Speaker 1: Now that you have the basics of how to make videos with TikTok, hopefully your brain is bursting with ideas for videos. And I'm not talking about simple videos you make while learning the app. I'm talking about your first real post. The first one that matters to you. The first one that says, Hello, TikTok. This is who I am. Or, this is my business. This lesson will help smooth the way to those initial posts. Don't worry if the perfect video you see in your head is not what comes out of your phone. At least not from the first few attempts. Success in making videos is similar to your success with TikTok overall. Keep creating, and learn from your triumphs and failures. Every story needs a star, and the star of this one is you. Rule number one, be yourself. The biggest success stories on TikTok are people whose personalities have shown through. TikTok isn't like other platforms that thrive on highly produced, curated content. TikTok likes it raw. Don't be afraid to show up as you are. You don't need to dress up for TikTok. You don't even need to clean up. Just leaving the gym and you're a little sweaty, but you have something to say, say it. Content production is much easier if your content is inspired by things you're actually interested in and are passionate about. Choosing to sidestep your personality means you've created a separate one that you now have to create content with. That's called acting, and that is a job in and of itself. TikTok is all about a connection between the viewers and you. So your job is simple. Be relatable and authentic. Basically, be you. For your first video, start small. Making a complicated video with all the bells and whistles might be so overwhelming that it becomes discouraging instead of fun. Try a short tutorial about something you know how to do, or 10 seconds of a special skill you have, or just a simple introduction to yourself. If you can't decide on a topic, focus internally on why you want to be on TikTok. Whatever your purpose, keeping it in mind can drive your creative path and help you stay motivated. And don't overanalyze your video. Everyone is their own worst critic. As a new creator for your brand or business, you might find that the main roadblock to posting content is you. Now, if you are your biggest asset, how can you be your biggest weakness? The way you can block yourself is overanalyzing. You make content, then you delete it. You think, no one will ever watch this. You spend all your time watching TikTok, doubting yourself, and guess what? That entire time, you're not making content. And how do you clear this obstacle? Well, you take a leap. Know that some of what you do will work, and a lot of it won't. And you'll learn from all of it. Just post it. That really is the key. Just post it. Categorization is a great tool to ensure the content you're making has an objective. A good example of categories is discovery, value add, and community. Discovery posts are meant to go viral, reach more eyeballs, and pull in people who fit into your target audience. A good example? You're making a video with your take on a recent newsworthy event in your country or your industry. Or maybe tell your story. It's been three years since I quit my corporate job to start my own business. Or, here's how I made my first million dollars. This content is usually quick and flashy. Value add posts are giving viewers the value they came to your page to get. What can you teach? This is the basis of most educational content, but on TikTok, can also lean into reviews, deep dives, or additional resources. These are the five apps I can't live without. This is how I get my hair to look like this each morning. Here's the key to running an engaging staff meeting. Be you and share your ideas. Community posts are all about bonding with your audience and building a fan base. How can you inspire engagement? Now that you're a part of this TikTok community, how can you bring others into your TikTok community? These posts may encourage stitching or duets, or they'll touch on subjects that are sure to attract the attention of your core audience. Balancing these categories can give you direction as to what type of content to make next. If your last few videos have been value add, then maybe put out a fun discovery piece. If you made a chain of discovery videos, you might want to switch things up and show your followers that artist behind the art. In time, you'll find a synergy between your different categories so that all of your content has broad appeal while still speaking to your brand. TikTok has a wealth of effects, filters, and templates. Have fun with all of them. Even if you become very comfortable with one set of tools, don't be afraid to branch out and try the others. Go to the discovery page and search for trending songs, then pick one or more and add them to your videos. Make a trend or two. Even if trend videos aren't your thing, joining in at least occasionally strengthens your ties to the community. Try different hooks and different looks. Even once you feel you've hit your niche, color outside the lines to see where you can grow. While you're learning how to film and edit content, don't forget the videos and photos that are already on your device. Existing videos and photos can be a goldmine. We'll go deeper than this in the intermediate learning path, but here are some suggestions to get you started. Now, if you have a series of photos taken over time, like a plant flowering or a construction project, you can create a time-lapse video by putting them together in a short sequence. Before and after transformations are a classic. They'll never go out of style. If you've got these from a personal makeover or a home renovation, for instance, showcase the differences. Use old photos and videos of yourself to take followers alongside you on your personal journey. If you have photos or videos from a vacation, use them to create a montage of the adventure. This might change the way you film while traveling, because working with old pictures will show you what pictures you wish you'd taken, but take a stroll through the photos and videos you already have and see those assets through a new perspective, new eyes, and maybe other people will want to see it too. A common question from new creators is, how often should you post? The reality is that there is no one right answer. The answer will be based on what you can manage. The most popular TikTok influencers tend to post at a higher frequency than the stars on other apps. That may sound intimidating, but remember, TikTok content is generally expected to be less produced, less scripted, and less planned. The best advice is to start with something manageable. Try posting one video every weekday. That may not sound like much, but you'll have over 250 TikToks by the end of the year at that rate. TikTok recommends posting 1-4 times per day. TikTok influencers vary a bit, but the consensus puts that sweet spot at around that 3-5 videos per day mark. Brainstorming is the beginning of the creative process. Everyone has their own method, and this is mine. I sit on my bed with a notebook and start scribbling out ideas while listening to inspirational music. So get to your brainstorming place. Wherever that might be, and let's get started. Let's start by focusing on your audience. If you're running a business, your target audience is your customers. What questions do you get asked most often? What additional questions do they lead to? What hesitations do you hear? Misconceptions you want to correct? They're all the questions that revolve around who you are and what you do. Choose one of those questions and write it down. Now, think of all the different ways you can approach this one question. Let's look at me. My current business is teaching you about and TikTok. So what's a question that a lot of my customers would have for me? There are so many ways I can approach this. Post one. How to decide if you should have separate accounts. Post two. Why sharing personal parts of your life can be helpful for a business account. Post three. Pros and cons of separate accounts. Post four. Story of a client who combined their pages and had massive success. Post five. Personal story. What did I do? See how one question can give you a seemingly never-ending list of topics? So now it's time for you to get to brainstorming. Just remember to revolve everything about the message you ultimately want to get across. If you do that from an authentic place, TikTok is going to be a huge success for you and your business. Hopefully these tips have helped kickstart your content creation and given you some structure to build around. Succeeding on TikTok becomes much more likely if you have a long-term strategy. Pace yourself and don't burn out. And if your strategy isn't working, don't get discouraged. Improve what does work and ditch what doesn't. Microsoft Mechanics www.microsoft-mechanics.com