Helping Customers with Colors

I frequently have customers who want help in selecting colors. While I shy away from offering too much advice, helping customers select colors is one way to differentiate your company.

This requires some knowledge of color theory. Understanding how colors interact, their psychological impacts, and other factors can help you direct the customer to a wise color choice. While color preferences are a personal matter, there is nothing wrong with providing assistance to the customer.

There are many ways to do this. Most paint manufacturers now have on line programs to help with color selection. Certainly, the old fashioned way—fans decks and other color samples—works as well.

We often provide larger color samples when a customer has narrowed their choice. We generally do these samples on 6” x9” cards. The cards allow the customer to see how the color will look on different walls, different lighting, etc. It is more convenient for everyone as well—the samples can be done in our warehouse, so we do not need access to the customer’s home.

With rare exceptions, we charge for color samples. A minimal charge does 2 things—it compensates us for the time and materials used, and it prevents the customer from asking for dozens of samples.

© BEP Enterprises Incorporated 2008