If you’re looking for a way to reach new customers and grow your business, TikTok is a platform you don’t want to overlook. TikTok has over 1.5 billion monthly active users, and is the top most engaging social media platform with an average engagement rate of 2.65%. That means people spend more time on the app and interacting with brands than they do on any other platform. With the right TikTok strategy that includes following a content calendar, video optimization, ads, and analytics, you can get the most out of the platform, widen your customer base, and boost sales.
Create a content calendar
Viral trends happen fast on TikTok, which means spur-of-the-moment posts can do well on the platform. But that doesn’t mean it’s okay to forgo a content strategy altogether. Devise a content calendar and stick to it as best as you can. In the beginning, post around once a day and take a look at the views and engagement you get. You can then start experimenting with posts at different times and on different days.
Past studies have identified the best times to post throughout the week — for instance, posting between 6am-10am and at 10pm on Mondays can catch the attention of both early birds and night owls. But you really just need to monitor your views and engagement to see what sort of schedule works best for you. And try not to post more than four times a day as this can cross the line into spamming your audience.
Optimize your videos
Optimizing your videos for TikTok’s algorithms can also boost your reach even further. Always provide brief captions or descriptions along with your videos to provide context and fit in some popular keywords and hashtags (these are some of the main ways your content is discovered).
So, think about the kinds of keywords your target audience would use on the platform, and research popular hashtags relevant to your business. The
algorithm also recognizes sound and audio clips, so you can also use trending sounds in your videos to get your brand out there. As TikTok videos also have the ability to rank on Google, optimizing your TikTok videos is a great way to get your brand noticed on more than one platform and help your business grow.
Try TikTok ads
TikTok Ads have an immense global reach of 884.9 million people over the age of 18. According to TikTok’s own reports, 67% of users have been influenced into making a purchase on the platform, even though they hadn’t been intending to buy anything. And TikTok ads can also boost brand loyalty by 31%. So all those stats (and some additional mind blowing stats here) combined should be enough to tempt you to research your ad options.
As for organic ads, you can opt to boost your posts with TikTok Promote, which involves spending a little money to help more people find your stuff, increase your followers, and ultimately make more sales. As the Promote tool asks you to select your specific goal for the ad campaign (drive traffic to your website, get more video/profile views, etc), it’s an easy way to amplify your brand at an affordable price. These campaigns run for between one to seven days and cost between $3-$1000 per day.
But if you just want to go straight for a traditional ad, you can do that too via the traditional TikTok ad manager. In-feed ads, for example, appear as user’s scroll the For You Page, and blend in with the other typical content. Users can like, comment, and engage with the ad just like they can with other posts.
The ads last fifteen seconds and are skippable, so you won’t run the risk of appearing annoying or intrusive. You can also add a call to action to up the odds of users taking the action you want them to take (like visiting your website or downloading an app, for example). This option is fairly expensive as you need to spend $500 per campaign, but the ROI should be worth it. In fact, 78% of small business owners experience a positive ROI with TikTok ads.
Scale up your business structure
As your business starts to grow (hopefully thanks in part to TikTok), you’ll also need to think about upgrading your business structure to support your growth. Most small businesses start out as sole proprietorships, which makes sense as they’re quick and easy to establish and usually require no paperwork. But this does leave you as the owner personally financially responsible for all debts and losses your business accrues.
It’s therefore pretty standard for small businesses to upgrade to a limited liability company (LLC) as their business grows. 35% of small businesses in the U.S. are LLCs. In contrast to sole proprietorships, LLC’s provide legal protection, so your home, bank accounts, car, and investments will all be left alone by creditors if your business owes debt.
The steps to start an LLC involve filing paperwork with the state either online or through mail. This process can take anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks. Once it’s done, you’ll have greater peace of mind and be better positioned to take strategic risk as your business grows.
Monitor your progress
Monitor the progress of your posts and campaigns on TikTok, so you know whether your growth efforts have been successful. The platform’s analytics show you who’s watching your content as well as your reach and engagement levels. You’ll soon start to notice which videos and strategies do best and deliver greatest ROI for your business. You’ll then know what to replicate and what to stop doing. Remember to track metrics on your website too. So you have a clear picture of traffic and sales generated.
TikTok can be a great way to increase your brand reach and visibility and expand your business. When you devise an effective growth strategy, you’ll successfully grow your audience and boost your bottom line.
