TikTok for Beginners

TikTok 101: Tips for New Users
By Tiana Symeonakis

TikTok. By now, there is a high chance you have heard of this new and extremely popular social media platform. But do you know how it works? Or if there are any benefits for you to be on it?

Ask the Gen Z’ers (in this case me!) who are more than happy to explain how and why this social media platform is so big and how to use it. Most of us started using TikTok for fun and out of pure curiosity. However, after bypassing a bunch of cringe-worthy content in a few short weeks, we became fully immersed into the app and realised that TikTok has its own subculture.

What to do on TikTok

• TikTok is all about video. To use the app, you make short videos ranging from 15 to 60 seconds. You can record videos with your own sound or voice otherwise you can add audio later using TikTok’s music library.

• The main aim is for your video to appear on the app’s main “For You” page. This is where users with similar content to you will see your videos. If your video does appear on the “For You” page there is a high chance your content will go viral (anything from 7k – 1 million likes. However, it is rare for your video to appear on TikTok’s main page because you are competing with so many other users.

• Be creative. One of the reasons the app is so popular is because it allows such a large space for creativity and originality. If you have a unique idea or a sound/music you think people will enjoy and use, try it! You never know what will go viral.

• Follow trends. You can try your own original ideas of what you think will work on TikTok, however the next best thing to do is to follow trends and try your own version. This could be videoing yourself doing a “trending” TikTok dance, using a popular sound, recording a certain style of video or following a trending meme. It is always best to put your own small twist on the trend. You may edit the sound, add text that relates it to you/your brand or anything else you think may fit well.

• Be aware of the music. The way TikTok is currently affecting the music industry is nothing short of crazy. By just looking at Spotify’s current “Australia Top 50” you will can see that half of the chart consists of songs that have either become popular because of TikTok or are from an already prominent artist used frequently on the app. It has helped many artists go from a hundred thousand streams to 6 million. Although most of these songs don’t last for more than a month on TikTok, before the “hype” switches to a different song.

• Use hashtags! Hashtags are one of the main ways that people find specific videos on TikTok. Users may search a popular hashtag or sound and be able to scroll through every video made with it. Popular hashtags include #foryou, #foryoupage, #fyp #trending or #duet.

What not to do on TikTok

• It goes without saying, but do not post anything offensive! On a platform like TikTok where something can blow up and get several million views without warning, you need to be aware of what you’re posting. Having said that, you don’t need to take TikTok too seriously either. A lot of popular content is made by comedians and actors doing silly things!

• Please don’t underestimate how much effort it takes to create TikTok videos. Some videos may take about 5 minutes, but others could take a couple hours to make. Between figuring out what you are going to make, what sound you will use, the filming of it and the editing, you may be working on the one for a while.

• Avoid posting without watching first. This one is more up to you, but I would suggest browsing other content on TikTok first, and see what is popular before posting your own content.

• Don’t be afraid to try! Mess around a bit. Make videos and explore the functionality, tools and filters available. If you make a video you’re not happy with, it’s very easy to change the privacy of your post so only you can view it. Or if you are not ready to post a video you’re creating, you can save it to drafts and come back to it later. Just have a go!

People/businesses that do it well (I can could spend all day explaining why, but otherwise a quick look at their account shows the likes, views, followers and quality of content they post.)

Small Personal Businesses

• Emiliana Lahrssen https://www.tiktok.com/@.emilianaaa
• Anson Seabra https://www.tiktok.com/@ansonseabra

One of our personal fave’s is our nieces Uncle “Lukey” – aka Luke Springer
https://www.tiktok.com/@iam.mrluke

Businesses
• Washington Post https://www.tiktok.com/@washingtonpost
• The Bentist https://www.tiktok.com/@thebentist

Big Chains or Company’s
• Chipotle https://www.tiktok.com/@chipotle
• Gushers https://www.tiktok.com/@therealgushers

Interesting TikTok reads:

https://www.nrn.com/marketing/tiktok-it-s-time-restaurants-pay-attention-new-social-media-platform
https://www.oberlo.com/blog/tiktok-statistics
https://mediakix.com/blog/top-tik-tok-statistics-demographics/

Tiana Symeonakis, is 16 years old and resides in Renmark South Australia. You guessed it, she is the youngest sister of our boss lady Chrissy here at CLS.

Tiana is this year completing her HSC. She loves baking, dancing, travel and musical theater. She spends way too much time online, and loves all this Marvel and is our correspondent on all things hip and new…

Editor/ Erica Louise