Social Media Monitoring
Shameless Plug
At Shifted Pixels, we deliver services that leverage the measurable business benefits of the online engagement.
Give us a buzz! We want to talk to you!!!
Color is probably one of the most powerful psychological tools and we are often not even aware of its power. If you didn't know it by now, the industrial psychology has a special field that studies the in-depth psychology of color.
Color is a very important factor in online branding, not solely for logos, but for web graphics in general. A simple shade of red could either send a good, positive message or generate an aggressive state of mind. To put it clear: color drives emotions and emotions are the most important factor in decision-making .
Color psychology is rather hard to define when we consider cultural differences, personal beliefs and subjective meanings. But some general aspects might help you in choosing the right colors for online branding.
First of all for a business website you should avoid dark backgrounds , especially black. It is true that dark backgrounds, when used wisely, might create a 'charmed' atmosphere, but is this the message you want to send? Shouldn’t you be focusing on 'reliability', 'trustworthiness', 'quality' and other such positive values? For a business website, avoid the 'Twilight Zone' look and feel, unless you sell magic potions, books of mystery or other such products.
Light backgrounds are the best choice to create uncluttered layouts. This is also the latest trend in web design. The 'heavy' websites of the past, with their saturated colors, their marble tiles patterns and their stripped backgrounds are passe. Sophisticated designs employ light colors with random dark hue accents, simple layouts and high quality, unique graphics that match the color scheme of the design.
Logos should still employ powerful, recognizable colors , the kind of colors that capture attention and appeal to the senses.
Usually, blue logos don't fail because blue is the favorite color of a clear majority of people. A look at the clear blue sky would help your body produce the chemicals you need to relax. But when it comes to dark blues, too much might cause stress and nervous tension. Commonly logo designers use navy blue for business-to-business logos, for financial logos and for official logos, as this color suggests dependability and straightforwardness, precisely the values needed for such affairs.
Green , in its various shades, is perfect for the hospitality industry, food industry (especially for BIO products) cosmetic (if we consider Yves Rocher and Garnier) and ecology.
Although each color has its audience and its industry, there are cases when one color might be successfully employed for atypical applications. It’s just a matter of 'how to' design using that color and other hues to create the best color combination.
Reds and orange are not so easy to deal with , especially online. But they do have their fans (Ferrari, Coca-Cola, etc) and with a good design they will reach the targeted audience faster than other colors. That's because red is the color of energy, movement and excitement.
For more information on Corporate Branding and Website Useability and Psychology, Contact Shifted Pixels.
Labels: branding , design , internet , Marketing , websites
Posted by Nick HaC @ 7:55 PM
Social Media Monitoring
Shameless Plug
At Shifted Pixels, we deliver services that leverage the measurable business benefits of the online engagement.
Give us a buzz! We want to talk to you!!!
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
How has online PR become the medium of choice in the ever-widening Internet marketing spectrum? First, a little history... In the 1970s and 80s, advertising and direct mail were the love objects of every serious marketer. Then came traditional PR, trumpeted as the cost-effective tactical alternative in a fragmenting media market. With the advent of Internet marketing, traditional offline PR has begun to lose some of its lustre. The simple fact is, 'online' is sexy. Like global warming and environmental issues, 'You're nobody til somebody loves you' - as the old song has it. No matter that media consumption currently includes both offline and online reading. The online tsunami is about to change the media landscape for ever. Or is it? According to a recent White Paper by Daryl Willcox (of the eponymous UK publishing company - http://www.dwpub.com), traditional PR could be replaced in as few as ten years by online PR whose foundation of 'search marketing' accountability will make it the primary tactical weapon in most marketers' armouries. This is an interesting scenario and one which must frighten the pants off 'old media' types. Only time will tell if the soothsayers are correct in their predictions. The evidence currently available suggests that most of us will remain omnivorous in our choice of media. Yes, we'll go a-Googling. We may even sign up for an RSS feed or two. But we'll also take a tabloid to bed, and maybe even a magazine or book. For hard facts and instant information, the Internet is an awesome animal. To have multiple Wikipedias at our fingertips is something few of us would have foreseen ten years ago. Maybe the next ten years will see the media go in a similarly unforeseen direction. But these will only be 'in addition to' and not 'instead of' current choices. PR practitioners should embrace online PR. Combining it with traditional offline messaging will provide essential belt-and-braces support to reach publics who are themselves caught up in this maelstrom of (welcome) choice. Shifted Pixels offers Online PR advisory services for Traditional PR Agencies, Contact us for more information.
Labels: internet , Marketing , pr
Posted by Nick HaC @ 7:36 PM
Social Media Monitoring
Shameless Plug
At Shifted Pixels, we deliver services that leverage the measurable business benefits of the online engagement.
Give us a buzz! We want to talk to you!!!