Color my world

An article at Fast Company discusses why marketers should consider breaking traditional semiotic rules when choosing colors for their new brands or brand relaunches.

For example, as the author mentions, blue conveys trustworthiness, which is a good thing for a brand, obviously. However, 43% of Fortune 500 companies have blue logos, so standing out overall or within a category requires a different approach.

Color can signal how your brand stands out from its competitors. For example, the payment company Klarna, a rising European brand, selected pink as the dominant color in its logo, which makes it stand out against the typically neutral colors in the credit card space. Mailchimp’s yellow/black combo also represents a symbolic departure from typically boring corporate communication.

Color also can reframe a new product. Nuggs is a vegan chicken nugget that uses a red logo to remind people of tasty fast food, not health or sustainability – although the brand reinforces those “green” messages in other ways.

The article also contains some watchouts about scalability/readability and the need for relentless commitment to ensure the meaning of your color sticks.