How do you get more followers on TikTok without counting on bots or buying them? It will take some work, but we will show you how to achieve that goal with several tips to grow your TikTok popularity in this social media optimization (SMO) tutorial.
How Popular Is TikTok?
Before you put in work to grow your TikTok followers so you can build your brand or business, you probably want to know if it is even worth your time. Well, since the social media platform expects to surpass 1 billion monthly active users by the end of 2021, the answer is yes, TikTok is definitely worth your time.
If you can get even a tiny fraction of those billion followers to keep an eye on your profile, you should be good to go. Now let us look at how to make that happen by ensuring you are both findable and followable.
How to Get More TikTok Followers
Below you will find some tips to grow you TikTok following and optimize your TikTok account.
Read: Optimization Tips for Facebook Pages.
Know Your TikTok Target Audience</h3
It would be great if you could appeal to all of TikTok’s active users with your content, but that is not realistic. As such, you will have to define your target audience so you can begin to start dissecting what they like and dislike.
Your goal is to land your content on your target audience’s For You Page (FYP). What is so special about it? The FYP is what they see when they open TikTok, so if you are on it, you will start to get noticed.
How can you figure out what your audience likes? Ask them directly, so there is no guessing involved. You can use your other social media profiles to do this. For example, make an Instagram poll to ask what they would like to see from you on TikTok. That will kill two birds with one stone by not only giving you suggested content to create, but also letting those Instagram followers know you are on TikTok.
Beyond using other platforms to ask directly, you can find out your target audience’s likes by spying on your competition. Look for similar brands and creators in your industry and see what they are doing. If it looks like it is working, do the same, as there is no need to reinvent the wheel.
Since most TikTok users are younger than 30, do some research on Generation Z. See what is trending for that age group, and make sure your content meshes.
Read: Top Social Media Tip for Twitter Optimization.
Set Your Sights on the For You Page (FYP)
As mentioned, the FYP is where you want to be. Similar to the Explore Page on Instagram, the FYP is what gives you ultimate visibility so people can see what you are all about. In short, the FYP is your time to shine and go viral, so make it your goal to get there.
How do you get on the TikTok FYP? You can start by creating content relevant to your target audience, engaging, trendy, and of high quality. If you can check off those characteristics, you should have a solid chance of landing on the FYP, unlike platforms like YouTube or Instagram, where you need loads of followers to go viral.
Speaking of high quality, you can ensure your videos have it by using a ring light, ensuring your framing is on point, and having audio that is clear and crisp. Do not slack on the editing part either, as it can make a huge difference.
Will you hit an FYP home run with all of your content? Of course, not, which is why you need to constantly create content to up your chances. Even if you are not pleased with all of your content, keep it. Some old videos have been known to hit the FYP weeks later, so do not delete anything, as it could prevent you from passively getting more followers.
Post TikTok Videos At the Right Times
You want to post high-quality content continuously to increase your chances of hitting the FYP and getting more followers. But you also want to ensure you are posting at the correct times, so your target audience does not miss anything.
As you can imagine, this could be a bit tricky to figure out, so if you are serious about growing your TikTok following, upgrade to a Business Account. It is free and gives you access to tons of tools so you can hone your TikTok skills, such as Analytics.
With TikTok Analytics, you can figure out the best times to post content. Under the Followers tab in Analytics, you can see the days and times when your audience is most active. Under the Content tab, you can see your top posts and when they went live. Using all of this data, you can find a sweet spot for posting so your content does not go unseen.
TikTok Hashtags
Your TikTok followers will see your content. To get others to see it, use hashtags which, as a bonus, also help boost your chances of reaching the FYP. As for how to use the right hashtags, there’s a bit of a process to that. And yes, it will involve some trial and error.
One way to find the best hashtags is with the hashtag suggestion tool. It is in the TikTok app, and you will see it when you create captions for your videos. Just hit #, and you will see the suggestions of hashtags that are trending. Before using them, make sure they are relevant to what you are posting.
While those generic hashtags can work, branded hashtags are even better if you are looking to make a name for your company. When creating a branded hashtag, make sure it is a word or phrase that makes people want to involve the brand in trending conversations. You can also turn it into a branded hashtag challenge so your company gets content from TikTok creators that can serve as your brand ambassadors.
Lastly, do not forget to add relevant hashtags to your post captions. It makes it easier for your audience to find you.
Partake in TikTok Challenges
Even if you are not too immersed in TikTok as of yet, you probably know that it is big on challenges. A challenge is where users are asked or dared to do something, which is fun and is excellent at driving engagement.
If you are looking to create a challenge that spreads like wildfire, make sure it is relatable and can be recreated easily. As an example, take a look at the #youdontknow challenge. It is so popular that the simple hashtag has amassed over 484 million views.
A great way to leverage the power of challenges is to create a branded hashtag challenge. If you have a company, you can use this to pass the task of content creation to your followers while also having them advertise for you. An example of a branded hashtag challenge is #WalmartFirstDayOutfit, where people share their back-to-school outfits with the world. At the time of this writing, it has nearly 697 million views.
You can take things one step further and pay a popular creator to make a video for your challenge. It will give you direct access to all of their loyal followers so you can expand your audience.
Collaborate with Popular TikTok Creators
If you are looking for a quick, fuss-free boost, partnering with a TikTok creator who has a large following can help. You can find the right fit by using the Creator Marketplace on TikTok, which will show you who has a similar audience, so your brand gets the most bang for its buck.
Looking for more social media optimization (SMO) tutorial? Check out our list of Best Social Media Optimization Tips for 2021.
