October 2021

Is color helping or hurting your website?

Blog Color No. 349

For generations, scientists have experimented to discover how different colors affect peoples’ moods and actions. Most are familiar with the experiments done by two Naval officers that showed that a certain shade of pink can keep inmates more docile. That shade of pink was named after the officers, Baker-Miller pink and is still used in many American and foreign prisons.

Naturally, marketers were quick to jump on the psychological powers of certain colors in the hopes of selling more stuff. As the digital realm is now one of the major venues for promoting and selling products, website color choices are now being put under the “microscope” to discover the perfect shade to turn your site from a dud to a money-making machine.

For example, a recent study claims that when an online gambling site changed the color of text on a call-to-action button from green to yellow, they saw an immediate 187.4% increase in conversions. Ironically you would think green would work better for a site that people only visit to win money.

The real challenge with adhering to a strict guide for color selection based on viewer reaction is that not everyone reacts the same way.

Much of our color-based behavior is related to what we associate colors with. For example, yellow could remind us of the Sun, leading us to feel warm and safe. Blue is often thought to make people feel calm and red creates excitement. But color is not a one-size-fits-all solution.

Another challenge based on the internet’s global reach is that colors can mean dramatically different things in different cultures. In China white symbolizes death, which is not something most brands want to be emotionally connected to. For Egyptians, yellow represents mourning, again not a great brand association.

While being aware of the cultural impact of various colors is important, the best approach for choosing colors for your website is to be sure they reflect your brand’s personality and tonality and that they don’t interfere with the legibility of your content.

For more insights on best practices for website design give Insight Marketing Design’s digital team a call at 605-275-0011 or send us an email. We promise they’ll be tickled pink to hear from you.

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