Let’s face it. TikTok is intimidating for brands and agencies because it’s subversive, it’s creator-led, it’s fun, and the hard sell just doesn’t work. As a creative TikTok partner, we have a lot of experience seeing what works and what doesn’t. Below are some coveted tips – you’re welcome.

1. Short and Sweet

This is a platform that rewards sweet sweet brevity and movement. We know you have a lot to say but to keep your audience happy, and engaged, videos should be between :06 and :20 seconds. Check out this Hawaiian skincare brand’s dynamic video below.

2. Stay Upright

Stand tall and reach for the stars. Videos on TikTok are vertical. No more turning the phone on it’s side. We’re now perpendicular people who pretend to have good posture. When you’re filming from home, just remember to keep that mobile cam vertical. Check out more mobile shooting tips here.

3. Start with a Bang

TikTok users are more than happy to swipe past your ad so give them a reason not to. Right at the top, start with attention-grabbing visuals and text. This isn’t the place to slowly build drama, like you might do in other places. 😉

4. Sound is Everything

TikTo is all about sound and they have an incredible commercial library for use. If you prefer not to incorporate music, make sure your video showcases talking, singing and/or sound FX. A silent TikTok is borderline worse than a silent first date. Don’t worry, our editors are well trained in incorporating the latest and greatest TikTok music daily, so we have you covered on this front. Check out the video we made with dope tracks below.

5. Use your (onscreen) Words

TikTok users are fickle and swipe happy. Make sure your main message is also conveyed with onscreen text near the top of the video. Here’s a pro-tip. While you might be using your brand’s fonts on a platform like Facebook, on TikTok fonts native the platform tend to outperform your brand font. So let our editors – and all of the native fonts we’ve curated on the backend – do their magic

6. Yeah, you still need a CTA

This is actually a good thing. While TikTok seems challenging because it’s more story-driven and brands are used to the sell, trust us when we say stories sell more and build far more long-lasting loyalty than sales pitches. So tell that story and don’t be afraid to plug in a CTA both at the end of the ad and in the ads platform itself. Protip: We’ve seen “Learn More” outperform some of it’s counterparts. With its ever changing landscape, on TikTok you can test, learn, and keep coming up with new, clever ways to engage your customers.

Interested in walking through our uniquely creative process for helping brands launch TikTok channels in the context of your organization? Hit us up here. Let’s tok.