Last week we talked about how to surprise and delight customers, as well as the difference between satisfaction and delight and its impact on loyalty and profits. I also wrote an article that went live on Inc.com this week titled “Want to build brand loyalty? Surprise your customers—literally.”  ALSO: The presale for the Brainy Course on pricing is now live. Lock in your discount.  You’ve probably heard the basics of color theory before – that certain colors link to certain feelings or emotions in people, and so some colors are better than others for brands. There are tons of color charts out there. I’ve even linked to a few. I’ll give you the general associations in this episode, but I’m also going to explain what really matters when it comes to using colors in your branding – the common mistakes and the most important things to keep in mind. CLICK HERE FOR YOUR FREE DOWNLOAD! Show Notes: [05:01] GENERAL COLOR MEANINGS [05:03] Red: is full of excitement and said to be youthful and bold. It is also said to make people hungry or angry, and is associated with stopping. [05:45] Orange: is said to be cheerful and have confidence. It is also fun, whimsical, childlike, friendly, spontaneous, glowing, hot, and persuasive. [06:16] Yellow: has optimism, clarity and warmth. It is also joyful, illuminating, nourishing, sunny, sweet, stimulating, innovative, energetic, hot, surprising, or can bring awareness. [06:50] Green: is said to be peaceful and associated with growth and health. It can also be calm, quiet, fresh, lush, soothing, renewal, balance, life, and fertility. [07:43] Blue: is associated with trust, dependability and strength. Some other words (again, depending on the shade) can be calm, quiet, water, clean, peaceful, reassuring, serene, transcendent, open, sophisticated, confident, tasteful, cool, credible, authoritative, classic, traditional, nautical, or professional. [08:42] Purple: is associated with creativity, imagination and wisdom. It can also be romantic, thoughtful, nostalgic, thrilling, dramatic, regal, intuitive, mysterious or visionary. [09:19] Pink: ranges from vibrant, flirtatious, attention-getting and high energy to soft, subtle, romantic, compassionate, delicate, innocent, fragile or youthful. [10:08] Grey and other neutrals: are bringing balance and calm. It is also classic, corporate, timeless, quiet, logical, reserved, basic, modest, efficient, accountable, staunch, professional, sleek, classy, mature, sophisticated, and methodical. [10:50] Brown: is earthy, rugged, outdoor, rustic and woodsy, but as you change the shade to chocolate it could be delicious, rich, robust or appetizing. [11:28] Black: is powerful, empowering, elegant, sophisticated, mysterious, bold, classic, strong, expensive, nighttime, stylish, or prestigious. [12:12] White: is positive, pure, clean, innocent, simple, airy, bright, pristine, or bridal, but it can also be seen as sterile, cold and clinical. [13:09] COMMON MISTAKES [13:11] Colors have tons of associations and meanings, and often opposite associations depending on the shade or context. [14:02] GENDER PREFERENCES [14:13] Gender does have different impacts on preference for colors, which can be important for brands. [16:06] Blue and green are universally predominant favorite colors. Orange and brown are least favorite for both genders. Purple is gender polarizing.  [16:27] BEYOND GENDER In some cultures, white is bridal, pure and innocent, but it is a funeral color for others. Black can be sophisticated or menacing. Red can be aggressive or mean luck. [19:33] THINK ABOUT BRAIN ASSOCIATIONS The associations absolutely do matter, and studies have found that appropriateness of the color to the brand persona matter quite a bit. [20:18] Think about how all the context triggers come together to support or contradict the color used in your brand, logo or other aspects of your marketing. [20:41] When people are not already familiar with a brand, the common emotions tied with the col