Research reveals that people make a subconscious judgment about a person, environment or product within 90 seconds of initial viewing and that between 62% and 90% of that assessment is based on color alone.
Color is a part of the language that designers use to communicate with their users. So having an understanding of color psychology is a key aspect of creating color palettes that increase conversion.
Color is a powerful communication tool and can give user signals on what action to complete. Those signals can influence mood and outcomes.
If you invest time in understanding the difference between colors, this knowledge will help you make better design decisions and make your design more persuasive.
According to Shopify, color psychology is a discipline that researches how color influences human behavior and decision making. Color psychology is essential for sales and marketing—different colors can impact the way buyers perceive a brand.
Color psychology is based on the theory of how our brain processes colors. The human eye has a visual response to light. Light travels in waves, and each color has a different wavelength. These different wavelengths hit the eye in different ways. They create electrical impulses that go to the hypothalamus in the brain, which controls a number of functions in the human body — behavioral patterns, appetite and body temperature among them.
People make a subconscious judgment about a person, environment or product within 90 seconds of initial viewing and between 62% and 90% of that assessment is based on color alone. Click To Tweet
Meanwhile, according to Colorcom, when asked to approximate the importance of color when buying products, 84.7% of the total respondents think that color accounts for more than half among the various factors important for choosing products.
Colorcom, citing research, when on to add that:
- 92% believe color presents an image of impressive quality
- 90% feel color can assist in attracting new customers
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90% believe customers remember presentations and documents better when color is used
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 83% believe color makes them appear more successful
- 81% think color gives them a competitive edge
- 76% believe that the use of color makes their business appear larger to clients
To understand the impact of color on buyers’ actions, it’s important to understand the impact colors have on our thoughts and emotions.
1. Colors can be stimulating or calming
2. Different genders have different color preferences
3. Color can mean different things in different cultures
4. Color associations in industry
The 60-30-10 rule
The 60-30-10 is a simple rule that will help you create well-balanced and visually interesting color palettes.
The idea is that one color (usually, a neutral color) makes up 60 percent of the palette. Another complementary color makes up 30 percent of the palette. A third color, which is used as an accent, takes the remaining 10 percent. This formula works because it creates a sense of balance and allows the eye to travel comfortably from one focal point to another.
Read more about color psychology and more details from the why color matters webpage.
