Look, we get it...
It's easy to think TikTok is an "evil app" that'll be responsible for the corruption of our children and the eventual downfall of civilization.
Because that is EXACTLY what we thought when we first logged on -- we swear every video felt like it was there just to make us feel uncomfortable and like we just did not belong.
We had even banned our daughter from using it because we thought it was pure EVIL.
HOWEVER!
What we discovered was, if you give the algorithm a chance, it'll soon start delivering videos you actually WANT to see.
And believe it or not, there's a TON of great entrepreneurial content on the platform (in fact, it's one of the fastest-growing categories).
More importantly...
YOUR customers and future team members are probably on TikTok too!
Check out these crazy stats...
♪ For three years in a row, TikTok has been the #1 most-downloaded app, with 3 billion downloads and counting.
♪ TikTok has over one billion monthly active users, and is—BY FAR—the most engaging app, with the average user session lasting twice as long as Facebook and more than 3x as long as Instagram.
♪ US TikTok users average 858 minutes per month on the app, and while Facebook's numbers are going down, TikTok's are going up.
And, super importantly...
♪ 30+ million US TikTok users are over the age of 35 and 5.5+ million are over the age of 55.
The bottom line is that the social landscape is changing...
And TikTok is where everyone is flocking.
Oh, and get this...
It WORKS!
In fact, after putting our Attraction Marketing skills to use on TikTok we were able to crack the code on getting the TikTok algorithm to make our videos explode!
And within 30 days of getting started, we grew an audience of over 120,000 followers and people started messaging us all day and night wanting to order our company’s product and asking to join our team!
Here's the thing....
It can be a daunting social media platform for most social sellers to figure out -- especially if you want to attract people vs repel 'em. So that’s why we’ve made this blog!
We’ll share 5 tips to help you use TikTok for your social selling/ network marketing business. And we’ll share how to attract people to you (no dancing required), how to create engaging content and grow your business!
Tip #1: Get To Know the Platform
As the new kid on the block, TikTok does have a learning curve especially if you’re not comfortable with creating video content.
Create your personal profile, and play around with the app first. You don’t need to add in any content yet, simply snoop around.
Caution: Like we said before, when you first open the app, things might seem a bit off in your newsfeed (aka your Home page). That is because the algorithm needs to learn about you and what you like. Go to the search bar and type in a few of your interests, like some videos aligned to your interests and soon you'll be hooked!
We suggest that you practice and snoop around the app every day for at Least 30 Days in a Row! Time block about 15-20 minutes a day for 30 days to master the platform. Follow 5-10 people, see the content they’re putting out to get inspiration.
If you want to learn how to set-up your account, we recommend checking out this blog from Hubspot.
Tip #2: Choose Your Target Market
TikTok users like to follow unique accounts, and thanks to the algorithm, anyone can find your content.
By focusing on a target market (or a niche), you’ll stand out from all the builders promoting the same stuff as you!
Start to think about who you want to serve/ who needs what you have? What words do they use? What are their pain points? What would they search for? What questions do they have that you can answer? How can you add value to their world?
Here are two examples: @teacher_side_hustles is full of videos for teachers looking for a side income. By sharing quick clips with value and answering questions, Bryan is able to demonstrate how he can help teachers who have more money than month. They can connect on common ground (he understands them) and have a good laugh too.
@mike.gostola shares what he is learning on his journey of health and financial wellness and challenges the status quo and world view around men talking about their mental health. Mike has been applying the Attraction Marketing strategies from our favorite ebook and marketing mentorship training.
TIP: Not sure who your target market is and how align it with what you promote so you stand out? Check out this worksheet.
Tip #3: Decide When and How Often You’ll Post
As with any other social media strategy, it’s a good idea to have a posting routine for your TikTok profile.
Set aside time each week so you can brainstorm ideas, and plan out your TikTok content for the upcoming week or month and record ‘em. What’s cool is you can save them and post them when you want to.
When you first start creating content for TikTok, focus on sticking to a posting routine that’s manageable for you.
Similar to other platforms, TikTok rewards consistency. But rather than post 3 times a day, become overwhelmed, and then not post for months, start with 3-5 times a week and work your way up from there.
Tip: Download our Social Selling Rebels DMO to help you get focused and stay in action.
Tip #4: Be authentic, not prefect
“Be authentic” might feel a bit overused… but it’s not when it comes to TikTok, this is the perfect platform to show your personality.
Unlike Instagram, where picture perfect has become the norm, it isn’t necessary for TikTok (phew!).
What does this mean? You can be yourself, have fun, and not take yourself too seriously.
Authenticity helps people to trust you. People love to buy from others that understand them and they trust.
The best way to actually sell more stuff is to produce more valuable content and trainings more than you pitch your products.
Now, you may not feel like you’re making steps forward to close sales…
But here’s what leading with value first will do:
- Opens the door to start a conversation with potential prospects
- Sets you up as an authority in your niche
- Makes you stand out from the majority (who are desperately pitching just to close a sale)
- Gives you long term customers that love you
- Creates a following of people that see you as a leader and will come to you when they have problems
Tip 5: Optimize & Repurpose!
Once you start creating your TikTok’s and they are ready to be published, we recommend taking a couple of extra minutes to OPTIMIZE ‘em.
Here are a few things you can do (we love the Melton’s recommendations on these):
Cover: It’s really important for the cover to be something eye-catching. Something that will make them want to click, something that gets them curious like a funny face or a really good text over the video.
The cool thing is that once you click on the video, the words disappear.
Description: You have only 140 characters, so brevity is key. That’s why it’s important to use a CTA (call to action) because you’re going to put the value proposition (aka: why should they care about this video) on the cover.
Hashtags: It’s best to go for the hashtags that have anywhere between 1 to 5 million videos. Because if you go for the more common hashtags, your videos will get lost in all of that content.
So be really focused on your target market with them (go back to tip #3)
Don’t just use your videos once, Repurpose them! Because the video-editing capabilities of TikTok is very effective, you could make super cool videos and even if they don’t do well on TikTok, who cares? Use them for other purposes.
Repurpose your best TikTok videos for IG Reels, for Facebook, for YouTube shorts anywhere else.
That wraps up how you start working smarter and start building your business the right way on TikTok!
We do hope this was helpful to you, and if it was, please share it with others you know that might benefit.
Mike & Carla
