What is it?
TikTok has quickly become one of the most popular social media platforms, with $1B+ billion active monthly users and 1.5B+ downloads worldwide. The platform offers businesses the unique opportunity to reach large and engaged audiences by exclusively sharing videos.
With its creative and interactive video effects and features, businesses can use TikTok and its influencers to promote their products and services. For instance, the TikTok Creator Marketplace helps businesses find and analyze an influencer’s demographics and reach. Users can also pick up your content and amplify it by sharing or using the in-built features like green screen, Duet, and Stitch.
To further help brands showcase their products and services, TikTok Shopping launched in 2021, enabling TikTok users to buy from a “shopping” tab in business profiles.
TikTok also boasts a unique algorithm different from Snapchat or Instagram. It uses feedback loops based on user interactions, video information, past behavior, and interests, in order to determine what videos to show to wider audiences.
TikTok presents an opportunity to connect with millennials and Gen Z users. Globally, 25% of TikTok users were women between 18 and 24 years old in January 2020. Another 18% were male users in the same age bracket and female users aged 25 to 34.
How do I start?
If you’re new to TikTok, here are some tips on how to get started:
- Download the app on Apple or Android and create a new personal account.
- Go to “Manage Profile” to activate a TikTok Business Account. Set up your account with your brand logo and website.
- Familiarize yourself with the app and its features. Spend time browsing, playing around with filters, adding trending music, and video editing.
- Identify your target audience. TikTok offers an easy-to-use analytics tool to gain insights on audience engagement.
- Start creating short videos on topics that are relevant to your business and audience.
- Engage with other users by liking, commenting on, and sharing their videos.
- Use hashtags and trending challenges to reach a wider audience.
- Keep your videos creative, fun, and engaging!
What to Post
TikTok is a platform where companies and influencers can have fun, be authentic, and experiment. For example, dance routines are fun, but they’re not all you can do on the platform.
How-to videos and tutorials are popular content types, and great opportunities to tap into your knowledge to help others with informative videos. Users can also experiment with the Duets feature to partner with influencers and similar brands on collaborative content.
Whether you’re interested in educational videos or enjoyable dance routines, there’s a place for your brand to shine on TikTok.
Best Practices
Here are some best practices to keep in mind when using TikTok for business:
1. Be quick to follow the trends. Users are consistently searching and watching the material listed under trending hashtags. Trends can appear and vanish in a day, so staying up with the latest trends is critical to keeping your content current and fresh. Go to the Discovery section to see the most popular trends. You can also try a service like TrendTok to spot viral trends.
2. Choose a niche. There’s an audience for anything on TikTok — focus on finding your unique audience and publish content that connects with or adds value to them.
3. Immerse yourself in the app. Browse your For You page every day, follow top influencers, listen to the most popular music, and regularly check out the newest sounds. The more time you spend on the app, the more you’ll be able to figure out why certain things work and don’t work.
4. Be aware of your filming location. You don’t need to invest in expensive equipment, but it’s important to film in well-lit spaces without lots of background noise for maximum video quality.
5. Tell a story with your videos. Create a problem or grab attention by stating an issue. Then address the problem step-by-step. Text overlays are a fantastic method with which to tell a story and pique your audience’s interest.
6. Post often to keep your audience engaged, and experiment with your posts. When you’ve found your winning combination, post as often as possible. Regular posting is likely to aid the TikTok algorithm, improving your results.
7. Don’t give up if your videos don’t get many views at first. Keep experimenting, and be persistent. Play around with what time you post to TikTok, the audio you choose, the type of videos you upload, and the style of your videos. It can take many posts before something goes viral, so keep trying.
8. TikTok provides many opporunities to be authentic with your marketing approaches, while showcasing the more “fun” side of your business. Use it as an opportunity to leverage influencer marketing to extend your reach and build lasting connections. Find people or brands to partner with for videos and campaigns.
