We’ve all seen it, we’ll all heard of it. TikTok, the all new flashy social channel that everyone’s raving about. Strangely, it’s not a new platform at all. It’s been around since 2016, slowly making its way to popularity. Thanks to lockdowns and isolation, its usage exploded all over the world. It’s available in 40 different languages and before we knew it, our children have become experts and influencers in a platform that we Twitter fanatics are still trying to understand. We decided to change that. And our chat regular and avid TikTokker, JMatt (145k followers!) was enthusiastic to help us understand how TikTok can make sense for businesses. Here’s a summary of our chat.
Guest: Jeffrey Matthias, better known as JMatt
Topic: Growing your presence on TikTok
Format: Eight questions directed at the guest. Everyone’s welcome to share.
Yes, TikTok is a great way to connect with your younger audience and stay on top of trending conversations. It’s an ideal platform if a majority of your audience is already there. However, be realistic. As our guest explained, if you’re already working on three or four other social platforms, TikTok will become yet another thing you have to deal with. Don’t take on more than you can handle, but definitely pop in there once a while to see what’s going on.
A1: Quick answer, yes! But some things to consider: do you have capacity to add a new platform into your content flow? Who is your audience?
TikTok is a great platform to stay up with the trends and create relatable content. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/nL1w8TInst pic.twitter.com/FDN3BAwbFP
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
Another important thing to consider, as Rachel pointed out, is whether you enjoy creating video content. It’s one thing to post a video or two every week on Twitter but it’s a different thing altogether to be active on a platform that’s all video. Unless you are comfortable and enjoy making videos, it’ll be a challenge to maintain your account.
A1: There are a couple things to consider. Do you have a passion for video content? And is your audience active on TikTok? If your answer to both is yes, then it's worth a shot. #TwitterSmarter
— Express Writers | Your Content Writing Partner (@ExpWriters) March 18, 2021
The key, as we said in the previous answer, is to enjoy yourself. Our guest said it, too—have fun with what you’re creating and feel free to experiment with the range of features. TikTok is popular for its broad functionalities, so make use of those in your content. Whatever you do, just let yourself enjoy the process—that’s how you can sustain your presence. If you’re not into dancing, that’s fine, too. Even though dancers are popular on TikTok, there are many others who don’t dance at all—perhaps you’re better at slam poetry, or rapping, or giving quick tips, or putting together comedy sketches. Just do your thing.
A2: If you’re new, don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Play around with the features and find your rhythm.
There are many styles that work (comedy sketches, dancing, educational – just to name a few). Have fun with it! #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/Z3dikkzvou pic.twitter.com/97YaGvVUiZ
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
Our friends from Cloud Campaign reminded us that it’s important to be aware of how much time it’ll take for you to set up and manage your TikTok account. As we said before, if you’re already doing multiple other social channels, you’re probably already pressed for time. Appreciate the time commitment you’re making and make sure you can stick to it. Consistently creating original content across platforms can become overwhelming. Be prepared and manage your time well.
A2: Consistency is big for the TikTok algorithm. I think people underestimate the time commitment required for creating original, creative content as well as engaging with the community, keeping up with trends and sounds, etc. #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/TsHFBTvqai
— Cloud Campaign (@_cloudcampaign) March 18, 2021
Posting daily helps. Posting multiple times a day helps even more. That said, it’s critical not to stress yourself out. Know your capacity. Most people can’t spend that much time on the platform, and that’s ok. Take our guest for example. As he explains in his video, with a full-time job, he can’t do content every day. However, he makes sure to post a few times every week so that the algorithm keeps his content in the loop. You can also make TikTok videos and save them as drafts so that if you’re stuck, you have backup content ready to go any time.
A3: Again, it'll come down to your capacity. If you can, daily content is ideal (some even suggest 2-3x/day). At the very least, shoot for a few times a week.
Shoot your content in batches and save them to your drafts to make posting later quick and easy. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/5EftoIiKuE pic.twitter.com/5WMsfTokjm
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
It’s also important not to compromise quality for the sake of quantity, as our friends from OnePitch reminded us. It’s also worth defining quality—it’s not perfection. Sometimes you may feel like your content isn’t good enough, because you’re looking for perfection. Though it’s always good to keep learning and improving, don’t let fear hamper your progress. Focus on creating quality content that your audience will find useful, but don’t beat yourself up over it too much if it doesn’t turn out as well as you want it to.
A3) Ideally every day. Though it depends on your own bandwidth, try to post at least a few times a week. TikTok rewards its users who are creating consistent content. Still, remember that quantity does not compensate for quality. #TwitterSmarter
— OnePitch (@onepitchsaas) March 18, 2021
It’s a bit like Twitter—use hashtags that are relevant to your content and be strategic about which ones you use. Our guest told us he prefers to use three-four hashtags that have anything between 100k to a few million views. Anything beyond that—hashtags that hit a billion—can become too busy and your content might easily get lost. Also, our guest said, that hashtags such as FYP and For You Page don’t necessarily help your content reach wider audiences.
A4: I shoot for 3-4 hashtags and I look for the ones ranging between 100,000 to a few million views that are relevant to my content.
I avoid hashtags with 1B views. Also, FYP and For You Page are irrelevant. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/0Mk8fRnjWZ pic.twitter.com/4m2KPzzZ4E
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
TikTok videos can vary in terms of themes and topics. And so the hashtags you use may not always be uniform across your posts. While it’s best to use hashtags that resonate with each specific video, it’s also good to remember, Jetti-Mari told us, to make sure that the hashtags align with your brand as well.
A4: just make sure to check what the hashtags in a trend stand for. For any hashtag you want to make sure it aligns with what your brand stands for #TwitterSmarter
— Jette-Mari Anni (@JetteAnni) March 18, 2021
JMatt shared three awesome tips:
A5.b: Unless your content is flagged by TikTok, DON’T delete underperforming TikToks. The current algorithm is on a delay and has been known to serve (up to 3 months) old TikToks to the 'For You Page'.
If you want to remove a video, make it private instead. #TwitterSmarter
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
The only exception to the ‘don’t delete’ suggestion is if the platform itself flags your content.
Another important way to drive engagement on your TikTok content is, as our friends from Biteable mentioned, to engage with other people’s content. Don’t shy away from responding to comments, initiating conversations, and making content yourself that responds to theirs.
A5: If you want engagement, you have to be willing to engage with others. Ask questions, respond to the comments on your videos, engage with other users's videos. It's a two-way street #TwitterSmarter
— Biteable (@biteable) March 18, 2021
Funnily enough, for the platform’s algorithm itself, not so much. Unlike other social channels where people expect captions to consume the video content, people on TikTok are used to the audio playing automatically when they open the app, mainly because most of the trends and concepts are based on audio clips, music, and sounds.
That said, as Alyx pointed out, having captions is an essential way to make your content more accessible to people using assistive technology.
A6 You want to be as accessible as possible, so I would always suggest at least captions
Captions can be hard to time and place on vids, but help HOH individuals consume your content as well
-Alyx #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/B3zYhKs6zJ— Charlie & Alyx – Charlie Appel Agency (@ColfaxInsurance) March 18, 2021
To add captions, JMatt recommended Captions for TikTok, an app available only on iOS at the moment. He added that this tool is great for vertical videos, but for horizontal videos, you might have to complement it with other apps.
A6.b: “Captions for TikTok” app (may just be on iOS) has made adding captions easier and I've seen them used more and more over the last few months. Granted, while many are consuming the content with sound on, it adds a layer of clarification to your content. #TwitterSmarter
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
Only if you have complete ownership of the content. TikTok videos are a combination of audio and video elements, and if you use your own audio and video, feel free to share it across other channels as well.
However, if you use audio from TikTok, it’s risky resharing that on other channels. Similarly, if your TikTok content is specific to the platform itself—like responding to TikTok trends or mentioning features, it’s not a good idea to reshare that video on other channels where it’s not as relevant.
A7.b: Also be conscious of the purpose of your TikTok content… if you make it referencing TikTok features, it may not resonate off of the app. Rather than saying "TikTok" on videos I re-share, I'll say "video" or avoid it altogether. #TwitterSmarter
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
A word of caution, though. If you’re sharing videos to Instagram Reels, share them organically, because as our guest pointed out, Instagram doesn’t really like videos that have the Tiktok watermark on them.
Jim made a good point about audience. It’s worth noting that the audience on TikTok may be wildly different from your audience on other platforms. And so when you reshare videos that you make for TikTok, make sure they’re still appropriate for your other audiences. This ties in with JMatt’s point about creating videos that talk about TikTok features, but it can also extend to other things like the music you use and the tone of your message as well.
A7 Sharing TikTok content on other platforms depends upon knowing your audience. TikTok could be as foreign to a Facebook audience much as Twitter. #TwitterSmarter
— Jim Katzaman – Get Debt-Free One Family at a Time (@JKatzaman) March 18, 2021
Q8: Name some TikTokers who share great content.
JMatt shed some amazing light on TikTokers we may not automatically think about when we think about the platform.
According to our guest, these three brands are doing an incredible job of staying relevant and engaging with the audience on TikTok. In a platform that’s most popular for personal accounts, these brands are making a splash. Check them out!
Bonus TikTok tip: Do collaborative posts with other users and accounts that are relevant to your brand messaging. That’ll help boost your content to audiences beyond your immediate reach.
A8: While I have many faves, I always mention (@)WashingtonPost – it's a newspaper that has adapted their content to reach the younger audience. I haven't seen a media outlet do it better.
(@)SacHistoryMuseum + (@)HellmanRetailGroup are two more great examples! #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/IXKiD29Kuh pic.twitter.com/lUAEQNoAo6
— JMatt (@JMattMke) March 18, 2021
Theodara named a few of her favorite Tiktokers including NBC News.
A8. I follow @CHRISELLEtweets, Farah Hussain, @washingtonpost, @shaymitch, @NBCNews, and many other content creators I haven't looked for on Twitter. #TwitterSmarter
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@emapirciu) March 18, 2021
You can also check out some more popular TikTokers, starting with our guest himself. JMatt is a pretty big deal over on TikTok!
A8: Here are some of my favorite TikTokers:
JMatt of course! https://t.co/8J0FgIpZoI
Zach King is brilliant! https://t.co/EpazcqHilc
Clean with Ness https://t.co/LoXW2mNWEM
Sophia Wasu https://t.co/0FCrFRmkzQ
Chef Chris Cho https://t.co/o3cUMiAtEr#TwitterSmarter https://t.co/Rl6xLTAIba
— ? Madalyn Sklar – Digital Marketing since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) March 18, 2021
Well folks, that’s all from me this week. Thanks for reading through and for more great insights from our chat with JMatt, have a look at this Twitter Moment that Joana put together. And if you’d like to join us for a live chat, we’d love to have you. We meet over at #TwitterSmarter every Thursday at 1pm ET. See you then!
About me, Narmadhaa:
I write all the things—technical and marketing copy to fill the pocket; haiku and short stories to fill the soul. A social media enthusiast, I’m a member of the #TwitterSmarter chat crew, and always happy to take on writing gigs.
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