How to go viral on TikTok: Try these three tips to get people excited by your business

Do you spend hours of time creating TikTok content only to be met with a few measly likes, and zero sales? Chances are, you are unknowingly missing out on a few key ingredients to getting some serious content engagement.

As of early 2021 TikTok had 689 million users per month across the globe. This makes it a highly worthwhile marketing platform. If you can nail your content, your brand will have a chance of being seen by hundreds, thousands or millions of people.

“Compared to Facebook and Instagram, TikTok is still a fairly new platform. Most marketers are still figuring it out,” explains Xixi Liu co-founder of CheekyGlo, an online beauty business which launched during the COVID lockdown in 2020.

“However, TikTok is such a great platform for showing off your brand’s personality, creating an engaged audience and when you pull it off –  getting your content to go viral,”

“We posted one of our CheekyGlo products on TikTok just after the release, it went viral and we sold out within 48 hours!”

CheekyGlo now has over 10 million views on their TikTok platform.

Xixi Liu says when creating content with the goal of going viral there are 3 key things to keep in mind and incorporate into your strategy.

1. Remember the 3-second hook rules on TikTok

TikTok is a short-form video content platform, which means that viewers will keep scrolling to the next video if yours does not catch their attention. You need to win your viewers over within the first 3 seconds of your content.

“This can be a thought-provoking message or an eye-catching video snippet,” explains Xixi. “Be creative and get users interested by starting your video with something that sparks curiosity and keeps the viewer hooked.”

Xixi recommends thinking about your content from a viewer’s perspective. If you only saw the first 3 seconds of your own TikTok video, would you keep watching?

2. Always be authentic on TikTok

There’s absolutely no need to portray a ‘perfect’ image, to only show the highlights of your business or to show a persona that is clearly not authentic. Perfection is not relatable, authenticity is.

Your viewers want to get-to-know the people behind the business. They are often just as interested in learning what happens behind-the-scenes, as they are about the final product or service.

“Create content such as vlogs showing a day in your life as a business owner, or demonstrate how the product is made,” says Xixi. “ You could even share challenges that your business is facing.”

The more authentic you are, the more viewers can create a real connection with you. This will result in higher engagement and a higher chance of virality.

3. Be consistent with your posting schedule

Create a consistent posting schedule and stick to it! If you are consistent with your content you’ll have more of a chance of getting noticed. You probably won’t go viral from one or two videos, it takes planning, time and discipline.

“We post to TikTok once a day, even if we don’t feel like posting – we still post,” says Xixi.

“The best way to be consistent is to have a content calendar. This way you don’t have to think about what you will post that day. Additionally, keep a bank of draft videos ready that you can include in your schedule. That way, on busy days or days when you don’t have video creativity flowing you can still engage with your audience.” 

Takeaways

Virality on TikTok is not usually random. Yes, there is a certain amount of luck involved but there are a few simple things you can do to ensure your content has the best chances of being seen by many.

3 things that you can incorporate today to boost your chances of going viral are:

• Having a 3 second video hook,
• Always being authentic, and
• Sticking to a consistent posting schedule.

“Let these 3 things underpin your TikTok strategy and you’ll increase your views, sales and you’ll probably have more fun too!”

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