The color you choose for your sport team website is extremely important, and will determine its success or failure. The addition of color is more than just a cosmetic or artistic endeavor; it is a way of communicating with others. Regardless of how well designed your site may be, if it uses the wrong colors, it will communicate the wrong message. Before you begin selecting colors for your team site, there are three questions you should ask yourself. What type of sport are you portraying? What type of demographics are you reaching out to? What is the site’s main goal? We have some tips in this post that will help you answer these questions.

Select Colors Based on the Demographic You’re Targeting

Different colors appeal to people of different ages, nationalities and gender. For instance, while the color yellow may convey cowardice in North America, but in China it is considered a regal color. If your website is targeted towards team members or fans who are middle aged, you should avoid using strong contrasts in color, while young adults and teenagers prefer strong color contrasts. Young women in particular respond well to bright or vibrant colors, while older women will be turned off by them. It is also important to be sure that the color you use on your site is readable by those who are visually impaired.

The Color Should be Compatible with Your Team Image

There are certain colors or combinations that work extremely well with specific types of teams. For example, warmer colors like orange, yellow and red do well with teams that are dynamic and active. If you are using the website to represent an outdoor sport, warm colors are also highly recommended. Of course, some sports teams already have a team logo or a team color that they should adhere to. You can stick to the team color and choose other complementary colors to highlight your website even more.

The Background Color Should Complement the Content and Navigation

Most team websites feature pictures of players as well as pertinent information for their team players to see. In this case it is important to select a background that is de-saturated, that way the images will stand out from the background. Saturated backgrounds are ill advised as they tend to dominate the entire page, causing the content or images to be lost. This will make the website difficult to read and key content and images will not be effective.

Additionally, these types of sites are hard for end users to navigate. The colors used for your content and pictures should always have greater saturation than the background color. The eyes of those who visit your website will first be drawn to the areas which contain saturated colors.

Choosing the right colors for a sport team website is easy to learn but difficult to master. There are an infinite number of possibilities, and web designers are only limited by their imagination and creativity. Whatever you do, know that the colors for your site are not chosen randomly or haphazardly, but in a manner that best caters to your team and your target audience.