A lot of upcoming artists across all genres have made it big on this video-sharing app formerly known as Douyin. Artists like Lil Nas X, Doja Cat, and Oliver Rodigro among others can boast of millions of Spotify, YouTube, and iTunes streams, thanks to TikTok.
What makes TikTok the perfect viral marketing tool for musicians?
TikTok is more than an app. The platform is home to diverse UGC-creating influencer communities, some of which have well-displayed cultures and subtle rules. These communities live and die by new hashtags and challenges. If a group of influencers like a song
and make a challenge for it, thousands of others might join the trend by creating similar videos with their creative twist. TikTok video editing tools and effects make it easy to replicate trending videos.
Once the TikTok algorithm notices a trend, it pushes it to the “For You” page of tiktokers who have interacted with such videos in the past, the “Explore” page of millions of users following the participating influencers. Depending on the immensity of the trend, it can also make it to the For You page of users who have not interacted with such videos in the past. The TikTok algorithm is designed to encourage trends and of course, keep users on the app. What might have started as a reaction video to a song can become an explosive trend in minutes.
As musicians, we must understand that the TikTok algorithm is friendlier than that of other platforms like Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. Instagram, for example, only favors established influencers and paid promotion. Facebook is worse. In order to sustain your music business, you cannot rely on platforms that require you to put in dollars every time to get seen. What you need is a platform that feeds off viral content. A community where creating UGC is the culture. A platform like TikTok where artist dreams come true sooner than expected.
How to grow your fanbase on TikTok for musicians
To succeed on TikTok, you must be ready to follow trends without losing your creative touch. TikTok is not the best platform for misoneists, people who hate new things.
According to a 2021 Statista report, TikTok is dominated by users under 30. Three things young people love are fun, more fun, and lots of fun. Hence, to survive on the platform, you have to be fun to watch and unusually creative. Follow the steps below to grow your fanbase on TikTok.
The shorter the better; create short videos
The TikTok community appreciates micro-entertainment; meaning time is of the essence. YouTube is the place to go if you want to create long-form videos, but on TikTok, ain’t nobody got time for that.
The initial duration for videos that can be posted on TikTok used to be 15 seconds. A recent update extended the time limit to 60 seconds. When recording a video on the platform, the time limit remains 15 seconds, but you can mash four 15 seconds videos to make a minute-long video. The TikTok licensing agreement with music companies like Sony Music Entertainment does not allow users to use more than 15 seconds of their artists’ songs in videos created on the platform.
Adopt a TikTok culture
The TikTok trendy culture is divided into countless subcultures, such as punks, e-boys, goths, VSCO girls, dark academia kids, softboi, yee-boy, and many more. These subcultures dictate the fashion styles of specific influencer groups.
In summary, TikTok is not all about creating random videos for trending songs. Behind the scenes, there are hidden meanings attached to fashion styling, dance steps, lighting. The only way to get a better view of how things are run on TikTok is to explore. Believe me; TikTok is another universe on its own.
Before posting content, you need to:
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Explore various subcultures and choose one or a combination of subcultures.
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Follow the influencers you like and keep an eye on their fashion styles.
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Create your fashion style using original ideas and of course, the borrowed ones.
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Test your ideas and stick to the ones that give you the most engagement.
Draft a content calendar
I hope you have not forgotten the ultimate goal, which is to gain traction using user-generated content. If you are going to turn random viewers into fans, you must keep feeding them content.
Consistency is key.
There is no better way to be consistent than to create a content calendar. The content calendar will contain:
- The specific date and time the content will go live.
- The TikTok account(s) if you manage multiple accounts.
- The video and description.
- The hashtags you intend to use.
- The other social media accounts you intend to repost the content on.
You can post once, twice, or thrice a day. But desist from posting more than three videos a day even if you have a ton of followers.
Why?
You want to ensure a post gets enough exposure before posting another. Unless you are Charli D’amelio or some TikTok influencer with millions of followers, posting 5-10 posts per day is not a great idea. It can hurt your reach.
Use hashtags
Let’s say you made a video for a trending challenge for instance #respectthedrip challenge, you want to make it easy for the algorithm to know what the video is about. Using hashtags help the algorithm understand your post and push it to the For You pages of an interested audience. If the initial users that were shown your content like it, the algorithm will push it to more lookalike users.
Apart from the algorithm boost, niche hashtags like #comedy, #funny, #model, #tiktokindonesia, help you target users who are interested in your craft. You can also target people in your region with location-related hashtags. As a musician, you need to connect with TikTok users in your region, that way you will be able to monetize your music and sell out shows when you start getting tangible traction.
While there’s no restriction on the number of hashtags you use on a TikTok post, no post can have more than 100 characters. A good rule of thumb is to mix the niche hashtags with broader ones like #foryoupage, #viral, #explorepage, etc.
Do not use hashtags that have nothing to do with the video you posted. If you use a dog-related hashtag in a video that has nothing to do with dogs, you will piss off dog lovers and it will hurt your reach. While TikTok does not have a dislike button, they can hold down your video and tag it as ‘not interested’. The algorithm can punish your account if you use misleading hashtags.
Go Live
In case you want to go ‘Jonathan Harchick’ on your followers, the live feature allows you to engage your users for an unlimited amount of time. To go live on TikTok, you must have at least 1000 followers and you must be over 16 years of age. The major benefit of going live is that it increases the bond between you and your followers. Plus, it is easier to get them to turn up at your shows if you can impress them via a live performance.
Go Local
Although I have mentioned this point before, it is worth mentioning twice. I know you dream to blow beyond the borders of your state/county. I understand you want Lil Nas X kinda fame. However, even if you go viral globally, you need to be well-respected in your state because that’s your territory. Submit music to TikTok influencers in your state. Fans in your city will have a hard time forgetting you, but people outside your region? Oof! They can easily be swayed by the trending music from other artists. So get your city on lock.
Share TikTok videos on other social media platforms
What you started on TikTok does not have to end on TikTok. If TikTok was not a social media app, it could pass for an editing tool. Amaze your fans on other social media platforms with the beautiful video you made via TikTok. Doing that can also increase your followers’ count on TikTok.
How to optimize your music for TikTok
Optimizing your music for TikTok starts from the recording studio. You have to create the song with your TikTok community in mind.
Do you belong to the community of TikTokers that love to create duets or dance challenges to UK grime kind of music?
Are you a musician that creates sad songs like Billie Elish?
What mood does your sound emit?
The good news is that there is a place for you on TikTok regardless of the kind of music you create. One thing you need to do is ensure your video creation process tallies with the mood or message your music carries. The four steps below will help you optimize your music for TikTok.
One song at a time
The truth is you cannot push all the songs on your album (if you have released one) at the same time. You need to focus all your resources on one song at a time to attain maximum impact.
We hope these six pro tips for building a Spotify fan base will help you create this virtuous cycle and take you to the next step in your music career.
Create a hashtag and challenge for your song
Creating a hashtag for your song is like giving it an identity in the ‘eyes’ of the TikTok algorithm. Also, using a hashtag helps you track the success of your TikTok challenge. If you are having a difficult time coming up with a beautiful idea for your song, you can ask your core fans or influencer friends to help you create ideas. Two (and above) is better than one.
Encourage your fans, friends, and family to make videos for the challenge
There are several ways to get your tribe to create videos for your challenge. You can reward them with tickets to your show, merch, a special shoutout on your page, or money. Your TikTok music promotion strategy should target people who know you before proceeding to a new audience. Never leave certainty for uncertainty.
Distribute your song to TikTok
It is needless to say that every step given in this guide would be irrelevant if your song is not properly distributed to TikTok. TikTok does not automatically own the right to publish 15 seconds of your song on their platform. They need your permission. All you need to do is to use a distributor that has TikTok as one of its distribution destinations. And ensure you pick TikTok when choosing the platforms you want your music to be published on. It’s that simple.
Once your music is on TikTok, you can manage your content and get relevant data using the TikTok for artists app.