Hey there, color enthusiasts! Red, the mighty hue that commands attention and stirs up emotions like a boss, is a marketing force to be reckoned with. But, using red without a plan could be disastrous. Fear not, in this post we’ll show you how to strategically use red in your marketing efforts. We’ll also cover the ins and outs of using red on websites and ensuring web accessibility. Plus, we’ll share five brands that are rocking the red in their branding.
The psychological impact of red on emotions and behavior
Red is a wild and versatile color that has been associated with a plethora of meanings and emotions throughout history. From ancient civilizations to modern times, red has been used to represent everything from love and passion to danger and warning.
But did you know that the color red can actually increase heart rate and blood pressure? It’s no wonder that red is often associated with excitement and energy.
This quality of the color also makes it a popular choice in marketing and advertising, where it can help brands stand out and connect with their audience on a deeper level. Next, we’ll explore the fascinating world of using red in marketing and how to harness its power effectively.
Using Red in Marketing
After briefly discussing the psychological impact of red on emotions and behavior, let’s now explore how this powerful color can be effectively used in marketing.
You can’t go using red all willy-nilly. Before you start slapping red all over your marketing materials, remember that it needs to be used strategically. Too much red can come across as cheap and tacky and can be completely overwhelming.
So, how do you know when to use red for your branding and marketing?
It’s all about understanding your audience. If you’re targeting a younger, more energetic crowd, red can be a great way to get their attention. Just make sure you do your research and understand how different cultures perceive the color. In many cultures, red is associated with luck, prosperity, and celebration. In others, it’s associated with danger or warning.
Examples of industries that can benefit from using red in marketing
- Food and beverage: Red is often associated with appetite and hunger, making it a popular choice for food and beverage branding. Fast food chains such as McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and KFC all use red prominently in their logos and branding.
- Retail: Red can create a sense of urgency and excitement, making it a popular choice for retail marketing. Brands such as LEGO and H&M use red as a dominant color in their branding to stand out and create a strong association with their products.
- Entertainment: Red is a high-energy color that can create excitement and anticipation, making it a popular choice for entertainment marketing. Movie studios often use red in their movie posters and marketing materials to create a sense of excitement and anticipation for upcoming films.
- Automotive: Have you ever wondered why most sports car commercials feature red cars? Maybe it’s because red is often associated with speed and power, making it a popular choice for automotive branding.
- Beauty: Red is often associated with passion and desire, there’s something about that bright red tube of lipstick or bright red nails in the commercials, AmIRight?!
Using Red on Websites
Now, let’s talk about using red on your website. When it comes to calls-to-action (CTAs), red can be particularly effective. It’s a high-contrast color that can draw the eye and make important elements stand out. But be careful not to go overboard! As we mentioned above, too much red can be overwhelming and distracting.
To create a cohesive and visually pleasing design, consider using red as an accent color rather than the dominant color on your website. Use it to draw attention to important elements like buttons, CTAs, or headlines, but balance it out with other colors.
H&M did a great job of this with this CTA on their website that features red letters on an off-white background. Do you notice the sense of urgency? That is really the only use of red on their home page, even though their logo is red. Just remember, a touch of red, can go a LONG way!
But wait, there’s more!
Ensuring Web Accessibility with Red
We also need to talk about web accessibility. Not everyone sees the world in the same way, and that’s especially true when it comes to colors. Some people have difficulty distinguishing between certain colors, The most common form of color blindness is Red/Green color blindness. If your website relies too heavily on color to convey important information or actions, some users folks with color vision deficiencies might not see it the way you intended. But don’t worry, there are ways to design your website to be more inclusive and accessible for all users, regardless of their color vision abilities.
Best practices for making red accessible on websites
Red can be a powerful and attention-grabbing color, but it’s important to use it in a way that is accessible to all users. To make sure everyone can enjoy your website, try adding some extra visual hints like icons, text labels, or underlines to show important stuff. That way, people with different color vision abilities can join the party and enjoy your site just like everyone else!
You should also ensure that there is enough contrast between the red color and the background color to make it easily visible for all users. By following these best practices, you can create a website that is both visually stunning and accessible to everyone.
Tools for testing color contrast ratio
As we mentioned, when designing a website (or any document really), it’s important to ensure that the color contrast ratio between the foreground and background colors is high enough to make the content easily visible to all users, including those with color vision deficiencies.
Luckily, there are plenty of tools available to help you test your color contrast ratio and make sure your website is accessible to everyone.
Some popular options include the WebAIM Contrast Checker, which allows you to input your foreground and background colors to see whether they meet accessibility standards, and the TPGi Colour Contrast Analyser (CCA) which offers a desktop app for testing contrast ratios right from your desktop. With these tools at your disposal, you can ensure that your website is both beautiful and accessible.
Red Hot Brands: Examples of Brands That Use Red in Their Branding
Get ready to see red! These iconic brands have used the power of this spicy hue to create memorable and impactful branding. Coca-Cola‘s signature red and white color scheme has been quenching thirsts for generations, while Target‘s bold red logo is a bullseye for recognition. Netflix brings the heat with its deep shade of red, Ferrari revs up the luxury factor with its iconic red paint job, and YouTube’s red play button makes it easy to hit “play” and get lost in videos.
Red isn’t just a color, it’s a statement. These brands know how to use it to create excitement, energy, and luxury, making their branding unforgettable. Let their examples inspire you to spice up your own brand with the power of red.
Now, go paint the town red by using red in your marketing… strategically
Red is like the cayenne pepper of the color wheel – it can add heat and spice to your marketing. It’s a powerful tool that can make your brand stand out, create a sense of urgency, and evoke strong emotions. However, just like cayenne pepper, using too much or in the wrong way can be overwhelming and turn people off. By using red strategically and in moderation, you can create a visually pleasing design that effectively drives conversions. It’s important to also consider cultural associations and web accessibility so that everyone can enjoy the heat and spice that red brings to the table.
Whether you’re looking to spice up your website or create eye-catching marketing materials, We are here to help you make your mark with the color red. Let’s get started with a Free Consultation!
