Why TikTok marketing is a game-changer for your growth and engagement as an online creative and service provider
The WAP dance. Endless #stitches. Lots and lots of cat videos.
This is what TikTok is known for, or at least, was.
Until we took over.
The business owners, the coaches, the strategists who took 60 seconds and transformed it into short-form clips and eye-catching content that engages, converts, and sells.
The ones who reinvented TikTok into an inbound, attractional, organic marketing powerhouse.
Yeah, in 2021, TikTok is more than a place for teens and comedians. It’s a place for learning and knowledge and expansion and growth. It gives a whole new meaning to the word ‘viral’, and an equally exciting opportunity for you to take your business to the next level this year. The best part? You don’t need to spend hours, become an #influencer, or learn a complicated dance to do it. I’m proof!
My first TikTok was posted on September 11th, 2020. It’s now garnered 15.6K likes, 187 comments, and 121.1k views. It’s responsible for the massive growth I’ve seen on my Instagram account and the flood of inquiries to work with me in my inbox. That’s the potential of TikTok. And I’m sharing why you need to get on it, and how to do it. Right now.
After its global debut in 2018, TikTok has skyrocketed to a mere 200 million users behind Instagram (which has been around since 2010) in the race for the most popular social platform. That makes it the 6th largest social network across 150 countries and 30 million monthly active users in the US. And its rapid growth is down to so many reasons, but namely:
This translates into a highly rich marketing tool for online creatives to tap into. A strongly engaged audience. Content with viral-potential. An opportunity to maximize your reach, engagement, and sales. But what do the numbers say?
In marketing, everything comes down to strategy and knowing your audience. And according to TikTok, that’s predominantly the 13 to 34-year-olds who make up over 75% of the apps user base. And for online creatives in the age of the gig economy, this is prime real estate for targeting young entrepreneurs and freelancers and showcasing your services to them. To top it off, the hashtag ‘#smallbiz’ has over 565 million uses and counting – meaning your audience is guaranteed to be on the platform!
Aside from the marketing potential that lies in the audiences on TikTok, their behavior speaks to volumes, too:
So if you didn’t already know, in 2021, a short-form video is king. And while a solid 1500-word, keyword-packed blog post and consistent posting on the ‘gram will always be a crucial part of your content strategy, getting on this platform is where it’s at to take your marketing to the next level.
But if ya need some more convincing, here are my five biggest reasons you NEED to get on TikTok as an online creative in 2021.
At the beginning of this blog I mentioned how my first TikTok received over 120K views, and then some. Of course, it’s all attributable to showing up and keeping my finger on the pulse of what’s hot on the app right now. I’ve now amassed over 25K followers in under four months, with videos averaging 5-figure views. My fiance Becca from Bold x Boho, has had similar success too! This exponential growth has translated into more engagement, more follows across our socials and ultimately, more leads helping us build our businesses! You can check out the template we use to keep track of this growth (and snag it for yourself) on my online store, here.
With over 800 million global users, TikTok has a reach as strong as Pinterest! It’s not often I stray from my one and only, but when the reach is this good, how can I not? That’s fellow creatives, freelancers, entrepreneurs, and small biz owners from across the world you can connect with to help you enter the online space as a service provider! As an online coach, this is among the first recommendations I make to my clients as it helps you get on your audience’s level by being raw, honest, relatable, and uniquely you.
Unlike other apps (looking at you, Insta) that bombard you with tons of disorganized notifications in chronological order, TikTok allows you to filter your notifications by likes, comments, mentions, followers, and messages. This allows you to skip past the surface-level notifs to prioritize building community within your comments and DMs!
I mean… who doesn’t like making fun videos that actually sell? Throughout the old content-marketing bible that reads “thou must publish static posts and long-form captions”. TikTok marketing is all about having fun, pushing boundaries, and breaking barriers by jumping on trends, letting loose, showcasing your personality, championing your unique value, and creating shareable content. There are no rules, and that freedom shines through in the fun, interactive, engaging content you create.
Real talk? TikTok is the sixth most popular app for consumer spending worldwide, meaning this highly engaged audience has their eyes and their wallets open when online. TikTok’ers are ready to spend and excited to learn more about how to work with you. That means they’re receptive to your messages and calls to action, so you can capitalize on this deeply engaged audience with content that speaks to them and secures your clients!
This isn’t going to be your traditional step-by-step, how-to blog. Because TikTok isn’t your standard, post-and-play, rinse-repeat platform. Going viral isn’t a set formula, and getting seen isn’t down to a manufactured art.
Instead, to nail TikTok your first step is to start analyzing trends and understanding what’s hot in your industry and on the app right now.
The excitement of TikTok is you don’t have to stay in your lane with conventions of your industry. That means you can take a dance that’s popping off and add funky text, literally busting myths while busting a move! You could #stitch with a relatable sound (if you’re a VA, you could even use my TikTok stitch thread!), or simply create your own like Becca! The possibilities are endless, and all you need is your phone!
Of course, looking at your current marketing strategy and content pillars, and seeing where this platform falls into place is crucial. Understanding what people in your industry are already doing with TikTok, and looking at your goals and the direction for your content (including CTAs) is an obvious first step. Because as tempting as it may be to set up your phone and start replicating a Charli D’Amelio, content without a strategy, consideration and intention will fall on deaf ears.
Also be sure you’re maximizing all its functionalities, watching, connecting and creating, adding music, jumping on trends, dueting with user-generated content, and sharing across your platforms (like to Instagram Reels).
TikTok is here to stay, so you can either jump in or get left behind. Lean into the playfulness, creativity, and unmatched community to be explored on the platform, and leverage it to supercharge your marketing in 2021. It’s as simple as downloading the app, exploring the industry and broader trends you can adapt, and strategizing how you can bring that content to life with TikTok marketing!
As a business mentor, I can help you launch and scale your dream biz into a profitable, passion-filled venture. So let’s talk about your organic marketing in 2021, including how you can leverage TikTok in your unique way!
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