How to Choose a Colour Palette

Written By: Jade on May 10, 2009 No Comment

When a visitor lands on a web page, it takes only a few seconds to make a visual impression. That impression can make the difference between securing visitor loyalty and failing to connect with that visitor. With such a short time frame to capture a visitor’s attention, the primary colours of a web site should communicate the emotions and intentions of the site.
Colour Temperature

Colours are broadly split into 3 groups: warm colours, cool colours, and neutrals.

Warm colours: Reds, Oranges, Yellows, Browns

Cool colours: Greens, Blues, Violets, Pinks, Magentas

Neutral colours: Blacks, Whites, Grays, and colours containing a lot of gray

Warm colours tend to carry a powerful charge – exciting, bold, and aggressive. They should be used sparingly or in small bursts, unless the site’s message truly exudes such power.

Cool colours invoke a sense of calm in people. They are soothing and relaxing, and can be used more liberally in a design.

Neutrals make good backgrounds, as they don’t themselves put forth much emotional charge, but do complement both warm and cool colours

See the chart below for typical emotions associated with various colours
Colour Harmony

Choosing a colour palette is a work in balancing colours and creating colour harmony. colour web sites that mix too many colours are visually chaotic and confusing. Such designs don’t encourage repeat visits. Sites with too few colours are visually boring and fail to make a lasting impression on visitors. Choose a few colours – 2 or 3 major colours – and complement those colours with variations in shades