Color Psychology and Online Marketing

Colors and color combinations send different messages. Oftentimes for websites, colors intuitively create a mood or atmosphere. Color psychology takes this intuition and identifies common themes among certain colors. These color signals can be used to send stronger messages online.

Color and Culture

Before examining the emotions and ideas for different colors, I want to emphasize that this is not an exact science. Color has a lot to do with culture. For example, in Western culture, the color yellow is sometimes associated with cowardice. However, in Japan, yellow often represents courage. This might be an extreme example — from different parts of the globe — but it does illustrate that colors can have different meanings for different people.

What’s Behind Colors?

Research has shown that certain colors come with associations — especially in the context of something else. You already subconsciously make connections between certain colors and emotions.

Looking at the list, below, you may realize how accurate some of these associations are.

Red. Energy, a sense of urgency, passion, desire, love, anger, violence, and danger. Love and anger seem to contradict each other here. This is where context becomes important. If you think about red in the context of Valentine’s Day, you probably aren’t thinking about anger. Likewise, if you think about red in the context of war, you probably aren’t associating it with love. Red is also the color of stoplights and stop signs, indicating a potential danger. Because of this, red is sometimes indirectly associated with stopping. Another interesting fact about the color red is that it can physically increase heart rates, respiration, and metabolism. If you’ve ever felt anxious shopping in a Target, this could be the reason why.

Orange. Joy, aggression, change, and calls to action. Orange falls somewhere between red and yellow on the emotional spectrum. It is stronger than yellow but friendlier than red. Darker shades of orange can also be associated with the autumn season and the earth.

Yellow. Optimism, sunshine, hope, energy, and happiness.
Yellow is a good color for adding cheerfulness to your site. Be careful, however, if overused yellow can be hard on the eyes. Yellow is also sometimes associated with cowardice, as mentioned above.

Blue. Trust, security, calm, responsibility, friendliness. The color blue is often used by banks and businesses to create an atmosphere of trust and responsibility. The meaning behind blue will vary depending on its shade and hue more than some other colors. For example, darker blues denote more security while lighter blues are seen as more friendly.

Green. Wealth, natural energy, renewal and the environment.
Green is another color where the exact shade of green can drastically change the meaning behind it. There is a big difference between a green associated with wealth and a green associated with the environment. Green can also be associated with jealousy or envy. Again, this is a situation where context is important. Green is also the easiest color on the eyes.

Purple. Royalty, creativity, wisdom, dignity, status. Lighter purples can also be associated with love and romance. Here is an example of how color psychology is not an exact science. While purple is often linked with creativity, I personally associate creativity with the color orange.

Pink. Romance, love, calm, femininity, and friendship. Pink traditionally is associated with femininity and is seldom used in design to target men. Because of its calming effect, the color pink has been used to paint the locker rooms of opposing sports teams. Pink is a good example of how the meanings behind colors can shift. Today, many would associate pink with breast cancer awareness.

White. White has a positive connotation and can be used with just about any color. On its own, white can give off the feeling of emptiness.

Black. Power, elegance, prestige, and classiness. On the opposite end of the spectrum from white, black is another color that can be used with just about any other color.

Gold. Prestige, illumination, wealth, and expensive things. Gold is frequently used as a secondary color. When used as a primary color in design, gold often takes on the properties of yellow.

Silver. Prestige, cold, scientific. Silver is very similar to gold but it evokes a colder emotion rather than the happier, brighter feeling associated with gold.

Color Variations and Combinations

Using variations of the colors above can help push an emotional connection one way or another. For example, as I mentioned previously, light blues tend to be friendlier while dark blues tend to be more reliable. Lighter greens seem calmer while brighter greens seem more energetic. This is where color-theory terms like hue, value, and saturation become important and should be considered with context when creating an atmosphere from color.

Similar to the emotional shifts caused by lightening or darkening a color, different color combinations evoke different emotional responses. Black and red send a different emotional message than white and red. For a simpler example, we can think about color combinations associated with holidays. Red, white, and green in combination can be reminiscent of Christmas. Black and orange are associated with Halloween. Red, orange, and brown have ties with autumn and Thanksgiving. You can begin to see how using different colors in combination can create new feelings or atmospheres.

Color and Brand Identity

In addition to emotional associations, colors can create new links to brands. When thinking about colors in the context of brands, you’re likely to get entirely new associations. For example, thinking of orange might remind you of The Home Depot or Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Magenta might remind you of T-Mobile. Silver might make you think of Apple. Blue might bring to mind Chase Bank or Facebook. Notice with this last example that saturation plays an important role in the message the color blue sends. The blue color used by Facebook is unique and easy to spot.

It has also been proven that color improves memory. In the case of brands, color has been shown to improve brand recognition by as much as 85 percent. This is a statistic that shouldn’t be ignored. So whether you are developing a website or building a brand, consider colors to deliver the appropriate theme.

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Showbiz: Romantic tale of tomboys

Scha Al-Yahya’s latest collaboration with father-and-son filmmakers Datuk Yusof Haslam and Syamsul Yusof is a light-hearted look at tomboys, writes Dennis Chua

Shaheizy Sam (left), Scha and Syamsul Yusof . – Pictures by SHIRAZ ALI

Scha (who plays Farisha) and Syamsul (Burn). – Pictures by SHIRAZ ALI

Sheera (Bell) and Scha (Farisha) . – Pictures by SHIRAZ ALI

Most fans see Kedahan actress Sharifah Azean (Scha) Al-Yahya as  the sweet girl-next-door.

On television, she is best known as the host of Sehati Sejiwa, a talk show that delves into the secrets of happily married celebrities. She is also the stunning, leggy air stewardess in the sitcom, Awan Dania.

Last year, Sungai Petani-born Scha beat crowd favourites Daphne Iking, Marsha Londoh and Marion Caunter to clinch the Sexiest Female Celebrity title in 8TV’s Shout Awards.

Her latest movie, Aku Bukan Tomboy, which opens on Thursday, will see a total transformation in the actress who plays Farisha, a skirt-hating, short-haired pizza delivery girl who socialises more with boys than girls. It is her first major cinematic role under the direction of Syamsul Yusof, with his iconic father Datuk Yusof Haslam as executive producer.

She says: “I enjoyed working with Syamsul in Evolusi KL Drift 2, two years ago. While I played his demure love interest back then, I’m now the more-boy-than-boy title character.”

Scha grew up watching Yusof’s movies and television dramas Sembilu and Gerak Khas series.

“As a fan of Datuk Yusof, I am naturally drawn to Syamsul and his work. He’s the ideal 21st Century Malaysian film director who always thinks out of the box. I’m always excited to collaborate with him,” she says.

While Scha did her homework to prepare for her tomboy role, she was fortunate to have starred in films where she played tough, brave and even bossy and bullying college girls. “I was the brave student representative Alissa in

Histeria, a tough female ghost hunter in Antoo Fighters, the college bully Shasha in Papadom and most recently, a sepak takraw player in Libas,” says Scha.

Scha and her fellow actresses Sheera Iskandar, Salina Saibi and Zarina Zainoordin socialised with real tomboys to observe their behaviour in preparation for their roles. “It was a challenge for all of us, but it was educational and fun,” she says.

Aku Bukan Tomboy, written by Syamsul and Rizal Ashraf, was filmed over a month in June last year.

The RM1.7m film is the 27th production of Yusof’s company, Skop Productions, and the sixth to be directed by Syamsul. It is also the first Skop comedy to be directed by Syamsul and the third to feature award-winning Shaheizy Sam after Bohsia, Jangan Pilih Jalan Hitam and Evolusi KL Drift 2. It marks the second collaboration of Scha, Syamsul and Shaheizy after Evolusi KL Drift 2.

Aku Bukan Tomboy is about pizza delivery girl Farisha (Scha) who becomes a tomboy after the death of her mother. Farisha, whose caring father, Rahim (Harun Salim Bachik) is a dressmaker and fashion designer, has a close friend, Harry (Shaheizy), who is sentimental and sensitive. She and Harry share a common interest in motorcycle racing and hang out at cinemas and hip cafes in Jalan Bukit Bintang, KL.

Harry, a salesman, enjoys Farisha’s company because she is unlike other tomboys and always protects him from her boy-hater colleagues, Bell (Sheera) and Sam (Salina). Little does Farisha know that Harry is secretly in love with her.

Harry soon faces a major threat in Burn (Syamsul), a rich, nerdy manager whom Farisha meets.

Initially, she bullies the socially awkward Burn, but his honesty and willingness to accept her as she is, leads to sparks of romance between them.

Sadly, Burn’s elitist parents (Didie Alias and AR Badul) and his seductive assistant (who is more of a ‘minder’) Sally (Eira Syazira) make life difficult for Farisha who has to decide whether to follow her heart and choose Burn, or play safe and choose Harry.

Syamsul says he is delighted to work with Scha again, as she always likes to take up challenges. “Scha is full of ideas on how to develop the movie. We had great fun on the set of Evolusi KL Drift 2, and I’m happy that we are reunited in Aku Bukan Tomboy,” says Syamsul.

He adds that Aku Bukan Tomboy explores the lives of tomboys and reveals that many of them still want to be girls at heart.

“Farisha is a case point. She was once a real girl but the death of her mother made her depressed and she found solace in becoming boyish,” says Syamsul.

Salina, who starred in Bohsia, says: “The other girls in the story have demons of their own. They became tomboys because of break-ups with dishonest or two-timing boyfriends.”

Shaheizy says playing Harry was great fun, and very much in line with his chameleon screen persona. “I love being different characters on screen — as a gangster, a reformed Mat Rempit (Adnan Sempit) and a sick man (Sekali Lagi), this time I’m a jiwang (sentimental) dude,” he says.

He likens Aku Bukan Tomboy to an out of the ordinary film of Scha and Syamsul.

“We normally see Syamsul as a tough guy and Scha as a girl-next-door. It’s a pleasant surprise to have Syamsul play a geeky man and Scha a tomboy this time.”

Syamsul says the social message behind the film is that one must accept individuals as they are, and not force them to conform to your ways.

“Everybody is different and, while we may not like the way some people look, deep down, they are just like us. They have feelings, dreams and a longing to discover themselves, as all of us do,” he says.

Yusof says he regularly gave feedback to Syamsul on how to better the script. “At first, Syamsul wanted Farisha to live with her single, widowed, fashion designer mother, but I suggested that having a fashion designer father would be a refreshing change,” says Yusof.

“Harun (Salim Bachik) is a gem of an actor, so we gave him a near freehand in devising Rahim’s character. As a man with a passion for fashion, he is both mum and dad to Farisha.”

Of veterans Badul and Didie, Yusof says: “While they only have a brief appearance, they are pivotal to the plot development and their interaction with Farisha may lead to a sequel.”

Syamsul says if the movie does well at the box office, he will like to continue Farisha’s story next year. “If there’s a sequel, we’ll introduce more back stories of tomboys,” he says.

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