MBD106: Colors for Brands (Taylor's Version)

24 August 2025 | Issue #106

In this issue:

Why Color Matters to Your Brand
Calendly -> TidyCal
Use Creativity to Stand Out from AI
Is Nano Banana the Next Great Image Generator?
95% of AI Pilots are Failing
Free shipping on The Visual Marketer
Design Quote of the Week

The Strategic Power of Color in Branding

When Taylor Swift announced The Life of a Showgirl, the internet turned orange. Brands from across industries temporarily swapped their logos for glittery orange versions, filling feeds with a visual wave that was impossible to ignore. Some observers called it cringe. Others praised it as clever. Regardless of opinion, the reaction underscored one truth: color is one of the most powerful tools in branding.

Why color is a brand’s shortcut to the brain

Color does more than decorate a brand. It serves as the quickest and most memorable signal of identity. Research shows that consistent branding increases value by as much as 20 percent. That consistency often starts with color, because our brains process visuals far faster than words.

If you can bypass the stage where someone has to figure out who you are, you have more time to get your message across.

Coca-Cola’s red, McDonald's' golden arches, and Facebook's F icon are not just design choices. They are visual anchors that carry meaning, memory, and emotion. They work because they do not change. The repetition builds recognition, and recognition builds trust. In my book, The Visual Marketer, I go into detail about companies that have trademarked their colors. There is a way to literally "own" a color.

Taylor Swift’s masterclass in visual eras

Taylor Swift understands this better than most brands. While not every album has an officially assigned color, each era has developed a strong visual identity that fans recognize instantly.

Red brought bold red lips and styling that tied directly into its name and themes of heartbreak. Reputation leaned into black, silver, and dark tones that symbolized reinvention and edge. Lover shifted into dreamy pastels, reflecting optimism and romance. Midnights came dressed in deep blues and purples, evoking late-night introspection. And now, The Life of a Showgirl has been intentionally defined by Taylor herself as “Portofino Orange Glitter.”

(Disclaimer: I have a teenage daughter)

Through these eras, color has become shorthand for an entire emotional and cultural story. Fans don’t just hear an album. They see it.

And she’s not alone. Jack White has built his own visual language across projects. The White Stripes are instantly recognizable in red and white. His solo work leans into shades of blue. The Raconteurs carry a green aesthetic. Just like Swift, White understands that music is experienced visually as much as it is sonically. Color is an anchor for the identity of each project.

Jack White album covers — Jack White color coordinates his different projects

Should brands join the sparkly orange wave?

The wave of sparkly orange logos showed how powerful cultural color shifts can be. Brands jumped in not because they wanted to change their identity, but because they wanted to be included in the conversation. Being part of the hot-take articles, the writeups, and the memes was the reward.

This kind of trend-hopping can be valuable. And it's fun! It signals cultural awareness, earns visibility, and creates a sense of belonging. The risk comes when brands confuse a temporary moment with their long-term identity. If you replace your anchor with whatever is trending, you weaken recognition.

BErands jumping on the Showgirl bandwagon — Jumping on the glittery orange bandwagon

The real lesson for brand leaders

The best strategy is to establish anchors first. Your brand’s colors should be as recognizable as Coca-Cola red or Swift’s Reputation black. Once those anchors are firmly in place, you can play with cultural trends. Temporary remixes work when they are layered on top of a consistent identity, not when they replace it.

Strong visual guidelines give you the flexibility to experiment while protecting the trust and recognition your brand has earned . That is why brands with established colors can afford to dip into sparkly orange for a week and then return to their base palette without losing equity.

But you have to establish the visual brand first. I'm only five or six issues into the rebrand of Marketing by Design. I'm still trying to teach you that when you see the bright CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) images, it means you're looking at the new issue of Marketing by Design. This visual brand isn't established enough to play with new colors. Otherwise, I would have had a glittery orange graphic for this week's newsletter.

It would fit for the story, but it would damage the work I'm doing to establish my visual brand.

More than decoration

Taylor Swift has proven that color is not decoration. It is strategy. Her ability to tie color to emotion and identity across her eras is a lesson for every marketer. Brands that balance consistency with cultural agility will not only stay relevant but also build the kind of trust and recognition that lasts long after the trends fade.

TOOLS

Last year, I switched from Calendly to TidyCal, and it's one of the best decisions I made for my business. Instead of paying Calendly every month, I paid a one-time price to get lifetime access to TidyCal. It ties into my calendars and my video conferencing systems. It's all automated at this point.

TidyCal books appointments, sends reminders, and has all of the info I need to manage my calendar. Highly recommended!

NEWS AT THE INTERSECTION OF MARKETING, DESIGN, & AI

Creative Takes Hard Work, and it's the Way to Stand Out from AI

I stopped watching Gary Vee stuff a while ago, but this video is good.

Watch now

Is Nano Banana The Next Great Image Generator?

Frank Prendergast ran some tests, and the results are impressive.

MIT Report: 95% of Generative AI Pilots at Companies are Failing

We're heading toward the trough of disillusionment.

Want to See What the Web Used to Look Like?

Fun trip down a table-based memory lane.

THE VISUAL MARKETER

Since CEX was a major inspiration for my book, and the event is starting now, I'm offering free shipping if you buy The Visual Marketer (paperback) from my site.

Use promo code: CUXGY5QQ

RECENT AND UPCOMING ENGAGEMENTS

By the time you read this, I'll be in Cleveland for the Content Entrepreneur Expo. This will be my 4th CEX, and I can't wait to catch up with the folks who inspired me to write The Visual Marketer. Plus, I'll be part of the Author Alley, where I'll do a book signing session!

If you're looking for podcast guests, or want to collaborate on something, shoot me a DM.

DESIGN QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Thinking about design is hard, but not thinking about it can be disastrous.” – Ralph Caplan

My AI disclaimer: I used ChatGPT to help write the main story. If AI generates the images, I include the prompt so you can see how I got to that image.