Color psychology: The logo color tricks used by top companies—and how to design your own

It is noticeable that Blue was used in over 75% of credit card brand logos and only 20% in fast food brand logos.

Red is widely used in Fast Food, Food, and Retail industries while the Apparel niche shies away from it.

It’s easy to understand why blue logos are such a popular choice. Blue is an inoffensive color, a safe but sophisticated hue. And for companies that wish to convey security—say, those in Finance, Tech, Health or Insurance—blue does an admirable job.

Red, on the other hand, is a bolder choice for a brand. Yet it came in as the second-most popular choice. In the Fortune 500, there’s a clear link between the Food and Retail industries and a red logo—backing the research on color differentiation by Labrecque and Milne.

The colors of your logo will not guarantee success for your brand, but choosing the wrong colors will create a negative impact on your audience

However, there are strong associations with particular colors in the mind of consumers. These flow both ways—the association between orange and energy might not be inherent to the color itself, but instead is a result of the fact that it’s so often used by brands who want to convey this message. Consumers see this color and know, subconsciously, that there’s a subtle message being conveyed. Thus, color psychology becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

White - Wellness, Tech, Medicine

Pink - Beauty, Toys, Lingerie

Red - Retail, Health

Orange - Fitness, Logistics, Tech

Yellow - Fitness, Digital, Budget

Blue - Finance, Tech, Health, Insurance

Black - Fashion, Finance, Automotive

Purple - Luxury, Tech, Design

These are backed up by Science.

Full context can be seen here.