Color is a crucial part of brand communication. Colors bring emotions to brands, making their stories interesting and worth the watch. The incredible power of colors is evident everywhere - It is McDonald's obvious Yellow 'M' that makes the outlets stand out from miles away. Ever noticed how Macy's Red invites you every time you pass by a store? And how can we skip Purple that has been associated with Cadbury over a century. Colors make a brand iconic. They connect them with their audience through perception and psychology. Lets learn the mechanics of our mind and how it perceives different colors based on our psychological biases. And how brands can play color theory right to get the best on board.

1. Color: Psychology vs. Perception

2. Colors…

3. Colors tell the story.

4. Ever noticed how movies use color
palettes to create visual cues? Let's
checkout few examples...

5. The Matrix: Real World vs. Into the Matrix

6. The Oz: Real World vs. The World of Oz

7. The Sixth Sense: Real World vs. Contaminated World

8. The Avatar: Real World vs. Pandora

9. This is no happenstance. Neither movies are the
only genre that use color to tell the story.

10. Colors feature a fantastic ability to tell stories
and infer emotions.

11. Colors can influence our mind and thinking.

12. But do you know how? Colors affect and shape
our perceptions in two ways: Embodied
Meaning and Referential Meaning.

13. 1. Embodied Meaning: Embodied Meaning is
inherently inside something and doesn’t rely
on our emotions or experiences to have
meaning.

14. 1. Embodied Meaning Examples

15. 1. Referential Meaning: Referential meaning is
dependant on the network of associations
activated when we are exposed to the
stimulus.

16. Empirical studies show that there is no one
universal meaning for a color i.e. there are no
intrinsic or embodied meaning. Only meaning
that exist is referential or based on our
perceptive data.

17. Let’s checkout some examples…

18. Wisdom is purple in Japan and India, Blue in
Eastern Europe and White in Native America.

19. Love is Green in India, Red in Eastern Europe,
Red in Western America and Yellow in Native
America..

20. Mourning is White in China, Yellow in Eastern
Europe, Black in Western America and Purple
in South America..

21. Peace is White in China, Yellow in Eastern
Europe, Blue in Western America and Silver in
South America..

22. Hence, our sentiments or feelings for colors
come from: Our own perception, Culture we
are raised in and past experience.

23. In essence, some colors can influence the way
we act. But there’s no WAY TO TELL HOW A
COLOR WILL effect when each person’s
associations are different.
THERE's

24. Research says, the relationship between
brands and color hinges on the perceived
appropriateness of the color being used for the
brand.

25. Lets see how some popular brands nailed their
colors...
Lets see how some popular brands nailed their logo colors…

26. Apple’s Logo: Clean. Minimalist. Simple.

27. Barbie’s Logo: Beauty, joy and smile.

28. Fanta's Logo: Cheerful. Fun. Warmth.

29. BP's Logo: Natural. Soothing. Growth.

30. McDonalds’ Logo: Appetizing. Happy. Vibrant

31. The Crux: Color is your chance to create your
own brand story and symbolic meaning.
Because color do have power to effect the
way people respond to a brand's message.

32. Fact Check: 62-90% of snap judgements about
products can be based on the color alone.

33. COLOR SELECTION GUIDE: How to find a color
that makes your brand standout...

34. Step 1: Choose a color – Ask yourself
what color brings up the
associations you want with your
brand?

35. Step 2: Learn Color Theory – Get
acquainted with color science to
find the perfect combo for your
primary color.

36. Step 3: Make Highlights Pop–
According to the Isolation
Effect elements that stick out are
remembered more clearly. Use
auxiliary colors to make your CTAs
standout.

37. Step 4: Compliment Colors with
content – Give meaning to your
colors, leverage it through
content. Just like blue signified
PANDORA in Avatar. Set rules and
guidelines for color usage.

38. That’s it. Connect with me at @AyeshaAmbreen.