Do you recall hearing that TikTok is only for teens? Since the video app’s introduction in 2017, a lot has changed. Almost 2.6 billion people have downloaded the TikTok app, which has more than 1 billion active monthly users. But how can social media marketers match the cool kids on TikTok in terms of coolness?

What Has TikTok Added Recently?

Writers of content, rejoice: you may now use up to 2,200 characters in your TikTok captions for each post. The meagre 300 character cap on caption length originally applied. A word of advice: refrain from writing an essay. In TikTok, your video need should speak by itself. If you need some assistance, look at our writing advice for social networking.

Other social media sites were slow to spend extensively on Creators compared to TikTok. The TikTok Creator Marketplace is the go-to location for creator partnerships and offers an efficient method of finding creators based on sector, budget, and company KPIs. Around 100K producers from 24 regions are available for companies to interact with on the Marketplace. For brands seeking for the appropriate micro or macro influencers, that is important.

1. Promote important holidays in advance

68% of TikTok users begin their holiday shopping at least a few weeks in advance. They also have a higher propensity to shop online and are more receptive to direct social purchasing. And TikTok is obviously going after the small-business option with a help centre for advertising that will prepare them for important shopping holidays.

2. Listen to current music or create your own!

TikTok is undoubtedly best known for its music, and the TikTok experience is heavily reliant on sound. Songs that were popular on TikTok were created by both well-known and up-and-coming musicians. Some seemed incredibly improbable.
Takeaways for the TikTok marketing strategy

Don’t scrimp on the audio. Several companies underuse popular songs and current noises. You must buy a licence in order to use popular music and sounds in sponsored content or on a company profile. Because of this, numerous brands make use of the TikTok royalty-free music collection. Several popular songs are only made available to TikTok users individually, not to businesses.
Join forces with music producers. They don’t need to be huge celebrities. Early collaboration with talented innovators can truly be beneficial for both parties. Your brand will be in the spotlight if they become successful.
Be imaginative while using soundbites. A full track does not have to be playing in the background. Oh No! by Kreepa, No Idea! by Don Toliver, and my personal favourite, Spongebob Tomfoolery-Dante9k Remix! by Dante9k, were among the popular sound bites of 2022. The first 15 seconds of the latter were most frequently used in TikToks.

3. Join hashtag competitions

The TikTok community has had difficulties since its inception. They are, in fact, a key component of the hashtag-heavy search engine.

Formerly, users could tap the Explore button at the bottom of their screens. However, a recent TikTok app update replaced this with a “Friends” option, making it difficult to look up popular hashtags. Users using the TikTok app were sent to a page featuring a selection of trending hashtags and hot sounds via the Explore menu.

Takeaways for the TikTok marketing strategy

Be cyclical. Be at the right place at the right time with your challenge or meme if Halloween is just around the corner. If your video is timely, viewers are significantly more inclined to watch it.
Be non-promotional. Promotional viral hashtag challenges are quite rare. They consistently centre on a message, amusing meme, or interesting challenge.
Create a following first. Working with micro-influencers to launch your #hashtag challenge is definitely advisable unless your brand has been able to establish a well-known TikTok channel. As an alternative, you may use employee advocacy as a springboard for your ideas.
Use an existing hashtag as a springboard. If your brand is small, employing a popular challenge hashtag will probably be more effective than coming up with your own. You shouldn’t expect your #MyCEODancingAtTheWaterCooler video to become viral. It might if you add it to a well-known #dancechallenge.

4. Collaborate With TikTok Makers

Creators are given a lot of attention on TikTok, and rightfully so. Social media sites would not function without creators; otherwise, your newsfeed would be filled with advertisements and product placements. (Facebook, I’m addressing you.) Ads do in fact support platforms since they are a fact of life. Even so, they are still capable of being innovative. TikTok is a hub of innovative thinkers, including artists, dancers, singers, writers, and business owners. And when it comes to innovative partnerships, the teen entrepreneurs really got my attention.

5. Provide TikTok users useful educational content

We all prefer viewing a video to reading an article when we require directions, whether it be for furniture construction, DIY projects, cosmetic care, or hair. In comparison to printed blogs, Gen Zs prefer learning from YouTube and TikTok videos, and millennials and Gen X also share this choice. Although a video is frequently preferable for teaching or how-tos, it doesn’t mean they won’t read your blog. In a completely immersive setting that enables them to conduct their own research, make choices, and take action, viewers want to confront with your brand.

Final Reflections

In terms of downloads and monthly active users, TikTok and Instagram are currently practically on par. And forecasts indicate that TikTok will overtake the market in the next years.

You have the solution when you combine this with Facebook’s ageing user base and the requirement for most brands to target the younger demographic.