Perception:  Are We Missing the Obvious?

Students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign did a study on perceptual abilities using a video that shows two teams of students (one dressed in black and one dressed in white) throwing a ball between the team members.  The study asked you to watch the video and count the number of times the team in white tossed the ball.

I did the test and counted 14 passes between the white team members.  I then clicked on the link to find out if my answer was correct, the site then asked me if I saw the gorilla in the video.  So I went back, watched the video again, looking for the gorilla this time, and noticed him as plain as day.  I hadn’t noticed him before.  I was so focused on the task at hand, that I failed to see something so obviously out-of-place as a gorilla … a very powerful lesson, indeed.

Perception and Design

In the world of design, we need to be extra careful that we don’t miss the little things.  It isn’t just about the logo or the look or layout; we have to remember that it is all the pieces together.  If you aren’t constantly aware of all the pieces, it becomes easy to get wrapped up in how the piece looks overall that you fail to see the misspellings and other errors.  You fail to see the smaller picture.

At Full Moon Design Group, we strive hard to see the big and small pictures; and we encourage our clients to do the same.  Otherwise, you never know what you’ll miss.

Throughout history, color has been used in various ways.  The Native American Indians, as well as the Egyptians used color for healing.  Graphic design and marketing companies use color to invoke an emotion or a suggestion from their clients’ target audiences.

Choose Color Carefully

When choosing the right colors for your corporate logo or brochure design, we at Full Moon Design Group take in consideration what image you want to portray.  Colors help define how your corporation is perceived.

• Red is the most energetic and attention-getting color.  It is associated with love, danger, speed, strength, anger and violence.
• Blue is the most stable color and reflects reliability, loyalty and cleanliness.  It can actually reduce body temperature and slow down the heart rate.
• Black represents many things such as mystery, fear, power, death and wealth.  Think of common terms associated with Black, i.e. Black Monday.
• Green is considered by many as their favorite color.  It represents good luck, the environment, renewal, growth, etc.  It can, however, also represent envy and jealousy.
• Yellow represents happiness, joy and sunshine.  Too much of it, though, can cause anxiety.

The Importance of Color

Now hopefully we didn’t scare you about color and the perceptions people have of them.  Color is very important in your corporate brochures, post cards, flyers and business cards.  Color is what gets that marketing piece or promotional item off the table and into the hands of a potential customer; we just want to make sure that your color is saying the right thing about you … that’s just the kind of people we are.

*Photo by Marina Burity