Still on the colorful subject of brand-building and the inseparable role of color, I found an excellent reference source, via Derrick Daye and Brad VanAuken of The Blake Project.
They discuss the role color in detail, citing the direct psychological link to color, and how human behavior is influenced by color. (Hint: ever wondered why fast food restaurants sport the decidedly uniformed colors of yellow, orange or red. There’s a compelling reason behind such color choice…).
Color is an important consideration in your brand identity system. Colors have a significant impact on people’s emotional state. They also have been shown to impact people’s ability to concentrate and learn. They have a wide variety of specific mental associations. In fact, the effects are physiological, psychological, and sociological.
Blue is the most calming of the primary colors, followed closely by a lighter red. Test takers score higher and weight lifters lift more in blue rooms.Blue text increases reading retention.
Yellow evokes cheerfulness. Houses with yellow trim or flower gardens sell faster.
Reds and oranges encourage diners to eat quickly and leave. Red also makes food more appealing and influences people to eat more. (It is no coincidence that fast food restaurants almost always use these colors.)
Pink enhances appetites and has been shown to calm prison inmates.
Non-primary colors are more calming than primary colors (red, blue and green). Children prefer primary colors. (Notice that children’s toys and books often use these colors.)
Forest green and burgundy appeals to the wealthiest 3 % of Americans and often raises the perceived price of an item.
Orange is often used to make an expensive item seem less expensive.
Red clothing can convey power. Red trim is used in bars and casinos because it can cause people to lose track of time. Red is often associated with Christmas and orange with Halloween and Thanksgiving.
White is typically associated with cool, clean and fresh.
Red and black are often associated with sexy and seductive and are favored by porn sites.Black clothes make people look thinner. Black is also associated with elegance and sophistication. It also seems mysterious. Black is the favorite color of Goths.Blue and black suppress appetites.
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