COLOR – The Missing Piece Your Designer Needs to Know.

By Nicole McCabe, Owner of Nicole McCabe Design and CWCC Member

Throughout my career as a graphic designer, I’ve had the great opportunity to work in many mediums: packaging and product, print, and the web. Each of these areas is unique in their final product specifications; but the one area that unites them all is color.

Most of us by now know that color has the power to influence and motivate. Numerous firms hold focus groups and have deep research on what current target markets respond to. I’m no marketer, but I consider it my job to know the influences of color. For instance, have you noticed that most bank institutions use blue in their logos? We generally think of green when it comes to money (in the U.S.), but most of our financial resources use a color of “security” and “calmness” in their branding.

When helping a client with their project, I ask as many questions as I can and always ask if they have any colors in mind. Unfortunately color is usually at the bottom of the list of importance’s and is usually tasked to the designer to come up with. Not that I mind TOO much – I love color! But, as designers we are looking to you, the project manager/business owner  to provide as much information as you can about the scope of your venture. Ultimately this will help us as designers do a better job in interpreting your vision for the end product.

With your thoughts on color, we can expand the palette on that acid-green sweater that caught your eye, or the jewel-toned, purple logo you saw on a billboard (that didn’t necessarily relate to your product, but you think might relate to your audience). When building the components your next marketing project think about color –  its hues and tones and how they influence you.

What do you respond to when you stroll down a sales aisle? Do you remember the earth-toned hues from your last walk on the trail? Do you think your clients will respond in the same way? These are great questions to ask yourself as you embark on your latest project.

I’m Nicole McCabe, owner of Nicole McCabe Design. We specialize in creating innovative design solutions for our clients. Our goal is to visually communicate the vision of our clients. Please visit our website at  www.nmdstudio.com for a sampling of how we can help you with your next design endeavor. We believe that design process should be an enjoyable, productive experience for all involved.