Colors play a significant role in everything when it comes to interacting with a design, how they use the design and if they can completely see and understand this. Color is beyond the decorative tool, essential to user experience. If everyone on your team love the design and the client doesn’t, then maybe the color is faulty. Colors trigger strong emotions in people. It is some part personal preference, some part psychological and remaining parts social norms. Needing to understand the tendencies and user preferences affects user experience. This article by Website designing Singapore will help you understand more about colors when it comes to UX.
User Expectations And Preferences
User experience begins with the type of user your app or website is designed for. The basic demographics which include gender, region etc. can affect the perception of your design on the basis of color. UX is interestingly impacted and associated with gender. Men and women like and hate certain types of colors. Men tend to have darker schemes in design and saturated colors too. Women prefer websites with lighter design schemes and muted colors. Men have sharp reaction to feminine colors. And mid tone palettes go with everything.
Color Associations And Meaning
Admit it or not, colors surely have some emotional associations. Some colors are considered extreme. The associations also define the overall vibe. When seeing a certain color or combination of a few, it creates immediate response in the brain.
1. Red indicates power, danger, love/passion and/or hunger
2. Yellow represents energy, happiness, light, and/or warmth
3. Orange signifies creativity, determination, stimulation, encouragement
4. Green indicates nature, growth, harmony and/or freshness
5. Blue represents confidence, trust, serenity and/or calmness
6. Purple signifies magic, royalty, ambition and/or independence
Building Brand Recognition
Coca Cola always uses the color red. When you change the color, it may confuse the customers that they are unable to recognize it right away. Feelings are associated with color as well. Color is crucial to consider as it creates a difference between the user and a design. Color defines what the brand is about. It also tells the customers the thing they are about to interact with. When you change the color and go off brand, users get confused or uncertain about the brand they once knew.
User Patterns Associated With Color
You may have come across many websites that use orange or red buttons. There is a reason behind that. When the buttons are bright in color and with contrast with the background of a website, red and orange always go well with light or dark backgrounds. It also helps the users understand and want to interact with the click or the elements that can be tapped as they visually know their expectations of that element is.
Increasing Conversion Rates
You can also challenge yourself during the design process to A/B Test button color. You may also notice that one color may have a higher conversion rate than the other. Conversion rates increase when the color of the buttons or links is in contrast to the rest of the design. So, when using a brand palette, you can choose a contrast color to generate conversions that can boost the user experience.
Providing Accessibility To All Users
Eventually, color affects UX in a way that is not rooted in psychology. It is a practical matter to deal with. Color affects UX as it makes the design accessible. To understand a design fully and engage with content, you need to make the content visible and the users can also read it easily. When you use color palettes and contrast ratios that is aligned with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines or WCAG 2.1, it ensures that every user understands your color choice.
