Creating Professional Content on TikTok

You can follow every content tip in the book: Use trending audio. Post 3x a day. Put text on screen. And still get stuck. Those aren’t wrong… they’re just surface-level. If you want to play the long game, you need more than beginner tactics. I’ve spent over 16 years helping creators shape content that lasts. These 5 principles come up time after time: 1. Use Data to Guide the Next Post → Build a simple tool to rank your posts. → Spot the patterns. Let winners guide what’s next. → It’s like giving your content a report card—except you should take this one seriously ;) 2. Remix Your Top Performers → Artists don’t make one hit and move on. → They remix, drop an acoustic, or get someone else to collab on it. → Turn your best posts into templates. 3. Innovate Your CTAs (Calls-to-Action) → Super direct CTA’s often kill reach. → Figure out a way to make your audience aware of your thing without the ask. → Ex: If you’re a vlogger selling an energy drink, always show yourself cracking one open mid-video. 4. Tailor to the Platform → TikTok ≠ IG ≠ LinkedIn. → Optimize for each platform individually → Don’t just repost, re-package 5. Tracking Everything Isn’t Productive → More data ≠ more clarity. → Pick 2–3 metrics that actually change your decisions. → Ours? Conversions, views, and watch time These aren’t just the latest “hacks” They’re habits of thoughtful creators who build brands that last. These are some of mine—what’s one content lesson you wish someone told you earlier?

The man behind Alex Hormozi & Gary Vee's brands: Caleb Ralston. Jay Klouse interviewed him on how he helped grow Hormozi's audience from 1.2M to 11.5M followers & Gary's TikTok from 300K to 3.5M in just 3 months. Here are the 8 biggest takeaways: 1. Top creators produce 300+ pieces of content PER WEEK. Not to flood people’s feeds… But to acquire data. Quality is subjective. Your audience determines what "quality" means, not you. The more you publish, the faster you learn what resonates with them. 2. Use the "Accordion Method" to optimize content. Start with high volume to collect data… Then contract: Take the effort from 14 posts and put it into 7 higher-quality ones based on what performed. Then expand volume again with your new knowledge. Constant refinement > trying to execute perfectly. 3. Start with the "Brand Journey Framework" to avoid random content: • What outcome do I want? • What would I have to be known for to achieve it? • What would I have to do to be known for that? • What do I have to learn to do those things? This prevents building an audience around topics you'll end up hating. 4. 80/20 rule for content topics: 80% focused on your core expertise. 20% showing yourself as a human with interests. "Have 80% of your content be about your core thing and use the other 20% to make yourself an interesting human." This prevents burnout and builds deeper connections. 5. For new creators without experience: Share your journey of learning, not just outcomes. Document mistakes so others can avoid them. Be an "expert learner" not a fake expert. "Share your unique perspective on how you're about learning the thing." 6. Get comfortable repeating yourself in different ways. Stories are the key. They let you teach the same principles in different contexts. "I'm going to say the same things over and over in slightly different ways because you never know when it's going to hit home for somebody." 7. Track what matters, not everything. Only track metrics that change your actions. Report on multipliers/outliers, not raw numbers. Instead of saying "150K views," say "1.5X outperformer" compared to your benchmark. This immediately shows what to continue & what to stop. 8. Educational content builds trust, and trust precedes transactions. "What you are doing with educational content is trying to scale trust." When people associate you with their success, they trust you massively. Focus on making it easy for the audience to take action after consuming your content. What's your biggest takeaway from this thread? Let me know below. & if you enjoyed this… Follow me for more content like this.

what are the common creative themes between the top shared brand TikTok videos last month? memes. the "meme content" cluster averages 6.1K shares per video among the top 20% of brand content in April 2025, making it the most effective format well its actually more than just memes (detail in photos). i wanted to approach this from a data perspective beyond basic statistics so I built a content analysis algorithm that provided tags for each video (video summary, format, theme, tone, emotions, visual elements, actions, etc), which I then processed through hierarchical embedding. after filtering out boosted content with my detection algorithm, I ran clustering to find universal patterns across industries, excluding sports, gaming, and entertainment which identified 10 distinct content clusters. across the most successful TikTok brand content, 4 universal patterns emerged: gen Z cultural fluency - meme audios, comment‑reply cutaways, and self‑aware text overlays show brands speaking the platform's native dialect rather than repurposing legacy ad styles fast, snack‑sized storytelling - every cluster keeps clips under a minute (often under 20s), using rapid cuts, punch‑line captions, or time‑lapse motion to earn attention before the next swipe hyper‑vivid visuals - whether it's neon stage lights, macro lipstick swatches, or turquoise seas, color saturation and tight framing dominate, helping small screens feel cinematic humor & playfulness as a hook - even "serious" verticals (cruises, science demos) weave in jokes, surprise reveals, or exaggerated POVs the most successful brand TikTok content is entertainment and culture that happens to feature brands. Many are investing in high production quality assets that simultaneously keep that lofi authentic social persona & vibe: POV angles, first-person narration, on-screen captions, and meme slang that is native to TikTok on social brands are essentially becoming entertainment studios with products attached

TikTok hit 1 billion users faster than anyone expected. But here’s the real lesson: It’s not the algorithm. It’s not “hacks.” It’s not going viral. It’s knowing exactly who you’re talking to. And I learned that the hard way. For a long time, I was creating content for… basically anyone interested in “business.” Entrepreneurs. Founders. Freelancers. Whoever showed up. And the result? • decent views • random followers • zero real connection Because when you try to speak to everyone… you end up speaking around the person who actually needs you. Everything changed when I got honest about who I’m really here for: 👉 Ambitious professionals who are tired of trading time for money — and want systems + automation so they can finally breathe. Not hustle porn. Not “rise and grind.” Not vague mindset talk. Real stuff like: • how to replace manual tasks • how to streamline ops • how to buy back time • how to stop being glued to Slack/Email • how to set up systems that run without you Once I got THAT clear, something clicked. People started replying: “Wait… this is exactly my problem.” “This feels like you’re inside my head.” That’s the goal. Not viral. Not everyone. Just the right ones. So if your growth feels stuck, try this: Forget “target audience.” Describe ONE real person. What do they complain about after work? What are they secretly worried about? What does “freedom” actually mean to them? Then create for that person only. Not the algorithm. Not the crowd. Not the gurus. Just them. Clarity beats clever. Specific beats loud. Depth beats reach. And when your person finally feels seen? That’s when growth gets real.

Creators and brands are starting to rethink TikTok’s casual style for more polished social content This started months back when Mr Beast posted about walking away from the quick cut, short burst style that he himself made famous to focus more on detailed stories and higher quality content Now not only are brands leaning in, but platforms are even incentivizing it. TikTok recently announced a creator incentive program where creators can earn payouts for focusing on higher quality content. Why is all of this happening? The same reason why Gen Z people tell me skinny jeans are no longer cool just when I stated to fully embrace them Because when everyone is doing the same thing, that thing is no longer unique. And when something doesn’t feel unique it looses its cachet So while everyone and their mother is now creating short, quick cut, big text overlay TikTok made famous content, the audience is starting to want something different And higher quality content that tells deeper, richer stories is standing out and seeing significant engagement gains Once those signals fire, the platforms want to reward that and the creators and brands want to hop in while they’re still early The challenge is that higher quality content has a much greater barrier to create. It often requires better equipment than just a phone, and a deeper understanding of film and storytelling So the pool of creators and brands who can do it well is significantly less Which means if you get it right there is high upside before the masses figure out how to do it too And you know there are going to be all types of hacks and CapCut filters and phone extenders coming out that make achieving a certain “high quality style” easier for everyone So jump in while the waters warm and the playing field is thin. Just like with emerging platforms the upside is immense. And check out the Ad Age article from Gillian Follett on this topic, it’s a good read. #socialmedia #creatoreconomy #influnecermarketing

Want to create viral short form videos? Key takeaways from my fireside chat with YouTuber and TikTok influencer Collins Key on creating viral videos for B2B and B2C businesses at the Finger Lakes Summit (w/ Impellent Ventures, David Brown, Philip H. Beauregard). Collins has over 50 million followers across platforms, 12B views and has worked with brands like Invisalign, AT&T and Disney. He’s an expert on conversion so highly recommend him as an influencer to partner with. Msg to get connected. -Spend 80% of your time and money on the first 2 seconds The first 2 seconds of a video are the most important. If someone doesn’t make it past the first 2 seconds, they aren’t going to make it to the end so the rest is irrelevant. If it’s not engaging, users will swipe -Get someone to watch your video more than once Getting someone to watch your video more than once is gold but how do you do that? First, you need a very engaging hook / opening. Second, you need to create a compelling reason to stick around. People hate things that are unresolved so you want to introduce a problem or question and solve it throughout -Thumbnails and starting images really matter On TikTok, don’t put up a starting image that looks like an ad. It needs to look native to the platform. That also includes the text font. You can objectively see the performance of any content by looking at the like public engagement stats. When you put something out there, recognize quickly if it’s failing and try something else -How to scientifically know your audience You need to understand what your audience is watching on TikTok or other platforms. If you don’t know, create a dummy account and like / engage only with the content you think your target audience is going to engage with. These platforms are specialized in delivering you the content they think you should see. Therefore TikTok will serve you what the target audience is seeing. Every time you see a video you like, hit the save icon. You can keep hitting save and you can build up a repository of tons of videos that could serve as loose inspiration for your own content -You’re a B2B business, you’re likely to stand out the most on social Boring B2B and B2B2C businesses have a huge advantage. Audiences don’t expect you to be great at digital marketing and so you get a lot of credit for shaking things up. Collins enjoys working with more conventional companies as it's easier to make the product stand out. -The archetype of who you should hire as a social media manager The archetype of who you need is really young, hungry, obsessed with social media, and smart. 2 q's to ask for an interview 1) “What media are you consuming?” You’re looking for someone who just watches 99% short form content 2) “What’s a viral video you love and break down why it works.” Look for folks who understand mechanics. They should have good answers about the opening, why the audience stuck around, what else was trending at the time to make this stand out

Things I learned about building a brand on TikTok after hitting 100K followers: #1 iPhone quality > camera quality People love point and shoot, raw, real-life moments. The less produced, the better. #2 Storytelling always wins Learn to hook, build, and land a story in ~90 seconds. If you can make someone feel something, you’ve won. #3 TikTok rewards you for using its tools Use effects, sounds, captions, stickers. My personal fave: GreenScreen Sticker. #4 Consistency is non-negotiable I posted 1–2 videos every single day for the last year. No. Matter. What. #5 Engage like a real human Reply to comments. Scroll. Interact. TikTok wants active users. Give yourself 10 intentional minutes daily. #6 Use Creator Search Insights See what people are searching, then add your take. Trend participation ≠ copying. It’s about relevance. #7 Test new formats constantly Vlogs, GRWM, voiceovers, photo dumps, duets, stitches – TikTok loves experimentation. #8 Turn content into a series "Part 2” culture is real. People love coming back. It builds loyalty, not just views. #9 And finally… don’t give a sh*t what people think Remember, cringe is cool. Excited to share more of my TikTok journey here and encourage folks to get on the app, it's never too late to join the influencer wave.

Two platforms. Two completely different outcomes. Over the past year, we’ve run hundreds of KOL posts across Instagram and TikTok — and one thing is now very clear: Creative style matters more than creator size. Instagram rewards polished, cinematic, aesthetically-driven content. TikTok rewards raw, honest, UGC-style content that feels like a friend. When creators tried posting the same video across both platforms, performance dropped almost instantly But when we asked them to tailor the creative for each feed, the results changed dramatically. On Instagram, the strongest performing posts were: • cinematic lifestyle shots • color-graded, mood-driven edits • product integrated into an aspirational moment On TikTok, top performers were: • talking-head explanations • quick product demos • organic, handheld “real life” moments It’s not just a platform difference — it’s a culture difference. Instagram is curated aspiration. TikTok is unfiltered relatability. The brands that win are the ones that don’t copy-paste content, but design creative for each platform’s storytelling format. If you want consistency across IG + TikTok, the answer isn’t more influencers — it’s the right creative format on each. Happy to share more examples of how we structure IG vs TikTok briefs for our campaigns. DM me if you want to compare formats or explore what works best in your market.

I’ve spent four years teaching my colleagues at The Wall Street Journal what not to do when making vertical videos for social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok. Here are five tips I’d give anyone starting out: 1) Don’t overlook the hook: Your viewer is inundated with a virtually endless stream of compelling content, news and otherwise. The problem? They have limited time. They’re looking for a reason to swipe to the next thing. The solution is to show them your content is worth their time as early and as succinctly as possible. There are many ways to achieve this ("how to write a great hook" could be its own post), but basically, I try to start with a strong, specific headline paired with an attention-grabbing visual. As for what I don't recommend starting with... 2) Don’t start with your face: Let’s face it (hardy-har-har), unless you’re famous or look extraordinarily unusual or attractive, your face isn’t going to stop anyone’s scroll. I know mine doesn't. At the Journal, we often include what we call a “reporter bubble," a FaceTime-esque box in the top left or right-hand corner. This makes the video feel personal (and thus social-media friendly) while freeing up space for a more interesting visual. You can always cut to a full-screen shot of yourself once the viewer is locked in. 3) Don’t wait until the camera is rolling to decide what to say: Even the most seasoned reporter can seize up once I hit record. This is completely normal. Drafting a script ahead of time, even if it’s just a shell with a basic beginning and end, can prevent you from rambling and wasting time when you're already out in the field and focused on reporting. 4) Don’t tell the viewer how you reported the story, tell them what you found: Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but most viewers don’t care about the lengths you went to track down your sources or how many hours you spent poring over hundreds of documents. They want your juiciest discoveries they can talk about with their friends and colleagues. 5) Don't cram so much in: While the Journal’s social videos are typically based on our articles, they’re more akin to teasers than full summaries. Even if your story is 2,000 words or longer, focus your video on the biggest takeaways. Viewers who want more than your 60-second video can always read the article. And if you've done your job right, they will want more. Let me know in the comments if there’s anything I missed!

I could've hit 100k followers in 3 months if I knew what I know now. . . (it took me 2 years) After creating off and on, I finally hit 100k last week. Here are 5 learnings that would've got me there in half the time. 1 - Understand the 80/20 rule Unlike other platforms, TikTok doesn't show your content to your followers. ~80% of your views are non-followers, ~20% are followers. Introduce yourself in every video and give people a reason to follow. ---- 2 - There's $$$$$$ on the app Initially, I saw TikTok as a place for younger audiences and smaller AOVs. I was wrong. In 2023 I collected $1.2M in revenue from the app. 50% of our clients found me directly on TikTok, and 50% chose us to work with after they saw my TikTok account. ---- 3 - There are no hacks It doesn't matter what time you post, what hashtags you use, or what you use to edit videos. The only thing that matters is if the topic and story within the video captivate and retain. Focus on watch time and shares - not likes and comments. ---- 4 - If it wins on TikTok, it will win elsewhere We're able to study data from 1,000 short-form videos every month. The videos that do well on TikTok, do well on the other platforms ~85% of the time. Become a TikTok first creator (while you can) to dominate the other platforms. ---- 5 - Visual hooks > Verbal hooks Spend more time on the visuals of your video. Give the viewer a reason to stop immediately and continue watching. Because supply is up, you now have .1 seconds to catch the viewers' attention. ---- I'm excited to get back to creating on TikTok and see what the next 6 months bring! Are you currently creating on TikTok? Why or why not? P.S. In my newsletter this week, I'm breaking down the video that led to 10k followers overnight and 2 clients (AOV $8000). Make sure you're subscribed!