With about 800M monthly users, the question is no longer "is your target audience on TikTok" but actually "how do you get your target audience to follow you on TikTok".
TikTok is growing in popularity and more and more people are heading to the platform and creating content with the aim of being the next big TikTok influencer. TikTok still being a relatively new platform with an impressive algorithm for organic reach, compared to platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, it is still relatively easy to grow. So if you're looking how to get a lot of followers on TikTok, keep on reading!
We'll be covering a bunch of different growth tips and tricks including what time to post, how to come up with ideas, how to make the most of trends, and a lot more. That being said, here are 21 tips on how to get followers on TikTok which will help you get more views, likes, and comments.
1. Define your niche
The first way to start growing on TikTok is to define your niche. The most successful users on TikTok are known for a certain type of content.
Right now if you take a look at some of the creators you follow, I'm sure you'll be able to spot a recurring theme for each page.
To find your own niche, ask yourself "what do I like?" and "who do I want to reach?". These two questions will help you start creating content you like and build a community with people who have similar interests.
For example, if you're a skateboarding enthusiast, you will enjoy making skateboard content more than anything else. And by making skateboarding content, other skateboarders will engage with your content.
2. Your username
Choose an easy to remember username that people will remember. Avoid numbers, dots, and underscores. The best would be to either use your name if it's relatively easy to remember or pick 1 to 3 words which make a catchy username.
This way people will remember you from the first time they encounter your content and profile, and it will make your TikTok easier to share. People can't tell their friends about your awesome TikToks if they can't remember your username.
Obviously, if you already have an established Instagram, Twitter, or any other social media platform, you should use the same username.
For example, the username on the left is easier to remember. Three catchy words and it avoids underscores and numbers.
3. The For You Page
The For You Page, also known as FYP, is your friend. It does two key things.
The first one being ideas, it shows you an unlimited pool of content that will give you ideas about what content to make. This content is displayed based on if TikTok's algorithm thinks it is good content or not.
The second thing the FYP will do for you is bring your content views, likes, comments, and more importantly followers. And once you understand TikTok's algorithm, your content will be showing up on the For You Page more often.
4. Write down your ideas
Write down every single idea. The good ideas, the bad ones, and the really bad ones. As a content creator you should already be doing this, but after browsing through TikTok's For You Page, you should hopefully understand that just because you think your idea isn't viral-worthy, it doesn't mean that it's the case.
5. Copy what works
Content that you see on your FYP is content that works. It doesn't just give you ideas, it gives you ideas that work. That being said, this doesn't mean you should go ahead and recreate every viral TikTok you see.
When I say "copy what works", look at content that is doing well, that you enjoy and inspire yourself from it. Add your own spin to someone else's idea.
6. Create original content
Although we've just spoken about copying content. Creating original content is by far the way to go.
On average people stay within the TikTok app 10 minutes every time they open it. A lot of the content you see on TikTok is often recycled ideas with different endings. So TikTok users are often seeing the same thing over and over again.
So to stand out from the crowd, creating something completely new and fresh will definitely help you attract more engagement and get followers.
7. Capitalize on trends
When it comes to trends, the original content tip goes out the window.
Trends that you see at the top of your homepage or trends that keep on showing up on your For You feed are fuel for your videos.
You want to make content around that current trend. But again don't just remake the exact same TikTok as someone else. Take the trend and add your own personal touch or spin to it.
When it comes to trends, people usually know what to expect at the end of that video. Most people taking part in a trend recreate very similar videos. However, if you can recreate a TikTok but change the ending in an unexpected way, you'll be raking in the views.
Also, try and make sure you jump into trends early!
TIP: Within the TikTok app, go to the discovery page and click on the hashtag for a specific challenge, there's a description that you can read to learn more about that trend.
8. Idea over quality
The idea of your TikTok is more important than the quality of it.
It doesn't matter if you have the latest camera, the best microphone, or the coolest lighting. If your idea sucks, you won't get any views.
But if your idea is good, you could record it with a potato and it could get millions of views. No joke.
9. Consistency in uploading
Growing on TikTok takes commitment. You can't just focus on it for 2 days and expect to be the next member of the Hype House. Or if you're from the UK, the Byte House.
Posting regularly is key to getting and keeping your followers. It's better to post 7 times a week than 7 times in one day and then post nothing for the remainder of that week.
Also posting consistently is a way to thank your followers for sticking around.
10. Timing matters
The key to going viral on TikTok is about having the right content, in front of the right people, at the right time. So yes, contrary to popular belief on TikTok, you can't just post in the middle of the night and expect to go viral. The time you post matters.
To find out what time is best for you to post. You'll need to check your TikTok analytics and look at when your followers are most active.
If you are just starting out and have 0 followers, I would suggest posting late afternoon to early evening. The more you post, the more data you'll have to know what times to post in the future.
11. Always add a caption
If you know exactly how the TikTok algorithm works, you will know why always adding a caption is important.
Creating a descriptive and intriguing caption will encourage your viewers to watch the video which will, in turn, lead to more likes, comments, and overall more engagement which TikTok favors tremendously.
If you never know what to put as your caption, here are a few ideas.
- Jokes or puns related to your video
- Song lyrics that were used in your video
- Ask a question
- Hint to the end of the video
For more tips on how to write the perfect TikTok caption, check out our beginner's guide to TikTok.
12. Use trending sounds
Again, capitalizing on trends is a big help to getting more views. And when a song or sound is trending on TikTok, use it!
Browse through the Discover page or tap on sounds at the top of the camera to find popular and trending sounds.
13. Create sounds or music
Instead of just creating video content to music or other creators' sounds, try creating content focusing not only on the video but also the sound.
If you create a catchy sound or challenge that people want to use and take part in, this will get you thousands of extra views and follows.
To get an idea of what makes a popular sound, just browse through the Discover page and look at the content on your For You Page.
14. Use a call to action
People need to be reminded to do things.
At the end of your video or in the caption, you can politely ask people to like, comment, follow, or do pretty much anything. This doesn't mean that they will do everything you ask, but reminding people to hit that like button from time to time will encourage a few users to do so.
A call to action can help you get that little bit of extra engagement that will help you take off on TikTok.
15. Diversify your hashtags
Unless you're already an established creator on TikTok. It's unlikely that users will be searching for you.
So your job is to bring them to your content through the use of hashtags.
A common mistake on TikTok is to use the most popular hashtags on your content. The problem with this is that everyone else is doing it too, so your content disappears very fast from those hashtags and makes you less easy to find.
When uploading content, create a mix of trending hashtags and specific hashtags to your video.
16. Try different content
It's often the content you least expect that goes viral.
You can put hours of work into a TikTok that you think is amazing but it ends up barely getting 1000 views.
And then, of course, there's the TikTok you put no more than 5 minutes of effort into which ends up going viral.
For example, when I was still reasonably new to TikTok, just before catching a flight to London, I filmed a dog and put some sad music over it. To this day, it is still my most successful TikTok with over 1.5 million views. Yet in my opinion, it's my worst TikTok.
So try different content styles. Test new things.
17. Build a community
There's no point in having a following if they don't engage with you and your content.
The best way to build an engaging following is to treat your followers like a community. When someone follows you, treat them like they joined your club.
One of the best ways to do this a by actually responding to your comments. It's surprising at how little people do this. Show your followers that you care and a lot of them will like your content and keep on giving you engagement over and over.
18. Set up your bio correctly
Write a short sentence that describes exactly what you’re about so people know what to expect. Avoid vague phrases and random quotes that don't relate to what you do.
Link your social profiles
Include links to your website, Instagram, and Youtube to build a stronger relationship with your audience by showing up in front of them on different online platforms. Not everybody has the ability to link to a website yet on TikTok. If that’s you, opt for the best social link instead.
Profile Pic
If you’re a personal brand, go for a headshot for your profile pic. If you're a company, use your logo instead. Upload a short video or animation as a profile video. The picture appears in TikTok search and the video when people view your page.
19. Create interesting thumbnails
TikTok's thumbnails, or covers as the platform calls them, are very similar to Instagram's boomerang story feature.
TikTok allows you to choose 1-second of your video to be displayed instead of a single frame. So choose your 1-second video cover wisely.
Choose the most visually intriguing 1-second of your video so when people browse your profile they won't be able to resist viewing that TikTok to see what happens.
20. Collaborate for more organic reach
Since the beginning of the internet, a key growth tool for any social media platform is collaborating.
Just think of popular TikTokers who are apart of the HypeHouse or the ByteHouse, they literally moved in together to collaborate and create TikToks everyday to help each other grow.
However, luckily you can still collaborate with other TikTok users without having to move in together.
Reach out to other TikTok creators and see how you can create content together to benefit both of your audiences.
21. Go live
Going live on TikTok is a great way to show your followers that you're invested in the platform and are serious about growing. It's also the next step to taking your relationship with your followers to a new level.
To go live on TikTok you do need a minimum of 1000 followers. But once you reach 1000 followers, which is relatively easy to hit, going live is a great tool for growth.
A powerful strategy that I have seen numerous times is to go live at the same time as your content is going viral. Users will then be able to see that you are live when they come across your content in the For You feed.
And that is how to get more followers on TikTok. If you get to work and put in practice all of these tips, you'll become TikTok famous in no time. Just be sure to stay consistent and capitalize on trends.
Thank you for reading, if you're interested in learning more about TikTok, check out some of the articles below:
