Although website design usually follows brand trends for choosing a color scheme, often a designer will hype up the brand using trending colors online. Logos are usually 1-2 colors—not necessarily enough to create a dynamic website that pops to the viewer. Here are three different color palettes that I am seeing used extensively in website redesigns this fall. If you want to slightly reface your site for the holiday season, it might be worth considering one of these. Be certain it fits in your branding family, though, because if you use completely different colors on your website from print campaigns or your corporate identity it can confuse people!

Just in time for autumn, there is the warm palette which is especially in use by non-profits, restaurants, and casinos. It helps visitors feel welcomed and appreciated right away with a softness that does not seem “in your face.” If you have a gold or red logo, this might be a good one to use.

Pink is no longer just for ballet tutu sites! Hot pink and vibrant purple have been making a splash in all sorts of places, mostly in eCommerce sites. Ironically it is used more and more by corporations and insurance brokers, perhaps to add an extra punch to what is otherwise an abstract concept.

Just when we thought dark blue websites had died off, it seems that color scheme is back with a bit of orange. In the 90s when websites were first thinking about color palettes, dark blue was the official corporate color seen almost across the board. The reaction to that went on for some time in the mid 2000s but it appears the “no corporate blue” is not an issue heading toward 2012. Most sites that are using it also add an extra contrasting color such as green or the complement of blue—orange. If you have an old “corporate blue” site still hanging around this is an easy way to liven it up.