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ELISE DARMA: “The whole point here is just look at the nature of the app. I'm telling you, it's unlike what we've seen with other social-media platforms. That's why it's just so hot right now. So just scroll and notice what you like. And once you start getting those ideas of, hmm, how can I make this my own? awesome, I would recommend for you to choose one of the ideas we outlined today in this chat and have fun with it.”
“A few other questions people often ask is, well, how often should I post? This is a biggie, and this will also help you get to 1,000 followers. If you can, start posting one TikTok a day. Now, I say this and I haven't even done this, but I know that the times where I posted consistently for a two-week period, I grew to 3,000 followers, and I'm still getting followers from videos I posted months ago. So if you like TikTok, I would say try to post once a day. Once you like it, you're going to get faster at making videos, I promise. Then you can move to two times a day. Just make sure that you're spacing your videos out. Don't post them back to back.”
“And lastly, a lot of TikTok has to do with being on camera, right? And this is something that you've spoken so openly about, Amy, with your audience. And I'm the same. I'm an introvert. It's my natural tendency to actually be behind the camera, not in front of it. But I run an online business. It’s based off of me showing up.”
“Those are my tips for getting started on TikTok. It's so much fun once you do. And I'm so, so excited to see my growth and your growth, Amy, when we touch base in a little bit.”
INTRO: I’m Amy Porterfield, ex-corporate girl turned CEO of a multi-million-dollar business. But it wasn't all that long ago that I lacked the confidence, money, and time to focus on growing my small-but-mighty business. Fast forward past many failed attempts and lessons learned, and you'll see the business I have today, one that changes lives and gives me more freedom than I ever thought possible, one that used to only exist as a daydream. I created the Online Marketing Made Easy podcast to give you simple, actionable, step-by-step strategies to help you do the same. If you're an ambitious entrepreneur, or one in the making, who's looking to create a business that makes an impact and helps you create a life you love, you're in the right place. Let's get started.
AMY PORTERFIELD: I have to admit it. When TikTok first came out, I was definitely intrigued. I watched some of the videos. I was just wondering what the heck is going on, and why are these people lip syncing? I mean, I was interested, but I couldn't really see why I would ever use it for business. However, as we all were sent into quarantine and as I was hunkered down in my house, having a little extra time, I jumped back on TikTok. And then twenty minutes passed, thirty, forty, fifty, maybe even an hour at times, I hate to admit it. But I was totally sucked in. And it got me wondering, first up, could I use TikTok for business? And second, if I wanted to use it for business, do I have to dance? Well, it turns out that TikTok is actually a great platform that you can use to attract new customers. And the best part about it is, no, you do not need to dance to attract them. I mean, listen, if you want to dance, dance your heart out, but you don't have to.
Now, I'm no TikTok expert. Heck, at the time of this recording, I have not even posted anything on TikTok. However, I am a creeper, and I do watch everyone else's videos, and I am learning a lot. But I actually wanted to learn from somebody who is using it for business and is an early adopter, and that is a Elise Darma. And Elise is going to walk us through, number one, what is TikTok; number two, why you should use it over some other platforms; number three, how to get your first 1,000 followers on TikTok, and how to use it to grow your email list. Are your ears perking up? Are you listening? And the coolest part of this interview is that she's going to give us five TikTok video ideas that you can start using right away.
So, Elise has been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, Elite Daily, and The Everygirl. She knows her stuff when it comes to social media. And I can't wait for you to learn her step-by-step approach to getting started with TikTok and using it to attract new customers. You'll walk away from this episode with a new tool that you can use for your marketing tool box, and you'll be ready to take on a hot new platform that we all should be at least paying attention to, if not actually using. What a concept, right?
I'm going to encourage you to do your first TikTok within forty-eight hours of this episode airing. Yep, you heard me right. There’s a challenge here. Use TikTok, post your first TikTok video within forty-eight hours of listening to this episode. And you've got to tell me if you do it. Jump into the Online Marketing Made Easy Facebook group. Heck, if you want to link to that TikTok, I'm all about it. You can do so. I want to see your TikTok videos, especially after you use one of the five video ideas that Elise is going to give you. So jump into the Online Marketing Made Easy Facebook group and show us what you've got.
Okay, so, here’s another cool thing. We created a free resource that Elise actually put together, and she's going to give you examples—like, you can see it in action—of the five video ideas that she's going to talk about in this episode. So this really cool resource is a PDF, but you can click on the links in the PDF and you can see the videos that she made that are great representations of the examples she's going to share with us here. So it's a really fun resource. Go grab it now. Amyporterfield.com/315. You'll find it on my show notes. So amyporterfield.com/315. I think this is one of the more fun, engaging freebies I've ever put together. Well, quite honestly, Elise put it together for us. Thank you so much for that. Go check it out. I think you're going to love it.
All right. I won't make you wait any longer. Let’s get to it.
Hey, there, Elise. Welcome to the show. Thanks so much for being here.
ELISE: It's my pleasure, Amy. Thanks for having me.
AMY: Well, this is going to be such a fun conversation. I told my audience a little bit about you in the intro, but could you share with us who you are and what you do?
ELISE: Yeah, of course. I’m an ex nine-to-fiver. I used to have a day job, and then I started freelancing. I was in the social-media space. So eventually, of course, I started my own services business, where I really focused in on helping my e-commerce clients grow through Instagram. So over the last four years, I would say, I've really just been an Instagram marketer and an Instagram educator. And today I am a TikTok explorer, I’ll call it.
AMY: I like that. That’s perfect.
Okay, so, let's pretend we're starting very much at the top. And I want you to give us a breakdown, and I want to start with the most-simple question. What is TikTok? I feel like I'm ninety years old when I ask that, but I really do want you to break this down for us.
ELISE: Oh, my gosh. You're so funny because I filmed a YouTube video of my first time in TikTok, and that was my same comment. I was trying a couple of hashtags, and I felt so old. So you're not alone.
Yeah. So, good question, because TikTok is hard to understand until you actually are in the app and you have an account. But a little background on it. It started as a dance and lip-sync app in 2016 by a company called ByteDance. And then they merged with another app called musical.ly. musical.ly had a pretty big, large teen base, so in 2018, TikTok brought on celebrities to fuel its growth.
So I really noticed TikTok in 2019, I would say. And today, in 2020, at this time, a lot of people are in quarantine. I have seen TikTok’s growth explode, especially in the last six weeks. So the growth of this app is crazy. Last year it was the fourth most downloaded iPhone app—of course after YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat.
And what it is is essentially videos on an app. So, TikTok videos are generally fifteen seconds. They can go up to sixty seconds, but I think most are below fifteen. And as a user, you get the same profile page, like you do on Instagram. You get a bio, and then you have your feed of videos. So I like to think of the videos as kind of a teaser for people to take notice of you, and then if they like you, they're going to check out your feed and give you a follow.
AMY: Okay. So something’s crazy about TikTok that I've noticed—it's a little bit different or feels different than the other social channels—and that is their algorithm. When I click on one thing that I might like or start to follow someone, I see a rush of those types of videos. Do you feel like they have a stronger algorithm or they're looking closer than others?
ELISE: That's such a great question because I think with TikTok there's so much interest right now and not a lot of content. And the algorithm is trying to figure out its user base. So even when you like a video or maybe when you watch it a couple of times, the algorithm is taking note, and that's why you're getting more related videos of that same kind of content. So the algorithm to me is sort of like what it was back in 2012 for Instagram and even earlier for Facebook, where you could post something and get a lot of reach really quickly and all organically. So right now we're in that moment for TikTok.
AMY: Okay. So that's a huge plus, for sure.
Okay, so, why TikTok, especially when we already have so many other social-media platforms. And I will say that because I'm a lurker on TikTok, I do feel old. I feel like everyone's so much younger than me on that. And so we're here to talk about how TikTok can be used for business, and I'm like, do I even have any business on TikTok right now? So talk to me about why TikTok and why not some other social-media channels instead.
ELISE: That was my reaction, too, when I looked at TikTok last summer. I just felt like it wasn't an app that was for me. But then when I think back to Instagram in 2012, I kind of felt the same way. It was an app dominated by teens. But lo and behold, businesses and marketers, they catch onto it. And I feel like we're at that point right now for TikTok because the usage is insane. The number of monthly active users last was reported at 800 million. And the best part is, is that people are spending as much time in the TikTok app as they are with Instagram.
AMY: Wow.
ELISE: Yeah. There's a stat that’s saying people spend on average fifty-two minutes a day in TikTok. So that's a lot.
AMY: That’s a lot.
ELISE: That’s a lot of _____(11:42) hours. Yeah. And I think why it's just been so sticky as an app is that it's not overproduced, the type of content that you're looking at. It's not like Instagram, let's say, where Instagram has this reputation for perfection or this reputation for overproduced content. I would say TikTok is the opposite of that. It's really for your real and raw self to show off and be funny and be real and be cynical even, if you want. People are loving the real factor. And so I think that's just why it's resonating so much for what people are loving today.
AMY: Yes, definitely. I've seen that a lot. And it does feel a little bit like Instagram Stories to me, which I really like. So do you see that comparison?
ELISE: Totally. And that's something I wanted to chat with you as well. An easy first step to get started on TikTok is think of it as just being an Instagram Story, because in many ways, it's very, very similar to Instagram.
AMY: Okay, good. I'm glad we're on the same page there.
Okay, so, how does the shelf life of a TikTok post compare to, let's say, the shelf life of Instagram or a Facebook post?
ELISE: Mm-hmm, yeah. In short, it's amazing right now. Again, the platform has so much attention, but not that much content, which isn't really the case for Instagram or Facebook anymore. So the algorithm is looking for content.
So what I've learned about the algorithm on TikTok is every single video you make, it goes onto what's called the For You page. So this is sort of like your news feed, but it's curated just for you. But the beauty is every video you make goes on it. Now, once one of your videos is on it, it's going to be shown to people who are following you or who aren't following you. And the video is going to go through a series of tests. So it's going to be shown to a small group of people initially. And what the algorithm’s going to look for is things like likes, comments, are people sharing it, are people watching all the way through, and most importantly, are they re-watching it? So these are all great signs for the algorithm.
Now, if you pass one test, your video is then going to be shown to a larger audience, then a larger. And that's how you essentially go viral. So that's why people are seeing so much success with their videos. They could have a brand-new account, post one video, and if it hits all the marks, it can actually go viral really, really quickly. So the shelf life of a TikTok is quite long, I would say, compared to the organic reach of an Instagram or a Facebook post.
But in my opinion, the best, best part about TikTok is let's say you posted a video today, and it doesn't really get a lot of views. The cool thing is the algorithm can actually pick that video up again, like a month down the road—
AMY: Wow.
ELISE: Yeah, I know, right? It will rerun it through that same test to see how people respond. And if your video, let's say, passes the test, you can suddenly have 10,000 or 100,000 or even a million views on something you created months before.
AMY: Okay, that’s really cool. For all of us content creators that put so much thought and effort into the content, that's incredibly rewarding if that were to happen. So I do love that. And I have noticed that I've been fed content in TikTok, and I like it, and I'll go check it out and realize it wasn't the last thing that person posted. It was like ten posts ago. So I have seen that. So they are pushing that out.
ELISE: Yeah. I’m getting videos in my feed that are from February, and it’s like, huh. And I've even seen that with videos I posted in January that were, I think they were fine, but they weren't amazingly viral. And now I look at them, and they have 60,000 views. And I'm like, what platform gives me that? Maybe YouTube?
AMY: That’s so true. It’s so good.
Okay, so, you talk about evergreen content versus trends content on TikTok. So can you tell us what you're talking about when you say evergreen versus trends, and why it's important to know?
ELISE: Yes, totally. So when you're in your TikTok account, let's say you're just browsing, what you're going to see is the For You page. So that's curated for you. And generally, especially with a brand-new account, you're going to see what's trending because the algorithm wants to see what you like and what you're watching. So this is trending content. Whatever you see on the For You page is generally trending across the app.
There's also a Discover page, just like Instagram, so you can see what's trending in the hashtags. So that's trending content, which is fun. It's very entertaining.
But what I like to focus on as a business owner is evergreen content. So I've experimented with both of these types of content. And, you know, when I jump on a trend, I'll do my own take, but the video doesn't really go anywhere. It's probably because I'm not funny. I think humor goes a long way.
AMY: That’s what I’m nervous about with TikTok. I am not naturally funny on video.
ELISE: I’m not, either. I'm not a dancer. I'm not coordinated. I'm not cute. It's like I'm confident in myself.
AMY: You are so cute, for the record. But keep going.
ELISE: Well, okay, let's say I'm not funny. I don't have that background. So whenever I try to reenact a trend, it’s sort of like wah, wah. But the times where I’ve created an evergreen piece of content, so let's say these are the topics that my market, my audience, is always searching for. So when they're going to Google, this is what they're typing in: how to do this with Instagram, how to grow my business, those sort of things. When I create videos that are evergreen—a.k.a., they never die, they never go old—those are the ones that have been serving me views for months, and that's where I'm actually seeing the high-quality traffic versus traffic from trends, which is just not targeted. So that's why I say focus your energy on evergreen content.
AMY: Okay, that is really reassuring, and I'd much rather do that than trends, so I'm on board there.
Now, I told my audience in the intro that you don't have to dance on TikTok to have a presence there. Thank God; hallelujah. So if you're not dancing, though, what the heck are you doing?
ELISE: Well, leave it to marketers to take a dance and music app and not do that.
AMY: Right, exactly.
ELISE: So a lot of business people—and by the way, it's not inundated with marketers. So if you are in the business space, jump on it if you're liking TikTok. But what I've seen in terms of what works is, yes, dance content does well. Yes, music and entertainment does well. But what is also doing well is tip-based content or how-tos or FAQs.
Now, as business owners, we typically are making this kind of content already for our blog or Instagram posts. So all I'm really doing right now, my TikTok strategy, is I'm taking content that I know that works, and I'm turning it into a little fifteen-second, hopefully fun video. Things are very fast on TikTok, and that's what I'm sharing to my audience. So I think I haven't posted a dance video yet. I don't know if I ever will.
But actually, Amy, I was looking at your Instagram feed, and you've kind of made a TikTok already, where you're dancing with Hobie.
AMY: Oh, I forgot about that. I told Hobie the other night, I said, babe, we could do a dance on TikTok, which for the record, I will never say never, but it's very unlikely. And he looked at me like I had two heads. So I don't think it's going to happen, but maybe I've already done it and I didn't even know.
ELISE: Yeah, you did it for your welcome video. And you're both lip syncing, and you're in your robes.
AMY: Oh, yeah! That one!
ELISE: Yeah. That's essentially a TikTok. So I know you have it in you. So maybe you and I are going to be dancing six months down the road.
AMY: We might. We might. We'll see. We'll see.
ELISE: Like you said, never say never. But for now you can just focus on that educational content. And I have some tips, too, if you don't want to dance. We can dive into that.
AMY: Oh, good. Because we’re going to talk about these five evergreen TikTok video ideas for business owners. We're going to get there. But I've got two more questions before we do.
The first one is, how do you get followers? Specifically, let's say, if I wanted to get my first 1,000 TikTok followers, how do you do that? And is it difficult? Does it take a long time?
ELISE: Yeah, great question. And I know this is a popular question for any social-media platform. So your audience is familiar with Instagram. I know you've shared Instagram content on your podcasts. TikTok is very similar to Instagram. So I'll just cover a few tips that I've seen work for me to get to 1,000 followers, which happened really quickly. I think it happened within four weeks, if I remember correctly. And the reason why you want 1,000 is that once you have 1,000 followers on TikTok, you can then unlock the feature to go live. So if anyone likes going live, you need 1,000 followers.
So the very first thing I'd say is remember that you're making videos for your target markets, not for the whole billion users of TikTok. So keep it focused, just like we do on Instagram. And as we talked about with the trends, yes, watch them, take note of them, but if you're going to make a trend video, make sure that you're remaking it to fit your target audience. So I'm experimenting with this same idea right now on my profile, and we'll see what happens over the next few weeks or months.
So when you're creating content, make sure it's for your niche. When you're writing a caption, I also recommend to use keywords that your target audience is searching. So, similar to Instagram. And same with hashtags. You're going to use the hashtags that your target audience is following. So typically they're going to be niche, they're going to be specific, and you're going to fit as many as you can into that little space of 150 characters.
AMY: Nice. I love very specific details like this. So this is good.
Okay, so tell me this. How do you get your followers from TikTok to your email list? This is a big one for my listeners because we're all about the email list. So how does that work?
ELISE: Same. I am with you. Email is everything, even being a social-media person. So I think and what I've seen with TikTok, because I'm actually starting to track who in my audience is messaging me and saying, hey, I found you on TikTok. So I'm also backtracking to see where they're finding me after TikTok. So what I recommend you need is what I call a TikTok traffic path. So TikTok wants people to stay on the app. Most apps are like that.
There's a few ways that you can funnel people. So when someone’s on your profile, your TikTok profile, one place you can take them to is the top of your funnel—so if you have a funnel in your business—or maybe you have a lead magnet. Maybe you have a lead magnet where you're collecting emails. So as of us recording this, TikTok has recently allowed for us to put a clickable link in the bio, just like Instagram. So that could be your best lead magnet. And you can create a video, and at the end of it, include a little call to action to grab your x, y, z lead magnet in the bio. Something like that. So that's one path: from the TikTok profile to your lead magnet, which is a link in your bio.
The second path is from your TikTok profile to your Instagram account. So TikTok allows you to connect to your Instagram, which that's where I'm seeing a lot of my TikTok followers find me. They’re DMing me. And then once we have that conversation, well, you can send as many links as you want through a DM. So that's where they're taking the next step with me in my business.
The third TikTok path is from your profile to your YouTube channel. So right now you can link directly in your profile to your Instagram or to YouTube. Actually, both. I have both of them linked. So if you're more of a YouTuber, you can create TikTok videos and include a little call to action for people to find your full training on your YouTube channel. Then they can go to your YouTube channel. And as you know, with a YouTube video, you can include so much information—links to your blog or to your lead magnet. And that's how people are going to become a subscriber to your list.
So those are the three best paths that I would say are working today. There is, of course, driving people to your direct messages on TikTok, but I don't know if I'm a fan of that one just yet. You do have to change your DM settings so that everyone can message you, not just your friends. And unfortunately, links aren't clickable in direct messages just right now. So, yeah, I would lead them to your Instagram first.
AMY: Okay, cool. These are great tips.
All right. So the moment we've been waiting for. Let's talk about the five evergreen TikTok video ideas for business owners. And I'm making a commitment that I'm going to do at least one of these before this episode goes live. So I've got to pay close attention. I don't know if I'm going to be using TikTok regularly, but I at least got to give it a shot. And so we're going to do an episode, and if you're going to be so gracious to give us these tips, I've got to talk about it.
And the cool thing, guys, is that Elise helped us put together a freebie resource for what we're going to be talking about here. So as she goes into the five evergreen TikTok video ideas for business owners, well, we put them into a resource so you can kind of see them in action and see what it would look like and how we're explaining it. So you can get that at amyporterfield.com/315, which is the number of this episode. So amyporterfield.com/315, we've got a resource for what we're getting into now. You're going to want to get your hands on that.
Okay. So are you ready?
ELISE: Mm-hmm. I'm ready, and I’m ready to see your first TikTok, Amy. I’m so glad that you said that.
AMY: I’m so nervous.
ELISE: Well, the great thing about TikTok is generally no one's following you when you start, so there's actually quite a bit of freedom in posting, thinking no one's going to see this. You can even scroll down my profile and you can tell. Like, I literally don't care what I'm posting. But now with followers, it's a little more, hm, what should I do? So I think it will be fun, and I'm excited for your listeners to try out their first TikTok, too.
AMY: Okay, cool.
ELISE: Five evergreen Ideas. Now, I've ordered them in order of easiest to make, and none of them require dancing. But of course, you can dance if you want. So the very first one I'm calling is Talking-head Tips. So as we mentioned Instagram Stories earlier, this one is just like an Instagram Story. You're simply going to film yourself—and you can do it within the TikTok app—film yourself sharing a tip, up to fifteen seconds, and make it specific to your audience. What's something fun? What’s something interesting that they'd love to know? So that's it. You can literally do just that.
But if you want to jazz it up and make it look more like a TikTok, what I'd recommend is adding text onto the screen as you're talking so it's easier for your viewers to see—because people are so visual—they want to see what you're talking about before hearing you. So add a little text to the screen. And a double bonus is if you add a song in the background that adds to the energy of what you're saying. Because remember, TikTok is first and foremost a music-based app. So the music options are amazing, so use them to your advantage.
AMY: Oh, that’s a good one. That’s an easy one. And you’re right—it is really fun when people put the music on. Okay, so when I look at Instagram, I’ll, many times, watch it when Hobie and I are watching TV together, and I'll be on my phone because the TV isn't going to keep my attention. But I have to put it on silent because Hobie’s looking at me like, will you please turn off your phone? But on TikTok, I always want the volume on because it's so fun to listen to what everything's going out on. I think people are more inclined to have the volume on TikTok versus Instagram. Would you agree with that?
ELISE: I think that's true. And I haven't seen any stats yet on who's listening with the volume on for TikTok, because I know a majority of people on Instagram don't have it on. And I agree with you. A lot of the humor, a lot of the punch lines, are in the music. So, yeah, definitely have fun with that.
AMY: Definitely. Okay, so, that’s a great one. So the Talking-head Tips—just get on camera, start talking, using some of the text on screen to make it more visual, more engaging. That’s easy. We can all do that. That feels like an IG Story. My audience knows I do Stories well. So, okay, number one, we’ve got that. Give me number two.
ELISE: The number-two one is called, Yup, Nope. And this is a fun one.
AMY: Yes, I like this one. Okay, keep going.
ELISE: So there is a popular song on TikTok called Choices. And a user basically edited that video to just be the chorus, where the song is saying, “Yup, nope. Yup, nope.” That's literally what the audio is. And again, with the freebie, you're going to get a link to actually hear this song. But with this one, what you're going to do is find this song on the TikTok app. And I walk you through how to find it exactly. Then you are going to film yourself on camera, moving your head to the yup and the nope. And so you're just going to shake your head yes and shake your head no. So once you're happy with your take, then I want you to add text onto the screen, with questions, questions that your audience would be asking in their mind. And then your movement on camera is going to answer that question.
So, for example, I've done this one twice now. I'm still trying to nail it. So—oh, yeah. That's the other great thing about TikTok. Try this once, and if you have a new idea in the future, try the exact same format again. So I just re-uploaded this one as a new format. And here are some questions that I put on screen. Are you an employee? Nope is what I'm shaking my head. Do you own a business? Yep. Are you Instagram famous? Nope. Are you working from Mexico? Yes, because I was working from Mexico when I filmed it. So that just gives you an idea of questions you can brainstorm of what your audience might be thinking about you, your business. And what I love about this one is if the last one can be a punchline or a surprise, that's when you're going to get people replaying it and sharing. So that one you can get a little bit more creative with the text that you're choosing.
AMY: Okay. That one’s fun. Very easy. We could all do that one as well, you guys. So these are not too complicated, and I'm literally speaking for myself because I know I’m going to have to do one. So number three, what's that one?
ELISE: Number three is called Get to Know Me. So who doesn't like talking about themselves? But in this one, you don't have to talk about yourself. You can also answer a common misconception or question about you or your business. So you all know your market the best, right? So think about a question you get a lot or a misconception people have. Then, once you know what that is, find a song you like—so this is the fun part—then, you're going to film yourself, as the song is playing, you're going to film yourself shaking your head or knocking away, like with your hands, you're going to bat things away. You're going to knock away these common misconceptions that you'll actually put on screen as text, okay? Are you with me on that one still?
AMY: Okay. I am. I’m glad we have a free resource because we're going to get to see this in action, right?
ELISE: Exactly. It’s so visual. And then, again, this depends on the song you choose. It's really fun when you kind of follow the beats or the song as it intensifies. But if it makes sense for your song choice, at the end, you can shake your head yes with a big smile, or you can dance if you like. And at the end, this is where you would put the grand answer to what the big misconception or question is.
AMY: Okay. I need to see this one in action. Have you done this one yet?
ELISE: I have done it, yes. I put a sample in.
AMY: Okay, good. Good, okay. Because basically there feels like there's dancing. There's a lot of movement in this one. However, it is kind of fun because you're answering a common misconception. And I think the thing that really is working right now and has been for the last more than a year, but is really to get honest and vulnerable and share more of yourself, even if you're building a business. And so I like this one because it's going to reveal more about you.
ELISE: Absolutely. And this one, you're actually not talking on camera. So that's why you can pick and choose which one feels the best. This one, you don't have to be that energetic. You can simply be on camera, nodding your head yes or no. You can bat things away with your hands, so that way, you're kind of saying on the text on screen, no or yes. It's hard to describe, so you'll definitely need to see an example visually. But this one's perfect if you just don't feel like talking on camera. You're just being filmed. And then the true magic of this one is in the editing with the text at the end.
AMY: Okay. Talk to me about editing inside of TikTok. I'm assuming it's not difficult, or is it? Is it complicated?
ELISE: I'd say it's not complicated. But the first time I went through TikTok, I made a mistake in that I just posted something right away. And what I really should've done was scrolled through and seen what TikToks looked like, because they are a different beast, you know?
AMY: They are. Yeah.
ELISE: They’re a different platform. Yeah. So there's so many features in the TikTok editing aspect, so don't get overwhelmed with that because I know I did. And I posted once in August and then not again until like December.
AMY: That would be me.
ELISE: Yeah, exactly. Meanwhile, TikTok was blowing up then. So don't get overwhelmed with the editing. That's why the suggestions I'm making are simply to choose a song and simply to add text onto the screen. That’s all you have to do.
AMY: Okay. Start out simple.
ELISE: Yeah, exactly. Because with the text, the only advanced thing you're going to do is set the duration of the text so that it’s on screen for a certain amount of time. And I have also walked you through how to do that in the guide.
AMY: Okay, cool. This is awesome. I mean, if we've ever needed a guide before for a podcast episode, this is the one. So I think it's going to blow up, because, you guys, we got to see this. And it's really fun because you'll get to see Elise’s TikTok and kind of how she's doing stuff, and I love that.
ELISE: I’m learning with everyone. By no means am I an expert. I'm totally experimenting, as we're all figuring it out.
AMY: And we're all for that. If you came on here and said you were a TikTok expert, I don't know if that even exists yet. This is so new. People are navigating their way. So I love your style and how you've done it. So I think these are really, really good pieces of advice.
Okay, so we've done three. I'm just going to remind you guys. We've done the Talking-head Tips. We've done the Yep, Nope, one of the easiest. We've done the Get to Know Me, and you don't even have to talk in that one. So what's the next one?
ELISE: Okay, so this one’s called The Before-and-After Story. Business owners know how much transformation is important, right? We're all hoping that our customers or our clients are getting a transformation through our product or our offer. So this is what you're going to show in The Before-and-After Story.
So the very first step, as usual, find a song you like, and choose the mood that you're going for. There is a lot of audio that is more inspirational. There's high-energy audio. There's pop music. You have all the options. So find a song you like that matches the story you're about to share. Then, I want you to film clips that illustrate what you or your customer experienced or felt before your business or before your offer, okay? Who was the before version of you or your customer before they found your business? Then, I want you to film clips that illustrate the transformation of what you or your customer experienced as a result of your product or offer or business.
So you might be like, what are you talking about? Filming clips of what? So this, you can get a little creative. If you want to reenact what you might have felt like, let's say, when you were an employee or I don't know. It depends on your niche and your market. But you can reenact how it was before, and then you can reenact the after. So morph is an effect that I used to make this type of video. I didn't do any filming or acting. What I did was I found photos that I found of myself as an employee and then an intern and then a freelancer and then an entrepreneur. So that was my before and then my after. And I used this morph effect to morph them all together so that you could visually see my transformation through photos. Does that make sense?
AMY: That’s cool. That does. That’s really cool. I love that.
ELISE: Yeah. It's a fantastic feature. Again, it's in the guides. You'll be able to see exactly what I'm talking about. This one literally took me three minutes to make because I already had the photos on my phone. All I did was tap into this morph effect, and it guides you through, okay, which photos do you want to morph? I chose the ones of me as an employee, an intern, a freelancer, an entrepreneur. I chose my song. And that was it. It’s posted, and it tells my audience where I was before and where I’m at today.
AMY: Geez. People that teach weight loss must be eating that one up.
ELISE: Totally.
AMY: I’m thinking of Corinne Crabtree, who is my weight loss coach. Girl, get on TikTok and use some of those videos and images you have, because she's got some awesome ones to use for that. But I love that you used it in a totally different way versus weight loss, which is where we tend to see the biggest transformation. So that's awesome. Okay. I can't wait to see that example. That's going to be fun.
Okay, take us to the final one.
ELISE: Okay. So this one is called Make a Trend Your Own, because I promise once you get on TikTok and you look at the hilarious videos, you're going to start to get ideas of like, hmm, I know I could actually make that work for my audience. So this one, you're going to get totally creative. Again, you're going to go to the For You page—this is curated just for you—and look at what TikTok has curated, okay? If you find a video that you like, click on its audio. You're going to see the audio in the bottom left of your screen. Click on the title underneath the caption, and what you're going to see there is other videos posted using that same audio, okay? I know this is so visual, but it's like two steps.
Once you click on an audio, you're going to see other videos using that same audio. And what I want you to look for is a theme. Are you seeing a theme with all these videos? Is there a pattern? Are they all kind of riffing off of the same idea? If so, that's a trend. That's officially a trend.
So then, check out some examples and see if you get an idea to make your own version. But here's the “but.” Your own version has to be adapted to your audience, to your niche, to your market. Don't follow the trend as-is. I want you to make it relevant for your people. And that's it. You get bonus points if you can create an unexpected ending or a plot twist. That really keeps people engaged. But that's it. Take a trending video and remake it to fit your audience.
AMY: And I can see how that would work because I've seen so many different trends. All of them have the exact same song in them, but they're kind of doing their own thing with that trend. So this one makes total sense to me. And guys, if you’re like, I don't get it, once you get on TikTok, you're going to be like, oh, okay, I see what she's saying, because you're going to start seeing these trends pop up a lot. I mean, if you want to do the savage dance, you can, but I'd get more creative and try a few other trends other than that.
So these were fantastic, and they're going to be brought to life when you all grab the free resource, so amyporterfield.com/315. First of all, Elise, thanks so much for helping us make that freebie. You were so generous to give us all the details and links and all of that. You really put that together for us. So first of all, thank you for that.
ELISE: Absolutely.
AMY: And before I let you go, I guess my final question would be, what's the best way just to start with TikTok, because most people listening, 90 percent of my listeners right now—I'm making that number up, but I feel very confident about it—are not doing anything on TikTok. So what's the best way to get started?
ELISE: Well, Amy, I can tell that you've already taken the first step. You have an account, you're lurking, you even know what the savage dance is, so you’re ahead of me on that. I haven’t even tried to attempt that.
AMY: Well, I haven’t tried it. Let’s not get crazy, girl. But I know what it is.
ELISE: Yeah, well, we'll check back in a few weeks. We'll see if we've both posted that video of that dance.
So I'd say you've done the first step. And usually what I recommend for people is, are you a bath person? Draw a bath and just lay in the bath and scroll TikTok for twenty minutes. Like, that's literally the first step. If you're not a bath person, jump on the couch and scroll TikTok for twenty minutes.
The whole point here is just look at the nature of the app. I'm telling you, it's unlike what we've seen with other social-media platforms. That's why it's just so hot right now. So just scroll and notice what you like. And once you start getting those ideas of, how can I make this my own? awesome. I would recommend for you to choose one of the ideas we outlined today in this chat and have fun with it. Remember, no one’s watching, probably don’t have followers. There’s some freedom in that, I find, versus the pressure of I really don’t want to let people down. Just remember, you have nothing to lose.
And I also want you to remember, it’s not too late to start on TikTok. If it's a platform that you like and it fits your personality, that's another point I want to reiterate is just because we're talking about TikTok, doesn't mean you need to run and add it into your business today. You have to like the platform, just like you have to like Instagram. So that’s why I want you to scroll it, see if you like it, see if it’s for you, and if you do, awesome. We are still in the early days of this app, and it’s not been taken over by marketers. So there’s a lot of opportunity right now. So, that’s the very first step.
A few other questions people often ask is, well, how often should I post? This is a biggie, and this will also help you get to 1,000 followers. If you can, start posting one TikTok a day. Now, I say this and I haven't even done this, but I know that the times where I posted consistently for a two-week period, I grew to 3,000 followers, and I'm still getting followers from videos I posted months ago. So if you like TikTok, I would say try to post once a day. Once you like it, you're going to get faster at making videos, I promise. Then you can move to two times a day. Just make sure that you're spacing your videos out. Don't post them back to back.
And lastly, a lot of TikTok has to do with being on camera, right? And this is something that you've spoken so openly about, Amy, with your audience. And I'm the same. I'm an introvert. It's my natural tendency to actually be behind the camera, not in front of it. But I run an online business. It’s based off of me showing up. So, like TikTok, like any time you’re on camera, remember the basics, right? I like to stand up when I'm filming or recording. It just helps my energy flow through my body a bit better so that my nerves aren't showing. I like to “smize,” so smile with the eyes. I like to use emphasis in my voice, so project, kind of like how I am right now. And with TikTok, you can get a little dramatic. You don't have to act like your regular self. You can be a little bit bigger because this is a platform where people are being entertained. And of course, use your hand gestures, as you naturally would.
So those are my tips for getting started on TikTok. It's so much fun once you do. And I'm so, so excited to see my growth and your growth, Amy, when we touch base in a little bit.
AMY: It’s going to be fun. Yeah, I love all these tips. This is one of my most favorite episodes. I am so not familiar with this platform, so to learn from somebody who's gone before us is always a great thing.
So I want you all to follow Elise. So tell everybody how to find you on TikTok.
ELISE: That's a good question. I don’t—
AMY: I know. Do they just search your name?
ELISE: Yes, yes. So you can find me by my user name: EliseDarma. So you can type that in, and you’ll see a profile pop up. There is also a desktop version of TikTok.
AMY: Oh!
ELISE: Yeah, I know, right? It's not as advanced as the app, so yeah. Go ahead and find me on the app, and then hopefully, Amy, her profile will be live as well at that same time.
AMY: Okay. That will be fun. And then what if they want to find you on Instagram or your website? Where else can people find you?
ELISE: Yeah. All of it's @elisedarma on Instagram. That's where I post kind of my longer-form, Instagram-related content, and now TikTok content because that's how we connected. And then my website’s elisedarma.com. And then TikTok is elisedarma. Oh, and then YouTube. So YouTube has a lot of my TikTok tutorials.
AMY: Oh, good.
ELISE: Yeah. If you're getting a little tripped up on the editing or the content, go to my YouTube. I swear my top videos right now are TikTok related. So that's where I'm posting a lot of my hands-on workshops.
AMY: Perfect.
Okay, this has been great. Thank you so very much for such an awesome episode and for putting together the resource for us. I could not tell you how much I appreciate this enough. Thanks again for being here.
ELISE: Thank you so much for having me. I’m so excited that you reached out and you might be doing some TikToks yourself.
Another cool feature is you can duet someone else’s TikTok. So when you post one, I’m going to duet it, and we’ll see how that goes.
AMY: Oh, no. This is going to be good. I can’t wait.
All right. Thanks again, girl. Take care.
So there you have it. Did you love this interview as much as I did? I love a good step-by-step episode. I mean, it just makes me want to go out and take action right away.
So here's the deal. I am going to record my first TikTok video before this episode airs, and then you've got to find me on TikTok. Right now, someone has already taken my name, and it's a picture of a boy, so I'm not sure really what's going on with that. We'll see if we can work it out in the meantime. But right now, I’m at Amy.Porterfield on TikTok. Not ideal. I had to add the dot, but who cares, right? Amy.Porterfield on TikTok. I have an orange sweater on, so I’ll stand out when you see me, when you do a search. Go find me on TikTok, follow me, and watch at least—I’ll have at least one video up there. I mean, I might be an overachiever. I might do more than one. We don't know. We'll see what happens. But I'm doing this.
And what I want you to do in the next forty-eight hours, I want you to do your first TikTok video as well. Use one of these examples. Go grab the freebie. Amyporterfield.com/315. Go grab the freebie. Do the first one. The first one’s really easy, or even the second one feels easy as well. Just choose one of them. But don’t just get on video and talk and that’s it. Like, make an effort to make it TikTok-ish so that it fits into the platform.
And then, when you do that, I want you to jump into the Online Marketing Made Easy Facebook group. It's a totally free podcast group that I have. Jump in there and show us what you got. Show us what you did. You can link to it. Let us know what's going on with TikTok. I want to see all of them.
Okay, guys, I can't wait to connect with you again soon, same time, same place next week. Bye for now.
