Do you want to know how to find the balance between colors and emotions that they evoke by means of web design? The fact that there is a legitimate sub-field of industrial psychology that studies colors’ effect on human behavior and it tells us how much they impact our lives.
Studies have revealed that colors and emotions are strongly connected with one another. There are individuals who calm down when they see a certain color, while some colors give rise to anger in some. There are also colors that help motivate people to achieve certain things. Colors can also make people want to buy something, a fact that marketers and web designers understand very well.
For web designers, an understanding of colors and emotions is of the utmost importance. Websites, after all, need conversions to reach a certain level of success. Conversions could come in the form of sales, a newsletter signup, a webinar registration, or the simple filling out of a contact form. Considering the power that color wields over human behavior, a good web designer can use colors to grab the attention of users and trigger certain emotions, which, in turn, could lead to conversions. But first, he or she has to know which colors set off which feelings or at least have a working knowledge of which values and emotions are commonly associated with what colors. Here are some of those colors and their associations.
Blue
Many people find the color blue cool, which also suggests serenity or calmness. Blue is also perceived as an indicator of intelligence, reliability, security, and trust. At the other end of the spectrum is the fact that blue is also associated with coldness and sadness.
Red
Clearance sales usually run within a limited time frame, so they need to create a sense of urgency in their ads. Note that most, if not all adverts for clearance sales are usually in bright red, which does make people want to go ahead and rush to the store lest they miss out on a bargain. Red is also associated with passion and love, as well as jealousy and rage.
White
White has long been associated with purity and innocence, which explains why it’s the primary color during weddings. White is linked to hygiene and cleanliness as well, which is probably why it’s a favored color in healthcare.
Black
There was a time when black signified only darkness and death. Today, many see it as an elegant, sophisticated, glamorous, and powerful color. Manufacturers of luxury products have picked up on it, and are using black for most of their marketing materials and goods.
Yellow
Yellow gives off warmth, optimism, and joy. For some reason, yellow also makes people feel a little younger. Go easy on using yellow on your website though. You wouldn’t want to overwhelm and turn off your visitors with too much of the color on your pages.
Orange
Orange is a combination of red and yellow, and it makes sense for the color to carry the same effects on a person. Like red, orange is perfect for creating a sense of urgency, which is probably why many web designers use it for their calls to action. It is also similar with yellow in the sense that it also projects warmth and cheerfulness.
Green
The color green will always represent the environment, so naturally, individuals and organizations that push an environmental agenda use a lot of green on their websites. Green is also linked to health and relaxation, which isn’t surprising because science has shown that it’s a color that’s easy for the eyes and brain to process. Green is also associated with being decisive.
Check out the infographic below for a closer look into the psychology of color.
