With social media life taking over our real lives, we’ve adapted to the trend of gripping to phones- ready to whip out those texting thumbs and swiping down to refresh every other minute. Social media has emerged as a coping mechanism for people to express themselves and network with like-minded people who virtually mirror their thoughts and opinions. In the context of the present day’s popularity, TikTok is a trending social media application. Boasting over 700 million active users worldwide, TikTok is on the roadmap of providing monetizing options to creators, just with their regular hobby of creating content.
We have seen how Instagram and Facebook have emerged as prominent marketing tools for businesses. Each application has a unique business model that benefits both creators and brands in liaison. For good measure, TikTok is in the race of providing the best commercial options for creators to make money online.
The success of TikTok can be attributed to its easy-to-use features and the ability to go viral within a shorter period of time. People love tapping their toes to their fav tunes or mimicking the scenes of their fav shows. When TikTok was launched, the tie-in attracted people of all age groups.
Unlike the other social media platforms, TikTok cemented a real recreation arena for people- to express themselves in a non-judgmental space. Culturally, it created trends that paved its way to Instagram in the form of memes. This trend of sharing TikTok videos to Instagram further propelled the growth of this app to new heights.
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How TikTok works?
With a bubbling community of active users, Tiktok is a niched-app built for Gen-Z. Remember the time when you recreated your favorite song with your homies? Tiktok gives you access not only for posting your lip-synced videos, but also to remix them with your dash of creativity. It is safe to say that this app is the world’s leading platform for short-form musical videos.
Tiktok makes creativity a tool and creators- the boss. Needless to say, this app is an outlet for fun and positively addictive. Thanks to its unofficial connection with Instagram, these short-length catchy videos go viral within no time on Insta, thereby creating buzzing trends. The success and popularity of Tiktok can be rooted in its rampant growth of the influencer community and its access to creativity.
Launched in 2014, Tiktok rose to prominence quite faster than its rivals like Netflix, Snapchat, and Facebook. The initial impression that Tiktok garnered is more of an app for GenZ- that perhaps might not cater to the business needs. Storming in, now this app emerged as a mainstream social media platform, entertaining people of all age groups. Tiktok made common people celebrities.
It changed the fate of content creators overnight. That regular college-going kid who loves experimenting on his hair- is now a trusted hairstylist handing down tips from time to time. That retired teacher who loved to paint once- is now an admired creative content creator with thousands of followers. Such is the impact this platform created!
This app is for anyone, anywhere- quite literally. There’s no denying it. Right from entertainment to activism, the trend of 15 seconds video made the voices reach the masses. Short-length videos are precise and crisp. Access to creativity is a boon for aspiring creative content creators. Not everyone gets the chance to perform in front of the crowds and be super popular.
Thousands of people who are immensely talented often do not find the platform to give their best performances. When Tiktok launched, people were initially hesitant. It was straight out perceived to be the every other Gen-Z targeted app with audio and video recording features. Slowly people started experimenting with different variants- combining art with music, monologues, collaborating with other artists on the platform, etc.
When people realized the potential of this app, they never held back. The download rate increased rampantly, and within no time Tiktok took social media by storm. People started recording videos on Tiktok, downloaded them, and posted them on other apps like Facebook and Instagram.
This way- not only the content creators became famous overnight, but also the app’s popularity rose subsequently. When businesses saw the kind of impact that these short videos can make, they started sponsoring the influencers to promote their products/services.
Tiktok offers seamless opportunities for creators to make money. While we are at it, let us focus on the kind of profile we need to build and how to make it more attractive. For any social media platform, engagement is the key to connect with users. Even if you are a wannabe writer or dancer, if not aiming at perfection- the best shot is to create user-loving content. It is easy to create content that attracts the masses.
Sometimes even the silliest of ideas turn into viral trends overnight. The metric of trends is highly unpredictable. What works for you might not work for the other creator. Being original pays off big on platforms like Tiktok. Here are a few steps to create an interesting profile:
Find your interest and build a niche:
It is quite common to have an urge to gain lots of following quickly and earn the fam. But things do take time. Especially in an open platform like Tiktok, your originality and engagement play a key role. The advantage of this platform is that there is an audience for every topic. Be it education, science, health, travel, lifestyle- each category has its own audience base.
Since the video length is relatively small, no matter what the topic is– if you can turn a piece of information into an interesting 15-seconds byte- Voila! There you go with the views. All this sounds very easy but turning raw data into a creative video requires a lot of dedication. This is possible only when you love what you do. So the first step to build an attractive profile is to find the topic that attracts you. Build your niche and get started.
Use correct hashtags:
Tiktok is all about being original and effortless on-screen. Hashtags are the best way to connect with the audience that prefers to watch content like yours. Utilizing the right hashtags is your first step to connecting with your potential viewers. For example, if you are posting a video about beauty tips- tag your video with keywords and hashtags like #beautytips #lifestyle #everydaylook (can vary based on the trends). With specifics like these, there is a good chance that your video can reach the target audience: who have been engaging with similar videos. Using correct hashtags helps you in growing your profile organically.
Making videos based on trends:
The crust of Tiktok is creating trends and promoting trends. The common misconception is that the video posted on trends might go unnoticed. But in contrast, the videos that are posted based on the trends have fair chances of getting more views and likes. Rather than focussing on posting that is relatively new, create your video that fits into trends. This way, you can increase profile visibility in organic ways and also connect with a new audience.
Using Tik Tok analytics:
Tik Tok offers Pro account up-gradation for users to know their audience demographics and also rough information about what their followers would prefer to see. This helps creators to strategize on content creation and plan flow accordingly. Analytics is a great tool to understand what is the watch-time of each video.
For example, a creator posted 3 videos ranging from 15 seconds, 20 seconds, and 10 seconds respectively. With a catchy clickbait- there are high chances that the audience might spend more time watching a specific video for more time. Watch time is nothing but the average time a user is spending on watching a particular video. With this data, you can make changes to do the kind of content you create, keeping the audience preferences in mind.
Post consistently:
Consistency and engagement are the two main important factors for making money from Tiktok. As mentioned before, trends are the major contributors to content on this platform. It is important to keep track of the happenings and keep posting content based on the trends. Also, engagement is as crucial as posting content regularly. Make sure that you post at least three videos per week to engage with your followers.
How to make money from Tiktok:
With over 1 Billion downloads from the App Store, Tiktok has a lot of potential to make good money online. The app’s popularity and increasing audience range are leaving a promising impression everywhere. It is easy to use and easy to convey. It is also easy to make money from Tiktok with the right strategy and content plan. Scroll down to read some proven ways of making money from Tiktok.
Influencer marketing:
Every follower you have is a potential customer of a brand. Wondering how? Well, have you ever tried a sunscreen of a particular brand because you saw some good reviews about it? Have you ever tried that instant noodles mix of a brand because someone on the internet made a lip-smacking video about it (and cravings kicked in)? You might not directly get convinced looking at a video. But there will be people around online who go errands over it. Subconsciously, one might feel curious to find that product and try it out. Well, that is the impact of influencer marketing. If a business can reach its target audience directly with just a video, who would deny it?
Brands are adapting to the internet space seeing the potential. Influencer marketing is the best way to make money from Tiktok if you have a good follower range (ideally 6k to 10k). Make sure that you build a niche and promote products that are related to the content you post.
A fashion content creator giving tech reviews might not look promising to the brand because the target audience follows you for the content you post about fashion- but not the tech reviews. Build your niche, post consistently, engage with your followers, and collaborate with brands.
Merchandise collaboration:
Printed T-shirts with customized designs, logos, or names are becoming the popular choice of gifts among youth. It’s obvious. They are personal and trendy. Nothing gives satisfaction more than wearing accessories or clothes that speaks our style. Selling merchandise of your signature collection could be an easy way of making money from Tiktok. The demand for customized merchandise never hits the bottom. You can collaborate with designers and sell merchandise.
For this, you need to plan a smart campaign. Let’s say you are targeting the audience range who are big-time FRIENDS fans. The videos you make should recreate that specific scene as creative as possible. When you are creating the urge among the audience to own that product, you are half-way there. Try not to make the video an obvious sales ad. Rather, focus on the experience that one can get owning the product.
Subtle and indirect sales ads always do wonders. Tiktok gives you the option to optimize your bio. You can link your other social media accounts like Instagram and Snapchat directly. Also, you can put a redirecting link of the website on which you are selling the merchandise. This way, your followers will know what you are offering. Thereby it helps you increase your visibility and make money from Tiktok.
Sponsored Content Posts
Posting sponsored content is just like Influencer marketing. But the only difference is that- here you will make deals directly with brands. Unlike regular product or service promotion, sponsored content is more specific, creative, and experimentative. Your major task will be to create content in your niche that also fits the brand’s requirements.
Let’s say you are a food vlogger, and you love making videos of instant recipes. The brands that sponsor you will expect you to create instant recipe videos using their product. This gives the message that the product is a flexible ingredient, and people can try multiple recipes using this. Sponsored content helps brands build goodwill among their target audience. You can make money from your Tik Tok profile with sponsored posts.
Tiktok Advisor
Building trust and fan-base among followers is an art. And if you mastered this art, Bravo! You can advise aspiring influencers on how to grow a successful Tik Tok account from scratch. Newbies often find it difficult to plan the right strategy. As a consultant or advisor, you can help them understand the Dos and Don’ts of this platform. Many times, entrepreneurs pay experienced content creators to plan brand promotion. You can sell Tik Tok accounts to such businesses and earn good money. All it takes is a good follower range and a good understanding of this app. This way you can make money from Tiktok without investing much of your efforts.
Wrapping up
Making money from Tiktok is not a tough road if you create original and user-loving content. To understand how Tiktok makes money, read more about the Tiktok business model.
