Color harmony: A balanced and cohesive website color scheme.

Human attention span is now shorter than a goldfish, as mentioned in the article “Minds and brains of media multitaskers: Current findings and future directions” sounds unnatural but it’s today’s reality therefore, to make your brand unforgettable in those milliseconds try all different strategies available to you but do not forget incorporate colors because colors can act as a trigger that will help people memorizing certain information by increasing their attentional level.

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To put it in simple word color psychology is the study of how colors can affect people’s emotions, attitudes, and behaviors. Therefore, firstly understand the representation of different tones and then using color psychology while designing your website can help to create a positive user experience and boost the website’s presence. Color is only one aspect of a complex process of website designing and development but can contribute to the overall appeal and usability of a website.

How to choose the right color

Basics of color

To achieve the right color understand the basic three categories which are:

Primary colours – Red, Blue, Yellow
Secondary colors – These colors the mix of primary colors which are – Orange, Green, Violet
Tertiary colors – These are the fix of primary and secondary colors.

Figure 2 – From Hubspot “Color Theory 101: A Complete Guide to Color Wheels & Color Schemes”.

For understanding the exact color requirement, you need to dive deep in a color palette because a minor shifting in the hue – tint, tone and shade have the power to convert the whole meaning which you plan on communicating. For example: let’s look into the color green, how its meaning vary throughout its different variants.

Figure 3 – As we know that the green color represents growth with that thought these light and muted tones can be seen incorporated in a dummy website of a finance company.

Figure 4 – Similarly as we move to the darker tones of green it gives more of earthy vibes and gives the feel of nature. As an example you can see the dummy website of a organic framing company.

Color schemes

Now that the basics are clear, selecting the right color might now seem a very simple task but it is actually not. Now understanding the right color combination and what that color combination indicates needs to be given a considerate thought because that is going to influence your audience therefore, it must be done rightly. It can be done with the help of color wheel.

Complementary colors – Any two colors that are placed at opposite direction on the color wheel. It helps you in creating the best contrast combination but make sure the balance of both the colors are complimenting each other or else it might not look too appealing.

Monochromatic colors – The monochromatic color scheme represents all the variants of a single color the tints, tones and shades. Working with this scheme will turn out to be a very flexibly for you because it lets you play with the shades of single color.

Analogous – These are the 3 alongside colors placed in the color wheel. Here you need to make sure that the balance is accurate otherwise if all three colors or two are used as dominant color the overall visual might get overwhelming.

Tetradic (Double – complementary) – These are the color allocated with equal distance on the color wheel. It’s assumed to be the most difficult color scheme. Therefore, if you need to use make sure that only one color be the dominant.

Triadic – This include a set of 3 colors that are evenly spaced apart from each other on the color wheel. One benefit of using a triadic color scheme is that it can create a dynamic and energetic look, while still maintaining a sense of harmony and balance. It also offers versatility and flexibility as there are multiple ways to apply the scheme, such as using one color as the dominant shade and the other two as accent colors, or using all three colors equally throughout the design.

Example

There are several companies that have effectively utilized color schemes to create a visually appealing and consistent brand image on their website. For instance,

Figure 5 – Fanta used complementary scheme with blue and orange to showcase that fresh sunny excitement.

Figure 6- The Anomaly website is truly impressive in its visual design, utilizing a striking monochromatic color scheme that employs only varying shades of black and white.

Few things to keep in mind while using color psychology effectively in your website:

Use colors that could represent your brand – Using cool tones like green or blue that is often associated with growth, trustworthiness and professionalism respectively could be used in a corporate website design to help create a sense of credibility and trust. Wipro and The TATA Group both the companies can be viewed as the exemplars. Similarly other colors can be incorporated in our website that you think represents you the best.
Brand identity – A website’s color scheme should align with the brand’s identity and message. Consistent use of color can help to establish a strong brand identity and make the website more memorable. We can take the example of “Theobroma – patisserie” they made use of color theory in the best way possible. If we look at their logo, website, and packaging and even the outlet layout it all follows the same color theme.

User experience: The colors used on a website can affect the user experience by influencing emotions and behavior. For example, warm colors like red or orange can create a sense of energy and excitement, while muted colors can create a sense of calmness and relaxation. For a home furniture website muted color can be used to communicate its calmness which people want in their home and similarly use of purple represents the creative aspects.

Figure 8 – Dummy website of a home furniture company.

Accessibility: Color contrast is an important consideration for website accessibility, particularly for users with color vision deficiencies. Using high-contrast colors can help to make the website easier to navigate for all users, colors can help draw attention to these elements and make them more memorable. For example, using a bright color for a call-to-action button can help it stand out and increase the chances of visitors clicking on it.

Aesthetics: A website’s color scheme can also affect its aesthetics and overall design. Careful use of color will help to create a cohesive and visually appealing website that will make a good impression on visitors. This topic have a vast theoretical information to it. Therefore, trying and then adjusting design to you preference would help you to achieve that right color with relevant aesthetics.

In conclusion, how users perceive and engage with your business is significantly influenced by the color of your website. You can choose the color palette for your website with knowledge of color psychology and how various hues can influence how people feel and perceive things. When selecting colors for your website, it’s essential to keep in mind your brand identity, target audience, and the message you want to convey. Keep in mind that color is a strong tool in website design, and by utilizing it skillfully, you can create a website that not only looks fantastic but also connects with your users and aids in the achievement of your business goals.