The Psychology of Red Branding [infographic]

How we perceive and interact with our world is largely impacted by the colors that surround us. While going largely unnoticed as we go about our daily lives, the psychology of color and social media branding is continually affecting consumers on a deep level, especially when it comes to a daily content marketing strategy. The colors that a company chooses to represent their brand can affect the mood, feelings, and behavior of their target consumer and influence whether or not a brand will become part of their selection set. What comes to mind when you think of the color red? A shiny, red sports convertible perhaps? Maybe the flashing red police lights that usually follow? Yes, the color red is not one to shy away from an opportunity to draw attention to itself. Physiologically, this powerful color has been shown to increase heart rate and raise blood pressure. This stimulating attribute of the color red not only energies the body, but wets our appetite, making it a very desirable color for restaurants and any food-related product or service. Is the color red appropriate for your brand? It very well could be a great strategic color or one of the worst possible options depending on your industry, product/service offering, brand messaging and the attributes communicated by your competitive landscape. An extensive social media audit conducted by our social media agency might reveal the best strategic positioning for your brand. The following infographic takes a glance at the warm and energizing nature of red branding, from its positive and negative meanings and use around the globe to its effect on brand storytelling.

Within this infographic on the psychology of red branding, the following topics were covered:

Positive Meanings of the Color Red in Business

Powerful, Energetic, Fast, Passionate, Desirable, Lustful, Strong, Courageous, Attention-Getting, Motivating, Stimulating, Driven and Determined, Exciting, Warm, Spontaneous, Assertive and Confident

Negative Meanings of the Color Red in Business

Aggressive and Angry, Domineering, Over-Bearing and Tiring, Quick-Tempered, Ruthless, Fearful and Intolerant, Rebellious and Obstinate, Resentful, Violent and Brutal

Variations of the Color Red

Dark Red: Professional, Luxurious, Commanding
Bright Red: Exciting, Energetic, Economical
Burgundy: Subtle, Serious, Sophisticated
Crimson: Determined, Sensual, Powerful
Scarlett: Enthusiastic, Loving, Fun
Maroon: Controlled, Strong, Courageous

Global Use of the Color Red

North America: Associated with Valentine’s Day
The Cherokee: Symbolizes success, triumph, and sacred fire
Latin America: Associated with religion when used with white
South America: The color of mourning
Nigeria: Worn by chiefs and reserved for ceremonies
Russia: Means beautiful and often used in ceremonies associated with communism
China: Represents good luck, celebration, vitality, happiness, and long life. Worn by wedding brides.
Thailand: The color of Sunday.

Red Branding Used by Food-Related Companies

Stimulating and energizing the body, red branding triggers the appetite and is, therefore, an excellent color to be associated with food products and restaurants. Food-related logos using the color red: Coca-Cola, Jack-in-the-Box, Red Lobster

Red Branding Used for Sexy Products

The color red loves to draw attention to itself. Often used to convey love and associated with hearts, kisses and Valentine’s Day, this passionate color tends to be used to communicate lust and sensuality. Sexy product logos using red branding: Virgin, Essie, Ferrari

Red Branding Used for Masculine Products

Typically associated with our most primal, physical needs combined with our survival instincts, the color red can exude a bold and powerful masculine energy. Masculine companies branding with the color red: Diesel, Canon, Nintendo

Opposite of the Color Red

The opposite of the color red is green. They are exact opposites on the color wheel, and when combined together, they become black. One of the least used complimentary color schemes due to their strong association with the Christmas holiday.

Why Didn’t ImagiBrand Choose The Color Red?

ImagiBrand decided not to choose red as our corporate colors because we didn’t want to be perceived as overly aggressive with our current clientele, or intimidating to prospective clients. Although there are some great attributes associated with the color red, we felt none of them would have been beneficial to what we were trying to communicate.

Why We Love Our Colors

We chose to use the colors magenta, black and white as our corporate colors to reflect our fun and imaginative approach to branding while remaining professional and sophisticated.

The ImagiBrand Psychology of Branding with Color Series

ImagiBrand has created a full series of infographics on the impact various colors can have on consumer perception of a brand. The entire series includes the following:

• The Psychology of Red Branding
• The Psychology of Blue Branding
• The Psychology of Yellow Branding
• The Psychology of Orange Branding
• The Psychology of Green Branding
• The Psychology of Violet Branding
• The Psychology of Brown Branding
• The Psychology of Pink Branding
• The Psychology of Black and White Branding