Do you know someone who doesn’t view social media as an opportunity to grow a business?
Even in 2022?
Are you that person?
Change is one of the most underrated challenges that we face. It's often happening faster than we can keep up - especially with the time it takes to actually learn new skills. Changes in fashion, business development, marketing, social media, etc. The only question that matters is are you open to change? If you can genuinely answer yes to that question, we believe you have a great future in whatever field you decide to pursue.
I have a massive passion for film. I love analyzing films from the lenses of the directing style, the writing, the cinematography, the acting, the photography, I love it all! It’s an art that continues to develop and I love being involved in that world as often as possible. I was having a conversation with a close friend of mine and I mentioned that I wanted to start a solo podcast to share daily film updates. His first reaction was “Why not TikTok?” My immediate thought turned to fear. Fear because I wasn’t using TikTok personally. Because it was something new that I’d have to learn. And it meant that I needed to change. I was comfortable with the thought of making a podcast because I already have a different podcast that I'm making each week so I understand the process it would take. Gratefully, I took my friend’s advice and immediately turned to TikTok.
With no experience and little understanding of what TikTok has to offer, I decided to start making videos with the vision that I had in mind. Fast forward 45 days and now I have over 100,000 followers and over 2 million engagements. How? Well, there will never be one specific formula to social media success, however, I believe specific steps can help anyone get on the right track. So here are a few tips that I recommend!
Find a topic, invest in that topic, and share that topic.
Everyone’s trying to figure out what to share when it comes to TikTok. Making videos in general is difficult and can cause a bit of stage fright because of all of the outside circumstances. What are you passionate about? Take money out of the equation, take likes and followers out of the equation, simply reflect on what you absolutely admire and love to talk about, even in conversations with your friends. I believe that’s a good start. The moment you start to create content because of a secondary agenda such as money or “likes”, the more difficult it becomes to create authentic content and it starts to become forced. I love film so I decided to make videos regarding current updates in the film industry with random top 10 videos mixed in between, however I could have taken my passion for film in a thousand different directions, I simply decided that sharing film updates was where my passion was at. If you love coffee, if you love certain products, if you have a passion for investing, if you enjoy talking about sports, start there and then take it one step at a time to decide what you would love talking about regardless of the results. That’s the beginning.
Create a schedule, and make it a priority.
If you were in school and your teacher said that you had to write a paper that was due tomorrow, you’d make it a priority to write your paper, right? At times if there’s no institution or company involved in asking something of you it can be difficult to make it as much of a priority. Creating a schedule that falls in line with your work/school, personal development, and relationships is vital in developing a priority out of making your videos. Habits come from seeing something as valuable as another priority in your life. I’ve been blessed to exercise consistently, but only because I see my exercise as an extension of my work day and I believe that if you create a similar mindset with creating videos then you’ll start to discover success similar to the success that you receive from your hard work in school or with your profession.
Consistency even when it’s most difficult.
With my experience in social media marketing I’ve found that consistency is a common ingredient among all social media platforms to discover success. TikTok is exceptionally unique in this regard. Do you find the algorithm of Instagram, Facebook, or Linkedin difficult? If so, I predict that we have less than a year left of TikTok’s unique algorithm until they move toward something similar to the other platforms. Many experts suggest making 3+ videos a day however that can be a bit overwhelming. In my experience if you can create a habit of making 4-5 videos a week then you’re headed in the right direction. I can empathize with anyone who sees that number and stresses about the time they may have with their busy work schedules, personal schedules, etc… I make it a priority to separate about an hour and a half in my evenings to make videos. TikTok (at least as far as I know) doesn’t bury your videos based on the day you posted them and this is what makes TikTok unique. You’ll see videos on your feed from months prior because of the engagement and relativity that those videos have to your interests. The more videos you make, the more you’ll show up on someone’s feed regardless of when you posted them.
Ultimately it comes down to finding a topic that you’re passionate about, creating a schedule that holds priority, and being consistent with sharing your content. Similar to the gym and any other challenge in life, the hardest part is starting. Once you’ve started you’ll begin to find ways to improve your content, to engage with your audience more, and you’ll see success as you continue growing. Stress less on planning, and spend more time DOING. I’m excited to see your results!