The Short Answer
TikTok is a new social media app aimed at mobile devices and teenagers. Can it help your business? Yes. But there is a caveat: you’ve got to use it properly, in a balanced manner that is informed by the latest data, and managed effectively. It’s possible you could manage a TikTok account internally with your own personnel, but consultation or outsourcing is better.
TikTok essentially works like this: a visual recording is made using a device like a smartphone or tablet. That recording can then be edited in a variety of ways, and posted on the platform of the new social media “giant”. It is indeed a giant, TikTok is like the next Facebook, or Instagram, or Twitter. Most interestingly, TikTok has relevance with younger demographics.
A lot of teenagers are on TikTok, and one of the reasons is that particular algorithms of the program make it so videos go viral for different reasons than other social media avenues. Somebody with few followers can post a handful of videos and really see things start taking off. Additionally, businesses can co-opt this algorithm toward visibility and conversion.
Essentially, what you do is make a funny, intriguing, beautiful, or informative video that’s less than a minute long. This can be done in an official capacity, but you don’t necessarily have to go “big budget”. You could make a little recording that shows your business marquee, and then cuts to your own happy, excited face with a little music in the background.
Getting A Handle On This Social Media Platform
TikTok isn’t complicated. As a point of reference, think “vine” mixed with Instagram and Snapchat, but more tangible and simple. This is yet another reason why younger demographics tend to predominate. However, because businesses are dealing with a younger audience, it behoves them to demographically configure content on TikTok.
Management is necessary, and while some strategies used in other content marketing arenas may work in some areas of TikTok, they could also “reveal your hand”, as it were, to potential viewers. As well, it’s considerable that algorithms pertaining to TikTok are definitely going to change with time.
What makes the most sense is looking into marketing options that provide solutions for those corporations seeking to maximize the effect of outreach through the latest social media options. For example, the following link will lead you to a group who has some very notable TikTok for business strategies.
Consultation in any field of marketing will save you from unnecessarily reinventing the wheel. Marketing has to be consistent, it has to be qualitative, it has to be cost-effective, and it has to be carefully monitored to determine effectiveness. Return On Investment, or ROI, doesn’t immediately transpire even from the most effective marketing.
Advice On Developing Your TikTok Presence
Essentially, what many consulting agencies are going to advise you do as pertains to TikTok is set up an account, and make multiple entries on that account. It’s not terribly difficult to do so; you can just record a ten second video from your office window every day, if that’s amenable to your operational needs.
How frequently you post will depend on your business, and associated engagement. You’ll likely get more engagement if you’re using humor. People like to laugh, and when you produce vignettes that are funny, your content will be shared by teenagers owing to the novelty of what you’ve produced.
A thematic element may be considerable for your business. That is to say, at regular intervals, you produce a little video that represents a variation on a theme. So perhaps on Tuesdays you use a blue filter and show how someone who doesn’t use your products or services has the blues—but in a funny way.
On Thursday, you might have a dating theme. Friday might be TGIF. Consultation will help you determine what sort of approaches will be most effective to your particular business on what day, and in what way.
Getting On The TikTok Train Before It’s Moving Too Fast
TikTok is about three years old, but it’s become exceptionally influential. In all likelihood this trend will continue to expand, so getting onboard the TikTok train now is more wise than trying to get a foothold on this digital locomotive after it’s already built up market momentum.