Struggling to gain a following on TikTok?
You're not alone.
With 1.5 billion active users worldwide, standing out on the platform takes more than just posting videos—you need a strategic approach to grow your audience.
The good news?
TikTok's algorithm rewards engaging content, meaning you don’t need millions of followers to go viral.
But how do you gain a following on TikTok effectively?
In this post, you’ll learn:
- The key factors that drive growth on TikTok
- How to create engaging content that gets noticed
- Smart strategies to maximize reach and engagement
Let’s get started...
Who’s Using TikTok?
While TikTok is hugely popular among younger users, its audience is expanding across all age groups:
- 62% of U.S. adults under 30 use TikTok
- 39% of those aged 30–49
- 24% of those 50–64
- 10% of those 65+
This broad user base means your ideal audience is likely on TikTok—you just need the right strategy to reach them.
TikTok’s Unique Environment: What Makes It Different?
TikTok isn’t just another social media platform—it’s a video-first, algorithm-driven app where engagement matters more than follower count.
Here’s what sets it apart:
- The algorithm prioritizes engagement—unlike other platforms, TikTok pushes content based on interactions (likes, comments, shares)—not just who follows you.
- Creativity and authenticity win—users crave genuine, entertaining, and fresh content, making daily updates a best practice.
- Collaboration boosts visibility—features like Duets and Stitch allow you to interact with trending content, helping you tap into new audiences.
- Trends and hashtags matter—using popular challenges and relevant hashtags can significantly boost your reach.
Understanding these factors is key to growing your audience on TikTok.
Authenticity on TikTok builds trust; let your brand's true personality shine to connect deeply with your audienceClick To Post On
So how do you create content that grabs attention and builds a following? Let’s take a look...
How to Gain a Following on TikTok: Create Engaging Content
Want to grow your TikTok audience? It all starts with creating engaging content.
The more engagement your videos receive, the more they’ll be pushed by TikTok’s algorithm—increasing visibility and attracting more followers.
So, how do you create content that stands out?
Here are 10 proven strategies to help you gain a following on TikTok.
1. Be Authentic
Authenticity is key on TikTok. Users connect with content that feels real, relatable, and unfiltered.
- Show your personality—whether you’re funny, informative, or bold, let your unique voice shine.
- Share personal stories—real experiences create an emotional connection with viewers.
- Be honest—transparency builds credibility, whether you’re sharing an opinion or reviewing a product.
- Avoid overly polished content—raw, spontaneous videos often perform better than overly scripted or heavily edited ones.
- Engage with your audience—respond to comments, ask questions, and interact with followers to build a loyal community.
2. Use Popular Video Types
Certain types of videos consistently perform well on TikTok, making them a great way to boost visibility and engagement.
TikTok Challenges: Join the Trend
Participating in viral challenges puts your content in front of a wider audience—many of whom might follow you long-term.
- Hop on trending challenges—these often go viral, like the famous Renegade dance challenge that swept the platform.
- Create your own challenge—encourage participation by using a unique hashtag and making it fun, accessible, and easy to replicate.
The Renegade dance challenge attracted the participation of millions of people around the world. 
You can also create your own challenges. If you do so, encourage others to join in by using a unique hashtag and making the challenge fun and accessible.
Participating in trending challenges can amplify your brand's visibility and attract a wider TikTok audienceClick To Post On
TikTok Dances
Dance routines are hugely popular on TikTok, and your business doesn’t have to be in any way related to dance to be able to use the strategy.
It’s just a good technique for attracting attention and visibility. In fact, TikTok says about 25% of its most-watched content is dance videos.
Whether you make up your dance or copy a trending one, dance videos can go viral because they’re fun, engaging, and easy for others to try.
Adding trending music can make your dance even more popular, as people look up songs to see different dances.
TikTok Tutorials
How-to videos aren’t just for YouTube.
They can also be a great way to share your skills and knowledge on TikTok. Tutorials can grab attention whether it's makeup tips, cooking recipes, tech hacks, or DIY crafts.
The viral Whipped Coffee or Dalgona Coffee tutorial had everyone making it at home during the pandemic. 
Humorous Skits
Everyone loves a good laugh, and funny skits can quickly gain traction on TikTok.
Whether it’s a funny take on everyday situations, popular trends, or your original ideas, humorous content is highly shareable.
Think about skits you could use that are related in some way to your business, and help attract an interested audience.
3. Optimize Your Videos Before Publishing
There are various ways to optimize the quality of your videos for TikTok, helping to maximize the engagement they attract, and as a consequence, help you gain a following.
Use Proper Lighting
Good lighting is important for making your videos look great. If your video looks too dark, people will quickly skip past it for something they can view more clearly.
Proper lighting makes your videos look professional and more enjoyable to watch.
Natural light is best, so try to film during the day, either outside or close to windows that will illuminate you.
Second best, but still effective, is to use a ring or other artificial lighting to help brighten things up.
Have Clear Audio
As well as seeing your videos clearly, people also need to be able to hear your videos clearly.
Consider using an external mic if your device’s built-in microphone doesn’t pick up the sound properly for your videos.
And take account of background noise too. Try to film in a quiet place so that viewers aren’t distracted or confused by unintended audio.
Use the Right Music
Using popular or trending music can help boost your video's visibility:
- Trending music—use songs currently trending on TikTok to make your videos more discoverable. Trending music can often be found on the Discover page.
- Popular tracks—use well-known songs that resonate with your target audience. Popular tracks can attract more viewers and encourage them to engage with your content.
Experiment with Voice Effects
Experiment with TikTok’s built-in voice effects to see the impact it has with engagement levels:
- Voice changer—use this to alter your voice to sound like a robot, a chipmunk, or other fun characters.
- Voiceover—add a voiceover to your videos to explain what’s happening or provide extra commentary.
- Text-to-speech—this feature converts written text into spoken words, adding a unique touch to your videos.
- Voice enhancers—adjust your voice’s pitch and speed to make your voice sound higher, lower, faster, or slower.
Experimenting with these voice effects can add a layer of creativity and fun to your videos, helping to keep your audience entertained and engaged.
Play around with these features to make your videos more dynamic and engaging. Well-edited videos can grab attention and keep viewers watching until the end.
Edit Your Videos
TikTok has some powerful in-app editing tools for enhancing your videos before publication.
Features include the ability to trim clips, add effects, and include music or voice overs.
But remember, don’t go overboard. Keep it real, authentic, and relatable.
4. Use Hashtags
When you use relevant and trending hashtags for your videos, you help increase their discoverability.
Hashtags help categorize your content and make it easier for people interested in those topics to find you.
Combine niche-specific hashtags with more popular, trending ones to maximize reach.
If you're posting a cooking tutorial, you might use #CookingTips, #EasyRecipes, and #TikTokFood.
5. Post Frequently
Having a consistent posting schedule is essential for maintaining your presence on TikTok.
Aim to post at least a few times weekly to keep your audience engaged, but don’t sacrifice quality for quantity. It’s better to post high-quality content less frequently than to post mediocre content every day.
Consistent posting on TikTok keeps your audience engaged and signals algorithmic favorability for increased reachClick To Post On
6. Post at Optimal Times
When is the best time to post?
Generally, the best times to post on TikTok are in the evenings and weekends when more people are likely to scroll through their feeds.
However, this can vary depending on your audience.
According to research, some of the optimal times to post on TikTok are:
- Mondays: 6 AM, 10 AM, 10 PM EST
- Tuesdays: 2 AM, 4 AM, 9 AM EST
- Wednesdays: 7 AM, 8 AM, 11 PM EST
- Thursdays: 9 AM, 12 PM, 7 PM EST
- Fridays: 5 AM, 1 PM, 3 PM EST
- Saturdays: 11 AM, 7 PM, 8 PM EST
- Sundays: 7 AM, 8 AM, 4 PM EST
But this is just general advice—you need to find out the times that work best for your own audience. We’ll look into how to do this shortly.
7. Engage with Your Audience
As you may have guessed by now, to build a strong community on TikTok, engagement is key.
Doing something as simple as responding to comments is an effective way to connect with your followers and encourage ongoing engagement with your account.
A quick thank you or a like is often enough to show that you appreciate their interaction and value their opinions.
8. Learn From and Collaborate With Other Creators
Learning strategies and techniques from successful creators on TikTok can be useful.
But bear in mind that what works well for one account and audience might not work for another.
So it’s essential to test new strategies out for your own audience, and tweak your approach accordingly.
Also look for creators and brands whose content aligns with yours, and where they align with your values, and contact them with collaboration ideas, making it clear how they stand to benefit.
When contacting them, be honest and clear about your own audience’s demographics and engagement rates.
Whether it’s a duet, a challenge, or a joint live session, collaborations can help you reach new viewers.
9. Use TikTok Analytics
TikTok's built-in analytics help you track your performance and refine your strategy.
The analytics dashboard provides valuable insights into how your videos are performing.
Monitor metrics like views, likes, shares, and follower growth.
These metrics can help you understand what type of content resonates with your audience and what doesn’t.
Similarly, if a particular hashtag or song seems to boost your views, use it more often.
Utilize TikTok's analytics to refine your content strategy, focusing on what resonates most with your audienceClick To Post On
So monitor your analytics, and experiment and adjust your strategy accordingly. The insights gained can guide you on:
- The best times to post—when are your followers most active?
- The most effective content types
- How to engage with your audience effectively.
10. Cross-Promote Your TikTok Content
Cross-promoting your TikTok content on other social media platforms can both drive more traffic to your TikTok profile, and boost the visibility of (and engagement with) your other social profiles.
So share your TikTok videos on Instagram, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and other platforms.
However, sharing the exact same video might not always work. Also think about sharing a teaser that encourages people to check out the full video on TikTok.
As well as increasing your reach, this helps to keep your content fresh and engaging across different platforms.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I create engaging content to gain a following on TikTok?
Be authentic, use popular video types like challenges and dances, and optimize your videos with proper lighting, clear audio, trending music, voice effects, editing, and hashtags.
What are the best practices for posting on TikTok to gain a following?
Post frequently, at optimal times based on your audience, engage with your audience, collaborate with other creators, use TikTok analytics, and cross-promote your content on other social media platforms.
Why is engagement essential for building a following on TikTok?
Engagement, such as responding to comments and collaborating with other creators, fosters a strong community, increases reach, and signals favorability to the TikTok algorithm.
To Conclude
As discussed, when considering how to gain a following on TikTok, the #1 strategy is to create engaging content.
That gets you noticed, and will automatically attract followers to your account.
While this post has shown you exactly how to approach it, don’t forget that, like most platforms, TikTok is always changing. Stay flexible, watch for new trends, and don’t be afraid to adjust your approach based on what works for your own audience.
