We were inspired to write this post by a recent happening. We published our website up for review on criticue.com to gather feedback on the overall site experience and kept bumping against negative comments towards our brand colours, such as: ‘Pink is not a neutral color, will appeal to women mostly, but not at men’, ‘Robust layout but I really don’t like the pink. It takes away the professionalism of the brand—I saw it and instantly thought of a Google advert or a spam website—I don’t know why!’, ‘I am not sure that pink is the right colour: it looks more like teenage that experimented.’ and so on…
As we were a bit surprised to receive so much negative feedback on our brand’s colour, we thought—’This reaction to the colour pink is really interesting! Let’s share our experience and thoughts on a blog post and welcome a debate on the use of the colour pink in brand identities.’ So here we are— below is our logo.
As you can see, our identity’s accent colour is hot pink (or fuchsia as some might call it) and according to some articles on colour psychology [1], bright pink denotes creativity. However, it looks like pink is not a welcomed colour among the masses.
While we agree that in the 21st century soft shades of pink can evoke feminine attributes, do some research and you’ll find out that it hasn’t always been this way… Say What?! LOL
According to Smithsonian.com, girls didn’t wear pink until the 1940s. In fact, it used to be the other way round. The article continues to read: “For example, a June 1918 article from the trade publication Earnshaw’s Infants’ Department said:
“The generally accepted rule is pink for the boys, and blue for the girls. The reason is that pink, being a more decided and stronger color, is more suitable for the boy, while blue, which is more delicate and dainty, is prettier for the girl.” [Read the full article here]
Don’t you believe this? Neither did we when we first found out. You’re welcome to do your own research and add to ours by posting it below in the comments sections.
Final thoughts
In our opinion whether the colour pink is fit or not for a company’s palette it all depends on the overall look and feel of its brand identity.
Hot pink to us is more of a vibrant, daring, bold and young colour—We do not only associate it with Barbie. Big brands like Taco Bell, T-Mobile and Dribble, use it too and don’t target specifically women.
Furthermore, hot pink makes us think of magenta, CMYK and the printing process… Therefore it references the colours used in our trade.
Another interesting fact
Did you know that Italian men and Londoners are known to own at least one pink piece of clothing in their wardrobes, such as a shirt, a tie or a cardigan? Some fashion experts say it demonstrate their confidence and show that they are not insecure about their sexuality.
Combine pink with masculine accessories and attitude and you’ll find the perfect balance.[Read the full article here ]
Sources:
[1] https://thelogocompany.net/blog/infographics/psychology-color-logo-design/, https://www.helpscout.net/blog/psychology-of-color/, https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/233843
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Munch Studio is a boutique design agency that specialises in identity design, logo animation and other brand expressions. The studio is listed by DesignRush among Top Branding Agencies of 2020.
Have a great idea? Let’s put a mark on it.
LET'S TALK