For many people, your website is going to be their first interaction with either your products, services or brand. Because of this, having your website-especially your home page-accurately and effectively portray your brand and purpose in a visually appealing way is vital. And while there are a lot of aspects that need to go into the design of a website to make it work for your designated purpose, one of the most important yet least consciously noticed is color.
In order to have an immaculately designed website, you’ve got to put a lot of thought into the color and color placement of your pages. To help make this process a little easier, here are three tips for choosing colors and getting them to work for you on your website.
Understanding the Psychology of Color
Everyone has a favorite color or a color they find themselves being drawn to more than others. While you may think this is just an arbitrary choice, it actually has a lot to do with the psychology of colors.
According to Jeremy Smith, a contributor to KISSmetrics.com, colors have very specific meanings and should be used to convey specific messages or feelings. For example, the color blue relays feelings of trust, yellow signifies caution, green showcases nature and natural elements, and black means luxury. However, simply knowing what each color means doesn’t necessarily help you when picking an entire color scheme with complementary colors and accent colors. This is where you need to consider another line of thought.
Use the 60-30-10 Rule
Because you can’t just have one color throughout your entire website, you have to choose a color scheme that creates flow and completeness while also conveying the right emotions from your audience. To do this, Stephanie Hamilton, a contributor to CrazyEgg.com, recommends using the 60-30-10 rule. This means that your primary color is used 60 percent of the time, your contrasting color is used 30 percent of the time, and your accent color is used 10 percent of the time. By striking this balance, your website’s color scheme will be in perfect harmony.
Color Placement
Now that you have your colors picked, knowing where to use those colors on your web pages now becomes the challenge. Connie Wong, a contributor to WebsiteBuilderExpert.com, shares that there are specific places you can use each of your three colors on your website. Your primary color should be used where you want your visitors to pay extra attention or take some kind of action, your contrasting color should be used to showcase secondary information, and your accent color can be used to accent areas that need an extra punch of color. Sticking to these general areas for each color will help your website feel more cohesive and consistent.
By taking the time to understand how colors work with your website and how to use them effectively, you have a great chance of creating a beautiful website people can’t help but look at. Use the tips mentioned above to help you make your website the best in its field.