QCQ: “Odd Color Names Offer a Primer in Marketing”
“[After making fun of a color named Genteel Lavender] she did pause at a color named Lightweight Beige, and soon she was telling a story about when her parents met.”
I totally understand where this woman, Taryn Look, is coming from. Two days ago I was in home depot looking for a pretty green to paint part of my kitchen. I was making a joke to my partner about how I could like a color, but if I didn’t like the title, I would never buy it. In this case, the prettiest green was called “four leaf clover.” I didn’t buy it because what if I painted my wall that color and someone walked into my home and made fun of me?
“Seriously? Four Leaf Clover? Are you some kind of leprechaun?”
I couldn’t risk it. I bought “Spring Glow.” Spring reminds me of flowers and fairies, and the word glow makes me think of light and beauty. Maybe my kitchen will make someone feel like they are in a fairy meadow instead of calling me a leprechaun.
Jokes aside, I do think paint names influence my purchases. Like Taryn Look, I do let the names of these paints carry me off into an internal narrative when they are creative. “Rose quartz” is seen everywhere, and I think of the color and move on. There’s no emotional connection in it for me. If there was a color named “Cat nose,” instead of “Light pink,” I wouldn’t be able to resist. I would think of my late cat and how beautiful it would be for my home to reflect the biggest love in my life. I do think the connections one makes with a color make a big difference, and the titles giving a starting point only encourages these connections, and I think that’s beautiful. Who wouldn’t want their home’s color to be deeply connected to a fond personal memory? There is however always a risk that someone will make a negative connection. I think the possibility of someone turning their house into a home is worth the risk of someone NOT buying “cat nose” because they have a fear of cats, for example.
Is there a color name that would dissuade you from buying a color you like? In other words, could the knowledge of a color’s name ever outweigh how much you like a color?
Here is Spring Glow next to Four Leaf Clover.
It’s objectively less pretty than four leaf clover. But that’s okay with me!
