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Color Theory

When it comes to advertising there are many tools that advertisers use to help consumers subconsciously make a decision towards their product or brand. One of these tools is called color theory. Color Theory is the idea that colors play a role in making the consumer feel a certain way, and advertisers use this science to decide on logo and brand colors (Ray, 2014). Color theory has been developing since the first color wheel was invented by Isaac Newton in 1666. The color wheel consists the three primary colors (red, blue, yellow) and three secondary colors that they make (orange, purple, green). The idea with the color wheel is that each color has its counterpart, “looking at the color wheel, every color has positive and negative aspects to it,” (Sturm, n.d.). In other words, a color’s impact can be affected or changed just by placing it next to another color. For example, “red next to its complement green…can cause the eye to vibrate with energy, while red next to black may give you the feeling of power and class” (Sturm, n.d.). Brands use complimentary colors to create logos that consumers will recognize in seconds and feel emotionally attached to. Many sports teams use complimentary colors in their logos to influence these reactions. Advertisers use these colors to influence the way people react and recognize their brand and each color has a different psychological reaction, ‘warm’ colors are on the red side of the color wheel and include red, orange, and yellow on the opposite side are the ‘cool’ colors, Blues, purple, and green. All of these colors have specific meanings to advertisers (Cherry, 2017).

Here is a list of some colors and their potential meanings (Cherry, 2017):

Black- death, mourning, power, sexuality, sophistication, class.

White- purity, innocence, cleanness, freshness, simplicity, new beginnings.

Red- strong emotions, love, warmth, comfort, intensity.

Orange – excitement, enthusiasm, warmth, draws attention

Yellow- cheery, warm, fastest noticed color

Green- fresh, natural, good luck, tranquility

Blue- sad, forlorn, calmness, serenity, productivity, safety

Purple- sensual, wise, royal, soothing, mysterious

In one case a study was done on the effects ‘cool’ and ‘warm’ colors have on consumers reactions to failed marketing brands. The first study consisted of 111 volunteers that read a fiction article about a fake firm called Apex Technologies. After they read the information they were shown a picture of the CEO, but the photo was accented with red hues. They were asked about the information in the article and most people said that it was negative. The same type of test was conducted, but after they read the article they were shown a picture of the CEO with blue accents and asked about the information in the article. The results suggested that the article with the picture highlighted in red made the respondents remember negative highlights of the article and not much else. However, positive information was remembered with the article with blue highlights (Kwak, 2017).

In terms of advertising this information suggests that red accents influence a sense of urgency while cooler colors elicit a sense of calmness. Advertisers can use these cues to influence their brand and enhance recognition which is why colors take such a large role in the products consumers buy and the brands they hold close to their hearts.