Don’t use turquoise, a client once told me. It reminded them about all the bad stuff from the 80s.

And so we turn to the next highly emotive tool in the Holy Trinity of logo design: Colour. If Type is the cool architect poised over a drawing board, espresso in hand; Colour is the zealous painter in a dirty overall waving a paintbrush in the air.

In the world of brand, Colour has high impact.

Research shows that Colour improves brand recognition by up to 80%. Then there are the countless infographics out there that explore colour psychology. Red excites the customer apparently, whereas yellow makes us feel more positive. However these sweeping generalisations don’t really account for the wide range of reactions and emotions in between.

There are definite brand personalities associated with Colour. Take blue. Various tones of blue symbolise a brand that’s ‘trustworthy, dependable, fiscally responsible and secure’. I think most businesses would like to embed at least one of these traits in their brand so no surprise that over a third of major brands worldwide use blue in their logo. (And even smaller wonder that the Pantone Colour of 2020 is Classic Blue, a ‘dependable’ and ‘secure’ force in these uncertain times).

Psychology and blue aside, I’d like to look at Colour as the powerful tool for brand differentiation.

Industries tend to nurture strong colour trends. So for businesses wishing to ‘go against the grain’, Colour is one branding method to communicate this. A local accountancy firm I know uses a bright and playful palette in their logo. This is to make the bold and very proud statement they are different to the average accountancy practice. Similarly, the Dutch bank bunq below is another perfect example. The bank’s rainbow brand colours are an irreverent departure from the standard blue/red uniform of finance brands. Hats off to the agency responsible for this work.

Colour can also be a simple and effective tool to navigate sub-brands.

Take Ox Designers’ Hare Studio rebrand. The Hare is a barbershop chain, so each branch needed its own subtle variation on the main parent identity. Enter Colour. Carefully selected for each branch, every hue has a personal narrative with the individual location.

So there we go. Two simple and effective ways in which Colour can communicate brand. And while we’re here, I’d also like to celebrate the exciting new world of colour gradients. A trend initially embraced by tech brands, this design tool is now filtering across industries. Dynamic, refreshingly modern and high impact. Startups, take note.

Posted in Brand colour, Brand identity, Rebrand