in your readers.
Conclusion:
Each color carries many emotions, and how you use these colors can be important for your brand or campaign to evoke specific emotions and engage the right audience.
Color plays a big role in decision making. That’s why most designers place the utmost importance on color when working on a project. If you’ve always wanted to be a successful designer, visit Chitkara Design School for a comprehensive study of color psychology and many other topics.
