The Power of Colour in Defining a Brand

Colours are important in marketing, but the effect sizes of ‘colour=meaning’ can be small and somewhat unreliable. Colours are important for building distinctiveness in a brand. The human brain is good at recognising colours; when our vision is blurred we can at least make out basic colours if nothing else. It’s also good at remembering colours after frequent and consistent exposure to it  (e.g Cadbury’s Purple).  When colours are used consistently and paired with something (like a name, logo, product, occasion, etc) they increase associated mental structures for a brand leading to higher mental availability, and higher mental availability means a brand is more likely to be bought (Sharp, 2016). 

Whether colours have inherent meaning is debatable and not always consistent across culture and context. Research does show certain colours impact implicit and subconscious perceptions. i.e reds, oranges and yellows are good at stimulating appetite; natural colours (greens and browns) can be calming. Owning a colour wherever possible to stand out in the category is extremely important, but the value of putting heavy emphasis on the meaning behind colour is a case by case decision. Unless you sell cars, ‘cause everybody knows the red ones go faster.

Colour is one of the most powerful tools in the designer’s arsenal. When it comes to building brand recognition over time, colour has the power to quickly embed itself into the minds of our audience and build a visual shorthand, making brands instantly recognisable even in a cluttered ad landscape. 

We can take in colour out of the corner of our eye. Unlike messaging or imagery, it is instant and can be highly subjective. This is why as brands, we need to work to ensure our colour is forming the intended perception in the mind of our audience. Each hue can trigger distinct feelings – red for urgency and passion, blue for trust and stability, and green for growth and harmony. Understanding these associations allows designers to formulate colour palettes that align seamlessly with a brand's positioning, identity, and messaging.

Brands that are new in the market or have recently rebranded have the opportunity to start building their distinctive brand assets from day one by using their core brand colour(s) with care and intention. When Felix Mobile was launched in 2020, Paper Moose established their peach brand colour from the outset. Peach has anchored every branded visual for 3 years, and with repeated and consistent use it has been cemented as the most recognisable element of the brand. 

Colour is one of the most powerful tools in the arsenal of a designer, and to be able to use colour well is certainly a craft. We rarely stop and think about it as consumers, but colour is all around us, shaping our decisions, influencing how we feel and behave. In our work as creatives, we face these decisions every day and the ability to harness the use of colour well is a challenge.

An example of the way we integrate it into our work is the recent campaign and rebrand for Moro olive oil. Moro’s superpower was their extensive range of oils for any cooking purpose, and any type of cook. Wanting to appeal to a more diverse audience, for our recent TVC we crafted coloured worlds and character personas to reflect each product, illustrating just how diverse our customers are and how versatile Moro could be in their lives.

It can be tempting to play it safe, and rely on the pre-existing relationships we have with certain palettes, but I’m continually inspired by great designers out there questioning the way we use and combine colours.

Creating an ownable colour palette cannot be underestimated. Consider the recent Barbie campaign, where only a pink billboard was needed to promote the film. Even if the brand we are working on isn’t instantly recognisable by their Pantone shade, it still has a lot of power. 

Colour is one of the most important assets in a designer’s toolkit, having an ability to influence how customers view the personality of a brand. 

However, it’s not as simple as choosing a colour to evoke some sort of hyper-specific emotion. A restricted monochromatic black a white palette can just as easily cue prestige and sophisticated minimalism e.g. Polestar, as it can be unpretentious and cost effective e.g. AHM. It’s all about context, and how designers can equip the brand with an ownable palette in combination with the design system, to elicit the desired emotions. 

Colour can become synonymous with a brand if used correctly. When there are millions of companies all jostling for attention, choosing the right colour palette, and leaning into it is a necessity.

I’d say that there is a huge emphasis on colour, but the heavy thought that goes into colour comes at the brand design stage.  If it’s done well it becomes ingrained and relatively unchangeable.

So for that reason, it probably becomes a little bit secondary in our industry. The job in advertising is more about enforcing a brand’s identity with the constancy and consistency that allows a colour to become synonymous with it.

The orange colour that people associate with Hermes was never a choice – it was the only colour they could get from their packaging supplier, so they stuck with it. Through consistent use over decades it became ownable. Eventually the consistency becomes more important than the colour itself.

Colour of course can be a powerful branding tool and core brand device. When we think Cadbury, or Barbie or Tiffany’s – a colour comes to mind immediately. Indeed the flip of that shows the power of colour in branding – see THAT purple, or THAT pink, or THAT Blue – and the brand comes to mind immediately. But it’s not because any colour - or those colours - are more powerful than another. It’s because those brands have built equity and meaning into those colours that they become powerful. You can’t have one without the other.