Best Color Palettes for Women Entrepreneurs

“Identity is cause; brand is effect, and the strength of the former influences the strength of the latter.”

- Larry Ackerman

A color palette is one of the most exciting parts of a new brand design project for me. Part of it I think is because it's a visual element of the brand identity, and those are some of the most easily identifiable parts of a business.

From my experience designing brands for other creative women, I’ve found that it’s always two sides of a coin — people are either really good at identifying a cohesive color palette, or they struggle to understand why some colors look good together and others don’t. That’s not a put-down! We all have different strengths and they certainly don’t correlate to our creative ability or talents. But, choosing a color palette for a brand isn’t everyone’s natural skill, so it’s important to consult a designer when you’re starting a new brand.

Why are some people good with color and others aren’t?

Here’s the funny thing about picking out colors for a color palette — color is one of those things that is both rational and emotional. You see this in a variety of professions and circumstances.

• A professional photographer knows how to frame their subject just so, resulting in a breathtaking image that couldn’t be replicated.
• A pastry chef has a sense of intuition surrounding the amount of powdered sugar to add to make the frosting just the right viscosity.
• A garden enthusiast knows just the amount of water and attention their tulips need to flourish instead of wither.

The fact of the matter is that some color combinations look better together than others and it’s my job as a designer to understand the principles and help you craft a winning combination for your brand. 

Let’s play a game!

I love working with all kinds of creative entrepreneurs, even if we’re not collaborating in an official capacity. I’d love to share a little exercise with you today, a series of questions really, to help you with the emotional parts of choosing the colors to include in your brand color palette.

First, close your eyes and spend a few minutes thinking about your business. What are you offering? Where are you selling it? Who are you interacting with?

Now, I’d like you to reflect on the following questions and focus on the visuals that surface in your mind:

• How do people feel before they buy from me?
• How do people feel after they buy from me?
• How do I want people to feel when they see my posts on social media?

There may be specific colors that come to mind when you think about these questions, but most likely, you’ll just be swimming in a certain feeling. The good news is that a lot of feelings have associated colors so you can pinpoint the emotions you want your audience to be feeling and choose colors that correspond.

Here’s a list of colors that embody certain feelings:

• Red: Passion, anger, assertiveness, strength, boldness, love
• Pink: Fun, joyful, confident, peppy, silly, feminine
• Orange: Optimistic, inspired
• Yellow: Happy, bright, clean, sweet, new
• Green: Health, simplicity, growth, nature
• Blue: Trust, calm, elegance, peace
• Purple: Royal, noble, beauty
• Black: Strength, direct, clear, organized
• White: Peace, open, orderly, faith

Do any of those colors conjure up the emotions you’re hoping to elicit from your target audience? How can you capitalize on the emotions related to these colors to better communicate your brand message?

I love talking about colors and I’d love to chat more with you! Send me a message online to start a conversation.