The Psychology of the Colour Purple in Web Design

We use colour in web design not just because we think it looks nice. Colour affects people’s thoughts, moods and feelings and that should be considered when picking colours for your website.

With the colour purple, these feelings can be somewhat complicated. It’s not exactly a very common colour, is it? That’s part of its charm, but then again, it can also be a drawback.

The meaning of purple

Most people associate purple with royalty. There’s a certain majesty to it, and part of it is the fact that the colour purple will definitely catch your attention. This is not a colour you will forget even when you relegate it to the background. Use it for your background and your background will become more important than what is on the foreground. It’s really that overwhelming. The effect is truly quite strong.

It is also quite feminine as well. It works great for women’s websites, which doesn’t want to be obviously feminine in its appearance. That’s why many websites use it instead of pink. It is feminine, but it is not overly girly at all. The lighter shade of purple will be much more feminine.

For men, at best purple is somewhat metrosexual, a term which means “non-obvious masculinity”. The darker shades should be more appealing for men, but this is masculinity with an obvious hint of femininity.

Using purple for websites

Purple is a very unconventional colour, which is why it is very easy to misuse it. You should only use of purple sparingly in your website template.

As a solid background, there’s a very good chance that it will connote the vastness of space or the depths of the abyss, so be careful. That kind of endless space isn’t as comforting as when it’s symbolised by the colour blue. But when used sparingly, it’s great. You can use it to highlight special sections on your webpage.

Use it for your header, for example, and it can provide that elegant look without becoming overpowering. You can highlight certain words or use the colour for important bits of graphics, so that you can direct the attention of your audience effectively.

Purple is so different that it can be used for effect. Suffice to say that the more purple colour you use, the more unconventional your website will look like. It’s not exactly a very comforting colour, as its very unfamiliarity can be unsettling. People are simply not used to seeing it on a regular basis.

But with lighter shades, you can project a somewhat calm demeanour. It can be as sombre as grey, black or brown but there’s a certain energy to purple that’s undeniable. Somehow it feels more alive, and also in a way, demanding. It’s like an especially rare sunrise or sunset which can invigorate, as well as, surprise you in its intensity.

Appealing to purple lovers

You can also use lots of purple if that’s the favourite colour of your customers and website visitors.

Here are the typical characteristics of purple lovers and see if they match up with your customer profile.

• People who love purple are gentle and sensitive, which fits well with the feminine stereotypes. This is not the colour chosen by the overly macho and ultra aggressive.
  
  If your clientele consists of men who are extremely confident in their masculinity or who may have some feminine traits, then this is the perfect shade to use.
  
  For female website visitors, the lighter the shade of the purple, the more feminine it looks.
  
  
• Purple lovers are creative and imaginative and they don’t mind being unconventional. In fact, they don’t really want to blend in with the crowd. They want to stand out and that’s probably why they gravitate towards purple in the first place.
  
  In a world where blue, green and red are very common favourites, purple is seen as truly different.
  
  
• People who favour purple are also much more idealistic and sometimes they’re not so practical and realistic. After all, in the real world purple isn’t much used at all. It’s also not a very practical colour at all.
  
  There’s more than a touch of royalty in the personality of people who love purple. It’s the same thing with the websites that use purple as the dominant colour. It’s like the website is saying that it’s not only different – it’s better.

SOURCE: Website Templates