Early on in our business we realized the importance of marketing, specifically TikTok. In August of 2021 we had 1K followers and now 2 years later we have 34K followers. From our successes to our failures, TikTok has been confusing to navigate, so here are our tips.
1. Hastags
Hashtags are important but including too many will hurt your video’s performance. We recommend using 3–6 hashtags that match your products and target audience. Always make sure they fit within your niche. For example, for our dinosaur plush videos we use: #dinoplushie, #cuteplushies, #stuffedanimalsoftiktok, #plushiesoftiktok
2. Posting time
We usually post TikToks when our followers are active. To find your follower activity stats, go to your creater tools and then click on analytics. When getting started though, we recommend posting at 7am or pm on weekdays and 11am to 4pm on weekends. These times have worked for us well so try them out! You want to post when you think the most people are scrolling on TikTok so factor in work, school, time zone differences, etc.
3. Consistency
Consistency is essential to account growth. Try to post once a day to help build your following, especially when first starting your TikTok account. You want to make sure viewers don’t forget your account and product. After continuing this routine, you should notice videos to start doing better. Make sure to create a schedule for posting so you can post around the same time every day. Try to have videos in your drafts at all times so you always have something to post.
4. Lighting
Lighting is one of the most important factors in creating viral videos. All of our best performing videos had nice natural lighting that highlighted the colouring of our products. We recommend using natural lighting especially if you can capture light rays and sunshine on your products. If not, make sure you have a form of bright lighting so your products can look professional and appealing.
5. Quality
When starting your account, you may feel the need to post very often to gain followers and attention, but over posting won’t help grow your account. We’ve tried to over-post in the past and all videos had a low view count as none of them were special. You want to make sure you are posting good content that people will enjoy. Post something that you think will catch peoples attention. The best way to tell if your video is good quality is to think if you would actually watch the entire video if you were scrolling on TikTok. Focus on quality over quantity with content.
6. Engagement
The TikToks that have gone viral on our account all have lots of comments. Comments and shares are the best way to boost your video as higher engagement means more reach. Try to post a video that makes people want want to share the video with someone else. You want people to tag others in the comments or share it since it will create more engagement. More engagement = more views and reach.
7. Hook
When you’re scrolling on TikTok, you’ll notice you’re watching the videos that capture your attention immediately until the end. Watch time is very important in the TikTok algorithm. To make sure people stay for at least a couple seconds, make sure you are capturing peoples attention right away. We recommend showing your product right away rather than having an unnecessary or extremely long introduction which feels boring to viewers.
8. Other platforms
To us, TikTok is by far the best platform to market your business on, but don’t forget about the other platforms. We use the content made on TikTok and post it onto Instagram and Pintrest. You never know where your videos will do well so make sure to post, be consistent, and share your videos on other platforms as well. Make sure to take out the TikTok logo or else your videos won’t do well on the other platforms (we use snaptik). Another tip for Instragram is to use their sounds for reels rather than your original TikTok audio
9. Length
Videos should be short so viewers will watch the whole video. Our average TikToks are 7–9 seconds and we recommend you do the same. We aim to keep them short and interesting, mainly showing the product to the audience. The only time you should make a long video is if you are showing an interesting process/experience. Many people love seeing the process of items, but still make sure the video is exciting.
10. Engagement with audience
We’ve always responded to comments even if it’s just a simple thank you. We try to like almost every comment and if they ask a question we try to always reply. Commenters appreciate a reply from the creator and it boosts engagment as well. Always try to engage with your audience by replying to them.
11. Audio/sound
Using trending audios is one of the most important tips to remember. You need to make sure the audio you’re using is trending. Aim for the sound to have 6000 videos or more. Using a trending sound can boost your video onto the for you page! Try to have the audio match your product, whether that be writing the lyrics on the screen or synchronizing movement to follow the sound. Make sure to save audios whenever you can so it’s easy to access them when you want to film.
12. Text
Don’t overflow your tiktoks with text, but always add a little just to introduce your product. Say something like “looking for the perfect ___” or anything else that will let viewers know why they need your product. This will hook them in and give them a reason to buy. Another way that we use text more often is writing the lyrics to a trending sound on tiktok. Text can be used in many different ways on tiktok so expirement to see what does best!
13. Search engine
TikTok is becoming a search engine where people often search up topics to learn more about it. For example, “gifts for valentines” or “cute room decor”. We sometimes find ourselves using tiktok as google since we love seeing videos and recommendations. Try to make your videos relate to a question or topic that someone would search. To make sure your video shows up under the topic you want when searched, write it in text in your video or in your hashtags. For example, for our plushies, we always use the hashtag “dinoplushie” to make sure people will see our video when they search it on tiktok.
14. Packaging
People love seeing packaging videos of the order they placed, and others may like seeing how you package your orders. We’ve always noticed our packaging videos did very well and sometimes did better than just a video about the product. A packaging video shows a process where viewers want to see the end result. They like to see cute packaging and little things you’ve added. Try to have some special little thing about your packaging, whether that be a handwritten thank you card, colour coordination, or a cute sticker. Make the packaging feel handmade and fun. One thing that people have loved about our packaging is the adoption certificate for plushies.
If you have any additional questions please reach out to us through our email stitchedwithhearts@gmail.com or our TikTok or Instagram @stitchedwithhearts
