The Importance of Colour in Branding

Wow, how can it take so long to decide on a title for a blog!

On the side lines were:

• Why Choosing Brand Colours Is Harder Than Most People Think

• Colour Psychology in Branding

• Why Most Colour Palette Generators Aren't Enough

• Why Two Businesses Can Use the Same Colour and Feel Completely Different

• Why Colour Consistency Matters More Than Choosing the 'Perfect' Colour

When I sat down to write this blog, I honestly didn't know what to call it.

Every one of those titles could have worked because they're all important parts of the same conversation.

In the end, I kept coming back to one question:

What would help business owners, designers and marketers make more confident decisions about one of the most powerful communication tools a brand has?

That seemed like the best place to start.

This article isn't about finding the 'perfect' shade of blue or whether green always means nature, growth, health, and wealth.

It's about understanding why colour choices have far more influence than many people realise, and why getting them right can make such a difference to how a brand is recognised, remembered and experienced.

So - my last personal project was supposed to be a fairly short guide explaining how colour influences perception and how to choose a palette with more confidence. I get asked about colour quite a bit, so why not write a resource.

As I was tap-tapping away, I started thinking...

"Well, if I'm going to explain that properly, I really ought to include this..."

Then..

"Actually... they probably need to understand this first."

And before I knew it, every answer uncovered another question.

I am definitely my own worst enemy when it comes to projects like this. I always feel that

if something will genuinely help someone make a better decision, then it deserves to be included.

So what began as a relatively modest guide somehow grew into 222 pages, 55 curated colour palettes, an interactive workbook and an editable Canva workbook.

It was a lot more work than I originally imagined...

...but also a pretty satisfying project too.

Front cover of flipbook: Colour and how to use it effectively in branding.

Let's lift the lid on just five of the topics that found their way into the guide. They're all things I regularly discuss with clients, and they can completely change how a brand is perceived.

1.

Your Favourite Colour Isn't Always the Right Colour

This is probably one of the hardest conversations to have with clients... and sometimes even with ourselves.

It's completely natural to have favourite colours.

We all do.

Colour creates emotional connections, often without us even realising it.

But branding isn't about choosing the colours you love most.

It's about choosing the colours that help other people experience your brand in the way you want them to.

Before browsing colour palettes or reaching for your favourite shade, ask yourself one simple question:

How do I want people to feel when they interact with this brand?

Should they feel reassured? Energised? Creative? Calm? Luxurious? Trusting? Curious?

Those emotional intentions become the foundation for your colour choices.

This is also where colour psychology is often misunderstood.

There isn't a universal rule that says blue always means trust or green always means nature. Colour doesn't exist in isolation. The shade, tone, saturation are vitally important, the colours surrounding it, the typography, imagery, layout and

even the industry you're working in all

influence how that colour is perceived.

The same shade of blue can feel corporate, calming, playful or premium depending on how it's used.

That's why I always encourage clients to think beyond individual colours and focus instead on the overall feeling they want to create.

When you start with emotion rather than preference, your colour choices become far more intentional, and your brand becomes much more memorable because of it.

There's nothing wrong with having a favourite colour. 

The trick is recognising when you're choosing for yourself, 

and when you're choosing for your audience.

2.

Consistency Builds Recognition

People often underestimate this.

A brand isn't recognised because you chose the colour of say, teal and coral for it.

It's recognised because those exact same colours appears consistently across:

• website

• social media

• stationery

• signage

• packaging

• presentations

Recognition comes from repetition. 

The more consistently your colours appear across your website, social media, printed materials and packaging, the easier it becomes for people to recognise and remember your brand. 

Research in visual perception consistently shows that the brain processes basic visual attributes such as colour* extremely rapidly, which allows us to make quick, often subconscious judgements before we've analysed what we're seeing. A slight alteration can easily and quickly create distrust in the brand.

*Assuming the viewer has typical colour vision.

3.

Every Colour Needs a Job

So you've carefully chosen what feels like the perfect palette and started applying it across a brand... yet somehow it still feels a little messy, or disjointed.

One of the biggest reasons isn't because the colours themselves are wrong. It's often because nobody has decided what each colour is actually supposed to do.

A well-designed palette isn't simply a collection of colours that look good together. 

It's a system where every colour has a job.

Some colours quietly support the brand, while others attract attention, guide the eye or highlight important actions.

When each colour has a clearly defined role, every future design decision becomes easier. Whether you're designing a website, creating social media graphics or ordering printed materials, you already know which colour should be doing what.

Without that structure, colours begin competing with one another. Before long, every heading is a different colour, every button is demanding attention and the brand gradually loses its sense of cohesion.

I often compare it to organising a team. If everyone is trying to lead, very little gets done. But when everyone understands their role, everything works together far more effectively.

A colour palette should work in exactly the same way.

4.

Beautiful Still Has to Be Readable

It's surprisingly easy to create something that looks beautiful but doesn't communicate particularly well.

Colour isn't just there to make a brand attractive. It also plays an important role in helping people navigate information, understand hierarchy and know where to look next.

Have you visited a website where the text blended into the background, the buttons were difficult to spot, or everything seemed to compete equally for your attention? Chances are you didn't stay very long.

Good colour choices should make information easier to absorb, not harder to find.

This is where accessibility often enters the conversation, but accessibility isn't only about designing for disability.

It also benefits people reading on a sunny day, someone who's forgotten their glasses, an older customer whose vision has naturally changed over time, or someone quickly scanning information while distracted.

Small changes, such as improving contrast or assigning colours more thoughtfully, can make a remarkable difference without changing the personality of a brand.

Beautiful design and accessible design aren't opposites. In fact, the strongest brands usually achieve both.

In the guide, I explore how colour contrast, hierarchy, readability and real-world viewing conditions can all influence how effectively a brand communicates, often in ways that aren't immediately obvious.

5.

Think Beyond the Screen

One of the most common disappointments comes when someone falls in love with a colour they've seen on screen, only to discover it can't be reproduced in print.

For example, those vivid electric blues, fluorescent greens and ultra-bright pinks often look incredible on a monitor because screens create colour using light.

Printing works very differently. It relies on physical inks, which of course have limitations. Some highly saturated colours simply sit outside what standard CMYK printing can reproduce.

Have a look at this brand on the left. The vivid colours of the brand on a back-lit screen is how they intended it to look, but once printed, it looses vivid colours. So, please remember, if you are designing a brand where their brand will appear on brochures, packaging, clothing, exhibition stands or embroidered uniforms, it's worth thinking about this early.

A beautiful colour palette is only successful if it can be reproduced consistently across everything your business uses.

We are not fans of disappointment, and neither are our clients.

Of course, we've only scratched the surface here.

If you are interested, the full Colour bundle for branding is a comprehensive digital guide on your need-to-know’s when creating a brand, and includes an interactive planning workbook, an editable Canva workbook, and 55 curated colour palettes organised by mood, style and brand personality to help you choose colours with greater confidence. The workbooks are designed to be used over and over again for all of your palette projects.

Whether you're creating your own brand, refreshing an existing identity, or working with clients, the resources are designed to help you move from uncertainty to confident colour decisions. The link is here

Inside look: A comprehensive guide shown in the contents page.