The Impact Of Color And Its Different Associations In Multicultural Marketing By Cindy King

An earlier series of a Newsletter included articles on how to culturally customize your website. The first feature article focused on the choice of color and their different meanings in different cultures.
As this subject interests most readers, I have completed the list of colors here to keep as a reference in the Multicultural Marketing 101 Guide found on my site along with other useful Guides.
The use of color plays a role in cross culturalmunication.
Some Cultures Have Richer Vocabularies For Colors
First let's look at the different numbers of words in different vocabularies.
Some languages have a wider choice of words to describe certain colors. These words may actually refer to very different shades or variations of a color.
Different cultures pay more attention to the variations of certain colors. Here are some examples:
Eskimos have many different words to describe snow and its color. In India the different variations of the color brown are described with precision. Color Associations
Colors can be used to express emotions in most cultures. And these colors change and are associated with different colors depending on the culture.
Here are some associations frequently made with colors in different countries.
Black
According to Wikipedia itmonly represents lack, evil, darkness, bad luck, crime, mystery, silence, concealment, execution, end, chaos, death, and secrecy Germany - Death, grief, rebellion, cool, hopelessness and formality Mexico - Mourning and respect United States - Death, sophistication and formality United Kingdom - Death, formality, doubt, ignorance, and uncertainty. Japan - nobility, age, and experience Blue
According to Wikipedia itmonly represents ice, water, sky, cold, calm, and sadness Germany - Loyalty and formality Greece - National pride India - Heavens, love and truth Israel - Holiness Scandinavia - Cleanliness United States - Justice and official business Green
According to Wikipedia itmonly represents nature, growth, hope, youth, sickness, health, go, Islam, environmentalism and envy Arab Middle East - Holiness Africa - 20 of the 53 African countries have Green in their flags, which is one of the Pan African colors Egypt - Fertility Germany - Hope and Conservation Ireland - Nationalism and Catholicism Malaysia - Danger associated with forest and diseases. United States - Safety and Money Purple
According to Wikipedia itmonly represents royalty, funk, nobility, and upper class Italy - Color of the church, authority Latin America - Death United States - Nobility, law and bravery Red
According to Wikipedia itmonly represents aggression, courage, guilt, energy, passion, anger, fire, socialism, sacrifice, sin, violence, negative, and warning Africa - Death and bloodshed - 24 of the 53 African countries have Red in their flags, which is one of the Pan African colors China -munism, celebration, good luck, joy, courage, loyalty, honor, success, fortune, fertility, happiness, passion, and summer Greece - Love and good luck India - Birth, fertility, traditional bridal dress color, wealth and beauty Central Africa - life and health Mexico - Religion and vibrancy Scandinavia - Strength United Kingdom Authority, government and power United States - Warning, lust, passion, love, beauty, spicy, sin, courage and sacrifice White
According to Wikipedia itmonly represents lack, snow, purity, ice, peace, nothing, frost, and air Africa - Victory and purity China - Death, mourning and purity India - Death, rebirth, serenity, purity, sacredness, peace and mourning Ireland - peace between Catholics and Protestants United States - Virginity, peaceful intent Western cultures - Purity Yellow
According to Wikipedia itmonly represents age/aging, jealousy, cowardice, happiness, sunshine, the Orient Germany - Envy and jealousy India -merce Israel - Saintliness Scandinavia - Warmth United States - Visibility, caution, faith, jaundice and cowardice Colorbinations
Certain colorbinations have meanings too. Here are a few examples:
Black on red - symbolizes happiness in China Red on white - symbolizes celebration in Japan Color Associations With Other Words
Colors can be associated with people and different things.
Red
In Japanese red is associated with being:
sincere of heart or "red heart" a perfect stranger or "red stranger" stark naked or "red naked" Blue
In Japanese blue is associated with:
"a blue- eyed outsider" is a white Caucasian "blue breath" is an anxious sigh "a blue things shop" is a vegetable shop "a blue tower" is a brothel Black
In German black is associated with:
"to drive black" is to drive without a license "a black seer" is someone who has a television but doesn't pay the TV license and it also refers to a pessimist. the color of prestige: for example, limousines are usually in black. "a black sender" refers to a private broadcasting station Use This As A Basic Introduction To Color
Find out if there is a strong cultural association with certain colors in your target country.
The best way to verify the right use of colors is to have your website and cross culturalmunication materials reviewed by an appropriate person in your target country.
Most of the time you will not need any further help with color associations. When in doubt ask for professional cultural marketing advice.
Source For This Article
This article is largely inspired by the book The Culturally Customized Web Site by Nitish Singh & Arun Pereira, published in 2005, with some of my own personal knowledge and online resources.
I am a little weary as to the value of current associations with some of the colors as referenced in this book. Color associations can lose their power, become out-dated and new cultural associations can be created.
Some of the color associations are not all- encompassing - you can still use these colors in other circumstances without an automatic association. But you should give particular consideration if you refer to a topic directly associated with a color. Look at the associations for yellow in the United States.
This book is the best reference source I havee across on the meanings of colors. I highly recommend reading it if you are interested in customizing your any of yourmunication to different cultures, online or offline.
Get Current Color Interpretations
Society evolves and so do color associations in most countries. Use this list of color associations as a very broad guideline.
If you are creating a localized website or culturally customized content for a specific country, it is always best to get appropriate professional feedback on your choice of colors.
There is more than the simple choice of colors. Different cultures have different tastes. What works well in one country may have disastrous results in another country - even if the colors are "right".
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