Color plays an important role in PowerPoint design. By choosing the correct palette, you can pull individual slides together and create a coherent design. Color also allows you to add a bit more life and interest to your slides. More than that, it can also be a subtle way to convey emotions and strengthen your message. Following the basic principles of color psychology, you can create PowerPoint designs that automatically connects with your audience.
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What is color psychology?
Color psychology works around the premise that color has the ability to affect our feelings, moods, and behaviors. It follows these six basic principles:
- Colors can carry specific meaning
- Color meaning is either based on meaning that’s learned or biologically innate
- The perception of a color causes evaluation automatically by the person perceiving
- The evaluation process forces color motivated behavior
- Color usually exerts its influence automatically
- Color meaning and effect has to do with context
Applying color psychology to PowerPoint design
When deciding on a color scheme for your PowerPoint slides, consider these colors and what they mean:
Red: The color red exudes intensity and energy. It’s also said to stimulate a faster heart rate. What else would you expect from a color associated with both passion and danger? Don’t use too much of it, or else you’ll risk overwhelming your audience with such a loud color. Try to temper it with more neutral shades like white or gray.
Blue: Like the ocean, the color blue gives off a feeling of calm and relaxation. Aside from its associations to tranquility, it also symbolizes loyalty. This is especially crucial for business presentations. If you want to build the trust of your audience, the color blue can help enhance your message.
Green: Often associated with nature and the environment, the color green symbolizes abundance and life. These characteristics are important to convey during finance and investor presentations. The color green helps you convey a more positive outlook. It’s also said to be the color that’s “easiest” to the eyes. Some people also suggest that green can help jog their memory.
Purple: Associated with royalty and luxury, this color portrays a feeling of dignity and exclusivity, which could be helpful for presentations in retail and real estate. It can also be appropriate for presentations in the creative industry.
Black: Black is a powerful color, giving off a sense of sophistication. For presentations, make use of black when you want to deliver a more conservative and conventional message. As a background color, black can also serve as a great way to emphasize other colors in your slide. Because it’s neutral, you can pair it with other colors.
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Featured Image: albastrica mititica via Flickr
