Ep # 2. Start with a Single Signature Colour

Colour is a cornerstone of any visual identity, but did you ever think, particularly when just starting out, that less is more? And that you can start with just a Single Signature Colour?

Listen in to hear why this might be just the great idea you've been waiting for!

What IS it about September, it was C-R-A-Z-Y this year! But that’s it isn’t it. Every year since my kids were little, we had the busy of getting back to school in August, and then a first week of this kind of false calm, in which I had a little period of feeling so free I could conquer the world, and that was quickly followed by absolute nuts timetables as activities kicked in and school runs took over and we all tried to get to grips with the demands of a new schedule.

Now my kids are grown ups and for the last few years we slipped in an idyllic little break at the end of August taking advantage of some amazing price drops and some delicious warm calm in places that were a little quieter and less chaotic than they would be in high season. And so at the start of September I got back from a dreamy time in Croatia, a combination of amazing heritage and crystal blue seas with wafting scents of mediterranean planting everywhere around the grounds we were staying on.

But literally from the moment we touched down home it’s been a non stop round of dentists, driving tests, big-birthday celebrations and a somewhat stressful career rerouting for one son. And in the middle of what really is I suppose normal lifes rollercoaster, I’m trying to build a little business. It is such a challenge to maintain consistency - and when I do crack that, I will talk about it.

But for now, I’m breathing in the calm memories triggered by a little candle from my holiday. In an amazing stroke of beautiful branding, the resort I was staying in created a candle similar to the scents of lemon cypress, rosemary and florals that floated around it’s grounds and it takes me back to how I felt there beautifully.

So today I’m going to talk about colour, specifically how many colours a business needs! And Don’t worry, we won’t get too heavy. Color is a key cornerstone in any brand visual identity. Visual identity is what a business looks like, and its designed to control or influence what it feels like. So it’s the look and feel of a business. If you’ve downloaded my Color Kickstarter PDF you'll already know that Our brains process colour before processing shapes or words. It is that is POWERFUL.

But chosing colour can be confusing, and can quickly get overwhelming. Someone asked recently how many brand colours do I need, and I really had to answer ‘one’. I’ve thought about this since and I’m holding with that, to start out with anyway. I know the reality is few companies or businesses have just ONE colour, but at the same time, so many of the big brands you know and love are associated with just one colour, that it really is a perfect jumping off point for us little guys too.

I bet if you call a few brands you up in your mind, you can also call up their key colour. For example, Coca Cola, red isn’t it. Facebook - that tech blue. Tiffany - that turquoise that’s just so ubiquitous at every touchpoint of the famous jewellery store, Harrods - dark green, even Ireland, where I live - it’s green, even though our flag is green, white and gold, on their own white and gold (or orange) are not our colours, green is. Do you see where I'm going?

Starting out with a single colour gives you the space to stand back and figure out the rest over time, and as you deepen your understanding of both your audience and your offering, while still establishing a clear and recognisable identity to work with for now.

As small business owners we’re jugging like maniacs, I know this first hand, and it’s hard to find the time to develop a full look and feel in the early days, or even find the time and funds to work with a designer to delegate this task.

At the same time, no one wants to look a hot mess with their brand! It’s just not professional, doesn’t make you feel good, and definitely doesn’t take advantage of audience attraction via deliberate choices on how your business looks. My single colour strategy to get started with straight away helps you create a clear look and present your socials and any assets you’ve got, like pdf downloads, or booking pages or sales pages, confidently and consistently. And by not building a whole house, you invest less time. You’re basically picking a clear direction now, and leaving space for adding on to that as you grow and gain certainty.

I’m going to do a little color workshop soon that’s focused on picking a signature colour through a business mood board combined with basic colour theory, which is a strategy that makes it easy for non designers to figure out a single signature colour to represent their brand. So if that’s something that you need, make sure you’ve got one of my freebies and then you’ll hear about it. If you aren’t already on my list, I’ll add one of those links into the show notes.

I’m going to finish up with a second question - also colour related - what’s a hex code! Hex codes emerged in the early days of the web, as a digital representation system for colour. They are 6 digits long, with the first two digits representing red, the next two are for green, and the last two are for blue, so by mixing different amounts of each of these, your computer knows exactly what colour to show on screen.

A hex code is preceded by a hashtag, to tell the computer that it’s a color code, not just a string of numbers and letters. Millions of colours can be created this way - hex codes are available on virtually all digital creation platforms and are now a standard and widely used colour definition system. Having hex codes defined for your brand color or colours and keeping them at hand is the simplest way to make sure your business is always wearing it’s right colour!

So that’s it for today. Thank you so much for tuning in, and bye for now.

MENTIONED

Download: Colour Kickstarter Freebie