Have you ever wondered why most ads—online or otherwise—about clearance sales are red? As for stores or websites are concerned that cater to kids, bright and cheerful colors like yellow and orange are commonly used as well.

  • 48% of people cited a website’s design as the number one factor in deciding the credibility of a business. (Blue Corona)
  • Out of 10 consumers would stop engaging with content that doesn’t display well on their device. (Ironpaper)
  • 68% of the companies that developed a mobile-first website saw a rise in sales. (SAG ipl)
  • 73% of companies are investing in design to differentiate their brands. (Blue Corona)
  • 94% of people say bad design is the main reason they don’t trust certain websites. (Social Media Today)

Not too many people realize it, but many marketers and web designers today have caught on to the idea that all colors have human emotions, values, and attitudes associated with them. Backing these claims is color psychology, which is a legitimate sub-field of behavioral psychology.

From what we understand human behavior, we can safely say that color psychology is on to something.

Let’s take as an example that red-themed ad for a clearance sale on, say, shoes. Red, as we all know, is associated with passion, which could be strong emotions like love, hate, and even violence.

Now if you’re a consumer with a shoe fetish, how do you think would you react to a giant billboard that promises up to 80% off on shoes, in big, bold letters printed against a deep red background? Add to that the idea, the whole offer is for a limited time only, and you will be rushing off to the store holding the sale for sure.

Red is good at attracting the attention of people, as well as creating a sense of urgency in them. It’s also one of the biggest reasons why most call-to-action buttons in websites are also red or some shade of it. It’s a strategic way of using color, and most web designers are now trying to apply color psychology to their work.

As stated earlier, practically all colors have human behaviors associated with them. Find out which emotions, feelings, attitudes, and values are associated with other colors by checking out the infographic below: