Is TikTok for Authors?

JOIN PIKES PEAK WRITERS

Is TikTok for Authors?

Published June 7, 2022

By: Jenny Kate

Well, TikTok absolutely exploded in 2021. And it will continue that trajectory into 2022.

Does that mean you should be on it?

If you’ve followed me long enough, you’ll know my answer to that would be “it depends.”

Do you have your books written yet? If not, then write your books.
If you do, then do you have the time to learn a new social media platform? If you don’t, then don’t.
I’m not a fan of chasing the latest social craze. Especially when you’ve probably got another one down already and need to keep producing product to sell (re: books).
But if you have the books, the time and the inclination, then yes. Consider TikTok.

For a 100 million reasons, TikTok is worth considering for book marketing.

TikTok has almost 100 million users in the United States, and 86% of those are between the ages of sixteen and forty-four.

Nielsen did a study in 2021 and asked more than 8,000 TikTok users what they liked about the app.

The top answers included features users appreciated about the authenticity of the app over curated, ultra-unfiltered experiences on other social sites, and the app simply makes them happy.

In a world where the headlines are more often than not awful, TikTok a nice place to escape to.

Even more useful answers to the Nielsen study were:

Nearly 60% agreed TikTok is a place with a sense of community,
84% agreed there is always content they can relate to, and finally,
almost 80% actually read the comments on posts and videos.

All of this is reason enough for you to consider TikTok as your social media platform of choice, or at least dabble with it.

It’s the Wild West right now. It’s about the only place on the internet where organic growth still means something.

Organically you can grow a following simply by posting every day or a couple of times a day or a couple of times a week.

Ultra-marketer Neil Patel gives TikTok until 2023 before TikTok becomes more like other platforms and we’ll start having to pay for growth, so if you’re interested, now is the time to jump in.

A couple of other features to consider about TikTok.

This platform is designed for the Every Person. Content is created by everyday folks, which makes it easier to go viral on TikTok. It’s all about relatability, and TikTok offers it in spades.

And the app isn’t complicated. It is rather easy to use. If you can use any social media outlet out there, then you can use TikTok.

If you’re an author, then following and using #BookTok is a must. Writers and readers both flock to this hashtag.

So, is TikTok for authors? Yes. The answer is an emphatic yes.

The best tips to get started are:

Follow Booktokkers to gather ideas.

Develop your own brand.
Use trends that other Tiktokkers are already using.
Just get started.
It’s a fun place to be.

I’ve seen history professors give history lessons (yes, in less than a minute); writers talk about their books, marketers give tips, and stylists provide how-to vids.

For more information on TikTok, check out these podcasts:

TikTok Storytelling: How to Stand Out from the Crowd

TikTok Strategy: A Proven Growth Plan with Jackson Zaccaria

How to Sell More Books Using TikTok

Jenny Kate

Jenny Kate is the founder of Writer Nation, an online space dedicated to helping writers market their work. With 19 years communications experience, she regularly writes on social media, internet marketing and face-to-face publicity. You can find her on her Website, Facebook, and Instagram