How to Project Manage Your Nonprofit Story
Those of you who know me know I adore color. I’m definitely not someone who wears only black! I thought it would be interesting to think about how we use color in our donor communications, and happened on this great infographic showing The Psychology of Color in Design. Or take a look at Color Psychology and Marketing for an overview of the meaning of colors in the western hemisphere, or this article from brandingstrategyinsider.com. What you’ll learn is eye opening.
Color is a powerful form of nonverbal communication. There should be more to selecting color than just a whim. Color influences behavior. Color evokes emotions. Have you ever seen a movie with and without the underlying musical score? Like music, color can make a huge difference in how our message is perceived. Color can make us feel relaxed, productive, peaceful, creative and even angry. Color can alert us to an emergency situation or to a successful, growing organization. Color can make us feel generous and open or stingy and closed. What do you want folks to think/feel/do when they see your (1) website; (2) annual report; (3) appeal letter; (4) event invitation and décor; (5) blog design?
Let’s start with a few simple ideas about color. Bluefor example says cool (if too dark, it says cold), calm and fresh. It’s associated with water, peace, loyalty and trust. Men prefer blue above all other colors, which may explain why it’s perceived as businesslike. When used in a dwelling it enables the greatest productivity. Redexcites us. It can mean stop, emergency or danger; it can also mean festivity (e.g. Christmas, Valentine’s Day). And, of course, we associate red with love and passion. Yellow makes us feel sunny, happy and energetic. It’s the color of optimism and can grab attention and inspire creativity. Yet it is straining on the eyes, and it makes babies cry. Orangeis also associated with energy, warmth, excitement and ambition. Yet it can also mean caution, slow down. It is not a calming color. Green evokes freshness, health, growth and nature. Light green traditionally was used in hospitals to evoke tranquility. It’s also the color of money. And, depending on context, it may be associated with envy and luck. Purplecan make us feel relaxed and creative. It’s also associated with royalty, wisdom and wealth. It adds a touch of mystery and exoticism, and is also the favored color of adolescent girls. Pink can evoke calmness, romance and femininity. It is the gentlest of all the colors. Brown signifies the earth, practicality and reliability. ‘Terra firma’ is stable. Yet it can also say boring. Grey is practical and solid. It’s a middle of the road hue. If you shoot some silver into it then it becomes of solid, “sterling” character. Blackis associated with death, mourning and evil. It’s also austere; the opposite of warm. At the same time, it’s authoritative and elegant. The absence of color – “white space” – is associated with purity, innocence, cleanliness and breath. How we use colors together also has emotional impact. Use of a single color in varying shades can be soothing. Using all the primary colors together feels childlike. Using all the secondary colors feels contemporary, modern and playful. Some colors used together make people feel patriotic. Others evoke holidays. And colors also come and go in trends. One thing to guard against with trends is ignoring underlying psychological triggers. Say orange is the hot new color for clothing and accessories? Does that mean it’s the best choice for our annual appeal if we’re trying to evoke growth and renewal of purpose?
Take a look at some of the most well-known nonprofit brands you’ll see a lot of thought goes into their color choices. Sierra Club uses a lot of green. Charity: water uses a lot of blue. Susan G. Komen is all pink. Sometimes you can get around unfortunate legacies by selecting photos wi
th colors that evoke the message you’re trying to impart. Or you can add secondary colors to your communications. Or you can create special pieces for special purposes, including your logo in black and white. Or perhaps just a splash of color to draw attention where it’s needed most.
th colors that evoke the message you’re trying to impart. Or you can add secondary colors to your communications. Or you can create special pieces for special purposes, including your logo in black and white. Or perhaps just a splash of color to draw attention where it’s needed most.
Don’t forget to think about your target market. You may serve children, but the folks reading your messaging may be parents or grandparents. Kids like primary colors. Grandparents may require a dose of trust. So you might have splashes of red and yellow with a predominance of blue. As long as you’re thoughtful about what you’re doing you’ll be ahead of the game.
JUST FOR FUNTomorrow when you get up and get dressed, think for a moment.
Is what you’re wearing something that will match your mood? Improve your mood?
Improve the mood of those with whom you come into contact.
Convey the impression you want to convey based on your agenda for the day?
It’s fun to color with clothing. Try it; you’ll see!
And let us know how it goes.
5 Comments
Nonprofit communications largely exists in a warm gray world, with perhaps a dark blue to punch things up. It’s not that nonprofit people don’t like color. They do. But they are cautious about using it, and with good reason. Make a color mistake and they’ll hear about it from their organizations’ leaders. Gray is safe.
But here’s the thing. When they work with a talented graphic designer—one who understands messaging, knows how to use strong color and, at the same time, maintain an overall conservative look—they are confident using color, and they get kudos for the materials they produce. Too many organizations, I think, are unwilling to invest the money required to work with a sophisticated graphic designer. As a result, they continue to live in that gray world where their branding doesn’t stand out.
This really resonates, because I know someone whose favorite color is gray. I say:
"Gray isn't a color! It's somewhere in limbo between the absence of color and all the colors mixed together. It's a failure to commit." I agree, Matthew, that too many organizations miss an opportunity when they play it "safe". If more folks took the time to understand the psychology of color, they'd come to appreciate that what they're doing isn't safe at all. Gray can get you into a lot of trouble if you're trying to project that you're cutting edge, vibrant, original, fun, warm, homey, harmonizing, welcoming, approachable… etc.
Thanks for the comment!
I do count the monochromatic sepias, green-grays, etc. in there as gray, but if I had to limit it to just the pure, silver palette, gray is certainly still a beautiful color.
Certainly if gray is your hue it's your hue. And that's especially true if you're being thoughtful in your approach. That's really the point. For those trying to convey something that gray does not convey they do themselves a disservice by limiting themselves. Hopefully you don't have to limit yourself to the pure silver,or any other,palette.
Thanks for the comment, and may all your grays be beautiful.
Very interesting and I'm glad that you brought this up. As a former founding executive director of three associations, I gave great thought to the colors and what they would represent for the organization. I recently did similarly when I started my own consulting business. Yet, I've heard very little discussion on the topic as the color component of the brand gets drowned out by name, logo, etc.