Vision is our primary source of experience. And the color is one of the fundamental visual elements that you can use to establish recognition for your brand however, choosing brand colors may be harder then you think.

Why is it? People developed robust connections with colors, supported by a long history of associating them with particular objects. As a result, color impacts the way we perceive and interact with brands.

As a designer, I spend a good deal of time curating colors for all of my projects. It's amazing how color can bring your project to life or kill it.

In this article, you can find a detailed guide on how to choose brand colors in branding your business.

Interesting Fact :
85% percent of consumers rely on color, as their biggest motivation when choosing a product. For example, ads in color are read up to 42% more often than the same ads in black and white.

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What is a Color Palette?

Before we start with "How to Choose Brand Colors" I think it's important to understand the basics. A color palette is an assembly of multiple colors that prise each other and make the composition more visually appealing for the eyes. Usually, in digital design, color is represented in codes ( HEX, RGB, or CMYK codes).

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How Many colours in a Brand palette?

There are no strict rules regarding a number of colors involved in one color scheme. Ultimately, I would say 4 to 6 is a good middle ground. To begin, you have black and white, and then add one color at a time, to sample. Therefore don’t be afraid to experiment with some crazy combinations, unexpectedly it can reward your project, but of course, always test it on products you will be using on.

Color Theory in Branding.

Color theory helps us understand how history, culture, gender, and current market trends affect our judgment of color, ensuring that brand colors aligning with an intended message.

It’s pretty easy to get lost in color terminology; at the same time, I believe it’s important to touch on theory before going into practice.

Here are the main terms to keep in mind.

Hue: just a fancy word for “color,” like green or orange;
Chroma: the measure of hue purity;
Saturation: concentration of color, highly saturated colors, those that appear very bright, desaturated are the ones that seem gray out;
Value: lightness or darkness of the color depends on the amount of gray added to it;
Tone: made by adding gray to a pure color (hue);
Shade: made by adding black to a pure color (hue);
Tint: a mixture of color (hue) and white.

Based on these terms, we create primary color palettes.

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Four Main Types of Color Palettes.

Monochrome Palette.

How to Choose Brand Colors monochrome palette

To create monochrome schemes, we would work with one hue: green, orange, blue, and adjusting its depth, shades, and tones. As a result of the increased popularity in minimalism, monogrammed palettes gained their hell of flame as well.

Analogous Palette.

How to Choose Brand Color Analogous Palette

This palette consists of three colors located very close to each other on the color wheel. In general, analogous schemes are easy to use. You left to play with similar hues that naturally produce a symmetrical and neat composition.

Complementary Palette.

Complimentary brand color Palette

It includes two colors directly opposite each other and tints of those colors. These schemes have good contrast and make a design stand out. In fact, you can make it even more interesting by adding various tints and shades. Due to using of different hues in Complementary, its good to tone down and dim some colors, so the layout is engaging. But of course, every rule has an exception.

Triadic Palette

Triadic brand color Palette

It features three colors equally spaced around the color wheel. Even though this one may be difficult to rule at first, but practice its all its takes. The vibrance and visual interest of triadic schemes are worth mastering.

Pro Tip:
Each pleasant composition has a primary and secondary color. Generally, the amount of each color you use will be different. Designers use 60-40-10 rule.

What Do Colors Mean?

It’s been scientifically proven that different colors evoke different emotional responses. People have different preferences as a result of their geographic location and cultural setup.

Brand Color Psychology Chart:

Brand Color Psychology Chart

Red – power, energy, passion, danger, hunger
Blue – peace, trust, security, technology
Purple – royalty, mystery, wisdom, enlightenment
Green – nature, environment, health
Orange – energy, balance, warmth, enthusiasm
Yellow – joy, optimism, idealism, youth

How to Make a Brand Color Palette?

I am sure by now, you are convinced that color is a critical component of your business that will increase business recognition and help your brand.

With this in mind, how do you choose one palette over the other to effectively represents your business?

1. Brand Mood & Feel.

Start by describing your brand with four adjectives. An essential technique to connect with your audience is by connecting with them on the emotional level. What kind of feelings do you want to evoke? Are you bold and captivating, or charming and modern?

2. Keep Your Target Audience in Mind.

How to Choose Brand Colors target audience

Think about what colors would appeal to your ideal client. Why would they choose you, what resonates with them in your brand? Associate your visual identity with your ideal client in mind.

3. Create a Mood Board.

Another way to approach your brand visual foundation is by making a mood board. In a few words, mood boards are a collection of images, textures, graphics, basically anything that influences you in one place. It would be your visual foundation. Analogous to writing a research paper, you collect all the knowledge and facts about the subject in one place, and then curate what is relevant or not.

This Brand Board Template is designed to help you create your brand. It will help you organize everything in one place so that you don't have to spend time piecing everything together after.

Helpful Tools for Curating Your Brand Palette.

Adobe Color

Zilliondesigns

Coolors

Paletton