Social media shapes how we present ourselves to the world and potential employers. It is also an incredibly lucrative way to make money. But your success in using social media to make money or land your next job relies on building a strong personal brand. The best social media strategists know this and have been building their personal brands on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook for years. But there’s been a new “kid” in town the past few years: TikTok.
TikTok was released in 2016 and, by 2018, was the most downloaded app in the US — passing Facebook and Instagram. As of 2023, TikTok has 1.7 billion users and annual revenues of $9.4 billion. Its influence has shaped workplace trends like quiet quitting (762.3M views), act your wage (451.1M views), and lazy girl jobs (18M views). In 2022, TikTok was the highest gross-earning non-gaming app. Six of the top seven highest-earning TikTokers were women, including the highest earner, who made $17.5M. Charli D’Amelio was 18 in 2022. She has 151.3M followers and over 11.5B likes. She also has a consistent, recognizable brand.
TikTok lets users create, watch, and share 15- to 60-second videos. TikTokers can add filters, stickers, music, and sound effects. They can also collaborate with other creators and make split-screen videos. TikTokers use the app to give their two cents on various topics like beauty, fashion, money, and more. When the opinions of individual TikTokers go viral, they shape our culture, and how we work, developing terms like quiet quitting, quiet hiring, and job cushioning as just a few examples. Businesses also turn to prominent TikTokers for product endorsements — paying as much as $45,000 per video.
So, how do you build a strong brand using TikTok? It’s the same process as creating one on any other social platform with one distinction: TikTok only uses video.
Here are four tips for building your personal brand using TikTok.
1. Define your goals.
What do you want to accomplish using TikTok? While the platform is an excellent way to become an influencer and get paid for endorsements, it’s also a great platform to use to land a job. And it’s a growing platform for Gen Zers new to the workforce.
Top brands are leveraging TikTok … and hiring employees to manage their accounts. Don’t be afraid to showcase your skills, post a video resume, or network with other TikTokers. Show potential employers you know how to use TikTok and what goes into making TikTok videos, like design, video creation, and editing. Use TikTok as a research tool to get a pulse on today’s social media culture, be it through discovering new ideas, new trends, or staying up to date in your industry.
Once you decide whether you want to be the next highest-earning TikToker or land your perfect job, it’s time to build your personal brand.
2. Define your personal brand.
Your goals help define your brand in a few ways. You won’t post a video resume if your goal is to be an influencer. Just like you might adopt a sassy image as an influencer, but that might not be a good idea if you’re trying to land a job at the Washington Post or Heider Real Estate (two prominent brands using TikTok).
Your personal brand should illuminate your area of expertise in a professional and authentic way. Think of each video as your unique selling point (USP). Be consistent in your style, types of filters, stickers, and music. You may choose to use the same background for your videos, like a news channel, or vary the background. You can choose a show-and-tell, interview, or monologue format — or many other video formats. There are a lot of options to communicate your originality and authentic self.
Remember that your brand evolves as you do. The decision you make today will change. You just don’t want to confuse the viewer by changing your mind with every video. Be consistent, and as you change, slowly incorporate those changes into your videos.
3. Promote your brand.
Use the bio section at the top of your TikTok page to let others know who you are. Your bio can be 80 characters, including spaces. You can use multiple lines and emojis. You can also include a link in your bio, but only once certain criteria are met, including account type and number of followers (at least right now).
Engage with fellow TikTokers who are congruent with your goals. Share videos you like. Send direct messages to others in your industry that would be open to cross-promotion or collaboration. Show your authentic and human side – and beware of overly scripted videos. Blooper videos can be a fun way to relay your personality. Create challenges and use appropriate hashtags.
Write descriptions for your videos, tag friends, and enable duet and stitch features. Duet and stitch lets other users create duets or stitch your videos to theirs for unique response content. It’s also good practice to allow comments … just don’t forget to reply!
4. Invest in technology and education.
Most people use their cell phones to record short videos. But you can get better sound, lighting, and effects using production equipment. If your goal is to be an influencer, investing in professional-quality videos may become necessary.
Another popular trend is piecing together short clips to create one 60-second video. Software applications make this possible. TikTok has built-in video editing tools, but more robust software editors include Movavi, CapCut, and BeeCut. Except for Movavi, these are free (as are a lot of others). Using any one of these, you have access to advised filters, robust music libraries, and trending effects, stickers, and fonts. Video editing software lets you cut unwanted frames, convert photos to videos, and customize duration. You can add intros and outros. And some allow you to add a green screen.
TikTok has emerged as a powerful platform for shaping personal brands and professional trajectories. Its unique video-only format promotes creativity and authenticity, making it a great place to show off your unique talents in creating, editing, and managing video production, which lends itself to a career in creating video shorts for YouTube and other platforms. TikTok offers a plethora of opportunities for personal and professional growth.