Red color logo: fortitude, ambition and passion

Red is one of the most intense colors. Its powerful energy has a very strong influence on a person’s psycho-emotional state. The main effect of the color red is that it encourages a person to act. The only question is what this action will be: aggressive or positive. In most cases, the type of reaction depends on the shade.

Psycho-emotional perception of the color red

Red with an admixture of orange can cause aggression, anger, fear and a sense of danger, since this gamma on a subconscious level is often associated with fire, flames, fire. But red and blue shades encourage a person to be creative and increase the overall tone of the body due to the fact that blue has a calming effect.

Red and its shades charge a person with energy, give a boost of vigor and allow you to feel a surge of strength. If a person finds it difficult to make a decision or is afraid to take the first step, red will add courage and help him make the right choice without hesitation. This color also gives determination in the fight for one’s opinion and defending one’s point of view. Red is the color of leadership.

On the other hand, an excess of red can negatively affect a person’s behavior and psycho-emotional state. Aggression, temper, intolerance, and jealousy may appear. Therefore, red should be used in moderation.

Psychologists say that the effect of this color is best in the morning - red helps to wake up, cheer up and recharge with energy. It should also be used in situations where you need to show fortitude, ambition and determination.

But red is not only about masculinity, confidence and vigor. This is also the erotic sphere - love, passion, pleasure. Therefore, this color is often used in the design of logos of companies that want to evoke similar emotions in the audience. Let's take a closer look at how the color red is perceived in business.

The meaning of red for business

Given the powerful energy of the color red and the power of its influence on the audience, it is important to understand all the advantages and risks of its use.

1. Positive Perceptions in Business: Powerful, strong, energetic, fast, passionate, desirable, lusted after, bold, courageous, attention-grabbing, motivating, stimulating, relentless, exciting, exciting, exciting, warm, spontaneous, assertive and confident.
2. Negative perceptions in business: aggressive, angry, domineering, despotic, tiresome, short-tempered, irritable, merciless, cruel, scary, intolerant, rebellious, obstinate, stubborn, touchy, vindictive, ruthless.

Let us remind you that red can cause negative emotions only if there is an excess or the wrong shade is selected. When properly balanced, it brings out the best in people.

Let's look at how different shades of red can be perceived.

		Bright red is the most intense color. It has a powerful stimulating power, stimulates the brain and improves mood. Associated with leadership, strength and powerful energy. It is perceived as a hot and passionate color, sometimes as aggressive and warlike.
		Dark red is a rich, dense color. It evokes associations with something hot, tasty, spicy. It can be perceived as a tense and heavy color and cause aggression.
		Purple is the color of strength and power. Due to the presence of blue pigment, it does not cause sexual arousal and rather has a calming effect. Inspires confidence, nobility, dignity and greatness.
		Blue-pink is the color of good luck. This is a very gentle and playful shade that creates an atmosphere of southern fun, celebration and carefree happiness. May be perceived as frivolous. This shade represents sexual temptation.
		Wine is an incredibly deep, rich and complex color. This is the unknown, mystery, prohibition and understatement. Creates a feeling of majesty, but can be perceived as heavy. This is a sophisticated and sophisticated shade.
		Raspberry is the color of style and refined taste. A very “lively” shade that is associated with femininity, warmth, fruit, youth and beauty.
		Carrot is the color of joy. It has positive energy and does not put pressure on the psyche. Associated with femininity, sophistication and good nature.

As you can see, the perception of red depends on the chosen shade. If you need to convey a feeling of warmth, passion, excitement, use red with a dash of orange. If you want to make a calmer, more majestic and confident impression, your palette should contain a blue undertone.

Red office color: influence and relationship with business

Each type of business can be attributed to one of five elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Wood or Metal. Considering that red and all its shades are the color of the fire element, it is logical to use it for the relevant areas of business. Fire includes all types of business related to creating an image and holding events. These could be wedding, advertising, modeling, branding agencies, cinema, media, etc. This element also includes all businesses related directly to fire, heat and energy: air travel, energy companies, heating, steel and oil refining production, finance, etc. And of course, the element of fire and the color red are integral elements of everything related to erotic and love spheres. These could be dating sites, marriage agencies, sex shops, lingerie stores, strip bars, and so on. This also includes tango, salsa and rumba lessons - they have the energy of fire and passion. In fact, the element of Fire and the color red are suitable for any type of activity that requires such powerful energy and dedication. Why is this important to consider when creating a logo, corporate identity and office design? Because the right element and its color help characterize the business. Then clients will understand at the subconscious level what your company does and what qualities are inherent in it. Agree, in a world of fierce market competition, this is especially important. After all, buyers often choose a certain company or product unconsciously, guided only by their liking for packaging and corporate identity.

How is the color red perceived around the world?

The perception of the color red in different countries is ambiguous - the differences can be dramatic.

North America - Valentine's Day, love, romance, warmth. To Native Americans, red signifies success, triumph and sacred fire.

Latin America - religion, traditions, rituals. In a religious context, it must be complemented with white.

Ukraine is the color of love, joy, vitality and blood ties. Widely used in clothing and interior design. Associated with celebration, strength, activity and warmth, masculinity. This is a sacred color.

South Africa is the color of mourning, funeral processions, grief and sadness.

Nigeria is the color of leaders. Used exclusively in ceremonies and sacred rites.

Russia is the color of beauty and youth. Often used in various ceremonies. May be associated with communism.

Japan and China are the color of good luck, holidays, celebrations, vital energy, happiness, longevity. Traditional color of the bride's wedding dress. Purple is considered the imperial color in Japan.

Attitudes towards the color red in different countries must be taken into account when creating a logo design for foreign companies or goods for export. In the future, this will avoid cognitive and cultural dissonance. It will also help you communicate with foreign audiences in a language they understand.

Which business suits a red logo?

Many companies dream of a red logo, trying to show the audience strength, passion, and power. But the color red does not always evoke precisely these emotions, because it has a downside to perception. Sometimes it is read negatively, causing fear, irritation, anger, rage or aggression in the viewer. Therefore, it must be used very carefully, in no case abusing it. Red can evoke a huge number of feelings and emotions, so you need to clearly understand what kind of reaction you want to achieve from the audience.

For example, red is great if you want to encourage people to take action or evoke strong associations. At the same time, you must be willing to take risks and repel possible aggression. But even if you are ready for all this, a red logo may still not suit your company, because in some areas of business such an effect is completely inappropriate. First, let's look at what kind of business a red logo suits well.

Food and drink – Hunger, desire

There are a huge number of food logos made in red. This is perhaps one of the most popular colors in this area. Why is it used so often? It's simple: red stimulates the appetite, evokes a strong desire (in this case, to eat) and encourages purchase. Due to its high intensity, the red logo leaves virtually no time for buyers to think and no chance to leave empty-handed.

Digital and Media – Bold Solutions

Red logos in the field of digital technology and IT are very popular. It is obvious that with the help of color, company creators are trying to show the power of new technologies, the ability to make bold decisions and unbridled energy. Also, the red color of the logo conveys a feeling of passion and love for one’s business. The media sector can also be included in this category.

Cars – Masculinity, power

The love for red is no exception among global automakers. The red color of the logo allows you to convey the feeling of the car’s power and the coolness of its owner. Such logos attract attention, stimulate purchases, make people want to own a car, and show passion and strength.

Fast food - Appetite

The world's largest fast food restaurant chains chose red for their logos and they were absolutely right. What could be better associated with hunger, speed, strong desire, love of food and a hot stove on which delicious dishes are cooked without stopping than the color red? In addition, many people look at fast food not just with a desire to kill hunger, but with real lust. So why not go all in and use this bold and eye-catching color in your logo?

Clothing Brands – Attracting Attention

Clothing brands often use red to attract customers' attention and encourage them to make purchases. This works especially well with spontaneous purchases. In short, whoever bets on red wins.

Products for men – Brutality

Considering that red is the color of strength, power and courage, it is ideal for logos of traditionally masculine products. Such logos unambiguously convey all these feelings and character traits characteristic of men. Using the image of a tough macho is great for sales - who doesn’t want to conquer women with just one look.

Dating sites, lingerie brands – Love, passion, erotica

There are many types of businesses that need to demonstrate love or passion, give erotic and sexual overtones, show attraction and desire. These could be lingerie stores/brands, sex shops, dating sites. We’ll tactfully keep silent about the other participants in the “love” industry, but you can figure it out for yourself. Of course, most of these companies use red and its most saturated shades. Because red is the color of passion, and no other color can convey this feeling better.

Which business does NOT suit a red logo?

The answer is quite obvious: one who should not demonstrate strength, passion, brutality, and so on. Basically, these are brands that emphasize peace of mind, confidence and security. By the way, if a company focuses on intelligence and the ability to make informed decisions, rather than on feelings and impulsiveness, then red will not work either. Airlines Most airlines in their logos try to demonstrate as much as possible the reliability and safety of their flights. As you understand, red is inappropriate here, at least as a main shade. Look at the disturbing message the logos of famous airlines would send if they were made entirely in red.

Science, technology, IT

In these areas of business, red logos are extremely rare. This is explained by the positioning of such companies and their desire to demonstrate high intelligence, innovation, confidence, stability, and calm. Of course, red is not very suitable for this purpose. See what it would look like:

Social media

In addition to positive qualities and emotions, the color red symbolizes danger and anxiety. Actually, this is what he is associated with in the first place. Agree, these are not at all the feelings that a person needs when filling out a profile on a social network with his personal data. Moreover, the color red can cause aggression and anger, which is not very appropriate for communication on social networks.

Hygiene products

There is hardly a person who associates the color red with health, hygiene and self-care. For men's products in this category, red is even more or less applicable as a demonstration of strength and masculinity. But in logos for women's products, red would look at least strange. And in some cases, downright repulsive.

When choosing a red color for your logo, be vigilant and make sure that it suits the type of activity of your company and gives the right message to the audience. Better yet, entrust the development of your logo design to the professionals of the WeLoveBrands studio. Our designers will determine exactly which logo color is ideal for your company.

What color to complement the red logo: the best color combinations

It would seem that there is nothing difficult in choosing a color pair for red. After all, whatever color you take - yellow, black, purple, green, blue, white - red will go perfectly with each of them. This may be true if you take only pure colors. And if we consider the shades? Then the task no longer seems so simple. After all, incorrectly selected shades “kill” each other and make a negative impression on a person. But there are three combinations with red that we consider simply ideal. These are win-win options that always look impressive and at the same time harmonious.

		Rich dark red + white
A classic combination that never loses its relevance. This is always a bright tandem that attracts the attention of the audience. Many people refuse this combination in the logo because they believe that it is associated only with the Red Cross or the Swiss flag. But actually it is not. The combination of dark red and white gives a feeling of strength, powerful energy and encourages action. This is a versatile option that remains timeless.
		Red + blue
The combination is quite difficult to perceive, since both colors are very intense and at the same time belong to opposite palettes and have completely different energies. That is why red and blue logos attract attention faster than others and are best remembered.
		Red + yellow
The combination is very bright, dynamic, flashy. It’s almost impossible to ignore red and yellow logos – they always catch your eye. With the right selection of shades, you can create a very warm, kind and cheerful logo.

Current shades of red for logos

The red color in the logo has long been a classic of corporate design. But what to do if you need to create not a classic, but a stylish, youthful, fashionable image? Of course, use different shades of red. After all, there are so many of them, and they all provide enormous scope for imagination and an endless number of bright combinations. But be careful! The color red is very intense and can cause both powerful positive and negative reactions in people. We have selected 4 of the most current shades of red, which are used in logo design and which evoke only positive associations. If you want to choose a win-win option, then one of them is definitely a must-have for you.

To choose the one hundred percent correct shade of red that will clearly convey the desired message and emotions to your target audience, you should entrust this matter to specialists - designers from the WeLoveBrands studio. Look at what red logos we have already made for other companies:

We know which shades are responsible for love, strength, brutality, passion, desire, appetite, courage, courage and even sex (believe me, it also has “its own” shade of red). And remember: the color red is dangerous, so it’s better to protect yourself and entrust logo design to professionals.