Master the Art of TikTok: Boost Your Video Views with These Proven Strategies

Are you a brand or a digital marketer looking to unlock the potential of TikTok and maximize your video views??

Well read on ... you definitely don’t want to miss Tip #12: It covers hashtags.

[I’m seeing many people making mistakes when it comes to how many and what words to select as hashtags for their TikTok videos.]

TikTok has 150 Million Americans using the platform. And just like Facebook and Instagram adoption … Millennials, Gen X and Boomers are getting onto TikTok at a high rate and making content every day and becoming avid creators and influencers. Find more TikTok statistics here.

Below I'll dive into some secrets to increase your TikTok views, and offer some insights and proven strategies for you to try to enhance TikTok video performance.?

Whether you're been doing TikTok for a while or just getting started as you read this, this guide will help you boost your reach and engagement.?

Here we go!

#1: Hook the Viewers – Say Something Dramatic

The first few seconds of your TikTok video are crucial for capturing viewers' attention. Use a hook that grabs their interest and sparks curiosity in the first three seconds. Say something drastic, pose a thought-provoking question or showcase a visually striking moment. The goal is to make viewers curious and motivated to keep watching.

In a recent TikTok video I created it amassed 120,000 views in 7 days. It was about a recent ferry ride experience I took in Seattle. I opened the video with The Hook:? “Yes, so as you can see I missed the ferry … (tension/drama)”? followed by The Set Up: “... And this is the process of jumping onboard… (how to take a ferry)” and The Close: “It’s a pretty nice day out, so I think I’m going to jump out. (happy ending)” The video is 59 seconds, so under a minute.?

#2: Effective Set Up and Close - Establish Context

While the hook is vital, don't neglect the set up and the close of your video. The set up provides context or builds anticipation for the main content, while the close leaves a lasting impression. Consider incorporating suspense, surprises or a memorable ending to make your video more shareable and memorable.

#3: Utilize Carousel Posts - Share Multiple Angles

Take advantage of TikTok's carousel feature to include multiple photos or videos in a single post. This allows you to showcase different angles, moments or perspectives related to your content. Carousel posts provide a dynamic viewing experience, keeping viewers engaged and increasing the likelihood of higher view counts.

#4: Make an Impact with the First Photo - Share a Close Up of a Person's Face?

In carousel posts, the first photo is crucial for capturing attention and determining whether viewers swipe or continue watching. Choose a visually captivating or intriguing image as the first photo. This could be a close-up of a person's face, a visually stunning shot or an image that triggers curiosity.

#5: Include Text on Screen - Share What They’re About to Watch

Incorporating text on the screen can enhance your TikTok videos by providing context, delivering key messages or adding an extra layer of storytelling. Keep the text concise, clear and visually appealing. Experiment with fonts, colors and animations to make the text visually engaging and eye-catching.

#6: Consider Audience Expectations - Know What They Want

Understanding your target audience's expectations is paramount. Research your audience, analyze their preferences and identify the type of content they enjoy. Align your videos with their interests, needs or desires to keep them engaged and coming back for more. Deliver value, entertainment or information that resonates with your specific audience.

#7: Utilize Green Screen Effect - Tease Content in the Background

The green screen effect on TikTok allows you to replace the background of your videos with different visuals. This feature opens up opportunities for creativity and helps your content stand out. Experiment with different backgrounds or settings that complement your video's theme or message, making it visually appealing and captivating.

#8: Curiosity and Retention -?Use Storytelling Techniques

Curiosity is a powerful tool to keep viewers engaged throughout your TikTok video. Use storytelling techniques, intriguing visuals or narrative gaps that provoke curiosity and make viewers want to know more. Plan your content in a way that builds anticipation and leaves viewers curious until the end. By doing so, you increase the chances of higher view counts and overall engagement.

#9: SEO Text: Include Optimized Text on the Screen

To improve the discoverability of your TikTok videos, incorporate SEO (Search Engine Optimization) text. Include text on the screen that defines what the video is about and who it's catered to. Optimize the text by using relevant keywords, phrases or hashtags that align with your target audience's search queries. Make the text visible and readable, ensuring it complements the visuals and adds value to the overall video experience.

#10: Optimization Hint: Don’t Miss this Metadata Secret

A TikTok influencer suggested: “Put SEO text onto the screen. Essentially it is text that defines what the video is about and your target audience. Make the text really small and shift it to the right of the screen so it’s hidden. This basically is creating metadata for TikTok to crawl to know what your video is about.

#11: Visual Variety: Keep Them Guessing

To maintain viewers' attention and make your TikTok videos more engaging, introduce visual variety. Change camera angles, alternate between close-ups and wider shots or incorporate different visuals every 2 or 3 seconds. This helps prevent monotony and creates a visually captivating experience that keeps viewers interested and eager to continue watching.

#12: Hashtags - Less is More

When you first post a video on TikTok it goes out to a certain number of people in a specific category. However these people respond, it goes out to more people, and if they respond well then it gets pushed to more people. If it doesn’t get a response, then the views will get suppressed.?

The purpose of hashtags is to steer your content to the correct right initial group of people – nothing less, nothing more. I even read if you want your videos to be seen by a lot of people, don’t use ANY hashtags. But if you want to tailor your content to a specific group of people then use relevant hashtags that are connected to the video itself.?

If you want to reach a broader audience don’t use as many hashtags but keep them relevant to the video. The more relevant your hashtags are and the more niche, the more niche the group of people will see the video after it's posted, thus impacting the video’s potential reach.

From the many TikTok influencers discussing hashtag strategy, almost all of them say no more than six hashtags and many two or three. But keep testing!

And …?

The Wrap Up:??

In our ever-evolving dizzying digital marketing landscape – HELLO AI 2023 – TikTok has emerged as a powerful platform for brands and marketers to showcase their creativity and connect with their target audience.?

By implementing the strategies above you’ll start a stronger TikTok journey or potentially improve your current account. It all starts with capturing attention through captivating hooks, incorporating compelling visuals and understanding your audience's expectations.?

Stay agile, experiment with different approaches and continuously analyze your performance to refine your content strategy.

Good luck!

Bonus Content!

1. The Hook, The Set Up & The Close: Open your video with a question.
2. SEO It: In the TikTok search bar look for individuals who may have asked similar questions to see how they formatted them & what results come up.
3. Keywords: Add keywords into your dialogue and what you're saying. Always add your screen text directly into the TikTok app to boost SEO -- text from other apps will not work.
4. Captions: Ensure that your captions follow your VO and your text overlays on your video. Ask a question and provide a summary that has keywords in it.
5. Hashtags: Pick 1-2 hashtags that have search results with a few million and 3-5 that are more specific with less than 10k-200k. It's still unknown what the exact amount of keywords you should use, but I'm typically seeing between two and six and even none!

More Bonus Content!!

1. Join TikTok Academy to up your video development knowledge, here.
2. Find creators and influencers to promote your brand on TikTok, here.
3. Create vibrant AR effects with Effect House, here.

Update 6/19: Is TikTok Vying for Google Space?

I'm keeping up on the trends of 200 View TikTok Jail and here's what Kathryn Biel is seeing:

1. TikTok wants you to think of it as Google. Looking for a new RomCom book to read, ask TikTok, not Google. Having captions on the screen and text on the screen will help with SEO.
2. Watch Your Videos in their entirety. As a consumer you need to train your brain to watch the whole time. When you just like and scroll on, TikTok is seeing that as a social signal that you think this video isn't worth watching and it also considers those spam likes, so they don't count in helping boost your post.
3. To help creators boost their posts watch them in their entirety, like, comment, share it, bookmark it and copy the link. This will help the creators you really favor to get more view time for their content.
4. Hashtag Update ... I'm seeing more only use 2-3 or none at all!
5. Put all the meat in your description. Use all the words for SEO rather than hashtags -- write it out in your description.
6. Try videos with out hashtags or descriptions.

It seems that TikTok is now favoring longer content, so they may be heading more to a YouTube format. Longer content needs more opportunity to monetize their users and share ad revenue in the future!