With the viral video app’s popularity skyrocketing, now is the time to increase your TikTok followers!
The creative ways to gain followers and build a TikTok community are limitless, from upping your posting schedule to participating in challenges and optimizing your hashtags.
We’re going to share 10 of the best ways to get more TikTok followers without using any unethical tactics!
How to Increase Your TikTok Followers:
There are over 800 million monthly active TikTok users worldwide, so there are plenty of people to grow your following on the platform.
However, gaining more followers on TikTok is more than just creating a profile.
TikTok revolves around the For You page, which is similar to Instagram’s Explore Page.
TikTok curates a For You page — an endless stream of personalized content for each user — instead of users scrolling through a news feed.
The For You page is filled with recommendations based on how users interact with other TikTok videos.
Consider the For You page to be a mix of previously viral content and what TikTok believes you’ll enjoy based on your previous app activity. Because no two For You pages are alike, every brand has the opportunity to reach the right audience.
That means TikTok offers a fairly level playing field for achieving viral status on the app. Unlike Instagram or YouTube, accounts with no followers can receive millions of views on a new video. On TikTok, content reigns supreme.
Taylor Loren, Later’s Head of Content Marketing, for example, has over 3 million views on her TikTok candle tutorial video. She had less than 50 followers on the app at the time of posting. And she has since grown to 20K followers in just 4 months.
With this in mind, you need to commit to a TikTok strategy. Besides, you should be willing to experiment with this new form of video in order to reap the benefits.
Before we get into tactics, there are a few things that brands and businesses should know about TikTok. That helps develop the best strategy for growing your TikTok community.
#1: TikTok Has Majority Gen Z Users (But This Is Changing!)
When we say “TikTok,” many people immediately think of lip-syncing teenagers and dance challenges. But don’t be deceived!
Brands such as The Washington Post, Aerie, and Gucci have all joined TikTok and amassed millions of followers — and not just through lip-syncing and dancing!
While the majority of their audience will be Gen Zers (41 percent of TikTok users are aged 16-24), that doesn’t mean they aren’t loyal.
As of next year, 74 million people in the United States will be classified as Gen Z, making it critical to build brand awareness and affinity where they are most active, especially since they are the next generation of consumers and advocates.
Consider it as putting the groundwork early on. If you can connect with younger demographics now on a platform that they enjoy using, you can expect them to be loyal followers for years to come.
However, the TikTok audience is evolving and growing in popularity. Even if your target audience isn’t under the age of 24, it’s worth noting that TikTok isn’t going anywhere.
So now is the time to polish your profile in preparation for when everyone (and we mean everyone!) is on TikTok!
#2: More Followers Doesn’t Imply More Sales
Growing your social media following usually comes with the promise of increased sales or clicks through to your website.
However, on TikTok, your goal (for the time being) should be to have a strong brand affinity and to provide a space where your followers can interact with your content.
TikTok currently has few opportunities to drive traffic to your website because there are no clickable links in video captions.
Similarly, only certain users can currently add a link to their TikTok bio, but this is likely to be expanded in the coming months.
So increasing your TikTok following isn’t a quick way to increase your sales. However, it is a method of creating a community that adores and supports your brand.
Take, for example, Fenty Beauty, which was one of the first brands on the app to create their own “Creator House”: The Fenty Beauty House.
Influencers and content creators gathered to share TikTok videos. It could be about their daily lives, beauty hacks, and, of course, the Fenty beauty line.
Rather than using TikTok to generate sales, Fenty founder Rihanna used it to support creators. They were already fans of the brand and to create a TikTok community around them.
Whether you’re new to TikTok or looking to rev up your TikTok game and develop a new strategy, we’ve got you covered with our 10 top tips for growing your following.
Tip #1 to Increase Your TikTok Followers: Determine Your Target Audience
As previously stated, the more TikTok users who watch your videos, the more likely you will end up on the For You page, gaining you more followers.
TikTok has a diverse range of content (and users), implying that there is truly room for everyone! There are videos for everyone, whether you’re a gamer who enjoys Animal Crossing or a fan of satisfying soap-cutting videos.
But it’s important to remember that you can’t cater to (or reach) everyone. That is why it’s a good idea to focus on a single, well-defined target audience. While TikTok is not like other platforms, it is still important to know who you are making videos for.
Don’t be put off by the fact that Gen Zers make up a sizable portion of the TikTok audience.
Consider what types of content your target audience enjoys and dislikes. It doesn’t hurt to ask your Instagram Stories followers if you’re just starting out. Perhaps share a question or poll sticker asking them what type of TikTok content they enjoy and what they’d like to see from you. What they say may surprise you!
Examine your competition (if any!) to see what they’re doing in the space.
Take, for example, Jera Foster-Fell, who goes by the handle Jera.bean on TikTok.
Jera works as a social media marketer and uses TikTok to educate her audience. She primarily provides content suggestions, pose tricks, and TikTok hacks (with some fun trends and dances thrown in the mix).
She discovered a niche audience of new TikTok users, marketing professionals, and people looking to improve their content! And it’s working for her so far: she has over 300,000 followers (and counting!).
TIP: You can learn more about your followers by upgrading your TikTok account to a Pro account. That will give you access to detailed analytics on your content and audience!
Tip #2 for Increase Your TikTok Followers: Hit TikTok Trends at The Right Time
TikTok invented its own video content genre by allowing users to combine sound clips and music with their own original video content, viral trends that appear overnight!
That’s why you’ll frequently see multiple versions of the same video. Each of them has a different take on the song or concept.
For example, on Saturday Night Live, Kate McKinnon and Elizabeth Warren performed the ‘Flip the Switch’ challenge, which has been around for a while but has yet to go viral.
This video is SNL’s most successful TikTok video to date – yet another example of why it is critical for your brand to stay on top of current TikTok trends.
Looking for the original sound that started the trend? Simply click on the song as it plays in the video. It displays content that includes that sound-byte, as well as which profile used it first.
You’ll definitely see more TikTok followers on your profile if you want to jump on a trend and have something creative & fun to offer to stand out from the crowd.