Now that you understand Why Color Theory is Crucial to Branding, let’s kick it up a notch and talk about seasonal color branding. We are about to move into Fall, so let’s start there, shall we?
When I think of Autumn, I think of pumpkins, which makes me think of redheads, which makes me think of Ireland, which makes me think of tartan plaid and rolling green hills.
Irish green hills under golden sunsets, sitting by a smoldering campfire surrounded by pinkish-orange persimmons scattered among crunchy fallen leaves. The sweet smell of spiced cider in one of those dark blue enamel mugs. These are all of the tastes, the sounds, the emotions and feelings these colors bring up for me.
Like how that story made you feel, check out our blog post on how to unless the hero in your audience, using hero’s journey marketing.
What about you?
When you first glanced at the image below, what thoughts bubbled up for you? This is the power that seasonal color branding has and how it speaks of or reflects your brand.
Color Branding Defined
Yes, seasonal color branding is a process by which we take colors associated with a particular season and create color schemes with them. But what’s even more powerful are the memories and emotions those colors can induce for your audience.
What Is Your Seasonal Brand Style?
Maybe you have an idea of what ‘season’ you are, but if not, you can take our seasonal color analysis quiz to find out which season best suits you and your brand. It’s free – you have nothing to lose and it only takes a few minutes.
The Autumn Color Brand
Autumn is a season that is often described and felt as earthy, warm, and friendly. It has blips of bright colors, like yellow and orange, with an array of muted tones mixed with deeper, husky colors.
We often see Autumn color schemes working best for businesses such as restaurants, coffee shops, and charities. The warm, earthy tones are inviting and make people feel cared for.
Pro Tip: Autumn palettes work wonders when trying to sell something organic and natural.
The Fall color brand tends to be mostly “warm and dark.” It incorporates a variety of warm colors mixed with dark sultry tones like a deep red or a burnt orange.
Autumn is full of intense, bold, rich colors. So, if you are branding with this color palette, you will want to keep contrasting colors to a minimum and rarely (if ever) use cool tones. The point of this color scheme is to give the viewer a sense of warmth.
Autumn Color Brand Inspiration
Classic
Classic Autumn is what we often see as the most common kind of warm autumn color scheme. These are the autumn colors that you typically see on a tree during the fall season with golden undertones, olive green, and deep reds. The colors aren’t too bright nor are they too muted. Kind of like The Three Bears porridge – they’re just right.
Quick Tip: One of the easiest ways to find color inspiration is to look around you. You can find color inspiration in even the most simple things in your everyday life.
Soft
Soft Autumn tends to lean a little bit on the summer side. It uses slightly lighter colors to brighten things up a bit. This is perfect for those who love the Autumn season but aren’t fond of how dark or heavy the colors can be. This color scheme tends to mix some of the classic autumn colors (dark greens, charcoal grey and burnt orange) with lighter shades like beige and cream.
Dark/Deep Autumn
This color palette contains colors towards the cooler end of the spectrum without abandoning the warmth of Autumn. It’s the colors of a crisp Fall morning on the cusp of Winter or a cool, hazy morning against a dark backdrop of evergreen trees atop a nest of fallen leaves. The stark colors of a robin perched in the branches of a leafless dogwood tree.
As you can see, there is a surprising range within the Autumn color scheme.
Check out one of my client’s website, KC Write Solutions, and enjoy her Autumn brand.
Now, if autumn colors aren’t your style, look for our blogs for Winter, Spring, and Summer. Or better yet, if you haven’t already, take our free quiz to find out which season best suits you and your brand.
