Innovation begins with… (no, not with an idea, nor with an invention)
Where does innovation start? You can find all kinds of complicate theories on that, but it is simple: innovation starts with observation.
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Brand colors IRL: the Coca-Cola case
After having seen how my color memory messed up with a package of Kellogg’s, I thought that it happened again when the cans of Coca-Cola seemed much lighter and a bit more yellowish than usual. So, I thought I had another nice example of how my color memory failed. Until…
Are professionals better at judging color? (you might not like the answer…)
Are professionals better at judging color? Your immediate response will probably be: “Of course, they’re professionals!” It would seem no more than logical. But based on some tests, the answer might not be that straight forward… And I guess not everybody will like what I’m going to show you in…
Brand Colors IRL: The Kellogg’s Case (II)
When I went shopping some time ago, I noticed that a box of Kellogg’s Special K Fruits looked very different to me. The red in the logo looked much lighter than usual. So – contrary to what the average consumer would do according to some people – I would certainly…
Printing Industry Profitability: update
These are my favorite statistics: the financial ratios derived from the annual accounts that companies are required to file. The most recent figures were published earlier this week, time for an update. And this time, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. CONTENTS: Net operating margin printing industry | All…
Brand colors IRL: the Kelloggs’ case (I)
Kellogg’s is launching new packaging for several of its products. Well, at least in my country. With both old and new types of packaging next to each other on the shelves, it’s an interesting topic for a new episode of ‘brand colors in real life’. And the redesign is also…
New survey: the influence of color deviations, damaged packages on shopping behavior and brand loyalty
The package of a product is important: it not only ships and protects products, it also conveys the identity of a brand. Brands are very proud of their unique brand image, they demand no less than perfect packages on the shelves in the supermarket. But how do consumers look at…
“Color increases brand recognition by 80%”: the real contents of the Loyola study revealed
“Color increases brand recognition by 80%”, it’s a quote that is often used in the printing industry, e.g. to demand super tight tolerances in print production. I went on a search to find the original study, to know what was tested and how. It was a long search. Eventually, I…
CONFIRMED: our color memory is seriously flawed (and what this means for brand colors)
Color is important, that’s something everyone in the printing industry agrees on. But how good are we, as human beings, when dealing with color? In this article, I will discuss two studies. The first concluded that our color memory is biased, even when the reference color is still visible. And…
Where ICC color management can (still) go wrong: the blue to purple conversion
It has been an interesting week. Tuesday my newspaper had an article on the (in)famous Yves Klein Blue. But the printed color was purple… Later this week, I noticed some images with better conversions, but with others, it was the same issue again. When it comes to converting blue from…
Brand colors IRL: the Red Cross case
At the end of the year, I receive lots of letters. From charities to be precise. And the one that stands out – from a color perspective – is the one from the Red Cross. Next to the envelope and letter, there is also a leaflet and a small agenda…
Brand colors IRL: creating better brand guides, as research shows most are flawed
In case you wondered: I’m not the only one with a special interest for brand colors in real life. Recently I came across two research papers by Michael Abildgaard Pedersen from the Danish School of Media and Journalism, examining both brand colors / brand guides (300+ / 156) and print…
Your Color Guide and You: first results
In my previous article, I discussed the tolerances that the tools used in print quality control have. At least: in theory. To check this in practice, I launched a survey: ‘Your color guide and You’. The goal was to get an idea of how people use color guides in daily…
Brand color quality in print: the chain of tool tolerances
Color is probably the main quality criterium when dealing with print. And lower deviations are better, leading to some people demanding, defending a delta E 2000 of 2 for brand colors. But this raises a few questions, among which what the reference is and how reliable that reference is. And…
Your Pantone color guide and you: a new color research
Would you like to be part of an interesting, crowdsourced color research? Then I have a few questions for you. I would like to get a better understanding of the use of Pantone guides. With a dominant position, you can’t neglect these guides. But usage can differ: some only use…