Author: Estelle Keeber

Tik Tok and how to Use It! by Estelle

So what is Tik Tok?

Tik Tok is an app that was actually created in 2016… it’s just taken a while for it to catch on. I remember a few years ago when my step daughter tried to explain Music.ly… and Vine. I didn’t really get it but even then I thought it was pretty cool. Fast forward 4 years to January 2020 and Tik Tok was actually the most downloaded app in the world!

Now most people are going to take one look and either love it or hate it…most people above the age of 25 don’t really understand how to even use it… especially not for business and so I wanted to break it down for you…and hopefully see more of us oldies (I say that very loosely) over there!

So why should you be using TT? Even if you have no idea how to use it or why you should be using it… have a go. The first video I created was awful. I had absolutely no idea… I actually did it to impress my son on Christmas day with a cool surprise (you can watch the video over here video https://vm.tiktok.com/38wse4/)
But I’ve been on the edge of TikTok for a while. There are so many ways in which Instagram and TT cross over you can imagine my excitement!

So firstly get on there and watch the videos… this is the easiest way to get inspiration for your own videos. The idea with TT is that you can create your own videos… many people joining using a hashtag to create a community like experience (much like Instagram).

The videos can be of anything you choose but research is showing that using the most popular sounds and also trending hashtags may help in putting your video our there to the world. Now unlike Instagram, the amount of followers you have doesn’t make a difference on who sees your video. An account with very few followers (like mine) can have videos go viral (like this one, https://vm.tiktok.com/3LdHEY/)

The TT alogorithym is a much-guarded secret right now but from what I can gather it’s a little like Instagram in that your video is shown to your followers and is drip fed into other peoples feed. If people start to interact, like comment, share then this flags up that the content is good and so it is then shown to even more people in the end creating viral content.

So why should you be using TT? Well first of all its pretty fun! You can lose hours of the day if you are not careful (stats actually show that the average user spends over 50 mins per day on the app). But from a business perspective it’s a great way to grow your brand and visibility and it will also help with getting your fans and followers engaged! It’s also a great way for you to share your content with the world!

Brands such as Levis are all over TT and have amassed over 5.5k user generated videos and had 10.5M videos views during the 6 day campaign for #InMyDenim. By creating a branded hashtag and encouraging your fans and followers to get involved you are increasing your visibility and engagement as well as creating UGC.

There’s tonnes of ways you can create cool effects from sliding videos to filters and games. TikTok has it all.

To create a TT you simply tap the cross icon at the bottom, this then gives you the option to create a video or upload one from your camera roll.

After uploading you can then add in the cool filters, effects and other options. There are literally so many to play with… go get creative!

You can also record multiple segments within a video, use hands free and a timer option.

You can add in a sound either before or after the video. Using popular sounds or sounds that are trending will also help with visibility.

Once you are done recording simply add in your caption. You are limited in characters so keep it short and sweet. Include relevant hashtags… try using hashtags that are trending to raise your visibility.

You can check the trending hashtags and look at all the latest content by simply tapping the discover icon at the bottom of the screen before recording.

And there you have it a quick guide to TT. And don’t worry if your video isn’t an overnight success. TT doesn’t work like Instagram and Facebook… even old content can end up going viral if it has a small peak in engagement.

Be sure to head on over and check out my tiktok for lots of my usual Instagram tips and tricks!

Until next time…

Estelle x

Have you seen that Instagram have launched a new sticker??

The CHALLENGE sticker will enable you to create and take part in challenges similar to TIKTOK!

So far this is what I can figure out… To take part in a challenge you tap the sticker when you see it in stories (unless you are nominated in which case you will get a notification) you will be able to take a pic, record or upload a video to take part. Right now Instagram have only added a small selection of challenges such as the yoga challenge, the drawing challenge, the dance challenge, the 10 year challenge, squat challenge, the art challenge as well as a few others.

What I predict will happen is that Instagram will soon allow for people to create their own challenges. You would simply create a story and then use the sticker to create a community hashtag… you can then tag someone in the story who you nominate to do it next. When someone takes part in your challenge you are notified and can re-share… again a great opportunity for raising visibility of your brand.

The use of hashtags is another way that instagram are hoping to create even more of a sense of community on the platform which i think is a great idea… the idea of nominating someone will also help build community and engagement… and the more people engage the more they will see your content.

So from a business perspective… how can you make an impact?

Well it’s very much like when I talk about having your own branded hashtags. Encouraging people to get involved and creating a community around the hashtag. Popsy Clothing do this really well with their hashtag #popsypretty which encourages fans to share pictures of them wearing their Popsy dresses and using the hashtag so potential clients can see an array of women all wearing the amazing designs.

The way to implement this into your business is to create a branded challenge, something you can encourage followers to take part in. Share your challenge and then nominate your followers to do the same… great for brand visibility and engagement but for right now… get involved with the challenges Instagram have given. Not only will it open you up to a whole new audience it’s also kinda fun!

When you do launch your own challenge make sure you are using other social media platforms to promote and encourage traffic to your insta account and stories. Maybe even offer a prize for the most engaged or fun video / pic to take part in the challenge

I literally cannot wait to see what happens next…

Until then head on over to my Instagram account @estellekeeberofficial for more tips tricks and insta hacks!

What do you think to the latest update?

Will you be using it? For fun or for business?

Let me know in the comments!

How has Covid19 impacted on your screen time?

My top tips on being productive on social media.

After my comments were used as part of a Business Insider article a few weeks ago I thought that I would throw the question out to our community of over 55k working women.

The article quoted that since lockdown more of us than ever our using our devices more. Whether this is through necessity in using them to work from home… or if it is procrastinating due to being at home with less time restrictions leading us to more time scrolling.

It was a pretty mixed with some people saying that they were spending more time on devices but their businesses were booming as a result and also a lot of people saying that they were finding it hard to resist another 5 minutes on Instagram or maybe a Facetime with a mate. This time of isolation is social media the only way to stay social?

For a lot of people they cannot avoid using their phones and so I wanted to share a few of my favourite tips that will help you to save time, have more impact in less time…and have time to check out your favourite accounts!

Tip 1

Plan and schedule your posts wherever possible. Setting time to sit and plan what you are going to post will take time in the beginning but you will thank yourself later, trust me! The MIBA Guide to Growing Your Instagram is the perfect way to plan and track your Instagram posts and growth with dedicated pages to planning content and evaluating whats working best for you.

Tip 2

Have a device time schedule. Plan when during the day you are going to check emails and stay focussed. Plan when you are going to interact in groups or communities online and stay focussed. Plan in time to catch up and scroll. Get into a routine of doing these things at a certain time and resist going back to them until the next time allocated. Most importantly be realistic. Checking emails once every 30 minutes is a little crazy!

Tip 3

If you are struggling with managing your screen time or don’t even realise how much time your spending on your phone you can check using a screen time app. I know on iPhone we have one built in. It keeps a track on the amount of time you are on certain apps, how many minutes each day or week and shows if this amount was an increase or decrease on the previous week. Great for people who are visual like me!

So theres just a few of my favourite time saving tips that are really easy to implement and will save you tonnes of time!

I would love to know if you have a favourite tip you would like to share…or maybe let us know which of the 3 I mentioned your going to try! Drop me a message over on my insta @estellekeeberofficial and keep an eye out for more social media tips!

Until next time stay safe…

Estelle x