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Color In Business
Does Color Really Matter?
By Charlene Rashkow
Copyright2004
We've all read the countless publications about effective web site design,
outstanding written content and the never ending need for search engine
optimization, yet often the importance of color one chooses for his or her web
site is overlooked.
It is a proven fact that physical changes take place when individuals are
exposed to certain colors. Because colors have the power to stimulate, excite,
or even depress, specific color combinations can possibly work to your advantage
or to your detriment. Have you considered whether your web site color is sending
the message you intended?
While we all have our own color preferences, when it comes to a web site, you
may have to abandon your favorite color and consider what draws a person's eye,
what feels inviting and mostly what says, "I'm someone you want to deal
with."
Of course color preferences can vary so greatly that to one person the color
yellow represents brightness while to another, the yellow color seems repugnant.
But no matter how you look at it, colors make the difference. Whether you are
selling a product, offering a service or promoting a new business, your web site
is your primary advertisement on the Internet. Therefore your job is to make
everything about your site as inviting as you make your home. After all, this is
how you represent yourself to millions of viewers. And just as you want people
to feel at home and at ease when visiting your house, you want visitors to feel
the same level of receptivity when visiting your online business.
So How Can You Be Sure Of The Right Color For Your Web Site?
1) Let's start with how you feel about certain articles of clothing. Have you
ever noticed that on some days you feel more vibrant and alive simply by the
color of the clothing you're wearing? The color actually influences your mood.
The same holds true of your web site. Based on the colors selected, it either
comes across as vibrant, relaxing or depressing.
2) Visually, some colors elicit feelings of excitement, serenity, joyfulness,
and even distress. Pay attention to what feelings are evoked when seeing a
particular color, and then apply the same principle to your web site.
3) Do you think that people buy more often when they see a certain color? The
truth of the matter is that when used correctly, you can encourage more buying
and selling power when using the right colors. Colors emphatically stimulate a
response, sometimes positive and sometimes negative.
4) You may think that when you look at an ad or an article of clothing or even a
piece of furniture that you're attracted to the words or the style, but in fact,
more than likely you're attracted to the color. If you like the color, you'll be
drawn to buy the clothing or whatever the ad is promoting. If you don't like the
color, you'll probably be turned off by the product.
5) White is always safe and easy on the eye as a background color for your site
plus it lends itself to a feeling of trust. Although black does appear at first
to create drama, it is not a good background color for your web site.
6) Choose colors that compliment the white background. While any color blends
well with white, all colors are not as appealing to the emotional eye. Red
activates excitement while greens and blues leave a feeling of peace and calm.
Dark colors evoke dense, heavy feelings. Yellow offers a feeling of brightness.
Since all colors have different meanings and elicit different feelings it's
important to choose a color that reflects your message.
7) When making a color choice for your web site, remember that colors on the red
side are warm and stimulating, while blue/green colors are cool and relaxing.
Review your site as objectively as you can and ask yourself if your site is
sending the right message.
8) Darker colors may appear a bit somber but when mixed with some bright colors,
can add a more cheerful tone and be very inviting. As an example, I recently
reviewed a site that contained a lot of gray, but there were hues of rust and
yellow intermittently dispersed which made it very attractive.
Colors and What They Suggest:
BLUE - suggests security, authority, faithfulness and dignity
BROWN - suggests affluence, effectiveness.
GRAY - suggests authority, practicality and creativity
GREEN - suggests health, freedom and tranquility - easiest color on the eye.
ORANGE - suggests pleasure, excitement and ambition
PINK - suggests femininity, well being and innocence.
PURPLE - suggests spirituality, wealth, and sophistication
RED - suggests excitement, strength and aggressiveness
WHITE - suggests purity, devotion, and truthfulness.
YELLOW - suggests warmth, sunshine and happiness - good accent color.
Having a good understanding of color and the way it affects the mood of the
person seeing it can definitely influence your business. Color is how you gain
attention and while no color is more perfect than another, different colors
bring with them different feelings. Make sure before you finalize your web site,
that the colors you choose evoke positive, empowering feelings.
Charlene Rashkow brings 15 years of experience as a Writing Stylist/Consultant
to her creative efforts as a freelance writer. She has successfully helped
companies and individuals reach their objectives by writing outstanding web site
content, press releases, bios, articles of interest, business plans and all
other forms of marketing material. You may contact Charlene at
www.allyourwritingneeds.com or e-mail her at crwriting@aol.com. You can also
call her directly at (310) 514-4844.
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