Color can have a profound impact on your prospective buyers. The wrong colors can negatively impact your sales, while the right colors can trigger positive emotions motivating your visitors to buy from you.
Color can affect how we feel and influence what we think. In general, bright bold colors tend to stir us up, while the softer pastel colors calm and relax us. Responses to colors can vary by age, gender and cultural background.
Colors affect how a potential buyer reacts to your web site. Carefully select your color scheme for your web site and web header. Consider your business, business cards, letterhead, any print materials, brochures and advertising.
Being consistent creates a sense of stability for customers and optimizes marketing for brand awareness and name recognition.
Here are some guidelines to help you make good color choices.
1.) Use common sense.
2.) Keep the number of colors down to two or three, and no more.
This does not include the addition of photos; which can have a whole range of colors, but should not clash.
3.) Make sure that all of the colors you use work well together and do not clash.
4.) Consider your audience. For example, if your web site primarily targets men, use strong, bold colors. If your target audience is women, choose soft, pastel colors. If your focus is on children, choose bright, vibrant colors.
5.) Choose colors that are appropriate for your web site’s topic. For example, green works well for web sites about starting a home business, making money, and reducing debt.
6.) Communicate your message with easy-to-read text. Use colors for text that will contrast with the background color, so your text is readable. For example, a dark font on a light background is easy to read and easy on the eyes.
7.) Consider the mood you want to create. Remember that emotions trigger sales. People buy what they want – not just what they need.
The list below will show you how colors can affect us in different ways. Take advantage of the impact color can have on your online sales and choose colors that will create positive responses.
Red – Action, energy, strength, passion, fire, heat, power, attention getting. Can also mean love and romance. It’s a strong masculine color. Red is a good color for a “call-to-action”. Red is cheerfulness, excitement, and warmth. Pink is a soft version of red. It is most associated with romance, calming affect; a feminine color.
Blue – Confidence, travel, freedom, truth, professionalism, wealth and power. Also tranquility, dependable, acceptance, patience, understanding, cooperation, comfort, loyalty and security. It is one of the most calming colors and is associated with the sky and the sea, intelligence, reassurance, and trust. Blue has also been known to be an appetite suppressant, so it would not be good for cookbooks or recipe sites but you can consider it for diet web sites.
Green – Money, wealth, prosperity, calm, health, nature, hope, growth, freshness, soothing, sharing, and responsiveness. Green symbolizes spring, renewal, and fertility.
Orange – Health and vitality, autumn, youthfulness, fire, steadfastness, courage, confidence, friendliness, food, cheerfulness, warmth, excitement and energy. Has been known to stimulate the appetite. Vibrant and warm, orange is associated with autumn and the earth.
Yellow – Light, purity, understanding, caution, brightness, intelligence, joy, organization, Springtime. Yellow often represents sunshine, warmth, light, energy and happiness.
Purple – Dignity, sophistication, creativity, spirituality and mystery. Deep purple is associated with royalty and richness, while lavender is associated with romance and nostalgia.
Brown – Credibility, stability, the hearth, home, the earth, wood, comfort and strength. Brown can be used as a neutral or a warm color.
Black – Space, night, authority, dramatic, classy, committed, serious, power, elegance, and sophistication.
White – Purity, peace, perfection, fresh, easy, cleanliness, goodness, and spirituality. Worth noting here, white represents life and marriage in Western cultures, but it represents death and sorrow in Eastern cultures.
Grey – A conservative color, symbolizing security, maturity and reliability.
