In the Mood for Red

In the true spirit of Valentine’s Day we thought it only right to stick on some Diana Ross and Lionel Richie, light some candles, scatter petals on the floor, open a box of Dairy Milk and write a blog post?!!

On a day when many people are in the mood for love, we’re busy thinking about our brand and also about how colour can impact on your emotions. Coupled together it's inspired us to write a post specifically about how the colour red makes you feel and what mood it can put you in.

The tradition of sending flowers on Valentine’s Day, most notably red roses, gained popularity in the 1600s. The red rose as a symbol of love dates back much further and can be attributed to the Romans as it was believed to be the favourite flower of Venus, the Goddess of Love. But why red?

Red is the colour of fire and blood, so it’s associated with energy, anger, danger, strength, power, determination as well as passion, desire, respect and love. It certainly is a very emotionally intense colour which is why it’s commonly used on Valentine’s cards, confectionery and is the favoured colour of flowers today.

Red brings text and images to the foreground and when used as an accent colour it can stimulate people to make quick decisions, which is why it’s often used in call to action buttons or in discounts and promotions.

It has very high visibility, which is why it is used on items such as signage and emergency equipment. Red is also commonly associated with energy, so you can use it when promoting energy drinks, games, cars, items related to sports and high physical activity.

So if you use the colour red in your logo and/or marketing material, think about the impact it’s having on your prospects and clients – is it making the right one?

Happy Valentine’s Day!

What does a logo say?

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Your logo is often the first thing that a potential client will see of your company. First impressions count!

Logos can say many things, traditional, modern, classic, stylish, kitsch, cheap, feminine and masculine and so on.

Traditional may be seen as old fashioned, classic is a longer lasting style that will not date over time. No style will appeal to everyone. You need to think about your target audience, their age range, gender and location will all give you an insight into what style you need to portray.

Companies often develop their ideas over many years. For example Nike didn’t start off as a swoosh. The word Nike was included in the logo for many years. It was only once the brand was very well established that they dropped the wording.

If you look at Sony, they have changes the thickness and spacing of their logo over time too. You don’t always need to redesign you can update.

If you have a complete redesign you may alienate your existing customers, an update will often work better. Branding development indicates that you are a forward thinking company, not sticking with the old just because you have it. Move with the times and appeal to the maximum audience that is possible.