Think About It

Is your business card sending out subliminal messages? If it's printed in color, it is.

For centuries, psychologists have studied the human response to color. They've discovered that individual colors elicit specific emotional and physiological responses. So do color combinations.

Companies that are serious about brand communication must be mindful of their use of color. After all, the purpose of branding is to forge an emotional bond between your company and your audiences. And the intelligent use of color can put you in the HOV lane to arousing the right feelings about your company.

Consider an example of the use of color by two high-profile, competing brands: UPS and DHL.

In one corner is UPS, adorned in brown and gold. Research shows that these two earthy colors evoke feelings of timelessness, trust and value - a perfect reflection of the UPS brand, which is centered on history and reliability.

In the other corner is DHL, sporting yellow and red, vibrant colors that suggest energy and immediacy. Some marketing pundits have tried to pass off DHL's color scheme as a marketing move to raise the company's visibility. But while it's true that those bright yellow vans are hard to miss, the company's color palette is more than an attempt to make a splash on the streets. According to a DHL executive, the company chose the colors to convey energy, entrepreneurialism and boldness, essential elements of the DHL brand.

So which is the superior color palette?

If you're looking at it from a visibility standpoint, there's no question that DHL is kicking UPS's brown backside. But if you take a brand perspective, it's clear that brighter isn't necessarily better. The right color palette isn't the one that's most noticeable. It's the one that gives people accurate insight into your company's values, strengths and aspirations. In that sense, both DHL and UPS have winning color combinations.

DHL's colors express its enterprising nature. People who have an entrepreneurial, adventuresome spirit may find DHL's yellow and red intriguing and exciting, and this may get them thinking of DHL as a kindred soul - which, according to its brand, it is.

On the other hand, people who take solace in stability may feel more comfortable with UPS's good ol' brown and may be put off by the boldness of DHL's colors. That's only appropriate, since UPS's brand is speaking straight to them with its position based on trust.

Thus each color palette resonates with the audience most tightly aligned with each company's brand position.

This little introduction to color theory isn't intended to get you to rethink the karma of your overnight shipper. It's to get you thinking about what your colors are saying about your brand.

Too many companies have never given their color palette any attention. They picked their company colors based on an executive's personal tastes. Or they chose a color that's similar to - or simply distinct from - a close competitor. Or in the early days of their company, on a fast dash to the printer for business cards, they made a quick decision on what color ink to use for their logo. But they've never thought about what the colors express.

Color is one element of a whole language of design, a language that generates passionate feelings in the viewer. Unless you're fluent in the language, you can't be sure what you're telling the world.