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4 Steps To Pick Out The Perfect Color Palette

Posted on 03/24/10 in blog, design about color, design

Color is important in any design and can set the mood for the way the audience perceives the company. Therefore, it’s pertinent that you choose the right color to effectively communicate what your client’s business is about.

Have a great concept that works well as a sketch and in black and white, but with color you are stumped? There are so many color possibilities it can be overwhelming.

So where do you start? Follow the below steps to simplify the process.

Step 1: Interview your client

Before you start picking out colors, make sure you have a clear idea of what your client is looking for. Questions you should always ask:

• Do you have an existing logo, printed materials or website?
• Do you have any preferred colors?
• Who is your target market? (Male? Female? Age? Income? Location?)
• What is your company message/mission statement? (Is it Bold? Elegant? Humorous?)

The answers to these questions should give you a clear view such as this: The client is targeting a 40 year old business woman with a high-end bold jewelry line. The client prefers red.

Step 2: Research

Look at your client’s competition. What are their colors? Does your client often advertise next to a competitor? Make sure the color scheme you choose makes them stand out. If your research conflicts with your clients preferred color, talk it through when you present your color options.

Step 3: Play

Now that you defined your target and competition, here comes the fun part – playing with color options. Remember to keep it simple and don’t forget about your color wheel. If you have too many competing colors, your eye won’t know where to go. Here are three resources that I reference to find the perfect color scheme:

• Adobe’s Kuler site: This site is a great for helping pick out color schemes. You can type any color or adjective into the search, and out comes color palettes. For example, for our jewelry line I would search for “bold” and “red.” It also has a feature where you can download the color palette and import it directly into the Adobe Creative Suite.
• Color Hunter: If your client has a photo or past design that they love, use this website. Simply type in the URL or upload a photo and it provides you with the colors in the photo. You can also type in a tag or hex code.
• The book “Graphically speaking”: This book is my standard “go to” in my office. It matches terms, such as “artistic” and “quick,” with CMYK color palettes. It also categorizes fonts this way and provides example layouts of each.

Step 4: Pick the final color palette

Present your client with 2-3 color options. Once they have decided on a final color palette, pick out the PMS (Pantone Matching System) colors. These colors will help the various printers your client will deal with, hit the color every time. It is always best to reference the printed swatches, as every monitor shows color slightly differently.

Your Turn

How do you pick out colors for your design work? What websites help you?

About the author
Rebecca Bauer Ritz is a logo, web and graphic designer that is passionate about helping start-ups and small businesses find their voice. She has over 12 years experience and owns Bauerhaus Design, Inc.

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