6 Tips For TikTok Videos
Although TikTok was released in 2016, it has grown to become one of the world’s best-loved social media apps. With over 1 billion users and over 2 billion downloads across 150 countries (175 million in the US), TikTok has a lot to offer your brand. This is particularly true if your brand’s target audience is between 13 and 40 – thanks to the unparalleled appeal TikTok has to the younger generation.
But as with all social media platforms, the competition for users’ attention is fierce. With access to countless videos, you have to upload video content that will grab your audience’s attention if you want to remain relevant. In this post, we explore some tips we’ve learned at The Real Social Company for creating engaging TikTok videos.
Understanding TikTok’s Algorithm
Having a solid grasp of TikTok’s algorithm will give you an idea of the kind of videos that are more likely to go viral.
The great thing about TikTok is you don’t have to build your followership before you can reach out to tons of people. When you upload a video, TikTok shows it to 100 – 500 random users in popular videos. TikTok uses this sample space to gauge the engagement on your video in terms of likes, comments, downloads, and shares it receives. Based on this, the algorithm gives your video a velocity score.
If your video receives up to 20% likes and a 60% completion rate (completion rate is the percentage of people that watched your video till the end), your video gets pushed to more people. Conversely, poor performance means that your video will be recommended to fewer people. This highlights the importance of creating engaging videos on TikTok.
Before You Begin – Choose a Niche
This is one of the golden rules we inform our clients about at The Real Social Company. Being all over the place is the recipe for disaster as you make it difficult for your audience to know what you’re all about.
Therefore, you have to clearly define what you want to achieve on TikTok. You also have to define who your ideal audience is. Once you’ve finalized that, you can easily create videos that will appeal to them. For optimal results, it’s best if your niche aligns with your skill sets.
Tips for TikTok Videos
Here are six main tips for creating TikTok videos that are guaranteed to inspire meaningful interaction with users.
#1 Use a Catchy Intro
If there’s anything this younger generation is known for, it’s their short attention span. If your video doesn’t get them hooked within the first three seconds, you can be assured that it will get closed. But who can blame them? From the moment users open the app, there are hundreds of videos to choose from their For You page, so every second of your audience’s time counts!
Grabbing your audience’s attention requires you to be creative. Common strategies brands and influencers use is to start the video with catchy music, a title that incites curiosity, or a promise of what to expect. Some employ a comedic feel – maybe funny-looking filters.
If you’re able to gain your audience’s attention in the first three seconds, then you’re more likely to get them to watch your video till the end.
#2 The Shorter The Better
TikTok recently extended the video limit to 60 seconds. But remember your main audience is likely in their 20s. This means their attention span is painfully short. When discussing TitTok’s algorithm, you saw how completion rate plays an important role in how your video’s performance is scored.
A simple strategy to keep your completion rate high is to make your videos short and sweet. Anywhere from 9 to 15 seconds is the sweet spot. Making your videos short forces you to condense your ideas, focusing on the most important aspects. This is good for your audience, who are always on the go.
#3 Know Your Audience
Have you ever seen an older person trying to watch a viral video but doesn’t get it? This highlights how different demographics have different values, thought processes, and buying habits, among many other attributes.
As we’ve previously stated, TikTok users are predominantly young. For instance, 60% of US TikTok users are aged between 16 and 24. Therefore, your brand’s message must be tailored to appeal to a younger audience.
However, age is only one factor to consider. You also need to thoroughly research your audience so you can explore other factors. This enables you to hone in on what they want – and you can easily follow suit.
#4 Think Broadly
While it’s important to have the picture of your ideal viewer in mind, you also want to ensure that your video is consumable for the generic TikTok user pool because of how TitTok works. As identified earlier, TitTok’s algorithm doesn’t restrict your videos to only your followers. Since any user can potentially see your video, your video must be appealing to the larger TikTok audience.
This explains why campaigns like the lip flip challenge were successful. Anyone could participate in them! The goal is to create videos that are broad enough for everyone to view, but specific enough to your niche. This requires work and imagination.
#5 Be Flexible and Spontaneous
New trends come out of TikTok daily. When trying to develop your campaigns, try to see if you can develop new trends to kick off your campaigns. Staying ahead of current trends can be difficult, but what’s easier to do is piggybacking on current trends and adapting them to your campaign. TikTok is about keeping up with trends while being a trend-setter yourself. But all these require great flexibility and spontaneity.
#6 Focus on User-Generated Content
What sets TitTok apart from other social media platforms is that it allows users to interact with the videos of others in a personalized way – TikTok challenges are a testament to that.
Therefore, you have to think outside of the box when spreading your brand’s message or starting a challenge. You want it to be broad and brief so that it leaves enough space for creativity on the part of your audience. This, in turn, leads to higher engagement. www.therealsocialcompany.com
