When you work in design, the colors are one of the most important elements what do you have. And understanding them and understanding what they transmit is something that you should know. That's why, On this occasion, we are going to focus on the psychology of the golden color. Could you tell us what it means?
If you have to do any project that requires colors, playing with the composition, as well as with the feelings that the colors evoke, can make your work stand out.
The color gold, symbol of wealth
Gold or gold is the same. But When we talk about that color, riches come to mind, luxury... because we tend to identify this with stories, myths and, why not say it, also reality. Today, although gold is not traded (at least not in ordinary people's day-to-day lives), it is known that whoever has more "gold" (relating to money) is richer. And although the banknotes are not made of gold, or exactly gold, it does make us think that, for centuries, gold has been the currency of exchange.
In the case of colour, gold is actually a combination of yellow and red. However, its meaning is not as related as with these colors, but focuses more on honor, value, seriousness, luxury, fame, glory or power, among other qualifiers. Of course, this evokes other feelings, such as joy, good humor or even tranquility.
Psychology of the color gold in marketing
Since we know that what you as a designer can be most interested in is what you are going to “expose” when using gold in your designs, you should know that there are different meanings.
The most common tend to be elegance and refinement. That is to say, designs that are taken care of in detail and that are made of great quality. And before you wonder, no, in general, these are not usually thought of as much in luxury and exclusivity.
This interpretation does work when gold is mixed with black, implying that what is being sold are luxury products or services, such as jewelry, high-end cars, or exclusive services for wealthy people.
Examples of brands that use gold, especially in logos, are Guess, DG (Dolce & Gabanna) or Dove. As you see, They are similar marks in both cases, but not so much in the third, that belongs to personal care and that bets on that color to transmit passion, elegance and know-how.
What happens if too much gold is used
Gold is an evil color. And it is that, by attracting so much attention and making the designs seem to dazzle and stand out from other colors, we have to use them too much. And that causes an effect that you should never reach.
When you go too far with gold, or with gold tones, beyond showing an exclusivity and a product within the reach of very few, freckles of being a presumptuous, selfish or even arrogant brand. We could even add “repellent”.
That is why experts always recommend using gold in a small amount, not too much to avoid this effect. The passage from one interpretation to another is very fine, hence it is better to use a little than a lot.
If, for example, you have a web design for a jewelry store in your hands, you know that the photos are going to be golden, and they will stand out, so you have to soften with other colors such as white so that it stands out but does not show an unattainable product or that causes rejection.
So how to combine gold?
There are many who, when faced with this color, are afraid of messing up. And is not for less. Working with gold is not easy, you have to combine all the elements so that they match. So here are some tips:
Typography
As you know, there are five main font families. And thousands and thousands of letters. But, in the case of gold, depending on the family you choose, one type or another will be convenient. For example:
- Serif: Bet on a font that is classic so that it gives the feeling of a serious and old brand.
- sans-serif: look for those that have more curved lines as opposed to straight ones, because they will create a soft effect with the gold that will give them sophistication.
- slab serif: they focus more on car or technology companies that want to give an old and luxury look.
- Script: doesn't always work. It is better to use fonts that are timeless or you risk going out of date in no time.
- Decorative fonts: only in personal brands.
Other colors
Using the chromatic circle, or the color wheel, you can manage to find both analogous and complementary colors. In this case, for gold the analogues would be orange and yellow; while the complementary would be a blue hue.
Of course, black and white can also be colors to use. In fact, white is one of your allies to lighten the gold color a bit. For its part, black must also be used in very little quantity because you risk that, with gold, it seems like a brand that a "street user" cannot afford, or with products that are going to be expensive for a "mileurista" pocket.
Images
The images will be part of the design that you will make, or illustrations. These have to go in the line that you want to express with the gold. Otherwise, the message may not be well understood.
For example, imagine that you have been asked to design the cover of a children's book. And you use gold to create a striking cover that stands out… However, the book itself is a tale of a cat and dog and the cover is made as if it were a fairytale kingdom. Wouldn't that make sense? Well, that's what you should see. When using images, you must hit the right ones, either because they are part of the brand and show the products, or because they have a color palette that goes well with the result to be achieved.
As you can see, the meaning of the gold color is quite important, and it can give you ideas to use it wisely and without going overboard with it. Do you have any more advice about this color?