Despite its worldwide debut in 2017, TikTok (together with its Chinese-market cousin, Douyin) was the sixth most-downloaded app of the decade. That’s a lot of marketing possibilities for businesses and marketers. If you want to exploit TikTok’s vast user base to grow your community, these are the techniques of the social media platform’s top producers and marketers.
TikTok is the world’s sixth most popular social media website, having over 1 billion active users as of January 2022. That’s a large market. Many individuals have discovered ways to make money on TikTok, and some even consider it a full-time job. Continue reading for the greatest ways to make money on the app.
As Hopper HQ claims, the following are the highest earners on TikTok in 2022
Each of these users earned more than a million dollars in a year, but how did they do it? Let’s look at some of the ways TikTok’s highest-earning users generate money.
TikTok does not directly compensate producers for creating and uploading videos. TikTok does provide financing for creators through the TikTok Creator Fund (more on that above). Nonetheless, payout varies depending on criteria such as the number of video views, engagement rates, and the genuineness of persons participating in the post.
Brands may pay a prominent micro-influencer to make videos in some situations, but TikTok’s highest-paid users typically monetize their accounts through various revenue streams. Multiple revenue sources increase security, but your audience is the most important consideration when selecting how to make real money on TikTok.
Your TikTok audience is likely to be younger. The bulk of users (62%) are under 30, with 32.5% of active users being under 20. Many people consider TikTok’s popularity among Gen Z to be its defining feature, although this might change rapidly.
Latest Fortune magazine surveys show an increasing number of millennials using the site, and social networks tend to be most popular with adolescents at its commencement, so getting a head start on catering to TikTok’s older users might provide you a significant edge in a few years. The material of TikTok differs greatly. What works for one audience may not work for another.
Your audience’s interests should determine the sort of material you upload. However, there are several common elements of TikTok content that its user base is likely to be more responsive to:
There is no one-size-fits-all strategy to TikTok, but knowing your audience will put you in a better position to determine the best methods to monetize your following.
Some of the features described in the monetization tactics above require a certain number of TikTok followers. The Creator Fund, for example, requires at least 10,000 followers to join. On the other hand, receiving virtual presents on TikTok Live requires only 1,000 followers. However, you must have at least 100,000 followers to earn recommendations and rewards from other sorts of videos.
The hard thing about utilizing social media to market items is not using too much promotional content. Your supporters realize that you require funds to continue providing the material they enjoy, but no one wants to follow an account that continuously advertises.
This is particularly the case with TikTok because the site is designed to help you create personal connections with your audience. Users like good content. Therefore, adopting a “content-first” strategy may be beneficial. Instead of beginning with your sales pitch and generating content around it, start with the content and let it spark the greatest ways to monetize your account.
Partly Sunny Projects, for instance, is an online plant distributor that ships lovely California flora across the country. Sonja Detrinidad founded the company as a diversion from the stress of her day’s work as a mortgage specialist. She began thinking about strategies to generate traffic to her store after quitting her job and deciding to focus on her small company full-time. This was when Sonja went to TikTok.
TikTok users quickly fell in love with her engaging personality. Sonja’s no-nonsense approach to gardening is exactly the sort of honest content that TikTok fans love. Sonja’s usage of TikTok for her company is effective because she is focused on providing the material that her viewers would appreciate. Sonja addresses gardening-related themes, thus grabbing the interest of the sort of follower who can be converted into a buyer.
When you have a better grasp of your target demographic, deciding how to monetize TikTok users becomes easier. There is no one way to monetize, but the greatest earners typically have a variety of complimentary revenue streams. TikTok offers nearly limitless potential for sponsored content and organic promotion. Let’s go through some of the most frequent ways TikTok users make money.
Users with a large following may want to try earning money through the TikTok Creator Fund. Revenue from the Creator Fund varies for each user and is computed depending on parameters such as the size of your audience, the quality of your user engagement, and the frequency with which you publish on TikTok.
If you already have the following, the Creator Fund is a terrific option, but it may be highly exclusive, and consistent payment is not always assured. If you’re just getting started, there are plenty of different methods to monetize your account. Regardless of whether you’ve joined the Creator Fund, having extra money streams is a wonderful idea.
TikTok is an excellent platform for monetizing almost any sort of video. Any creative person, whether a performer, musician, or actor, may create and sell goods to their most devoted followers. And, with so many print-on-demand firms to pick from, there’s plenty of items to choose from. T-shirts, tote bags, pillow covers, caps, coffee cups, posters, notebooks, or any combination of products, could be sold.
Profitability is not the only advantage of selling print-on-demand items. Having branded merchandise provides your fans with a more personal connection to your work, and every follower who wears your merchandise spreads the word about your company. For example, the apparel business Unxpectd began as a student project by six high school seniors. But when the gang used TikTok to sell the garments they were making in their parent’s basements, their lives were permanently transformed.
Unxpectd’s TikTok account scored its first viral success in December 2020, and the number of its following surged in only a few months. Since graduation, the crew has relocated to Los Angeles, where they continue to dye and embroider their own goods when not generating new TikTok content. Unxpectd’s TikTok account works because it is rarely used to actively market its products. Unxpectd, on the other hand, enables fans to get to know the business’s creators on a more intimate level, bringing them along for the ride as it builds its brand.
One of TikTok’s most essential services for producers wishing to monetize their work through live streaming is Live Gifting. Most social networks offer a live streaming capability, but TikTok is unique in that it allows followers to express their gratitude in real time by giving virtual gifts that may be redeemed for money.
Here are some tips to help get the most from going live on TikTok:
Engaging with users in real-time is ideal for developing meaningful relationships with your followers. Audiences with a deep connection to a creator create a personal interest in their success; therefore, broadcasting live can assist in enhancing other income sources as well.
Here’s an illustration. Habits 365, a New York-based sportswear business founded by adolescent brothers Eli and Spencer Zied, is centered on the premise that success is achieved by cultivating positive habits, with the brand’s enthusiastic youthful founders acting as the ideal ambassadors of this approach.
Habits 365’s success stems from its founders’ openness to allow people to get to know them personally. They frequently use TikTok’s live function, frequently posting short videos of themselves working on their business late at night, which has helped them become one of the world’s most popular TikTok accounts.
TikTok’s Creator Marketplace is one of the most inventive methods for its creators to generate money. The Creator Marketplace connects the appropriate companies with the right influencers, creating collaborations that are quick and simple for both sides. TikTok makes it extremely simple to generate lucrative sponsored content.
Businesses interested in running an affiliate marketing campaign may explore the marketplace and swiftly shuffle through material created by creators they know are willing to work with brands. The creator marketplace functions as an influencer agency, allowing both parties to signal their readiness to collaborate, alleviating some of the discomforts that marketers may face when contacting influencers on other sites.
Peace Out, like many great enterprises, began when its creator discovered an issue that didn’t have a solution until he made one. Enrico Frezza began investigating the skin care product creation process and developing his own brand of skin care products after battling acne and hyperpigmentation, among other skin disorders.
TikTok has plenty of excellent organic marketing options, but if you’re prepared to pay a little money to increase the reach of your content, you might consider designing your own in-feed advertising using the TikTok ads manager. TikTok adverts display in viewers’ “For you” feed and play automatically, just like any other TikTok video. You may ensure that your videos reach the viewers that are most interested in your items by using sponsored adverts.
But the greatest thing is that TikTok’s ad manager works in tandem with Shopify. That means you can create TikTok advertisements, choose a target demographic, and measure the effectiveness of your ads all from your Shopify store. TikTok might be one of the most effective internet marketing tools at your disposal.
The Luxe Collective is a good example of in-feed advertising. Luxe Collective is a Liverpool-based luxury fashion business that sells current, pre-owned luxury items for a fraction of the price of other merchants. Luxe Collective first found significant success expanding its social media audience on Instagram, not TikTok. Luxe Collective has grown a sizable TikTok following over the previous several years, nearly tripling the brand’s Instagram followers.
Luxe Collective’s TikTok channel is packed with fashion ideas, lessons, and the most recent news about the world’s most prestigious luxury fashion labels. Luxe builds a social media account that doubles as a news source for the precise population that would be interested in purchasing its items, using the nature of its audience to influence its content.
Crowdfunding is one of the most accessible ways for creators to make money. You spend a lot of time and effort developing content for your followers, so providing a simple, no-pressure option for them to give back is ideal for establishing a consistent income stream. Depending on the sort of cash you want, crowdfunding can take several forms. If you need beginning cash for a certain project, you may mobilize your supporters by establishing a funding target and holding live fundraising events.
The best crowdfunding sites for creators to explore:
Crowdfunding platforms may not be the best option if you don’t have a specific project in mind or aren’t ready to give stock to investors. Consider employing a tipping platform to receive donations quickly and easily. Tipping platforms provide a more personalized financial experience. They function just like a traditional tip jar. Fans have the choice, but it is not required, and they can contribute any quantity they choose at any moment.
The best tipping platforms to check out:
Crowdfunding works well for large projects, and tipping is the quickest way to gather donations. But what if you want a more consistent passive income stream? In such a situation, you might want to think about adopting a creator-based subscription model like Patreon.
Membership-based income models are ideal for content providers because you can keep individual subscription fees low while focusing on building your subscriber base. A low-cost monthly membership of, say, one dollar is an easy sell to a single devoted admirer. When you have a large number of devoted followers, those funds start to pile up.
Patreon was the first significant platform to allow artists and influencers to make cash through premium subscriptions from their most devoted followers. You may build up membership tiers on Patreon to give special material to your most ardent fans.
There are alternatives (most notably Ko-fi, which also incorporates a tipping component), but Patreon offers the extra benefit of brand knowledge, which increases confidence from prospective supporters.
If you believe a subscription model could be the best approach to monetize your TikTok account, keep the following recommended practices in mind:
Creators are rarely motivated by the promise of financial gain. Creators are artists, and as such, their joy in producing comes from the work itself, not from the money they make. But, in 2022, being a creator means a lot more than it did. Creators are no longer only artists. They are artists, entrepreneurs, marketers, salespeople, accountants, founders, and CEOs, among other things.
Stars in the creator economy are self-made—their major breaks don’t come from wealthy gatekeepers’ wallets but from their own ingenuity, enthusiasm, and ambition to produce something unique. Time is money, and earning more money from your work allows you to spend more time creating art. If the money isn’t satisfying enough on its own, the extra time it buys will be.
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