A guide to colour theory
Article topics
- What is colour theory?
- Why is colour theory important?
- RGB and CMYK colour models
- The colour wheel
- The psychology of colour
- Identifying the perfect colour scheme
- Are you ready to colour your world with Xigen?
There’s a lot to consider when you set up a business.
What you will sell. Who your target audience will be. How you’ll stand out from the competition.
There is another thing you need to think about – what colours you’ll use to promote your product or service.
Nearly 85% of customers say colour is the primary reason they buy a product, so it’s vital to consider which colours you’ll use to represent your brand.
Colour theory can help you identify the right colours to use in your marketing mix. In this article, we’ll look at the benefits of using colour theory and examine the four key colour theory concepts.
What is colour theory?
Colour theory is the study of how people react to different colours, as well as how colours work together.
Graphic designers use colour theory to choose colours that not only complement each other well, but encourage people to think and behave a certain way.
Let’s say you’re walking past a store and you see a ‘sale now on’ sign in red and white.
Red and white are a great colour combination if you want to get people’s attention. These colours contrast each other well, catching the eye and being easy to see from far away.
Red also inspires passion and urgency in people, encouraging them to enter the store and buy. We’ll talk more about what different colours mean in more detail later.
Why is colour theory important?
Some colours are synonymous with specific brands. For example, if we ask you to name a business that uses a red and yellow colour scheme, chances are that you’ll say McDonald’s!
Colour can improve brand recognition by up to 80%, meaning a well-chosen colour scheme can make you stand out from the crowd.
A good application of colour theory can also make for an aesthetically pleasing brand. It only takes 90 seconds for people to make a subconscious decision about your products or services based on design, and colour is a large part of this.
Now, let’s take a look at the four key concepts of colour theory:
RGB and CMYK colour models
A colour model is used to represent a specific colour through a set of numbers, making it easy to replicate across different mediums.
Two commonly used models are RGB and CMYK.
The RGB colour model
The RGB colour model uses three colours to create new colour combinations – red, green, and blue.
For example, red and blue make magenta, while green and blue make cyan. Combined together, red, blue, and green make white.
This model is also known as the ‘additive’ colour model as it adds light to build up other colours.
RGB colour codes signify the amount of red, green, and blue in a specific colour. Hex codes are a shorthand way of representing the RBG colour model.
The CMYK colour model
The CMYK colour model uses four colours to create new colours – cyan, magenta, yellow, and black.
For example, cyan and yellow make green, while magenta and yellow make red. Combined together, cyan, magenta, and yellow make black.
This model is also known as the ‘subtractive’ colour model, as it removes light to build up other colours.
CYMK colour codes signify the amount of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black in a colour.
So, should you opt for an RGB or CMYK colour model for your brand?
There’s room for both.
RGB colours (and hex codes) are best for online, as computer screens work by combining red, green, and blue light together.
Meanwhile, CMYK colour models are best for print, as printers work by layering different colours upon each other.
Be sure to work out RGB and CMYK codes for all the colours you use in your branding.
2. The colour wheel
The colour wheel shows the relationship between colours. You can use it to develop new colours and determine which colours to factor into your branding – we’ll talk about this more later.
The standard colour wheel consists of three primary colours – red, yellow, and blue.
There are three secondary colours, which are made by mixing the three primary colours together – orange, green, and purple.
There are then six tertiary colours, which are made by mixing a primary colour with a secondary colour – red-orange, yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-green, blue-purple, and red-purple.
Hues, shades, tints, and tones
There are 12 key colours in the colour wheel, but did you know that by using shades, tints, and tones, you can significantly expand your colour palette?
Hue refers to any colour on the colour wheel, for example, red, purple, or yellow-orange. You can alter the saturation (intensity) or the luminance (brightness or darkness) of a particular hue.
Shade is when you add black to a hue to make it deeper and richer.
Tint is when you add white to a hue to make it lighter and more subdued.
Tone is when you add grey to a hue to transform it into something new.
By playing around with different shades, tints, and tones, as well as the saturation and luminance, you can create virtually any colour you want.
3. The psychology of colour
Different colours make us think and behave in different ways.
For example, earlier in the article we mentioned McDonald’s and its red and yellow colour scheme. A lot of fast food restaurants, like Burger King, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Jollibee, all use red too.
This isn’t a coincidence: red increases your heart rate and blood pressure, which in turn stimulates your metabolism and makes you hungry.
There’s also a reason why many social media platforms and software-as-a-service (SaaS) providers like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Salesforce use blue.
Blue as a colour is associated with reliability, integrity, and security – ideal if you want to make people think your product or service is dependable and trustworthy.
Here’s what the different colours mean in the Western world:
- Red: Passion, love, anger
- Orange: Warmth, freshness, excitement
- Yellow: Happiness, hope, friendliness
- Green: Growth, renewal, nature
- Blue: Reliability, peace, strength
- Purple: Luxury, wisdom, curiosity
- Black: Power, elegance, mystery
- White: Purity, simplicity, peace
- Grey: Neutrality, calmness, refinement
- Brown: Warmth, reliability, goodness
It’s important to note that some colours have alternative meanings in some countries. For example, while black is associated with death in Western culture, white is the traditional colour of mourning in China.
When thinking of colours that you want to use, whether in your company logo or on your website, consider the values you want to convey. Also think about how you want your target audience to feel when they see your brand.
4. Identifying the perfect colour scheme
You’ve chosen one colour that you want to use – but how do you decide what other colours you want to use alongside it?
For this one we’re going to go back to the colour wheel we looked at earlier. Here are four ways to identify the right colour scheme for your brand.
Complementary
A complementary colour scheme is when you use two colours opposite each other on the colour wheel, for example, red and green or yellow and purple.
These colours balance each other, meaning you get a colour pairing that is distinctive but cohesive.
You may also opt for a tetradic colour scheme which uses two pairs of complementary colours.
Examples of brands using complementary colour schemes: Visa, Fanta, Hallmark
Split-complementary
A twist on the complementary colour scheme, this is when you choose one colour and choose two colours that are on the opposite side of the colour wheel, at either side.
So if you choose red as your main colour, you can complement it with blue-green and yellow-green.
The benefit of a split-complementary scheme is that you can pair a bright colour with colours that are softer and vice versa. This results in a balanced and attractive colour pairing.
Examples of brands using split-complementary colour schemes: Taco Bell, Tide
Analogous
Analogous colours sit next to each other on the colour wheel – you can choose three colours or five if you want a more all-encompassing colour scheme.
For example if your main colour is orange, you can pair it with yellow-orange and red-orange.
The benefit of an analogous colour scheme is that you get a subtle selection of colours that work well together.
Examples of brands using analogous colour schemes: BP, Mastercard, Subway
Triadic
A triadic colour scheme uses three colours equally spaced out around the colour wheel in a triangle shape.
So if you choose red as your main colour, you would complement it with yellow and blue.
While a triadic colour scheme isn’t as high-contrast as a split-complementary colour scheme, it is a lot more vivid, ideal for brands that want to stand out.
Examples of brands using triadic colour schemes: Firefox, Burger King
Are you ready to colour your world with Xigen?
The colours you use can say a lot more about your brand than you might think.
By understanding colour theory, you can choose a colour scheme that not only looks clean and attractive, but tells customers about your values.
Let us leave you with one final piece of advice. To build a strong brand identity, you need to keep your colours constant across all your sales and marketing channels.
You can list the colours you use in your style guide, making it easy for your team (as well as any third-party companies you work with) to replicate your colour scheme.
Need a little extra help choosing colours that pop off the page?
Our skilled web designers can create a stunning colour scheme that turns heads, and apply it to your website. We can also create cohesive imagery for your marketing platforms, both online and offline.
Get in touch today, and take the first step towards showing your customers your true colours.
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