Humans love colours. From children to grownups, everyone finds colours meaningful and uses them to express their feelings and personalities. Colours are a universal language for invoking emotions, conveying messages and adding personality and brilliance to different objects. The same goes for logo colours.
Naturally, colours also play a crucial role in logo design. When brands create logos, one of the most impactful decisions they have to make is choosing the colours of their logo. Colours affect the brands people choose to purchase, the clothes they wear and even the food they choose to eat. Research by Colour Communications reveals people make a subconscious judgment about a person, environment, or product within 90 seconds. And 60% to 90% of that judgment is based on colour alone.
In this article, we will discuss the meaning of colours in logo design, and how to pick the right colours that will click instantly with your audience.
Red
Symbolism: Aggressive, Bold, Provocative, Attention, Alert
Red gives off the feeling of power and aggression. That’s why it is seen a lot in the logos of automobile companies, such as Tesla, Bugatti, Fiat and so on. Because of its attention-grabbing and energetic nature, red is also used by a lot of food companies. Startups with bold connotations, such as Imagina Gaming, use red as well.
Purple
Symbolism: Royalty, Sophistication, Retro, Mystery, Spirituality
The usage of purple is somewhat rare in logo design, but if used properly, it can help any brand stand out from the crowd. The reason behind purple’s rare usage is that it has a precise meaning. The Betzest logo designed by us uses purple to create an association with royalty and sophistication. Also, a lot of religious iconographies use this colour to depict spirituality.
Blue
Symbolism: Trustworthy, Security, Dependable, Reliable
As one of the most popular colours used in logo design, blue provides a very positive connotation. The first thing that comes to mind when seeing the colour blue is trustworthiness. Every company wants to be trustworthy to its customers, which explains the wide use of this colour. The financial industry and tech industry often associate themselves with the blue colour to represent trustworthiness, security and dependability. The Vertibus logo uses blue by following the same principles.
Green
Symbolism: Wealth, Health, Reputation, Peace
Nowadays, green has become the colour of sustainability and clean energy. Aside from that, wealth and money also come to mind when seeing the colour green, although financial institutions usually stray away from using it because the symbolism can seem too obvious. Companies such as Land Rover and Starbucks use this colour to symbolise the energetic and the outdoorsy aspect of their products. For healthcare service providers such as Medilink, green is just the perfect colour.
Yellow
Symbolism: Positive, Light, Warmth, Inspiration, Creativity
Yellow is a very attention-grabbing and positive colour. It oozes light, happiness and warmth. It also invokes hunger in people, which is why many food companies such as Burger King, Subway, Cheerios etc. use this colour. Brands such as IKEA and Best Buy use this colour to set a positive and inviting tone.
Orange
Symbolism: Vitality, Playful, Fun, Exuberant
Orange is an interesting alternative colour created by a mix between yellow and red. It is seen as a fun colour that conjoins the sophistication of red with the younger feel of yellow. The playful character of this colour really shines through the logos of Nickelodeon, Fanta, Hooters etc. Orange can be also described as exuberant as it feels very much alive.
Black
Symbolism: Prestige, Value, Punctuality, Sophistication
Black is a very common colour for logos and is usually used in the design phase. Black is often used with white to create a polarising effect, which creates a balance between the two opposite colours. Luxury brands such as Giorgio Armani use black to depict the prestigious and high-end aspects of their products. SiGMA, one of the biggest international iGaming events, uses black to showcase its reputation. Our very own IPOINT logo uses the polarising black and white colours to represent our diversity and the value we create for our clients.
White
Symbolism: Pure, Noble, Clean, Peaceful
White is linked with purity and innocence. A lot of time white is also used to create contrast with black and is used interchangeably. Some of the popular brands using this colour are Apple, Vera Wang, Chanel etc.
Still not sure which logo colour to choose for your brand? Or thinking about rebranding your business with fresh colours? We’re here to help! Feel free to contact us for a free consultation.