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🤔 Did you know…

Buyers make emotional connections with colors. That means, you might be unknowingly evoking the wrong emotions in your buyers without saying a word 😬…

So how do you use color to drive sales?? Well, that’s what we’ll talk about today.

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Imagine this…

You’re at the grocery store and your cart is piled high.

Everything you need from bread to toilet paper to Friday’s pot roast, tick, tick, tick. There’s no stopping you.

At the last minute, you decide to swing past the chocolate aisle on your way to the checkout.

A treat for your hard work this week. It’s only fair, right?

Then you see it… the chocolate bar wrapped in a shiny purple wrapper—the one you loved from childhood.

You’re instantly taken back to playing in the park, running around with your pals, and building treehouses in the woods. Ahhh, those were the days.

You pick up that chocolate bar and stick it in your cart.

Life has changed a bunch since then. These days you spend your weekends grocery shopping like a proper adult rather than digging up worms in the backyard.

But still… that little chocolate bar in that shiny purple wrapper has the power to transport you back to your childhood.

Why are you suddenly feeling nostalgic?

In today’s edition of Why We Buy 🧠, we’ll explore color — why we are influenced by the colors we see.

Let’s get into it.

🧠 The Psychology of Color

The world without color would be a dull place.

But it’s much more than aesthetics, color is a powerful psychological trigger that influences our emotions and drives decisions.

Color science is a fascinating (albeit early) field. We’re still learning how colors can shift everything from our perceptions of people and products to our emotional state.

For instance, blue light has been shown to encourage alertness, and red has been shown to increase sports performance and impact food and drink consumption.

Color can have a huge impact on how people feel about a brand. In many respects, color is your brand. That’s why big brands like DeWalt, Tiffany, and Barbie spend heaps on lawyers to protect their color trademarks.

🧐 Inside Your Buyer’s Mind

Color influences buying decisions.

According to research, up to 90% of an initial impression of a brand comes from color and that color can increase brand recognition by 80%.

Potential buyers associate certain characteristics of your brand based solely on the color of your logo.

  • Green = 🌳
  • Purple = 👑
  • Red = ⛔

Color has the power to evoke emotion and emotions—not logic—drive most buying decisions. From sparking hunger to building trust or making your buyers feel creative.

If you want buyers to form an emotional connection with your brand, choose color that reflect how you want them to feel.

🤑 How To Apply This

Alright, so how can you apply this right now to sell more?

E-commerce
Use color to stand out in crowded markets

In mature markets with lots of big competitors, it pays to be different. Just ask Dutch Bros.

With an estimated net worth north of $4 billion, Dutch Bros is one big business. It’s grown by 40% in the last 2 years and things seem to be going from strength to strength.

But hop on to its website and you’ll see something… well, a little different.

Warm pinks and purples… not the usual for a coffee brand but that’s exactly what makes it stand out from the crowd.

Quite the opposite of Starbucks’s green and white, right?. Use color to show what your brand is about.

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Tech
Use color to overcome objections

Did you ever notice that LinkedIn, Facebook and Microsoft (aka “Big Blue”) all use blue as their primary brand color?

Blue projects trust, security and confidence, which was key in the early days of the internet and social networking…

Part of the art of choosing your brand colors is understanding your buyer’s reservations. And what do people want when hosting business meetings online? To feel secure.

Zoom uses blue and white to give a corporate, professional and trusting feel to their website.

Retail & Hospitality
Use red signs to spark urgency

Is it just a coincidence that every retailer in the world uses big red sale signs when they are running a sale?

Nope.

According to color psychology experts, red sparks urgency and decision-making – the perfect combination when you want someone to purchase now.

See how Kroger here uses red (urgency) contrasting with yellow (positivity) to encourage buyers to take advantage of National Candle Day.

Service Businesses
Use color to reflect the experience of your service

Think about the service you provide, what color does it speak to? If you’re a car cleaning service, maybe you want to think about colors that evoke a sense of cleanliness and freshness.

If you’re a personal assistant, maybe you want to think about colors that speak to organization, efficiency and time-saving.

Take a look at DryBar: it’s light, bright and, most importantly, yellow.

Yellow is the color that speaks to happiness and fun—just the ticket for getting your hair done.

💥 The Short of It

Color isn’t a simple science, but it is a powerful psychological trigger

We associate certain colors with feelings and emotions. And emotions are what turn browsers into buyers.

So use color to make your brand un-Ignorable you.

Until next time, happy selling!

P.S. Wanna *really* get inside your buyer's head?

There are a few ways we can help: