What would a world without color be? Pretty boring, if you ask our opinion. Located here in sunny Melbourne, Black Tie is fortunate to enjoy blue skies, green palm trees, and the sparkle of the ocean. All of that in black and white would be dull for sure. If the natural world is so full of color and beauty, why should your interior spaces be any different? It just doesn’t make sense to be drab, and yet that is the sad reality of many office spaces. If that describes your office, it’s time for a change according to recent research supporting the power of color.
Researchers took a scientific approach to find what impact various color spectrums had on mood, productivity, and creativity. Read on to find out what color scheme boosts productivity and would do your business the most good!
Low-Wavelength Colors: Green and Blue
Green is the color of nature and symbolizes a renewal – making it a color of stability and well-being. Blue is most commonly associated with the color of the sky (on a good day) and the ocean; both are expansive parts of the natural world that give us a sense of calm. So it’s no surprise that blue also promotes a sense of well-being and helps improve focus.
Bottom Line: Choose blue and green color schemes to make the workspace a calm environment where focus and efficiency can flourish- a perfect recipe for productivity.
High-Wavelength Color: Red
Red is the color of passion – think of lover’s hearts and fire trucks as an example. Passion is great! It can be the spark that ignites the flame of purpose. It also creates a sense of urgency. So if you want to draw attention to something, or up the intensity of the energy level in your space, add red accents.
Bottom Line: Red has power, but use it responsibly! Overdoing it could make for a high-pressure, aggressive environment.
Somewhere-in-the-Middle Wavelength Color: Yellow
Lying in between the peace-inducing low wavelengths and the intensity-filled high-wavelengths is yellow light. Yellow is the color of energy and pep! Bringing the color of the sun into the office is show to provide rays of inspiration, so to speak. Yellow is associated with innovation and promotes creativity.
The No Man’s Zone: Gray, Beige, White
These ‘neutrals’ are in fact depressors according to researchers’ findings. Despite the fact that gray is a trending color, it was found to be responsible for inducing feelings of gloom, especially in women. Beige and white didn’t fare any better.
Bottom Line: Skip the institutional color scheme!
So how does your office fare? Is your environment helping or hindering your corporate culture? Stay tuned for more on Black Tie’s color culture in a special Q&A article next week!
In the meantime, analyze not just your physical space, but also your creative space. Do your marketing materials and web presence convey the ‘color’ of your company or portray you in boring (and depressing) gray and white? It’s vital to let your current and prospective customers, business partners, and the world at large see the full-spectrum of who you are. If your Internet marketing or web presence needs a little color, give us a call and see what kind of custom solutions we can develop for you!