Are you selling the right colour? A cross-cultural review of colour as a marketing cue

Should a marketer adopt a pancultural or a culture-specific approach in using colour in marketing? This paper reviews the psychological and sociocultural associations and meanings of colour(s) in a cross-cultural marketing perspective, and outlines its role as a marketing cue. It is argued that a cross-cultural perspective of colour research and application is imperative for developing global marketing strategies, and the cultural values, marketing objectives and desired customer relationship levels would dictate the choice of colour in corporate and marketing communications in the 21st Century. IdentifYing appropriate colour-culture clusters also facilitates the development of a colour theory in marketing.