The platform surpassed Facebook and Instagram, among others. Its rapidly growing audience attracts companies looking to reach new customers. Discover six tips on how to prepare content that will dazzle visually and properly showcase your product on TikTok.
According to the Sensor Tower report, TikTok is not only the most downloaded app but also the global leader in generated revenue. Brands eagerly invest in promotion on this platform, and its users rate their experience with advertising highly, as evidenced by TikTok's victory in the digital platforms category in Kantar's Ad Equity ranking in 2021.
TikTok is a great place for creative video formats. It's rapidly gaining popularity and still enjoys high user engagement, which we have the opportunity to observe on our family cooking channel TipTopChef - says Anna Sanocka, CEO of Prospero Film & Media. We see, among other things, from the generated reach and positive reactions to our materials, that users expect polished, high-quality video content. On TikTok, we use our experience with product placement in the biggest cooking formats, such as MasterChef, Top Chef, or Hell's Kitchen. We show users that content published on TikTok matches the quality of content we know from TV programs or commercials. This new quality - until now absent or barely present on TikTok - is attracting a growing number of brands.
Attractive and engaging content is not just a unique idea but also professional execution. How should you prepare a video to capture your audience's attention?
1. Record video in high resolution
Today, a multimedia recording studio fits in your pocket. The most popular method for recording TikToks is using what we have at hand, namely smartphones, which are equipped with increasingly better lenses.
However, especially in professional productions, it's worth reaching for a camera and a camcorder. They not only ensure better image quality but also allow filming the material from multiple angles simultaneously. As a result, the final material will be more varied and dynamic, and for the viewer - more interesting.
2. Ensure proper lighting
Good product presentation requires proper lighting. The prepared video should be bright and clear, which three-point lighting will help with. This technique guarantees proper illumination of the subject and frame without generating distracting shadows.
The color temperature of all lamps used in the recording should be the same, and ideally should resemble natural sunlight (about 9,032°F).
3. Plan your shots and frame your material properly
Preparing a shooting plan will make the work easier and speed up the video production process. Before the filming date, prepare a storyboard overview. Write down which elements should be visible in a wide shot and which you want to show in close-ups - make sure to present products attractively.
Remember that TikTok is a very dynamic medium, where the first few seconds determine whether a user scrolling through the platform will stop at your material.
Therefore, in the first seconds, show the most interesting shots that will grab the viewer's attention - e.g., a close-up of the product or a wide shot. There's no single rule for what can capture attention, so experiment!
4. Prepare dynamic editing of the recorded scenes
How to Create High-Quality Videos for TikTok: 6 Key Steps
TikTok is one of the most dynamic social media platforms. It doesn't tolerate boredom, dragging on, or lack of dynamic editing in video materials. When preparing a recording for publication, you can edit via smartphone, but it offers very limited capabilities. Therefore, when producing high-quality content, it's worth using a dedicated editing program that offers many possibilities for compiling scenes or adding graphic and animation effects.
Dynamic transitions, contrasting shots, switching from slow motion to accelerated shots will make any material more attractive - explains Anna Sanocka from Prospero FM – Remembering that we watch TikTok materials on a phone screen, before publishing it's worth checking whether our product in the editing sequence is definitely visible enough on a small screen and whether its usage remains clear - she adds.
5. Choose the right microphone and sound background
Even if the video image is well-lit, dynamically edited, and recorded in high quality, its reception can be ruined by one element - sound.
If you're recording video with participants, provide them with a lavalier microphone, clipped e.g., to their shirt. This ensures that the spoken lines will be understandable to users. Noise or a voice recorded too quietly can discourage viewers from finishing watching the material.
An important issue is also the choice of music background. It should be tailored to the subject matter and harmonize with the image to reinforce positive emotions in the audience. Well-chosen music doesn't disturb the image but complements it - it forms an integral part of the video material.
6. Ensure a good mood for the participants
If there's good energy on set, users will surely notice it in the prepared video material. Take care of the well-being of those appearing in your recording - talk to them before filming, tell them how it will proceed so they feel comfortable, show them the filming location, ask where they'll feel best, and work out the best setup together.
The good effect of the video material depends on the comfort of all recording participants.
Taking the above points into account, remember that proper video preparation is only part of the success. After publication, we expect large reach, and precisely targeted paid promotion helps achieve it. Using user data, you can reach people whose profile best matches the theme of the promoted video.
TikTok offers many possibilities for paid promotion, such as In-Feed ads, which are suggested for a specific user, or TopView presented first in the feed. The key to effectiveness is choosing the right format and precisely targeting the audience - explains Grzegorz Kosiński, CEO of Audience Network, a performance marketing agency co-creating the TipTopChef channel. In the campaign for the Tefal brand on the TipTopFamily channel, we generated over 1.8 million views, and the material was enthusiastically received - we obtained over 46 thousand likes and over 200 comments, including many positive ones such as "Ooo nice recipe!", "You guys are mega!", or "looks delicious", "yum". Generating reach in the right target group and fitting into its tastes is possible in virtually any category, thanks to using data analysis in campaigns.
TikTok reached its first billion users fastest among the most popular social platforms. It needed five years for this, while Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube - eight. The platform created by ByteDance is still accelerating. What are its prospects? Considering the development of video format and growing investments in this form of advertising, TikTok will be talked about even more in the coming years, and brands that produce natural video, particularly polished visually, will stand out.
