The psychology of color is
an important consideration when building a website because it
often determines whether the visitor recognizes that this is
the type of site they are looking for.
A website can fit into two main categories; corporate and fun,
although there are many sub-categories. The color scheme to
complement those looks that you need to incorporate into your
web design is grays / blues and primary colors red/ yellow
/blue respectively. Choosing these will give your basic first
impression.
The color scheme you choose must harmonize with both the
site's purpose and with the audience. Be sure to clarify who
your site's target audience is. Apply all the demographic
identifiers you can think of, like age, gender, culture,
education, business visitor, or casual, recreational visitor.
When choosing the web site colors you will use it is important
to make sure the colors you choose convey the intended mood
for your purpose. Here are some common color moods.
Red - Strength, power, courage, confidence,
passion, and love.
Yellow - Happiness, intellect, and joy.
Blue - Stability, loyalty, wisdom, truth, trust and
confidence.
Green - Fertility, life, nature, natural, and growth.
Purple - Royalty, luxury, power, ambition, magic, and mystery.
Black - elegance, drama, authority.
Many good site color schemes use three main basic colors.
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The reason behind this is
that artists key off of your company logo and the other colors
follow. One or more of the colors may be used to highlight
certain aspects.
There is also the alternative of deciding whether you want
your web design to have a warm feeling or a modern slightly
more clinical look. Website providers tend to use warmer tones
of oranges for sites that are interactive and require the user
to stay longer, as it makes them feel welcome. For the
informative sites, providers often use the modern tones of
blue and yellow giving a fresh feeling and also one that is
knowledgeable.
If you are creating a web design that crosses over both of
these areas, informative yet welcoming and fun, you could try
purple and green together as they create a warm image and a
professional one at the same time.
It is important to remember that for every color you use in
your web design there are two or more opposing meanings. For
example, using red on your website may symbolize love and
romance, however it may be perceived as anger.
Always ensure that your color scheme is consistent throughout
your website, having 3 pages in blue and yellow and then
suddenly changing to green and red may make people think that
they have left your website. This is also why you should try
to resist on frequently changing your color scheme to suit
your own mood as people may remember you as that blue and
yellow website, unless you are doing a complete remake of your
company brand. |