Keywordscolor consumer marketing marketing communication
JEL Classification M10
Full Article
1. Introduction
Marketing is constantly evolving with the rapid development of science and information technology. One of the many issues discussed in marketing is the psychology of color in relation to consumer conviction. At one time, Ford had only black paint cars available. It is rumored that Henry Ford was saying: "You can paint it any color so long as black". But although it has never been proven that Henry Ford has spoken in such a form, the legend has remained alive to this day. Color theory is a topic of nuance, but the graphs show the levels of color influence (Ciotti, 2016).
Of course, one chooses the color that reflects the feeling that one wants to evoke in their customers. Whether people come to a company’s store or an online site may also depend on the used colors. Sometimes the color of the call-to-action button depends on whether the buyer subscribes to the newsletter and whether he buys the product. Colors have a physical impact on us, emotional potential and valences that affect our feelings, mood, and evoke the existence or absence of emotions. Their symbolism, which varies from culture to culture, has different meanings, explanations and even purposes.
Color and marketing go hand in hand with each other. Using color in business marketing, whether in advertising, promotions, business writing or product writing, can send a positive or negative message to the subconscious, creating a good or bad perception of the business or product. Because colors can have multiple meanings (mostly positive or negative), plus there are variations depending on culture or religion, an exact world chart cannot be assembled. But some combinations of colors and contexts in which they are used are more common than others.
Blue and white colors are soothing and stimulate the ability to communicate, which is exactly the purpose of social media. If you look at social media logos, at least the ones that are the most popular ones and have the greatest number of users, we notice these colors. It is said that blue also determines the quality and success of a relationship. In the world of technology, blue is associated with knowledge and intellect.
2. Literature Review
Colors are known to have a powerful psychological impact on people’s behavior and decisions, and this knowledge is very well utilized by designers and marketers alike. The psychology of color in advertising is the most important and fundamental element of maximum sales, if the colors are chosen correctly and the sale of the goods is advertised, it indicates that the correct color, which over time can become a trademark, which is the brand color. Color Psychology is a part of psychology that deals with the study of observers’ emotions and reactions to specific colors. People react differently to certain colors and they arouse different human emotions, moods and behaviors.
For a new product in the advertising market there is nothing more important than the right advertising strategy - no important details, everything needs to be investigated and analyzed. Color psychology is based on mythical theories and reflections on the emotional and mental effects of color, positive and negative. Cold colors are also associated with sadness and depression, and warm colors with aggression and defiance. For retailers, shopping is the art of buying, where there are many factors that affect how and what consumers buy. However, a large part of purchases is decided by colors which have a great impact on the mind of the buyer.
Since peoples are creatures who think and feel, presumably to decide on something, it should be both logical and feel good. If the product is intended to appeal to a specific culture, it should be revealed what each color means. Color can be the most important element in a business advertising campaign. Customers notice the color ahead of words and even the fresh model that works to stay close to the company’s products (Campbell, 2008). The choice of color in advertising and promotional campaigns can influence consumers’ feelings about products or services and can play a major role in generating sales like any slogan. The best color for advertising depends on what we sell and how we want the product or service to be perceived. Knowing the target audience for the advertisement is critical in choosing the best colors to create ads that capture and keep people’s attention. The emergence of a strong emotional response requires that color play a major role in advertising.
People respond differently to different issues. How people perceive colors is seen from a subjective point of view. There are a number of factors that influence how people perceive colors so it is difficult to say how colors can affect the emotions or actions of consumers. Choosing the most effective colors for an advertising campaign requires understanding the effects that different colors have on potential customers (Satyendra, 2006). Color is a powerful marketing weapon used by marketers to attract consumer attention, and therefore it is essential that they become familiar with the psychology of color, i.e. how colors affect customers because it affects the sales of products. It is important to investigate which are the target segments in their free time, what are their interests and similar. Yellow and orange are better choices for the younger population. But when selling luxury products, an attempt is made to avoid using colors that most people perceive as "cheap", according to various analyzes, it is better to use black in this case.
As in any country that has a specific culture and tradition, the perception of color in marketing should be given special care because not every color has the same meaning. For example in Kosovo, a white color means happiness for this reason is a symbol of brides traditionally wearing white wedding dress, but it may happen that in different cultures in the world white color reflects misfortune for this reason marketers have to pay attention to the perception of colors when researching the impact of color on the emotions and behaviors of individuals across different countries and cultures. When used properly, colors can have very positive effects on achieving the desired effect in the business, so they are essential in creating and enhancing brand recognition, in attracting consumer attention through advertising, websites and similar business ventures, as well as stimulating productivity and creativity. Improving the working environment and other benefits to the business. Colors affect our sub-segment and act immediately. Aside from design, color is the first thing that draws us to a product.
Research on the influence of color is conducted within different disciplines such as psychology, art, mythology, anthropology, history, architecture, physics, philosophy, marketing and medicine. In marketing, scientists have studied product color as a brand attribute, packaging color, and advertising color. In the practical world of advertising, color is a variable that is manipulated daily, more intuitively.
In theory, however, there is relatively little research on the effect of color due to the almost inevitable methodological problems that this field carries. There are many ways marketers, companies and products manipulate the use of color. Usually the human brain creates an immediate perception of the well-known brands which results in the color of the product. In this way, color represents a very important element if we pretend to create a brand of a product for a better fit of colors to a brand’s identity it is important to research in advance consumer perceptions about colors.
One of the wonders of our sense of sight is its ability to discern colors. The importance of the colors and the tricks behind them are directly related to the different marketing developments and achievements. Different colors create different feelings for consumers, giving personality to a brand and influencing sales. Colors have the power to influence consumers during the shopping process. It is not by accident that color psychology applies marketing and design. Businesses are always looking and researching in choosing the colors that will drive consumers to buy products while also improving the brand. These colors not only flow through the logo, but also through the text, the photos they publish and even television commercials. It is important to choose two to four colors that the company will use in all public appearances. The colors chosen will be used on the company’s website, online, in-store, when creating brochures, but also when marketing on social media. So, it is recommended that the company uses the same colors over and over again, which will help consumers begin to recognize the brand and associate it with a particular color.
Colors take on great importance in communication. They provoke psychological and emotional effects and have the ability to affect people. So, we can understand why it is so necessary to know what colors and how to best use them in our business or work environment. However, before choosing the color combination to be used, it is important to know the target group of people to whom the job will be addressed, or the need dictated by the workplace.
Advertising cannot work without stimulating the sense of sight. A well-crafted visual identity creates positive emotions, confidence and reassurance for consumers. Well-chosen color captures, relaxes or irritates, sends a powerful message to consumers and makes marketing, product and business communication more successful.
Color is a valuable tool and an integral element of marketing communication. It tells who and what the company and its brands are. Color is a communicator that adds value to a company’s message. It boosts moods and emotions, influences perception and helps businesses differentiate their brand of products. It causes people to judge according to it, draw conclusions and link certain emotions to it. The purpose of color in marketing communication is to get people’s attention and stay in their memories for the longest time (Abhik and Tai, 2003). They can also, and very often used as a marketing tool to influence people. In the practical world of advertising, color is a variable that is manipulated daily, more intuitively.
3. Research Methodology
Based on the main purpose of this study in determining the importance of color in consumer decision-making for the selection of a product or service, a questionnaire was used for primary data collection. This study used academic and scientific literature on the influence of colors on purchase decision making. The main data where this study is based are the primary data provided by the self administered questionnaire. The questionnaire was implemented face-to-face in a random sample of 120 people. The questionnaire included 7 questions that ranged from multiple-choice to Likert statements.
4. Analysis and Results
In this section we will analyze the results of the primary data study.
The first question asked by the respondents is over the way in which aroma, touch and color influence their decision making when shopping. According to the results presented in Figure 1, 51% of the responders said that color influences them when making a purchase, 27% of the respondents choose aroma and 22 % choose the touch.
Figure 1. Effect of smell, touch and color to influence consumer
According to the results presented in Figure 2, when asked the respondents how the visual aspect affects buying, respondents present data based on their experience at various points of sale. 85% of the respondents choose the color as main reason by the visual aspect when buying and 15% of the respondents choose the option that referenced other reasons.
Figure 2. Visual reason for buying
When asked which color they consider is most often used by advertisers to promote products or services, as presented in Figure 3, the majority of respondents think it is red (26.2%), while a smaller number think that is the color orange (2.1%).
Figure 3. Colors most often used by advertisers to promote products
Of the total number of respondents, in figure 4 we notice that 73.3% consider color as one of the main marketing factors that determine their acquisition, while 12.2% believe the opposite.
Figure 4. Color as one of the main marketing factors
According to the information presented in Figure 5, that examined a Likert sentence with the claim that color psychology is often used for marketing purposes, the highest number of respondents completely agrees (33.5%), while the lowest number disagrees (5.4%).
Figure 5. The use of psychology in colors for marketing purposes
Figure 6. Using colors to create a perception of a product or service
In Figure 7 we observe results based on another Likert statement that explained the ability of a color to attract attention and to persuade acquisitions. Furthermore, 37.2% of respondents agree that well-chosen color attracts attention, and sends a strong message to consumers and communicates in marketing, while 3.1% disagreed completely.
Figure 7. Colors attract attention and communicate with the commercial audience
5. Discussion and Conclusion
In both marketing and any type of business, using colors can be very helpful. Whether it is a trader or a consumer, color psychology can greatly contribute to making the right decisions. It is also for the consumer in making the purchase decision. On the other hand, not knowing the color psychology of both parties can lead to mistakes.
However, the interpretation and effects of color on people’s behavior vary across cultures, so it is imperative that marketing to choose a logo or product does not take color from the context of the culture to which the target group belongs. Marketers should consider choosing colors associated with a product, packaging, brand or advertisement as part of a general marketing strategy.
Color has the power to communicate the emotions and essence of a product’s interior. Without a word, color can communicate seductive aspects, fragility, endurance, youth, freshness and key advantageous concepts. Some colors convey a unique message, while others may vary by nationality, region or socioeconomics.
Color plays a major role in the success of a product rather than the product itself effect. Like it or not, we are a product of our cultural status, and much of our cultural status has to do with color. Knowing how to interpret the allure of hidden colors helps us save money but also allows us to buy products rationally focusing solely on quality, not design (Singh, 2006). Color has the power to communicate the emotions and essence of the interior of a product. Without a word, color can communicate seductive, fragility, endurance, youth, freshness and key advantage concepts. Some colors convey a unique message, while others may vary by nationality, region or socioeconomics.
From the respondents regarding the color of how it affects the purchases we draw the following conclusions:
· Psychologically adaptive color is a relevant strategy (since red and green play a role).
· Colors influence response, for instance, blue is very good for business because it shows, trust and confidence, but only if it is a more subtle blue hue.
· Red color has a big impact in the mind of the buyer, but if not used properly, it can cause negative feelings.
References
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Article Rights and License
© 2020 The Author. Published by Sprint Investify. ISSN 2359-7712. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
