Colors, colors everywhere, but which one’s right for you? One of the most important pieces in every marketing campaign is your print poster, and the best way to grab attention is to have full color posters for your promotional materials. This is one place not to skimp. By choosing full color printing over one, two, or even three color printing, your campaign will really pop!
But before you open up that box of Crayola’s, take a few minutes to understand what people see when presented with certain colors. Turns out, we humans are products of our environment and – let’s face it – decades of ad campaigns, so we subconsciously associate certain thoughts and feelings with a particular hue. Remember, your print poster might be your only chance to capture a particular customer, so make sure the colors you use will be the right ones for your business image and identity.
Take a look at the most used colors in printing and what each color means to viewers.
Blue – this is one of the most popular colors for large corporations. IBM, Ford, and BlueShield all use blue as their anchor color in most marketing campaigns. It gives a feeling of stability, security, loyalty, peace, and trust. In fact, a color study showed that participants rank blue the highest with feelings of “ability” and “trust.” Be careful using blue in the medical industry, however, as some still associate it with hospitals and illnesses…ideas that could draw them away from your business.
Red – no shock here. Red is hot! It represents heat and passion, and most people associate it with speed and velocity. Red is considered to carry the feelings of intensity, rage, rapacity, and one expert says that “the color red has an energizing effect that calls for action.” Of course, when you use such an extreme color, beware of an extreme reaction. Red can sometimes make people feel irritated, excited, or even anxious. So unless you’re selling front row seats to NASCAR, find a subtle – yet powerful – balance of red in your campaign.
Green – quick: think green. What do you see? If you said dollar signs, you’re like most Americans. Green is the color of money, so your audience will associate it with wealth and generosity. As an added bonus, in many cultures green represents life and nature. It also means growth, neutrality and wisdom, and hey…who doesn’t love Kermit the Frog?
Yellow – Yellow connotes feelings like excitement, mystic, jovial, cheerful, peaceful, melancholy, and youthful. It truly is a “happy” color, and works well as a secondary shade. Know your audience and industry. Yellow is also associated with something cheap or inexpensive, so stay away from this if you are promoting a luxury/high end product or service.
Orange – Poor orange. Nearly 30% of people say that orange is their least favorite color, followed by brown, then purple. On the bright side (literally), brighter shades of this color can mean excitement, riches, and fun, so it could work well in campaigns for travel or tourism, for example.
Of course, each business is different so it’s important to understand your market and think through what your company wants to portray. Some quick research upfront could save you from presenting your brand in the wrong light…or shade!
