South: A brand's colour can determine success or failure, says Discount Displays

A global Marketo study into the use of colour has found that one third of the world’s most popular brands predominantly use blue in their branding materials, while red and greyscale came in at 29% and 28% respectively. Also according to the survey, 95% of businesses only use one or two colours in their marketing materials, showing that when it comes to brand emphasis, less colour is more. 

Tim Fuller, managing director of Discount Displays, specialists in providing high-quality materials to businesses to for exhibitions and other events, said: “Colour is statistically shown to be the first thing a customer notices about an exhibition stand, a leaflet, a flyer or in fact any form of promotion, and a product’s colour influences 60%-80% of a customer’s purchasing decision. This means that choosing the right colour for a brand is paramount to the success of that brand; the wrong colour schemes can see a company fall by the wayside with inappropriate materials, while the right choice can propel a certain product or brand to success.

"Red is a strong, powerful colour that is largely associated with energy and danger," he continued. "Seeing red stimulates the pituitary gland and makes the viewer breathe more rapidly, so if this is the desired effect of the promotional material, opt for red all the way. Red is popularly used for vehicle, technology and food industries, but those within fields such as air travel and finance tend to veer away from this vibrant shade.

"Blue is the code for dependability and trustworthiness. Reminiscent of the sky and the ocean, it puts people at ease, and there are not many industries that tend to shun blue altogether. The clothing and food industries don’t use much blue but it is popular in almost all others, from finance to agriculture and from health to technology.

"Purple suggests royalty – rich and sumptuous it is sophisticated and elegant, and is most commonly used to invoke nostalgia, a sense of status, mystery or spirituality. It is unpopular in energy and agricultural marketing, but can be used everywhere else.

"Green, the colour of money and also of nature, is one of the most versatile in branding terms, and it can be used in a great variety of different contexts. While unpopular with fashion (it doesn’t suit everyone) and vehicles (not very nature-friendly), green is great for everything from food to finance."