This week’s focus in my TikTok series on color psychology was all about grey and brown. These two colors may seem muted compared to bold primaries, but they hold a lot of meaning in psychology, branding, and design. What’s especially interesting is how trends have shifted… just a few years ago, grey dominated interiors, branding, and fashion. It was seen as sleek, modern, and minimalist. But lately, warmer tones, like browns and natural neutrals, have taken the spotlight, bringing more comfort, coziness, and organic vibes into our spaces and visuals.
Let’s break it down by color.
Grey
Posting Time: Thursday, 7:30pm EST
Video Length: 1:24 minutes
Included Sections: General Color Psychology, Graphic Design, UX/Web Design, Branding, and Interior Design (Residential)
Color Characteristics (per Color Psychology): Grey often symbolizes balance, calmness, and neutrality, but it can also evoke feelings of emptiness or indecision. It’s a color that doesn’t demand attention, which makes it versatile but sometimes perceived as dull or emotionless.
Performance Metrics:
- Views: 822
- Likes: 39
- Comments: 0
- Shares: 2
- Saves: 6
Analysis: I posted my video on the psychology of grey during a peak posting time, but it performed below expectations in terms of reach and engagement. Despite the lower engagement compared to other color videos, it still helped grow my audience, bringing in 20 new followers. In terms of retention, the average watch time was 10.7 seconds, and only 2.58% of viewers watched the video in full, showing that the content may not have been as engaging as my other posts. While the performance wasn’t as strong overall, the fact that it still converted to new followers is a positive takeaway, showing that even lower-performing videos can contribute to steady growth.
Brown
Posting Time: Friday, 8pm EST
Video Length: 1:47 minutes
Included Sections: General Color Psychology, Graphic Design, Branding, and Interior Design (Residential)
Color Characteristics (per Color Psychology’s): Brown represents stability, security, and dependability. It’s strongly tied to nature, earth, and organic warmth. While it may sometimes be overlooked as “plain,” brown has made a big comeback in both branding and design as people crave authenticity and a grounded lifestyle.
Performance Metrics
- Views: 481
- Likes: 77
- Comments: 3
- Shares: 6
- Saves: 7
Analysis: For this video I decided to post at a less popular time, which led to fewer views overall. Interestingly, though, the engagement quality was higher compared to my grey video. This post generated more likes, comments, shares, and saves, showing that while reach was limited, the content itself resonated more strongly with the viewers who did see it.
The average watch time was 13.9 seconds, which is higher than grey, but still no one watched the full video. Unlike some of my other posts, this one didn’t lead to any new followers. Still, the stronger engagement metrics suggest that the timing may have held back performance rather than the content itself.
Wrapping Up 5 Weeks of Content
With this week’s videos, I’ve officially wrapped up seven weeks of this project with a total of 11 videos and approximately 22 minutes of content. Coming into TikTok, I had zero experience creating content, but I’ve learned so much along the way. The process taught me how much detail goes into making videos that people actually watch and enjoy: things like visuals, pacing, captions, and timing really matter. Posting consistently and finding ways to keep viewers engaged have been key takeaways.
I plan to keep building on this series and see how far it can go. My goal is to grow this platform while also educating viewers about the fascinating world of color psychology. It’s been a rewarding start, and I’m excited for what’s next.
References
Van Braam, H. (2025, March 22). Gray Color Psychology and Meaning. Color Psychology. https://www.colorpsychology.org/gray/
Van Braam, H. (2025a, March 5). Brown Color Psychology and Meaning. Color Psychology. https://www.colorpsychology.org/brown/
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