How to Choose Your Brand Colours
- DBJ
- Jun 30
- 3 min read
When building your brand, colour might seem like just another design decision - but it’s so much more than that. The colours you choose can shape how people feel when they engage with your brand, create emotional connections, build trust, and communicate what you’re all about, before you even say a word.
With such a heavy responsibility for your colours to bare, it's important that they're chosen with purpose and not just because they look 'pretty'!
Today you’ll learn how to choose your brand colours, understand the basics of colour psychology for branding, and explore a brand colour psychology chart to help guide your choices.
Why Your Brand Colours Matter
Colour is an essential element of your visual identity. Many strong brands are instantly recognisable due to their specific colour palettes which supports the importance of colour in a powerful brand. Studies have shown that colour can improve brand recognition by up to 80%.
Take Tiffany & Co. for example, the brand is immediately recognisable by its distinctive shade of blue, officially known (and trademarked in 2001) as 'Tiffany Blue'. This carefully chosen colour proved ideally suited for packaging engagement rings and luxury jewellery, as it is a desirable shade often associated with sentiments of love and happiness.
Choosing the right colours helps your audience:
Feel emotionally aligned with your message
Recognise and remember your brand
Trust your professionalism and credibility
How to Choose Your Brand Colours (Step-by-Step)
If you choose to have your brand designed by a visual identity professional they'll do all of the hard work for you - but if you opt to work on your colour palette yourself, following the next few steps can help you to make more informed decisions.
Step 1: Know Your Brand Personality
If you've read any of our previous brand building posts, you would have heard us speak about strategy numerous times. Your brand's strategy is the foundation of your business that guides all of your decision making, and the decision to pick your colours is no different.
Knowing your brand personality will guide your creative decisions, including your colours.
Understand Colour Psychology for Branding
Colour psychology is the study of how colours influence perception and emotion. For branding, this means choosing colours that align with the emotional tone of your practice. Let’s explore what common colours communicate:
Brand Colour Psychology Chart
Test the Feel of Different Colour Combinations
Once you’ve narrowed down colours based on psychology, play with combinations. Use a tool like Coolors, Canva, or Adobe Color to test palettes. Ask:
Does this palette feel aligned with my strategy?
Will my ideal clients resonate with this emotionally?
Can I use this consistently across my brand?
Check Accessibility and Versatility
Make sure your colours are readable, accessible, and versatile for all digital platforms. Some tones may look beautiful on Instagram but hard to read on a website.
Stick to high contrast between background and text, and use colour only where it enhances, not overwhelms your message.
Use Your Colours with Intention
Once you’ve chosen your palette, integrate it into everything:
Website design
Social media templates
Client onboarding materials
Therapy room (if applicable!)
Email newsletters and PDFs
Consistency builds brand recognition and a cohesive client experience.
Final Thoughts
Choosing your brand colours isn’t just a design decision, it’s a strategic move. With the help of colour psychology for branding and tools like a brand colour psychology chart, you can choose colours that reflect your practice’s values, energy, and message.
Whether you’re building a brand from scratch or refreshing your current look, let your colours speak for you - calmly, confidently, and clearly.
Want help choosing your palette or creating a full visual identity? DBJ Studio would love to support you in building a brand that feels like home to your ideal clients.
