The effectiveness of your website is largely dependent upon its conversion rate. If your website gains very little custom from your target audience then it is not as effective as it could be and it should be amended to make a stronger impact and increase the conversion rate. Good websites have a high conversion rate, which means a high percentage of visitors to the site turn into paying customers. There are many ways to increase the conversion rate to your website, such as re-writing the content to better sell your services/goods, making the website more user-friendly or offering discounts to first-time customers, for example. Therefore, when designing your website (or re-designing it), there are some elements of the site that you should pay careful attention to, one of which is colours.
How colour can impact your website conversion rate
Of course, the functionality of your website is incredibly important, but it is not this that gives a visitor to your site their first impression of your business. First impressions are usually based on the aesthetics of the website. How appealing the visitor finds your website will determine how much time they spend browsing through your pages and becoming acquainted with your goods/services and your business, while also enjoying the functions of the site. How aesthetically appealing visitors will find your website will depend, in part, on the colour(s) that you choose to use in your design. Colours generate feelings, in fact, we use them in sayings all the time, for example, “I’m green with envy”, so when selecting the colour of your website it is a good idea to first think about how you want visitors to your site to feel and whether it will increase conversion rate.
Colours and the feelings they generate
- Red: this colour is emotionally intense, it has been associated with fire, passion, love, desire, blood, danger, war, strength and even courage. This strong colour is perfect to use an accent colour, is has been proven to encourage people to make quick decisions.
- Yellow: associated with the sun, this colour brings with it joy, energy and happiness, invoking cheerful feelings.
- Blue: we associate this colour with the sky and bodies of water, such as the sea, it is a tranquil colour that is associated with stability and depth and it is thought to be beneficial to both body and mind. Blue has been known to symbolize wisdom and intelligence, trust and loyalty, faith and heaven.
- Green: is primarily associated with three things, nature, money and safety. As such it the colour generates a range of feelings, including harmony, freshness, fertility, stability, safety and endurance.
- Purple: a regal colour, purple is often associated with royalty, wisdom, creativity and mystery. This colour is said to symbolize nobility, power, luxury and ambition. Children, in particular, are attracted to the colour purple.
- Orange: considered a tropical colour, it is associated with feelings of enthusiasm, creativity, attraction, success, strength and endurance and gives the sensation of heat.
- Black: a formal and elegant colour, it is usually associated with elegance, power, death and evil. Black usually has a negative connotation, for example ‘the black death’ and ‘blacklisted’. With other colours, such as red or yellow, the combination gives powerful and aggressive feelings and is often associated with warnings.
- White: considered as the colour of perfection, white connotes innocence, purity, light and goodness, all positive connotations. White is associated with things like snow, angels, cleanliness and dairy products.
When designing your website, keep in mind that colours may have different connotations, just like common known phrases might be different. Considering this will help you to target a wider, global, audience.
What colour have you chosen for your website and has it had an effect on your conversion rate?
