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Leveraging TikTok for Independent Musicians and Record Labels

In the ever-evolving landscape of social media, TikTok has emerged as one of the best platforms for independent musicians and record labels to showcase their talent and connect with a global audience. To make the most of this opportunity, here are some essential tips and information to help you achieve success.

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Part One: Creating Trending Videos

  • Defining Your Music Niche

  • Tips for ensuring high-quality video production

  • Incorporating your music into your content effectively

  • Strategies for social interaction

  • Staying up-to-date with popular hashtags & content

  • expanding your reach

 

Part Two: Upping Your Hashtag Game

  • Strategies for discovering relevant hashtags

  • Tips for crafting custom hashtags

  • Guidelines for effective hashtag creation

 

Part Three: Enhance Your Posting Experience with These Essential Tools

  • Video Editing Apps

  • Font Generators

  • Scheduling Tools

  • Ideal posting times

  • Platforms Supporting TikTok

  • Tools for monitoring TikTok performance

 

Part Four: How to Go Live on TikTok

  • Streaming Ideas

  • Setting Up a Live Stream

  • Tips for concluding a live stream and promoting future content

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part one:

creating Trending Videos

 

TikTok offers a vast platform for independent musicians and record labels to gain exposure and connect with fans. By implementing these tips and consistently creating engaging content, you can increase your chances of creating trending music videos and growing your music career. 

 

 

Define Your Music Niche

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To kickstart things, Determine the type of music you create and identify your target audience. This clear direction will guide your content strategy.

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Consistent Posting

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Regularly post content to keep your audience engaged. Aim for at least one video per day, focusing on quality over quantity. keeping a "low Profile" will cause tiktok to deprioritize your content on the for you page.

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Prioritize Video Quality

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While professional equipment is not mandatory, ensure your videos are of high quality. Use a stable camera setup and consider adding an external microphone for better sound quality. avoid using dark lighting and plain colors. to "stop the scroll," high saturation/vibrance and bright lighting are key.

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Utilize Music (obviously :-P)

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prioritize Making your music a central element of your content. lip synch to your tracks and/or perform them, "live" in front of an engaging background. keep your content centered around a few common elements and within your branding so as to not confuse the algorithm. you can also incorporate popular tracks into your videos when you're not actively promoting releases. 

 

Engage with the Community

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TikTok is a social platform, so be social! devote time every day to Interact with other TikTok users by liking, commenting and collaborating with fellow musicians and creators in your niche. this way, you're helping tiktok know who and where to send your videos to!

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Follow Trending Hashtags

 

Stay updated with the latest trending hashtags on TikTok and incorporate relevant ones into your videos to increase discoverability.

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Showcase Your Musical Skills

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Create videos that showcase your musical talents, whether it's playing an instrument, singing, or other musical abilities.

 

Create "How To" and/or informative Videos

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Share your knowledge and skills through short tutorials or "how to" videos related to music, connecting with viewers interested in learning.

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Cover Current Music Events

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Keep your audience engaged by covering current music events or sharing your thoughts on the latest industry news.

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Feature Pets (and Children)

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If you have adorable pets, include them in your videos. Cute and funny animal appearances are a great way to enhance your audience engagement.

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Put Your Spin on Popular Videos

 

Take inspiration from trending videos and put your unique twist on them to make your content stand out.

 

Create Duet Videos

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Experiment with Duet videos to interact with other musicians or re-imagine existing content, expanding your reach and audience.

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Launch a Hashtag Challenge

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Start a hashtag challenge to engage your audience, keeping it simple and fun while encouraging other TikTok users to participate in your musical challenge.

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Part two:

upping your hashtag game

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hashtags can play a crucial role in helping you gain exposure and grow your presence on the platform. This guide provides insights into finding and utilizing relevant hashtags effectively. Additionally, By creating your own unique music hashtags, you can engage your audience, foster user-generated content, and boost your presence.

 

Hashtags and captions are to social media what SEO is to websites - essential for visibility and discoverability. They offer several advantages:

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  • Hashtags extend the reach of your music content beyond your existing followers, making it discoverable to a broader audience.

  • By following relevant music hashtags, you can identify your competition and gain inspiration for your own content.

  • Utilizing popular and niche-specific hashtags can help you attract more followers who share an interest in your music.

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The Basics of Finding TikTok Hashtags

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To maximize the effectiveness of TikTok hashtags, you need to find the right ones. Here are three ways to discover relevant hashtags:

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  1. Scroll through TikTok and examine related content to identify popular and trending hashtags in your niche.

  2. Keep an eye on what your musical peers and competitors are doing. They often use relevant hashtags that might benefit your content too.

  3. Use hashtag finder tools like TikTokHashtags.com, which generate lists of relevant hashtags based on a keyword or topic you provide. this specific tool works with more broad hashtags, so if your niche is more underground, you might need to dedicate more time to doing the footwork on your own.

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Create Your Unique Music Hashtags

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While using popular industry hashtags is a great start, creating your custom music hashtags can set you apart from the crowd:

  • Create unique hashtags for marketing campaigns, product launches, or social media challenges. They help in organizing and tracking related content and can even go viral.

  • Encourage your audience to use your hashtag by involving them in campaigns or challenges, fostering user-generated content and increasing your brand's visibility.

 

Tips for Creating Effective Music Hashtags

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  • Focus on a single primary hashtag instead of creating numerous hashtags, making it easier for users to remember and use.

  • Ensure your hashtag relates to your campaign, challenge, or music, providing users with a clear understanding of your content.

  • Make your hashtag self-explanatory, so users immediately grasp its purpose and relevance.

  • Opt for simple spellings that are easy to remember and type, making it convenient for users to employ your hashtag.

  • Create separate hashtags for different content series or campaigns to better organize and track your content.

  • for an extra, temporary and quick bump, you can also incorporate key words by including them as captions and dragging them off screen, out of view.

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Part three:

Enhance Your posting Experience with These Essential Tools

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Video Editing Apps

 

While TikTok provides robust in-app video editing tools, these third-party apps can take your videos to the next level. Some recommended video editing apps include:

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  • CapCut

  • BeeCut

  • Zoomerang

  • Quik

  • InShot

  • Funimate

  • Magisto

  • Lomotif

  • prequel

  • Vizmato

  • Timbre

  • Videoshop

  • VideoShow 

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Font Generators

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Font Generators offer ways to customize text in your TikTok profile and videos. Popular font generator tools include:

 

Scheduling Tools
 

TikTok doesn't natively support post scheduling, but there are tools like Loomly, SocialPilot, TikTok Scheduler (Free) and Crowdfire that allow you to schedule TikTok posts in advance. These tools help you optimize your posting schedule, ensuring your music reaches your target audience at the right times. emergency tip! if you make a mistake when posting, don't delete the post! just private it on your profile.

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Best Times to Post on TikTok in the USA:
Monday: 12 PM, 4 PM
Tuesday: 4 AM, 8 AM, 10 AM, 3 PM
Wednesday: 1 PM, 2 PM
Thursday: 5 AM, 3 PM, 6 PM
Friday: 1 AM, 11 AM, 7 PM, 9 PM
Saturday: 5 PM
Sunday: 1 AM, 2 AM, 1 PM, 2 PM, 10 PM

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Platforms Supporting TikTok


Influencer platforms offer services like influencer discovery, relationship management, campaign management, third-party analytics, and influencer content amplification. Recommended platforms for finding TikTok influencers include Upfluence, Fanbytes, Aspire, Neoreach, and Julius.

 

Analytics and Data Tools


Monitoring your TikTok performance is crucial. Use analytics and data tools like Tik Analytics, Pentos, and the in-app tool, Tiktok Analytics to analyze profiles, hashtags, trends, and engagement rates. These tools provide valuable insights for tracking your content's success.

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Part four:

How to Go Live on TikTok
 

Going live is great way to connect with your audience in real-time. Ensure you meet the eligibility criteria, which typically includes being at least 16 years old and having at least 1,000 followers.

 

streaming ideas

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  • live performances

  • Busting myths about your band/label/releases or the music industry

  • Behind-the-scene (BTS) coverage of events

  • How-to demos about using daw's, etc.

  • Ask-me-anything (AMA) sessions with followers

  • Playing video games or interactive games with your followers. You can exchange gifts (18+) with participants to incentivize them to join in the game and follow your account.

 

Setting Up a Live Stream

 

  1. Open your camera in selfie video mode by clicking on the "+" button at the bottom of the screen.

  2. Scroll right until you reach the "LIVE" option, and click on it.

  3. Tap the "Go Live" button at the bottom of the screen to start your live stream, wait for a 3-second countdown.

  4. to avoid copyright disputes, Don’t have any music playing in the background.

 

Adding a Cover Photo and Video Title

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  • Craft an enticing caption (up to 32 characters) or title for your live video, encouraging viewers to join your stream.

  • Include relevant hashtags in your caption to increase discoverability.

 

Add Filters to Your Video

 

  • Enhance your video's quality by using the "Smooth" and "Filters" buttons located above the "Go Live" button.

 

End Your Broadcast

 

There is no time limit for live streams on TikTok. When you've finished your live session, click the "X" at the top-left of the screen.  Remember to adhere to TikTok's community guidelines while creating live content to ensure your streams are in line with the platform's standards. 

 

It's recommended to include a call to action at the end of your live stream. You can prompt your audience to follow your profile to catch the next video in the series. Additionally, you can provide a sneak peek of your upcoming video and encourage viewers to share your profile link with their friends, inviting them to join your next broadcast.​

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