When wading into the waters of color theory and branding everyone has a strong opinion shaped by their personal preferences.

Color, after all, is one of the first ways we learn to express ourselves in early childhood: “Buddy the elf.. what’s your favorite color?” Yet, when it comes to branding, the challenge lies in shifting from ‘subjective likes’ to ’strategic choices’ that communicate to the right people.

The Problem: Overly Generic Color Associations

If you are searching for guidance on brand colors, you'll probably encounter a few of these infographics displaying color swatches, logos, and their emotional meanings.

These psychological color charts will give you generic and unsubstantiated advice such as “Red is a the color of passion, love, danger, fire, and courage.” These touchy-feely descriptions are more akin to horoscope readings than serious color theory analysis. For personal use, charts and graphics such as these can be a lot of fun to look at, but they don’t belong in a professional discussion concerning a business' or startup’s brand design.

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The Critical Color Trio: Tint, Tone, and Shade

The problem with these surface level explanations of color theory is that they are primarily referring to the “hue” or the basic grouping of many different colors like yellow, green, blue, red, etc. Basic hue terminology misses so much nuance when you leave out of the discussion of it’s tint (the addition of white), tone (the alteration of saturation), and shade (the introduction of black). These elements significantly influence how we perceive a color, transforming "just red" into a spectrum from vibrant coral to muted rose.

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Mood, Vibe, and Audience: Crafting the Brand Strategy

At Good Bones, we are much more concerned about the mood and vibe that a brand exudes.

Should it be dark and luxurious? Should  it be bright and whimsical? Should it be light and corporate? Before selecting color palettes, it's essential to define the brand's objective and the message you wish to convey to the intended audience.

This strategic phase requires us to understand current industry trends, conduct competitor analysis, and know how the audience will interact with a brand on a day to day basis. A small business or startup may aim to align with industry norms, adopting color palettes that resonate with those used by their peers to achieve a familiar look and feel. However, there are times when it might be more advantageous to differentiate from competitors. In these instances, developing a distinct color palette that sets the business apart from others in the space can be a strategic move. And lastly, designing a color palette that works in tandem with your consumer’s personal aesthetic can be a powerful way to integrate your product more seamlessly into your audience’s lifestyle.

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The Art of Brand Color Pairing: Context Is Key

Color theory in branding truly shines when we explore the dynamics of color relationships.

A color can shift in meaning and impact depending on its pairing, highlighting the importance of context in palette selection. A bright, firetruck red feels completely different when paired with black than it does with a muted green or a bright blue. And suddenly that orange swatch looks less like construction signage when paired with a deep plum or a palette of tans and browns. This interplay of colors highlights why we need to break out of elementary terminology around color.

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Brand Color Simplicity and Focus: Less Is (Usually) More

While it's tempting (and a lot of fun) to explore a broad spectrum of colors, effective branding often relies on a concise palette.

Both designers and clients have a tendency to overcomplicate and extend their brand’s palette past a primary set of colors to a secondary and tertiary set of palettes. Most of the time these selected colors have very little application throughout the brand. A focused selection of 2-4 primary colors can forge a strong and recognizable brand identity, avoiding the confusion of an overly complex color scheme. Too many times we see brand guidelines with a burdensome amount of tints, tones, and shades of the essentially the same color. This is also a recipe for your brand identity to break down over time, especially when the brand changes hands to a new team.

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Conclusion: Building Confidence in Brand Discussions

As we peel back the mysteries of color theory, we discover that it's not just about picking colors out of a hat, but about crafting a strategy that aligns with a brand's ethos and audience's expectations.

It's a strategic endeavor that balances creativity with analysis. So, the next time you engage in a discussion about color in branding, you'll be equipped with the vocabulary and terminology to speak with confidence when you say:  “actually if you bring down the tone and increase the shade on that yellow hue, you will achieve a rich goldenrod shade that feels luxurious, trendy, and will resonate with a younger audience.”

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