Thinking about Color in Branding and Rebranding

Yesterday Lyn Chamberlin of Skye PR posed a question:

Question: what about UPS and it's addition of the "brown" brand add-on? It has always struck me as trying to have their cake while eating it, too.

Lyn: Good Question! I always find UPS and Brown interesting since Brown is my last name.
When I was trying to name my company 9 years ago, I briefly considered my name for the business but Brown Marketing just didn't elicit the mental image that I wanted to portray... But it does seem to work for UPS. Stable. Reliable. Sturdy. Definitely not a lot of competition with brands.

Brown works for UPS.
Target goes with Red.
Cingular with orange (for a while anyway)
Big Blue is IBM.

Association with a color is good when the color matches your message.

When putting together branding, I think it's important to review various color studies and consciously select a color for your branding. Color elicits an emotion and conveys an attitude.

What makes sense for your industry? For instance, I always suggest the accountants and bookkeepers stay in the greens (money, growth) and blues (stability, calm) and away from red (fame, shock, surprise) like the phrase "in the red."

Yellow can convey sun, cheerfulness, but sometimes lack of courage.

People that are really serious about color and branding might be interested in learning more about the use of colors used in feng shui -- the ancient art of Chinese balance. It's traditionally used in placement, furniture layout. The words feng shui mean wind/water. I know, I know. But, before you scoff, roll your eyes and chuckle, take a minute to think of the president's corner office with the windows. Desk faces the door. Chairs are set far from the desk with the visitor's back to the door. It's a power layout. That's feng shui in action.

Color can be used intentionally to elicit a feeling too. Black is grounding and is used for expert status and career. Red means fame. Purple wealth and prosperity. Green is health and growth. Consult with someone who has studied color. Consider all the meanings and feelings associated with different colors

How you use color with your branding? Does it enhance your message?

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