Colour And Your Brand Story

“Storytelling” has become the go-to buzzword in marketing. We hear it everywhere: tell your story, share your message, speak your truth. And while your words do matter, what many businesses overlook is the part of the story that’s being told long before anyone begins reading.

Colour.

Before a visitor processes a headline, before they understand a logo, before they even decide if they want to stay on your website… colour has already done its job.

In fact, research shows that people form a subconscious impression of a person, product, or brand within the first 90 seconds of seeing it — and 62% to 90% of that impression is based on colour alone. That means colour is not decoration. It’s decision-shaping.

Colour Works in Under a Second

Our brains respond to visual cues incredibly fast. Studies in color psychology show that colour sparks an emotional reaction almost instantly, often before we’re aware of it. Light tones may feel gentle or pure. Dark tones may feel dramatic. Earthy palettes may feel grounded or natural.

We don’t have to be designers to feel this. It happens automatically.

Colour Tells a Story All on Its Own

Every brand colour palette carries meaning — even if the business didn’t choose it intentionally.

A palette of soft pastels creates a different expectation than a palette of deep burgundies or bold teals. Warm golds tell a different story than icy blues. Colour creates the emotional baseline for your brand experience, the mood people feel before they know anything about you.

That’s the real power of colour: it tells a story your audience feels before you’ve said a word.

Is Your Brand Colour Story Aligned?

Think of your brand colours as the emotional doorway into your business

Ask yourself:

• What do people feel when they first land on your website?

• Does that feeling match the experience you want to offer?

• Or is there a disconnect between the colours and the story you’re trying to tell?

Sometimes the smallest shift — adjusting a hue, deepening a tone, warming a neutral — can bring a brand into complete alignment.

Colour Is Strategy!

If you want your brand to be seen, felt, and remembered, your colour palette must be intentional. Research from consumer behaviour studies, along with accessible articles from sources like Help Scout, Verywell Mind, and Ignyte Brands, all reinforce the same truth:

• Colour shapes perception.

• Perception shapes trust.

• Trust shapes decisions.

And your brand story begins the moment someone sees you.