Bland doesn't work on TikTok, edge does. Doesn't matter whether you're likable or not, but whether you're interesting.
DON'T BE WORRIED ABOUT WHAT OTHERS THINK
You connect most when you're true to yourself. You're selling yourself, you're in the business of yourself.
IGNORE NEGATIVE FEEDBACK
Haters come with the territory. If you post, people will hate on you. It's hard to ignore the sh*t-talking, but if you can't, TikTok is not for you. Too many people are afraid to play. This is less of an issue with younger generations. One must adjust to the modern paradigm, everybody has an opinion and everybody expresses it. Furthermore, people are angry that you're posting and they are not (usually they're afraid to), or they are posting and you have much more traction. Everybody can be picked on. The lowest form of criticism is looks-based. Don't fall into this trap, it killed Karen Carpenter. You are who you are, own it.
ANONYMITY IS FOR PUSSIES
If you can't own your name and identity, TikTok is not for you. You want traction, more fans, more views. And you want to be able to build on the traction you get. You don't want to have to change your name/say who you really are down the line.
BE SEARCHABLE ELSEWHERE
If someone likes you, they want to know who you are. Make sure you have enough postings online so they can research you and feel like they know you.
POST REGULARLY
If you're not willing to do it on a regular basis, don't start. However, be wary of falling into the "influencer" trap. Those people always burn out, they work 'round the clock and ultimately have to stop for their mental health. If you're out eating a burger thinking you've got to go home to post, you're doing it wrong.
EVERYTHING YOU DO WON'T BE GREAT
That's the internet paradigm, you do it until it catches on, people ignore the tripe. Don't keep polishing one video, let it go and create another one. The best ones are when you capture lightning in a bottle, instantly...are inspired and lay it down without thinking about it. Sure, there is a business in expensive stunting...but that's what OK Go is known for, not their music, and it costs Mr. Beast a ton of money and time. Think punk rock, not classic rock. Don't be mad at yourself for doing something that's not a ten. If you do enough, your average will improve and ultimately you'll create a ten.
HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY
Artifice went out with the old static Instagram. Polishing your physicality doesn't resonate with most people, they want the real you. Makeup is not anathema, as long as the people watching know you aren't wearing makeup.
DON'T BREAK DOWN AND COMPLAIN
Life is hard for all of us. Too many posters get down in the dumps when they realize social media doesn't solve their problems and they break down in posts talking about their personal problems... There is a business in talking about depression. But unless you have a big loss, don't go on about it.
HAVE A SHTICK
What are you famous for? Your mode of delivery? Your jokes? Is it the way you deliver your message or the message itself? Once again, personality is key, if your posts are based on your identity you can always pivot and go into new content areas.
LOOKS COUNT
Maybe this is unfortunate for those of us who are not blessed in this area, but let's not deny reality. The beautiful have a leg up on social media. But viewing TikTok will prove to you that there are an unlimited number of beautiful people online, that's not enough to sustain a career. Beauty will get you started, but it won't keep people coming back. Three-dimensional works online, not two-dimensional.
HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR ABOUT YOURSELF
Don't put yourself down to avoid feedback. But if you make a mistake, own it. Don't go on about how stupid you are unless you truly screwed up. The smart people saying they're stupid, the thin people saying they're fat, they're so caught up in the game that they can't win. Start with truth. That's what resonates.
GIVE VIEWERS A REASON TO COME BACK
Why do I want to see you again? You probably won't know until you do it for a while. This is not about launching a business, this is about putting one foot in front of the other in a journey of self-discovery. You probably won't find out what people react to until you do it for a while. But there must be something about you and your presentation that intrigues people.
PROFESSIONAL VS. AMATEUR
Anybody can play, but not anybody can win. Having said that, you can own a niche and be unknown to most people and still have quite a career. Decide if you want to make a living online or you're just playing around. Because to succeed takes focus.
THIS IS THE GOAL
Don't think of brand extensions, you are the act, find ways to capitalize on who you are and what you do, content as opposed to penumbra.
DON'T TRY TO GO VIRAL
Don't second guess the audience, this has been proven to be unsuccessful over and over again. What people liked in the past does not mean they'll like that in the future. The more you focus inward, the more success you'll have outward.
EXPERTISE COUNTS
If your personality and delivery are not intriguing, it's best to have expertise in an area. Could be anything, sometimes people watch just to learn, having no interest in pursuing the field.
DON'T TRY TO PLEASE EVERYBODY
This is a fool's errand. You want a passionate response, not blah. You don't want to be liked, you want to be loved. And not everybody can be loved by everybody, and you don't have to be loved by everybody to be successful
VIEWS OR SELLS?
There is a business in being a classic influencer, gaining enough of an audience to sell products, but in doing so you lose all credibility, you're just flavor of the moment. The low hanging fruit is attractive, but it's a shortcut. You can talk about the products you love, but if you're trying to sell something in the process, you're an advertiser. Better to make the money so you can buy products as opposed to getting them for free.
COMMENTARY
Your insight must be just that, insightful, or this is a no-go. We don't need another Trump lover or hater, but we do need educated people who can make sense of the landscape for others who don't have enough time to research the issues or can't see the forest for the trees. Emotion counts, but it's better when it's about your personal experience as opposed to the world at large unless you're different from the average person, are a seer.
THIS IS YOUR BUSINESS
Don't think about crossing over...to what? Successful TikTokkers get many more views than TV news and sitcoms and... Don't try to plug your new media self into the old media game. It's not about leveraging your fame to play in their world, you're living in the new world, they're living n the old, look forward, not back. If you can't find a way to be successful online, evidencing your identity and shtick, then you don't understand what is going on.
VIEWS ARE EVERYTHING
That's your goal. Views pay. Literally, in dollars. Also, the more views you get the more your name has a chance to spread and that's where opportunities lie.
SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE
TikTok is overwhelmed with people who went viral once, and are desperately trying to replicate this success and never do.
DON'T ASK YOUR AUDIENCE FOR FAVORS
Don't ask your audience to make you a success. To spread the word on you. Either you're good enough that they want to spread the word or you're not. People are sick of being dunned for free work. It gives off a bad vibe.
NOT TOO LONG
Yes. Don't fall into the musician trap of filling the sixty plus minutes on a CD. Keep it short enough to be interesting.
NO MULTIPART STORIES
Cliffhangers are for network television. Online people want it all and they want it now, give it to them. And don't take multiple clips to tell a story that can easily be told in one.
HIT THEM WITH THE HOOK
It's incredibly easy to thumb past a video. You have to give people a reason to watch. Start with the headline, the nougat, and then digress if you have to. Start with the chorus, not the verse.
START
This is the number one rule of social media, unless you post you're nowhere. Better to start and be bad than try to polish a video to begin.
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