New to TikTok? Here's 5 Things You Should Know

Running social accounts when the world is in crisis mode is TOUGH. So when the world feels heavy, there’s a platform that is a bit lighter, and likely is guaranteed to make you smile: TikTok.

If you aren’t familiar, TikTok is a social app that allows brands to engage with users through video in bite-sized clips for up to one minute. Many small businesses want to run when they hear the word “video,” but I promise it is much simpler than it sounds.

With nearly 800 million users, TikTok is gaining momentum quickly, especially amongst young adults, which make up 69% of users. The rising numbers don’t lie: Now is the time to give to the platform a shot if it makes sense for your business.

Many adults know TikTok for teen comedy bits and coordinated dancing, but as long as you have access to video, there is plenty of opportunity to have a little fun or even share quick blips of relevant information for your business.

Obviously well-loved brands and celebs on social sites such as Instagram are ultimately going to see success simply because they have the resources to do so. One of the most appealing parts of TikTok is how beautifully curated content isn’t key, in fact, it’s the opposite! Creativity is king and the “come as you are” mindset we all got comfortable with while sheltering-in-place is the vibe.

With that said, this isn’t the place to share a clip of a CEO speaking or an ad that took eons of time and money to create in a beautiful studio. This is a huge bonus to small business owners. This is the platform to have fun and share your brand’s authentic voice.

Our team at Hay There Social Media is getting creative for our clients using this platform and learning more by the day.

Here are 5 things to know before you dive in:

The platform itself has built-in editing features that are simple and intuitive to use. There are tons of effects, text, greenscreen options, recording tools, and more. We encourage you to keep “less is more” in mind when starting out.
The “For You Page” (FYP) will be the default each time you open the app. This section features trends and is a way for people to explore content. This is the primary place people hang versus where those they follow are. In other words, people view content that is not just from those they follow, which is a MAJOR difference compared to other social networks. With that said, you do NOT need to have followers to have your content be seen. This is such a HUGE benefit to businesses ready to dive in. You can create at the same time as building an audience.
There are some easy ways to get views — use the top song or audio of the day, include trending hashtags, or jump onboard with trending challenges if they are relevant to your business (ex: Chipotle’s #GuacDance challenge).
It’s easy to share videos to other platforms with the click of a button. If you are just in the experimenting phase of using TikTok, why not try sharing the video to Instagram stories or Facebook? It’s an easy way to gain followers, and most platforms love video in their algorithm.
TikTok shows how many times a post was reviewed and gives feedback for the duration of the viewings. Businesses can immediately see insights, which helps plead the case for future videos if it’s a success.

Overall, TikTok is likely an app that isn’t going away anytime soon. In the spirit of trying something new to yield new results, why not give it a try? Our team is here to help navigate and create should you need help!

Have you used TikTok for your business? What successes have you seen?