Creating the right color palette for you

Throughout our lives we learn that colors can signify warnings and practical instructions (like the red for “stop” signs and green for traffic lights) or convey emotions and feelings, like blue and green for comfort and clarity; and orange and yellow for energy, youth, and warmth. This is part of what is known as color theory, and it can be a great tool to use when it comes to designing your website and choosing your color palettes. 

When choosing the colors that will represent your online presence, it is recommended to start with colors that are on brand for your business. You can then consider using pop colors, which can elicit certain emotions and responses in your target audience, and can highlight calls to action or important information. Balance is key to a successful color palette, so it is also recommended to use some neutral colors to balance out your color palette and avoid eye fatigue. Coolors is a great tool to get inspiration or even generate a color palette for you.

How did you choose your site’s color palette? Did you use color theory or perform research? What advice would you give to others considering their color choices? Share your experiences and learnings in the comments below!

Being that mine is mosty a photography site, I choose to stay with a white background, with  black, and a few red,  title fonts, and red CTA buttons and links so they will pop out. The images provide the color for my site. 

I have noticed softer, calmer colours have been very popular in the last year or so.

This is a fun tool you may want to check out: https://coolors.co/

Whenever I design, I always look at current trends, local competition, and industry leaders to determine how to use my client's branding. When reviewing their color palette, I take into consideration their brand personality and target audience to make sure I'm using the colors in a way that properly communicates who they are. 

For example, if it's a boutique I make sure I'm utilize their neutrals more than any other colors. For more energetic sites, I utilize either brighter colors or larger sections of color.

I typically start by determining what the button accent color is, then what 2 - 3 section backgrounds I want to use. Lastly, I select the footer color to compliment the other decisions I've made. 

The three most common color-related errors I see when revitalizing sites are:

1 -- People have low contrast buttons. You want to make sure that button text is highly legible!

2 -- People use mid-tone grey text. Not everyone has great eyesight and browsers + devices display text differently.

3 -- People only have white backgrounds. With 7.1, it's so easy to use fun splashes of color or calming light neutrals to break up the content on your page. Give your content distinction and utilize different backgrounds.