How to Get Followers on TikTok in 2023: A Complete 18 Tactics Guide

This 5-minute read will teach you how to get followers on TikTok in 2023 in 18 easy steps.

TikTok is one of the youngest social media platforms, but it has over a billion active users. It is all about making short video content. Sounds really simple but for brands that are just starting out it can take a lot of time to build up followers. On the other hand, TikTok can bring you closer to your followers. Short videos are more accessible than walls of text. So, what do we have to do in 2023 to grow a healthy group of followers on TikTok?

1. Target audience  

You can’t reach all people. You have to define your target group. Be as specific as possible: What do they like? What do they dislike? How much time are they spending on their phone? Do you want to explore local markets, national or international? The most important thing in getting followers is getting the right ones. You don’t want a million followers if those people aren’t interested in connecting deeper with your business.  

Sometimes it is better to start with a smaller target audience and expand it later. You can learn about the behaviour of your customers and, depending on that, make your content better.  

2. Competition 

It is always a good idea to check creators with similar topics. We don’t want to copy anybody, but we can check who their audience is. It is like free research. Also, we can see if they aren't copying our content. 

3. Consistency  

Consistency is key. You have to find your routine and stick to it. You need to decide if it will be once per day or once per week but the more consistent your rhythm with posting new content is, the better your performance will be. Algorithms like when you are posting regularly. 

4. Video quality 

That sounds kinda obvious, but you have to make sure your videos are high quality. Better quality means more views. Videos that are poorly lit, out of focus or with poor sound quality will not appear on For You Page (#fyp). And to be honest, who wants to watch poor quality videos?  

5. Stand out content 

This is probably the most important thing. You have to be creative. If you are copying anybody, people will notice that and nobody likes copycats. You can get inspiration from others, but you can’t copy them. The more creative and stand out your content is, the more likely you will gain followers quickly. If people can find something only on your profile, they will follow you.  

6. User-generated content 

UGC is content made by your audience. One of the simplest ways to achieve this is making your own branded hashtags. This can help find your brand and things your customer posts. For example, if someone is filming the unboxing of one of your deliveries or adding a picture with your product, they can just add your hashtag. You can also share this on your profile. This way your followers can see objective opinions and people who add something can gain new followers too. This is an amazing method to boost engagement and brand recognition.  

7. Duets and stitches  

Stitching allows you to add your own video onto the end of the clip of another user’s video. This is perfect for adding your own commentary or additional content to an existing video.  

Duetting places your video next to another user’s video so you can react to or complement an existing video with your own content. This can be also a way to interact with your followers next to commenting. 

8. TikTok stories  

Since March 2022, TikTok has a new feature: Stories. The platform is probably still encouraging users to avail of this feature, so they will reward you for creating stories. Also, stories can get you new followers. When you are adding something to a story it can be seen only for 24 hours. So people will follow you to not miss it.  

9. Value 

A really important thing is to consider what value you wish to provide to your followers. It might be as simple as comedy but maybe your audience wants to learn something new? It doesn't have to be anything complicated; any new knowledge can be useful. If you understand what value you want to share, it can really help with creating content and getting new followers. 

10. Challenges / engaging content  

You can participate in existing challenges to gain new followers. TikTok algorithms really like things like that. You can easily find yourself in For You Page by doing challenges. You can try to create your own challenge. That will be a fun way for people to discover you. If your challenge will become viral, you can gain a lot of new followers. You can also invite other people to participate and this way trade followers.  

11. Trends  

This is a big thing in TikTok. If you were using this platform before, you might have seen similar videos or with the same sound. This is because if something is becoming a social trend, TikTok algorithms are placing it in the For You Page (this is where we want to be). You might go to the Discover section and find some inspiration but, of course, you have to adapt it to your content. Trends can change really quickly, so you have to keep in touch with what is popular. 

12. Hashtags  

Like on Instagram, Twitter or other social media, hashtags are helpful with finding content. But you have to make sure you are using the right ones. Some people are adding as many hashtags as possible, but this looks like spam. Instead, just find some popular but accurate to your video hashtags. And remember: if hashtags are more closely related to your content, then getting to the right audience will be easier. Sometimes you can change some words in captions to hashtags. For instance, if your company is providing car insurance for young drivers, use a "young driver insurance" hashtag.

13. Work with other brands  

You can use influencer marketing. Working with popular influencers can really boost the popularity of your profile. This also can be a good advertisement. Sometimes influencers agree on promoting your business in exchange for your products.  

You can also engage with brands which compliment yours. This is a simple but effective way to attract new followers. You can comment on videos of other brands or make something in collaboration with them. For example, if you are selling classic car insurance, you can initiate a collaboration with a vintage car club and make a challenge together. 

14. Use CTAs 

This is another great way to gain followers on TikTok. Just ask them. You can ask for anything. At the end of the video leave a note to watch your other videos, follow you or ask something so people can leave a comment, like What's the best commercial jeep? This is a really good way if you are making a series of videos. Sometimes people need a small push for action so why not give it to them.  

15. Cross-promote your videos  

Do you have followers on other social media? Let them know you are using TikTok now! Promote your TikTok account on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube or wherever you want. Just inform the world that you are on TikTok now. 

16. Post at the right time  

It is really important to post your content at the right time. On TikTok you can check the time when your followers are the most active. You can post just before this time. You can also keep a log of when you are publishing and check results of posting at different times.  

17. TikTok ads

You can also try advertising on TikTok. This is simple but you have to allocate some budget for it. Usually, they are used to promote a company's name or image and attract traffic for a website, but you can kinda play with those and test if they are working for you. If your business is growing and you have no time to allocate for TikTok ads, consider hiring the services of a digital marketing agency. And remember… when you are creating a TikTok ad, make sure your video is interesting. 

18. Have fun! 

TikTok is basically all about having fun. You should enjoy the things you are doing. If you take this too seriously, people will notice. When you are creating content that you are passionate about and you like it, the positive energy will be seen. But you should just be yourself. It is always better than pretending to be someone else. 

If you're a business looking to increase presence on TikTok, read more about it in our TikTok For Business 2023: 5 Ways to Drive Success blog.

Of course, you have to try these tactics to see what works for you the best. Start by doing research and gathering inspiration from other people but remember you don’t want to copy anybody! There are a lot of organic ways to get followers on TikTok but when it is too slow you can support your growth with paid tactics. But remember there is no one-size-fits-all strategy on social media. You’ll have to improvise a little.

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