Use color to clarify your message and attract clients

As a professional graphic designer I often notice solopreneurs making several mistakes in their visual communications. While these mistakes won’t bring about the end of the world, they may confuse your reader and send them elsewhere, leading to a lower return on your investment than you deserve.

Here are two true stories to illustrate how color can send a message and how important it is to know how and when to use color:

How to Tell When the Bananas are Ripe

One day I was shopping for groceries in the produce section. A man turned to me and said, “Can you help me pick out some bananas?”

I must have had a curious look on my face because he said, “I’m serious. I’m colorblind and I can’t tell which ones are ripe.”

Most of them were green or greenish yellow. I could see why he was having a difficult time.

Imagine, just for a moment, what life would be like without color. Maybe you have firsthand experience or know someone who does. 10 million American men cannot distinguish red from green.* www.hhmi.org/senses/b130.html

Just think of the implications of red-green color blindness, or complete color blindness. The image on the left is what people with “normal” color vision see. The image on the right is an approximation of what red-green colorblind people see.

In most states the red light is on top, and green is on the bottom. It’s relatively easy for colorblind people to figure out whether they need to stop or go.

But what happens on the rare occasion when a city uses a horizontal traffic light?

Years ago I was on a cross-country road trip with a friend who is red-green colorblind. As we drove through an unfamiliar city we came to a busy intersection with a horizontal traffic light. Suddenly the driver shouted in a panic, “Is it red or green?”

He had no idea if he should stop or go.

The traffic light sent a message, but to him it was an indecipherable one that could easily have caused major problems.

Design rules exist for a reason.

Used well, the placement of colors, images and design elements create a rhythm to help communicate a message. Red means something. Green means something.

Your first goal in design should be to enhance your message and make it easy to understand. Your second goal is to make it attractive.

But if you don’t have training in design, and if you don’t know the fundamental “rules”, you may be accidentally confusing or frustrating your reader.

Is that your ultimate goal? Of course not.

Below is an example of an email announcement I received about 4 years ago. There is so much color involved that when I read it I feel like I’m at a 3-ring circus. I don’t know where to look first and I can’t find the important information quickly. This email breaks every rule of design, and not in a good way.

The second image is a revised draft, but it lacks interest and color. Still, it’s easier to find the relevant information.

The third image uses a colorful photo to add interest and attract attention, but uses a limited color palette for the content. The colors are identical to the original email.

Headlines and important information are highlighed in bright red (you can use any color as long as it is dark enough to read).

Main content is in black with a white background, which is the best combination for online reading. As the reader, you can easily scan the email and quickly find the important information you need.

The fourth email uses a different color palette, but the same format as example 3:

Color is not used in design simply for beauty’s sake. It is used primarily to communicate a message.

Growing your small business or private practice requires that you communicate effectively. By using color effectively, you can connect more with current and prospective clients and send beautiful messages that people love to read.