Colours
Colour is a powerful thing. It can affect attitudes and moods, and we associate certain colours with certain brands. Sometimes, it’s subconscious. That’s why it’s important that all the materials we produce use our brand colour palette—it reinforces our brand personality and helps make TRU instantly recognizable.
Colour palette
The TRU colours are inspired by our landscape. Blue, Sage, Grey and Cloud carry a quiet, calm confidence. Teal and Yellow offer punches of bright colour. Together they form our palette. View our Downloads for some examples of these colours in action.
Colour Specs
TRU Blue
PANTONE: 3035
CMYK 100/30/19/76
RGB 0/62/81
Hex: #003e51
TRU Teal
PANTONE: 7466
CMYK 86/0/32/0
RGB 0/176/185
Hex: #00b0b9
TRU Sage
PANTONE: 5565
CMYK 27/5/25/0
RGB 186/209/186
Hex: #bad1ba
TRU Grey
PANTONE: 5425
CMYK 45/16/9/24
RGB 122/153/172
#9ab7c1
TRU Yellow
PANTONE: 116
CMYK 0/18/100/0
RGB 255/205/0
Hex: #ffcd00
TRU Cloud
PMS Custom Mix
CMYK 2/2/0/0
RGB 255/245/222
Hex: #fff5de
OL Green
PMS SPOT (Colour Bridge Coated*) 3278CP
CMYK 99/0/69/0
RGB 0/177/143
Hex: #00b18f
Secondary colour palette—for web only
The secondary colour palette is only used on the web, to help distinguish elements such as buttons, Calls to Action, dividers, etc.
View the Secondary Colour Palette
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Orange
Hex: #f88f23
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Light TRU Yellow
Hex: #FFEFA9
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TRU Yellow, Semi-transparent
RGBa: 255, 205, 0, 0.7
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Dark TRU Teal
Hex: #007B81
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Light TRU Teal
Hex: #9EE1E5
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Pale TRU Teal
Hex: #E0F6F7
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TRU Teal, Semi-transparent
RGBa: 0, 176, 185, 0.7
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Grey
Hex: #ddd
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Light Grey
Hex: #e9e9e9
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Pale Grey
Hex: #f3f3f3
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Pale TRU Grey
Hex: #d5e1e5
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TRU Blue, Semi-transparent
RGBa: 0, 62, 81, 0.7
Colour usage
Using the palette
Some colours work better together than others. The combinations below illustrate which colours can be used together.
How many colours should I use?
In most cases, less is more—use two or three colours that work well together per page.
Legibility
Keep body copy in black or high contrast colours only. Yellow, Grey and Sage should only be used for large headings. Make sure there’s enough contrast between type and background colours.
Black & white
Black and white also belong in the colour palette. White can be used for backgrounds and for reversed text. Any colour in the palette works well with white. Black can be used for body text. In black and white materials, black can also be used as a background colour.
TRU Blue
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TRU Sage
OK -
White
OK -
TRU Yellow
OK -
Powder Blue
OK
Any colour in the palette works on TRU Blue.
TRU Cloud
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TRU Sage
OK -
TRU Blue
OK -
TRU Yellow
OK -
Powder Blue
OK -
TRU Teal
OK
Any colour in the palette works on TRU Cloud.
TRU Grey
-
TRU Blue
OK -
White
OK -
TRU Yellow
OK -
TRU Cloud
OK
TRU Blue, White, TRU Yellow and TRU Cloud work on Powder Blue.
TRU Teal
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TRU Blue
OK -
White
OK -
TRU Cloud
OK -
TRU Yellow
OK
TRU Blue, White, TRU Cloud and TRU Yellow work on TRU Teal.
TRU Sage
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TRU Blue
OK -
White
OK -
TRU Cloud
OK
TRU Blue, TRU Cloud and White work on TRU Sage.
White
-
TRU Sage
OK -
TRU Blue
OK -
TRU Yellow
OK -
Powder Blue
OK -
TRU Teal
OK
Any colour in the palette works on White.
Colour don'ts
Some colours don't work well together. Avoid the colour combinations shown here.
Too low-contrast
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No
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No
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No
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No
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No
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No
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No
Don’t use colours that are too low-contrast and are hard to read. In the above example, TRU Yellow vibrates on this background and shouldn't be used.
Black Headlines
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No
Don't set headlines in black, except on greyscale pieces. Black body copy is always okay.
Black background
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No
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No
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No
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No
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No
In full colour materials, avoid large areas of black—use one of the brand colours instead.
Yellow background
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No
Yellow should only be used as an accent colour—don't use it for backgrounds.
Checklist
- Use acceptable colour combinations
- Ensure type is legible
- Use no more than three colours unless the additional colours aid in communication