What Does The Color Green Mean?

A few weeks ago we shared our thoughts about color psychology and the meaning of red.

The bottom line is that most of what you read about color isn’t based on science. In fact, a lot of the thinking about color seems to be pulled out of thin air. Or worse.

Like the stuff that’s been said about the color green. We did a quick Google search and grabbed a few quoted from pages that appear in the search results for the meaning of the color green:

“Green is the color of balance and harmony… it is the great balancer of the heart and emotions…”

“Since the beginning of time, green has signified growth, rebirth, and fertility.”

“Certain mid-range greens increase appetite.”

Where to start?

How exactly does green balance the heart? Or the emotions?

Since the beginning of time… can we see the documentation on this? Was anyone actually present at the beginning of time to see that green signified growth or rebirth?

And while we’re at it, can someone please show us the science behind the idea that the color green can increase appetite? As we wrote about the color red: there is simply no scientific evidence to back up claims like this (unless you’re a fish).

Does anyone else get the feeling that this stuff was written by dial-a-psychic, Miss Cleo?

Maybe you’ve seen an infographic with a section like this:

 

If green is associated with the harmony of nature, why is one of the logos a robot that symbolizes Google’s mobile operating system? What’s natural about that? If the whole green means nature thing is right, Google’s choice of green for their logo is terrible.

Okay, so green does have a strong connection to nature. And recycling. But that doesn’t mean that using green in your logo will make people think about nature when they see it.

Color doesn’t work that way. Do any of these logos make you think of nature? Or harmony?

Not really. Because none of these products are natural or have anything to do with harmony. You associate the logo and its color with the product or service offered by the company. Even when the product has nothing to do with the supposed meaning of the color used.

Yes, there are hundreds of logos for natural products that use green. But that doesn’t mean that if you use green in your logo, people will automatically associate it with nature.

Just ask BP.