How brand colors work and what what they can mean for your brand.

Color as a communicative element

Colors are significant, both culturally and emotionally, and that’s what makes the composition of a color climate so central for a brand. Color observers deduce certain properties. It is not for nothing that numerous established insurance companies or financial service providers choose a shade of blue as the main color: blue is considered serious, reliable and radiates calm. Red, on the other hand, stands out, is dynamic and energizing – and is therefore more suitable for entertainment or caffeinated soft drinks.
And doesn’t the green-gold branded fast food chain seem much more sustainable? Orange as the main color, on the other hand, requires sensitivity when developing the design system as a whole, in order not to look cheap.

Colors as three-dimensional model

At the beginning of the 20th century, the US-American painter Albert Henry Munsell developed a color classification system that we still use today. In order to name colors, he defined the three criteria hue, saturation and luminance (lightness).

Color contrasts for conciseness

Color contrasts are used to create tension in design and to highlight important content in color. As branding agency We recommend that a contrasting color be incorporated into the branding. There are basically three different principles of color contrasts.

From color harmony to the brand’s color climate

An infinite number of analog and digital colors are available to a brand. The challenge lies in the selection of a few colors that are related to each other.

One color can increase brand awareness by 80%

Some brands are inextricably linked to their color climate, such as Coca Cola or Telekom. For the latter, the color magenta is the eponym for products and services; the group even had “its” color protected under trademark law and is taking legal action against companies that still use the color.

Differentiate

Despite all the attributions, the choice of color climate offers opportunities for differentiation. Companies from conservative industries in particular are often reluctant to deviate from customary corporate colors. The human brain perceives exactly that – the difference, the exception to the norm. Digital financial service providers such as Holvi or N26 are a good example of the delimitation using color: They use specific color palettes that at first glance identify them as innovative players. We therefore encourage our customers not to base themselves too much on supposed industry conventions. And develop individual color climates that are tailored to the respective brand personality and positioning and target group.

How do we define the perfect colors for a brand?

The decision for a brand’s principal color requires a close look at the following aspects:

• Brand Positioning What does the brand stand for, what does it promise, and what feeling does it want to evoke in people?
• Target group Who should be addressed? We analyze the reality of life, preferences, interests of the target group using personas and sinus milieus.
• Differentiation In many cases it makes sense to opt for an unseen color choice in order to stand out from the competition with confidence.
• Suitability The chosen principal colors need contrasting colors, e.g. to attract attention as a call-to-action.
• Balance A balanced ratio is ensured by applying the 60-30-10 rule. This rule of thumb defines the ratio of a composition of three colors.

Using color to evoke the right associations

Not all blue is the same: the choice of a certain color palette does not mean that an identical statement is always made. The creative context of the brand design in which the color is used plays an important role. We create the right associations for brands – with expressive color compositions as part of a design system.