As very quickly part 1 of 10 TikTok rules became the June-favorite article, we’re following up with part two as musicians and brands not familiar with how social media works, TikTok especially, need more guidance and clarification than those who’ve forever dealt with such platforms. Without any further ado, these are 10 more rules that will help you maximize your short-form content on TikTok and prompt you in front of as many eyeballs as possible.
10. Adapt the trends to your specific niche.
If you’re thinking about joining the“I was the guy she didn’t want so I became the man she couldn’t have” trend, don’t just do that pointlessly. If you’re a musician, put a spin to it and say I became the man she couldn’t escape and show yourself being on TV, or on the radio in a car. You could also show yourself playing the guitar in the studio and say: “I became the musician she could only dream of.” If you’re not going to be intentional about promoting your music and brand as a musican, you’ll very easily slip into the: “I got 100k followers but they don’t care about my music.”
9. Use different sets of hashtags for consecutive videos.
DO NOT USE THE SAME HASHTAGS FOR ALL VIDEOS. Heck, not even for two consecutive videos. Reason being, the algorithm will deem it as spam behavior aka you wanting attention without putting in the effort and will limit the number of people seeing your content. Use alternatives, synonyms, always relevant and pertaining to the video but DIFFERENT.
8. Throw your hook in the very first second.
When you’re new to TikTok, the platform only pushes your videos to very few people and regardless of who they are, you have to retain their attention. The way you efficiently pull in anyone is if in the very first second you either say or announce what the public is going to see/ learn/ witness. Do not waste people’s time and let them know upfront the end value they’re getting.
7. Find an overlap between what interests you and what interests the locals.
Unfortunately we’re not globalized enough for you to post a video about Free Britney Spears in Italy but blow up in US. TikTok always prioritizes your geolocation so your video will be sent to THE people around you. Literally. So if your music is not necessarily of interest to the audience in your area, you figure out what interests them and find a way to engage in or speak on the matter while using your own music. You could do it through writing lyrics on the subject, discuss the issue with your music in the background, or even remix the relevant events to fit your music like a video.
6. Don’t take down less viewed videos.
TikTok will not push your profile if only got 1 or two videos. Post at least about 6 good videos and THEN hop on the trends but do it properly as we’ve taught you. TikTok is afraid of sending people to someone who may have only posted this one video in their entire life and then never again log in. So definitely don’t post every single day as we explained what happens in part 1 but DO have a minimum of 6 posts before aiming for a viral video.
5. Mix it up. But not too much.
Don’t only do freestyles or cover songs or trend adaptations. Do a bit of everything but in sync with your artist brand. Reason being is… if you only do covers for example, the moment you upload an original, your followers will just scroll by because they’ve been trained to expect what attracted them in the first place. So if you got 10k people following you for your covers, that’s what they’ll keep wanting and your originals will flop. Likewise, don’t go too wide in your covered area. Specialize in a subject or two MAX and invite people into your life.
4. The video description should be an extension of what’s in the video OR a catalyst.
Do NOT repeat something you already said in your video in the caption of it. No. Use those extra characters to set the audience on fire and have them expect the end of the video for the big reveal. We’ve often noticed professional TikTokers say things like: “wait until the end,” “the last one though!,” “my bestie almost beat my ass for what I said at the end,” “wait and you will be pleased,” etc. You got the idea. It triggers you into being very curious about seeing what the creator meant. And even if the video sucks, well, too bad. You’ve still given them 100% retention rate if you watched all the way until the end. As a creator though, don’t trick your audience like that for no reason. They’ll eventually resent you and unfollow you.
3. Put in extreme effort to stand apart from the crowd.
Although we almost always discourage you, the artist, to try hard at any point in your career ’cause desperation shows off and it turns many people away, TikTok is actually heaven for such personalities. You gotta go extra, extra, extra. Normality is fretted upon and usually you can only push a sob story or two to go viral but then it’s crickets. So for you to create a fanbase fast, you’ll have to try hard with all your might. Be a phenomenal dancer, an irreproachable singer, a flawlessly styled presence, a gorgeously made-up face, etc. This is highly important in the beginning when people don’t know you. You will be able to relax later on when your videos will guaranteedly get more views because you’ll have a lot more followers.
2. Keep your best videos for the weekends.
Because of the organic traffic on the platform. Some marketing authorities went as far as giving you specific times for each day of the week such as Influencer Marketing Hub, but… we found those times apply extensively to Americans and as y’all know… The world does not end where America does. So based on the country you’re in, you’ll have to test out over time what hours and days give you the highest engagement. We found that in Italy, you’ll get tons of views and likes if you post on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. So post your top notch content during the weekends.
1. Stay away from duets.
They only make sense when you’re the famous one and are reacting to a fan’s duet with you. It boosts credibility to insane levels. I mean… you got FANS responding to your content with their own videos! Musicians and businesses could not be possibly asking for more credibility than THAT. But… When you’re fresh on the scene, you have to impose your presence as a creator, a leader, a unique voice. So that means… Don’t try to milk someone else’s fans or audience. Create original posts only. At least until you’ve hit 10k followers.
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