Positive Colors Psychology For An effective Web Design

Color- our whole universe and life, days and nights, home, clothes, books, bags, vehicles- all are full of color. In monsoon, we see the rainbow, in nature we see flowers and greenery that is color. Color is all-pervasive.

In brand promotion media, in communication design, color is thoughtfully used- to achieve a certain objective of communicating the brand and its impact. You can see it logos, billboards, product packaging that is boldly visible on shelves in malls. The same element is objectively used in TVC’s, films. You can see it every design domain- advertising, product design, fashion design, interior design, fine art, and more.

Earlier in the twenties, the ‘avant-garde’ movement began- that was the innovation, simplification in design- the emphasis was more on geometric forms and chosen color schemes. The ornamental designs were replaced by simpler forms. In essence, it was the beginning of modernism. The movement further influenced products, fashion, advertising, interiors, furniture, architecture, paintings, communication design and even in literature and content writing for ads, TVC’s, radio commercials, and websites, social media posts.

Now the movement is morphed into the minimalist design and use of color. That is the peak of simplicity- that achieves faster, easier communication with the viewer in any design.

The same now applies to websites, their effectiveness as they are communication design.

Brand promotion and advertising have taken now a digital model with the wider use, proliferation, and efficacy of internet. That brings us to making effective websites with the wise, thoughtful use of color.

One has note the latest development in psychology- the branch called ‘POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY’- the one that deals with happiness. The communication of website should take into account this aspect- provide happiness subconsciously to the viewer while communicating the message through pictures/visuals, catchy power words, motivational words, keywords connecting the subject with least fog- thus maximum clarity and ease. Here the important factor is the simplicity of layout and use of color schemes in a positive, minimal way- with a neuro-linguistic- aspect of the perception of the viewer’s eye and finally, the message reached to his brain. The use of minimal color also leads to a higher recall.

The website should – predominantly have the following pointers when it comes to using color.

• There are warm colors in color wheel- red, orange, yellow. There are cool colors- blue, green. Then there are shades in white, black, and grey, Purple is neither warm nor cool since it combines red and blue.
• A website designer shouldn’t use a mix of colors extravagantly- the emphasis should be on making of a ‘color scheme’ that combines two or more colors with white, black, grey masses in proportion.
• The minimalist aspect now in websites is moderately big visuals, least yet important word content, and use of select colors according to the company logo color scheme- its continuity and analogy with the topic and audience of the site.
• Cosmetics or fashion products, magazines for women- Research shows that women like blue, pink, purple, green. Such colors are a stopper for women on the website page.
• Environmental products, services- you can choose green- the color of green earth.
• Men’s products- Men are appealed by blue, green, black, white, and grey- the color of the corporate world and logic.
• Blue denotes cool, trust, peace, serenity- The FACEBOOK, LINKED IN logo and page layout is dominated by blue. PAYPAL, PAYTM, TATA MOTORS, BMW is also blue that invites trust.
• The black color is a symbol of highly upmarket luxury and high price, prestige- Look at colors of brands like MONTBLANC watches, pens, CALVIN KLIEN men’s wear, watches.
• Bright, primary colors are to attract immediate attention and evoke action like- red, magenta, orange.
• Use white smartly with a stunning simplicity- The best example is the Google home page.
• Pop music websites, web pages magazines can be colorful- you can use red, shouting bright colors and color schemes like LSD art – see MTV logo, Talor Swift’s or Michal Jacksons albums.
• For children’s topics of websites,- you can freak out with colors of the rainbow- for they are always energetic, enthusiastic.

What is important is the smart, thoughtful use of selected colors and the scheme that is formed by them in a website. Its use has to be minimal in the websites of today- for too much color can also create clutter and thus decrease the clarity of message. Finally test its simplicity as a total impact is assessed by visuals, word content, simple navigation, and motivating color schemes. It should hold, involve the viewer and thus not let him go to any other site. That makes the effective website- that’s how the budget spent on website design is fully utilized- minimal smart color scheme- maximal ROI.