Like everybody else on TikTok, you’re probably wishing for that one viral video that will catapult your brand to stardom and give you thousands of followers overnight.
So, you’ve been doing the daily grind on the popular short-video platform, posting 2-3 times a day and trying out different content styles and trends.
But so far? Your views aren’t significant enough to justify the time and effort you’ve been investing in the platform.
Major downer, right? But here’s some good news: going viral on TikTok is within reach, provided you use the right approach.
In this guide, we provide you 5 proven strategies to help increase your chances of going viral on TikTok.
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1. Implement a winning brand strategy
If you’re aiming to achieve viral success on TikTok, don’t aim for virality – establish a strong presence on the platform instead.
Unintuitive, I know, but hear me out. While you may get lucky with one viral TikTok video, you want to play the long-term game. You want to be a successful brand, not a one-hit wonder.
If you want to build a strong presence on the platform and be able to sustain it, you need a winning brand strategy.
You need to be consistent with your branding, in other words. After all, research shows that consistent brands are 3.5 times more visible to customers.
So focus on making your brand recognizable through cohesive visuals, messaging, and content style. That way, your target audience can easily identify and connect with your business or brand, leading to more engagement and interaction.
Staying on-brand can be challenging due to shifting audience expectations and TikTok’s evolving landscape.
If you want to stay true to your brand, it helps to define your brand voice and tone. You can start by picking the six attributes that most accurately describe your brand. Once that part’s done, create a social media style guide that you can incorporate into your social media strategy.
In the following GoPro TikTok video, you see a heart-pounding scene of bicycles descending a steep mountain trail. The video perfectly embodies GoPro’s brand attributes, as it captures an adventurous and daring moment — which aligns with the brand’s mission to “harness the power of wow.”
2. Tap into TikTok trends
If you want your TikTok content to be more visible, understanding and tapping into TikTok trends is crucial.
The platform hosts a myriad of trends, and navigating through them can be overwhelming. Let’s break down the types of TikTok trends to help you stay on top of the game:
Challenges
Challenges are popular and recurring activities TikTok users participate in by creating their own unique videos based on a specific prompt or concept.
One great example is the “Flip the Switch” challenge. This challenge involves two people switching places in front of a mirror while a song plays in the background. The goal is to create a humorous and entertaining video that others will share on the platform.
Dances
TikTok is renowned for its dance trends, where users share choreographed routines set to catchy songs.
2023 saw a few TikTok dance trends take off, such as “Savage Love (Laxed – Siren Beat)” by Jawsh 685 and Jason Derulo, “Jimin’s Dance Time LY,” and “Vibe (If I Back It Up)” by Cookiee Kawaii.
It’s a great idea to capitalize on these dance challenges because people often conduct searches using TikTok sounds. That means if someone clicks on the song, some of the top videos featuring the song will turn up in the search results.
Transformations
Transformation trends involve users showcasing dramatic changes or makeovers, such as before-and-after videos or transitioning from one look to another.
One transformation trend that recently blew up on TikTok is the “Double Bubble” hairstyle trend. This trend involves creating two small buns on the top of your head, resembling two bubbles. The trend has been popularized by TikTok creators and has been recreated by many users on the platform.
The beauty of these trends lies in their non-salesy nature. For example, if you do the gender swap challenge and managed to create an entertaining video out of it — while you’re not overtly promoting your products, you’re showcasing your brand’s creativity and relevance.
That said, following what’s hot and what’s not on TikTok is like following the stock market. You need to be vigilant, as what’s trending today might not be tomorrow.
Here are some tips to stay on top of TikTok trends:
- Use the Discover page: TikTok’s Discover page is a great place to find out what hashtags and topics are currently trending. Scroll through and explore popular sounds, effects, and hashtags, as they indicate what’s hot at the moment.
- Use filtered searches: Utilize the filtered search function to search videos by popularity. You can filter by date, number of likes, and relevance to your niche.
- Keep up with relevant influencers: Stay connected with influencers in your field or industry. Influencers tend to be quick in adopting new trends due to the extensive teams that keep them updated.
- Follow the right hashtags: Pay attention to trending hashtags, such as #TrendAlert, to discover popular or upcoming trends on TikTok.
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3. Focus on delighting your target audience
If you want to achieve that coveted viral status on TikTok, avoid trying to please everyone. Instead, focus on delighting your target audience.
Targeting a broad audience often leads to creating content that lacks uniqueness and remarkability (in other words, boring). And you don’t want to produce boring content, especially on a crowded platform like TikTok.
As marketing guru Seth Godin puts it:
“You have to choose your customers – who’s it for and what’s it for. And when you’ve identified them, the opportunity/requirement is to create so much delight and connection that they choose to spread the word to like-minded peers.”
To understand your target audience better, do the following:
- Keep a close eye on the trending content within your niche: Again, spend time exploring the Discover page and observe the types of content that strike a chord with your audience. This will give you valuable insights into the current trends and popular themes that you can leverage for your content strategy.
- Follow the influencers they admire: These influencers have already built a strong rapport with your potential audience, so interacting with them and paying attention to their content can provide you with valuable cues for your own creations.
- Engage in conversations: Respond to comments and participate in discussions within communities to establish your presence and gain a deeper understanding of your target audience’s preferences.
- Expand your reach across different platforms: Consider exploring platforms like Discord, Reddit, Twitch, and others relevant to your niche. These platforms can provide you with additional insights into your target audience’s interactions and preferences, helping you refine your content strategy further.
4. Leverage storytelling
Mastering the art of storytelling on TikTok can be the key to unlocking the viral potential of your content. Our human brains are naturally wired to crave stories – we are pattern-seeking individuals, always searching for meaning in the world around us. By tapping into our innate affinity for narratives, you can captivate your TikTok audience and leave them wanting more.
To harness the power of storytelling effectively, consider following this framework:
- Establish your ‘Why’: Every great story begins with a clear purpose or “why.” Before creating your TikTok content, take a moment to reflect on the core message or emotion you want to convey. The answer will be the guiding force behind your content creation process.
- Touch on your target audience’s pain points and desires: Understanding your target audience is vital to crafting compelling TikTok stories. Dive deep into their pain points, aspirations, and desires. By addressing their needs through your storytelling, you create the emotional link that makes them want to stop scrolling every time they see one of your videos in their FYP.
- Add important details: Powerful storytelling lies in the details. Be meticulous in setting the scene, and incorporate elements that enrich the narrative. These carefully curated details breathe life into your TikTok content and make it more memorable for your audience.
- Hint at what’s going to happen: Much like with most gripping stories, foreshadowing adds an element of intrigue and suspense to your TikTok videos, compelling viewers to keep watching until the end. Tease the upcoming events or surprises in your story, but don’t give everything away at once. The art of keeping your audience guessing heightens their interest and anticipation for future content.
5. Collaborate with influencers
If you want more users to engage with your Tiktok videos, you need to make them trust you first. And there’s no better and faster way to earn that trust than by associating yourself with an influencer that they love and respect.
Want to spread the word about your gym? Collaborating with a fitness influencer with a strong following of fitness enthusiasts is an excellent way to boost your brand’s visibility and reach.
And since we’re talking TikTok, you’ll be delighted to learn that TikTok is the social media channel most used by brands tapping into influencer marketing. That said, you have to approach influencer marketing with thoughtfulness and care if you want to maximize the potential of the platform as a catalyst for influencer collaborations.
Here are some tips to ensure a successful influencer marketing campaign on TikTok:
- Understand the influencer’s niche: Before reaching out to collaborate with an influencer, take the time to understand their niche and content style. Does their content align with your brand’s values and messaging? If yes, then collaborating with that influencer can produce TikTok videos both of your audiences will enjoy.
- Build a genuine relationship with your target influencers: Successful influencer partnerships are built on trust and genuine connections. Don’t simply treat influencers as marketing tools, but invest in building authentic relationships with them. Engage with their content, provide support, and show genuine appreciation for their work. When influencers feel valued and respected, they’re more likely to reciprocate and create compelling content for your brand.
- Ensure the influencer is relevant to your target audience: Before reaching out to an influencer, make sure that the types of content they put out are relevant to your target audience’s pain points and interests. Will they care what that influencer has to say? Remember, when you’re building a brand, you’re also building a community. And your influencer collaborations need meaningful results to give your TikTok videos more opportunities to go viral.
Bonus content: How to manage your TikTok videos easier
The constant push for virality on TikTok can get quite intense, doesn’t it? If you’re feeling creator burnout, it’s time to step off the hamster wheel (so to speak) and use a good management tool that lets you easily schedule TikToks and manage comments in bulk.
By using TikTok management tools for businesses like NapoleonCat, you can:
- Schedule TikTok videos: NapoleonCat enables users to schedule TikTok content in advance, making it easier to maintain a consistent posting schedule and optimize content delivery for maximum engagement.
- Manage TikTok comments in one customizable view: The platform provides a convenient dashboard to manage TikTok comments (from organic and ad posts) in one simple view. It’s especially helpful for teams, and streamlines customer service interactions so that customer queries, feedback, and concerns can be addressed promptly and efficiently.
We highly recommend you test NapoleonCat for free here – no credit card required during signup 😉
TikTok management tool for teams
Schedule your TikToks and manage TikTok comments (organic and ads) from one place – with an all-in-one social media tool designed for teams.
FAQ
How does content go viral on TikTok?
It’s important to note that going viral is not entirely predictable. That said, following best practices for publishing TikTok content can increase your chances of going viral on the platform, such as creating engaging content, leveraging trending challenges and hashtags, and maintaining a consistent presence. No guaranteed formula exists, but following these strategies leverages the TikTok algorithm to your advantage, which increases your content’s chances of going viral.
Does follower count matter in getting viral on TikTok?
Follower count has no direct bearing on your chances of getting viral on TikTok. The TikTok algorithm prioritizes user engagement and video performance rather than the number of followers.
What is the ‘heating button’ on TikTok?
The “heating button” on TikTok is the secret feature used by TikTok and ByteDance employees to promote specific videos and make them go viral. The practice was kept secret until Forbes exposed it by reviewing internal documents and communications.
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