When you see the golden arches, you instantly know it’s McDonald’s. Coca-Cola is synonymous with red and white curves. Starbucks features a green siren. Logo colors set the mood for a brand, and the right selections signal the industry, fine details about the company and can set your business apart from the competition. Your logo showcases your personality and gives customers something familiar to recognize you anywhere.
What Colors Work Best for Each Industry’s Logos?
Scientists have long believed that color impacts human emotions. They’ve researched and linked lighter pigments to more positive feelings. However, there are many variations and tones. Each individual has different experiences with various shades. Culture can play a part, with some societies seeing black as signifying death and gloom while others say it symbolizes good luck.
While some industries seem to utilize particular hues more than others, all the examples listed are average uses. You may find that embracing something outside the box is best for a cutting-edge business. See how each industry example aligns with what you do and consider implementing them in your company logo.
Education
Each school has its own unique colors that tie into sports teams and mascots. Whether a high school or college, you’ll find shades like maroon, red, blue, black, gold and green. Show up at any sports tournament and you’ll find a rainbow of uniforms sporting each school’s emblem.
Consider what you want to accomplish for your establishment. If you seek to gain trust, it makes sense to stick with blue hues. If you want to generate excitement or show a sense of renewal, yellow or green is the right choice. Figuring out how to showcase a school’s personality while sticking to the color palette is challenging. Adding accents in one way to accomplish consistency.
Pencils of Promise is a nonprofit organization focused on helping students. The logo embraces the yellow color of traditional school pencils, thus immediately bringing to mind an educational setting. The color is dark enough to remain readable against a white background and grab attention. Yellow is also commonly linked with optimism and energy, an ideal association for an organization dedicated to empowering young minds.
Finance
You’ve likely noticed most financial institutions embrace blue, green, gold and red, or a combination of all four colors. Many banks use blue because it is a traditional shade that points to stability. Green and black show elegance and old money, while blue and gold make the business appear established. If you run a bank, financial advisory company or other monetary service, embracing the common logo hues is a good starting point.
Eclipse Bank in Louisville, Kentucky, is a banking system that sticks with tried-and-true color combinations. A yellow sun edges into an eclipse, and the bank’s name is all lowercase in white sans serif font. The bank plays on earning user trust by placing it all on a deep blue background.
Manufacturing
If you study manufacturing logos, you’ll note that companies frequently utilize shades of blue, gray, black, brown and red. These colors tend to work well with neutral shades. Blue can lend itself to reliability, which may be more important for an automaker. Brown provides a sense of nature and ruggedness. Red shows energy and action — people often equate it with strength.
Rolcon manufactures conveyor rollers and has been in business since 1988. The logo uses a gradient of reds to generate excitement and show potential customers it is a strong company that can serve their conveyor belt needs.
Medical
You’ve likely noticed that blue is predominant in logos for hospitals and doctors’ offices. Other colors often seen include green for its soothing qualities and white because it seems crisp and clean. Most people like the color blue since it signals credibility, calm and trust. When people face a health crisis or need treatment, they must feel confident that their medical practitioner is competent.
Waterbury Health uses both blue and green in its logo. Note how green is used for the word “health” and signals a renewal and youth. The word “Waterbury” is in blue, signifying calm and confidence. Combining two common shades used in the industry helps the user understand the logo is for a medical facility and brings instant recognition and calm.
Retail
The colors you use in your retail logo depend upon the type of goods you sell and the clientele you wish to attract. To reach Gen Zers, you might go with youthful, vibrant looks like lime green and bright purple. On the other hand, if most of your customers are baby boomers, you’d likely choose something more traditional, like blue. To convey excitement, select red, yellow or something a bit classier, like black and white.
A Whole World of Good creates a sense of refined luxury by using black words and a globe on top of a white background. The company’s website shares gorgeous photographs showcasing its simple but elegant product offerings. The logo sets the tone without taking the focus off the products for sale.
Choosing the Best Brand Colors
You may already have a color palette you need to stick to. It is beneficial to remain consistent, as customers will come to know you based on seeing those shades related to your business repeatedly. However, if you’re still building your brand, consider tapping into the right emotions and standing out from competitors. A splash of accent color may be all your logo needs to be memorable.
Consider the emotions you’d like to evoke in your customers. Does the logo look OK on both dark and light backgrounds? Think through your local community and what colors might mean to them. If you plan to move into international markets, you’ll want to consider what various hues mean in different parts of the world.
Brand Perception and Color Palette
Selecting the right logo colors is about more than just making a graphic that matches the tone of your business. You’ll be able to reach people on an emotional level and develop a consistent look that stands out from others in your industry. Whatever hues you select, try to maintain them for as long as possible to build brand awareness and keep your company top of mind.
