What Does The Colors Mean In Different Cultures

How Translating Colors Beyond Cultures Can Aid Yous Make a Positive Impact

Feb 3, 2020
Article
Marketing

We know how important it is for marketers to acquire all they tin most the locales they're targeting. When considering the visual impact your print or digital materials will accept in diverse locales, colour is a large component. Still, information technology tin be challenging to account for the dissimilar means your marketing efforts may resonate across cultural divides. This article looks at how color is perceived by different cultures, so you can sympathize the outcome your visual choices will have on the people you're targeting.

colour across cultures

Our eyes tin perceive upwards to ten million colors.¹ In a brochure, website, or billboard, color directs the middle, evokes emotion, communicates pregnant, and ultimately helps plant a visitor's identity. As important as color is to cross-cultural advice, there's no hard-coded formula. Perceptions vary from region to region, and a single color may have different, even contrasting meanings around the world.

red

In Western countries, red evokes excitement, danger, urgency, and love. When red is combined with greenish, the color scheme becomes festive—the traditional colors of Christmas.
Red is associated with purity in India (a state where brides traditionally habiliment crimson wedding dresses).
In Latin American countries, ruddy can likewise take religious connotations when combined with white.
Ruby-red evokes danger and caution in the Eye East.
In China, red symbolizes luck and happiness (ane reason it is used in Chinese restaurants in the U.S.). It is besides the colour of the Chinese New Twelvemonth.
Notwithstanding, in erstwhile Eastern European Bloc countries, red can withal evoke associations with communism.

blue

In Western cultures, blue denotes safety and trust. The color is commonly associated with masculinity and projects authority, loyalty, and security. For this reason, information technology is used by many banks and has get the standard for police uniforms.
Blue is one of the most commonly used colors in American marketing, often considered a safe colour for a global audience, considering it lacks pregnant negative connotations.
Blue is tied to immortality, spirituality, and heaven in Eastern cultures. And in Hinduism, the colour is associated with Krishna, who embodies dearest and divine joy.
With their strong Cosmic population, Latin American cultures also associate blue with religion, because blue is the colour of the Virgin Mary'southward mantle. Information technology can, however, too be associated with mourning.

green

In Western countries, green is often related to the surround, progress, and luck. The color is safe and healthy, promoting growth and longevity.
Still, dark-green brings up negative connotations in Indonesia, where it is regarded as a forbidden color, representing exorcism and infidelity.
In Prc, green can also signal infidelity, where the expression "wearing a greenish hat" ways a homo is existence cheated on by his wife. (No cocky-respecting man wears a light-green hat in China.)
Green is the national color of Mexico, where it stands for independence and patriotism. In South America, withal, green is the color of death.
The colour besides has strong associations with Islam, and light-green is currently used in several national flags as a symbol of that religion.

orange

Orange represents autumn, warmth, and harvest in Western cultures.
However, in the Middle Eastward, it is associated with mourning and loss.
Many Eastern countries link orange to dearest, happiness, and skilful health.
In Indian cultures, orange (specifically the yellow-orange hue) is considered sacred.
For the Japanese, orange symbolizes love, courage, and happiness.

Color Across Culture

xanthous

Xanthous is a bright, cheery color associated with happiness, optimism, and warmth in the U.S.
However, yellow also has an assortment of negative connotations in other parts of the globe. In Egypt and much of Latin America, the color is linked to death and mourning.
For Germans, yellow symbolizes envy and jealousy.
Gilt yellow hues are associated with money, status, and material success in many countries.
In certain African countries, the colour is worn only by those who rank highly in order, due to its connection with money and success.

brown

In the U.South, brown is an earthy colour that is stable and undecayed. Food containers are traditionally dark-brown, and the color is used by delivery companies like UPS.
In the Middle East, brown is besides viewed equally a comfy colour that is harmonious with the earth.
However, in some Latin American countries, such every bit Republic of colombia and Nicaragua, the color can be met with disapproval.
Eastern countries and India associate brown with mourning.

black

Black evokes sophistication, elegance, and power in the U.S., where it is often used by luxury brands.
In Latin America, the color is linked with masculinity, and black is often worn by men.
Black is too associated with mourning in many cultures.

white

White is associated with weddings, purity, and cleanliness in Western society.
Yet, the color represents death, mourning, and humility in many Asian cultures.

using colour to express cultural sensitivity in branding

One example of a company effectively utilizing color across its global websites is McDonald's, whose sites are customized to reflect the color preferences of each state. The visitor's signature ruby is used throughout its global sites, but McDonald'south adapts its usage of the color accordingly. For instance, in India, where scarlet is a very cheering, favorable colour, their site uses a very saturated red as a background color in comparison to other sites, where it is reduced to an accent color.

Compare, for example, the very different color palettes used for India, Italy, and Sweden among others: McDonald'southward Effectually the World.

beware the pitfalls of color in multicultural advertizement

An case of a mistake in this surface area is Euro Disney, which featured the color purple in signage, souvenirs, and marketing materials. Market research later revealed that regal was perceived differently in Europe than the United States. In Catholic Europe, the color symbolized death and the crucifixion. Due to the negative connotations, Disney redesigned its European campaign, significantly reducing the usage of imperial in printed materials and throughout the park.²

authenticity matters

This is by no ways a comprehensive list, and in that location are many factors that impact the way people will respond to a brand: history, emotions, and beliefs all take a office. Only it'south of import to exercise your best to empathize. People everywhere respond to unique, relevant, and targeted experiences. Past tailoring your content to the preferences of your audiences, yous can avert misunderstandings and establish accurate, genuine connections.

Sources

Source: https://eriksen.com/marketing/color_culture/

Posted by: thomasenton1987.blogspot.com