Mistakes Small Businesses Are Making on TikTok and How to Avoid Them

TikTok is one of the best social media platforms available today. With over 1.1 billion active monthly users, this is among the best platforms to reach your target audience. Buy views on TikTok is a surefire way to reach as many people as possible and ultimately achieve your business goals.

However, even with a desirable reach, there are many mistakes you're making on TikTok. They can take a toll on your marketing efforts and ultimately lead to a low ROI. Below are some of these mistakes and how to avoid them:

You're Ignoring Trends

Trending content is the heartbeat of TikTok. The platform thrives on trends, which often manifest as specific songs, dance challenges, or memes that can rapidly catapult to viral status. When you turn a blind eye to these trends, you inadvertently bypass a golden chance to interact with the TikTok community and elevate your brand's visibility. Consider trends as a universal language spoken across TikTok.

By abstaining from them, you're essentially excluding your brand from the discussion. It's akin to attending a themed party in your regular work clothes; you'll stand out, but not for the right reasons. So, how can you sidestep this pitfall?

The starting point is the Discover page on TikTok, a comprehensive catalog of trending hashtags and in-demand music. Use this as a springboard to spark your creativity and weave these trends into your content. Bear in mind that the objective isn't to dissolve into the crowd but to partake in the larger dialogue while still authentically expressing your brand's unique personality.

You Lack Originality

Consistently generating fresh, unique content can indeed be a challenging task. It's all too easy to slip into a pattern of mimicking your competitors' posts or leaning excessively on trends. However, here's the caveat - the TikTok community is discerning. They yearn for content that is innovative and distinctive. They can easily discern if something is insincere or just a shoddy imitation.

The key to originality doesn't necessitate redefining conventions. The charm of TikTok lies in its capacity to morph even the most rudimentary concepts into viral phenomena. Reflect upon your brand's exclusive narrative or principles.

What gives you a competitive edge? It might be your crew's distinctive humor, your dedication to environmental conservation, or your product's traditional craftsmanship. Whatever your unique element is, incorporate it into your TikTok content. This genuine approach will resonate with your followers, setting your brand apart in the vast ocean of TikTok content.

You're Being Too Salesy

TikTok primarily exists as a hub for entertainment, not a marketplace. When your content overly emphasizes sales, it can lose its genuineness, feeling forced and unwelcoming. The critical factor here is to maintain a healthy equilibrium between promoting your brand and creating content that's enjoyable and engaging.

So, how does one strike this delicate balance? Here are a few strategies:

• Create a Story: Instead of concentrating solely on the product, weave a narrative around it, incorporating the product as an element of that story. This approach makes your content more relatable and less reminiscent of an advertisement.

• Showcase User-Generated Content: Sharing content generated by your customers can subtly endorse your product and strengthen your bond with the audience. It's an effective way of promoting without appearing overly salesy.

• Use Humor: Injecting humor into your content can lighten the tone of promotional posts, making them more engaging and less sales-focused.

• Offer Value: Enrich your content by offering helpful tips or intriguing facts related to your product or industry. By doing this, you ensure your content is informative and provides value beyond merely selling a product.

You Aren't Engaging With Your Audience

Engagement is the cornerstone of any social media platform, and TikTok is no exception. If your brand isn't interacting with its followers, then you're overlooking a crucial aspect of the TikToker experience. This might seem like a simple lapse, but it can create a significant disconnect between your brand and potential customers. In the absence of interaction, audiences feel overlooked and unvalued, often leading them to drift away.

Responding to comments, engaging in duets, interacting with trends using hashtags, and showing your gratitude to your followers can all contribute to a more potent connection.

Your Content Quality Is Low

Unfortunately, many small businesses underestimate the significance of quality when it comes to their TikTok content. The reality is TikTok isn't just another platform where you can get away with posting subpar content and expect to score big.

Quality matters. In a sea of millions of videos, only the good ones float to the surface. And by 'good,' we mean content that is creative, original, thoughtfully crafted, and appealing to your target audience. Remember, people are scrolling through TikTok for fun and entertainment. They're not going to stop for a video that is poorly lit, has bad sound, or isn't engaging.

Stepping up the quality doesn't necessarily mean you need an expensive camera or a professional editing suite. It means paying attention to the basic elements of video production - lighting, sound, framing, and editing. You can shoot great videos using just your smartphone, provided you consider these factors.

Wrapping Up

TikTok is indeed a powerful medium, but remember, like any tool, it requires understanding and finesse to yield its maximum potential. If you're a small business testing the TikTok waters, it's essential to understand that merely being on the platform isn't enough.

It's about engaging actively with your audience, maintaining A-class content quality, and developing a unique voice that resonates with your audience. Yes, you will make mistakes - but that's all part of the learning curve. So, go ahead and experiment.

Stumble, learn from your blunders, and keep evolving. Remember, every TikTok superstar, every viral video, and every successful brand started from zero. Your journey to TikTok success might be just a 'swipe up' away! You've got this!