TikTok Newsletter 44
We tried and we failed. Tutorials , Templates and Transitions. Japanese TikTok
Hello again,
this is Understanding TikTok your weekly TikTok update 🗞️. My name is Marcus.
We talked about the 🕌 “TikTok Intifada” in Newsletter 42. Here are two more articles if you want to dig deeper: TikTok becomes vital weapon in Palestinians' digital war (Quote: Iyad al-Rifai, director of a digital rights group called the Sada Social Center, told Al-Monitor, “A new method has emerged to support the Palestinian cause with content focusing on humanizing it: publishing short and impactful videos [to attract] great global sympathy.”) And then there is the Rolling Stone’s story Why Are Israeli Defense Forces Soldiers Posting Thirst Traps on TikTok? Read it if you want to learn more about the Alpha Gun Angels or Natalia Fadeev. The Jerusalem Post was not amused.
Today we talk about:
🤷 We tried and we failed
✂️ Tutorials , Templates and Transitions
🇯🇵 Japanese TikTok
🤖 What else
🤷 We tried and we failed
Ed is the CEO of a PR company. Over a weekend in May Ed “tried and failed to master TikTok.” I am sorry to inform you. This is not the way this works. It echoes articles where people sat in front of the TV for 48 hours watching MTV. The did not master it. They did not understand it. They just got a terrible headache. If you are into self-experiments and cultural observation i’d rather recommend Kyle Chaka’s essay: How do you describe TikTok?
Whilst we are at it. You will probably not go viral (more than once), not become famous, and not become super rich. And if you eventually become, it will probably be not that much fun. These Popular niches to get followers on TikTok, well they are not niches at all, right? Art, Fashion, Cooking? Come on. We better stop the propaganda. And articles telling us again and again and again how super easy it is to become a star on the platform. “I am sorry to tell you that no one will read your book”, writes Anthony DeRosa. And i am here to inform you that some random stranger (Falling in Love With Strangers) will probably see your TikTok and it will make their day. Fair enough!
✂️ Tutorials , Templates and Transitions
Here is the thing. When it comes to influencer marketing some brands — particularly those targeting Gen Z — are starting to consider using TikTok creators over Instagram influencers in their campaigns (DigiDay). Yeah, but how you ask...
TikTok has launched a new, two-part series of tips for creators and brands looking to maximize their content, and improve their audience response on the platform, reports Social Media Today. If you are very very eager to learn, here are some basics: Keep it simple, Shoot vertically, Focus on your subject, Have fun. Okay. Here are the Step-by-step tutorials. And here is the Sudden Reveal Transition:
Meanwhile Vimeo (remember that one?!) has published a lengthy article Using TikTok for business? Here’s how to make TikTok advertising work for you. They even offer a couple of templates to play around with. All of that can be done directly in the browser.
If you do not want to rely on templates (good idea), then please make sure to show your video to a friend before posting otherwise you might end up just like Zara and their Bizarre Zara dress ad gets savaged on TikTok. If you happen to have lots of money you can of course outsource everything, Maybe you want to know How a 22-year-old CEO built a TikTok empire with Gen Z media brand Flighthouse.
🇯🇵 Japanese TikTok
I rarely see TikTok videos from Japan on my For You page. This is why i was pretty happy to see the article Immerse yourself in the creativity and language of Japanese TikTok accounts on the website of The Japan Times.
Here are some examples mentioned. A guy (@junya1gou) snorting strange things (jello) into his nose while muttering nonsense phrases. A Food Porn Bodybuilder (@hulkkun). An “infectiously energetic girl group” (@japanleaders). The Japanese Bob Ross (@watercolorshibasaki). Kawakei (@kawak1110) stylishly raising awareness of amputees. Oh, and here is a munchkin dwarf cat (@yukichichannel0209). Enjoy.
🤖 What else
📍 FNMeka (currently 9,7M Follower 120,9 M Likes ) is a robot like no other. Because of his vast success, the robot Soundcloud rapper now has some of the world’s elite on speed-dial, most notably receiving a fully customised Gucci Cybertruck from Elon Musk before anyone else has even got their hands on a stock one. You’ll see Meka with Supreme, Louis Vuitton and Off-White products you didn’t even know existed.
📍 Netflix’s New TikTok Reality Show Is Already Facing A Scandal. TikTok star Sienna Mae Gomez has responded to allegations from her ex and Netflix Hype House reality series co-star Jack Wright that she sexually assaulted him. Now what? They want to find a solution offline.
📍 Y2K, Light Academia or Plant Mum - You can’t say you’re a girl on TikTok unless you fit one of these 11 aesthetics. Well, in fact you can but this the headline of the article.
📍 What’s Poppin’ Show: Gen Z creators are reworking established content formats for new audiences. As a creator, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel, you just need to show it to an audience that hasn’t seen it before.
And that is that. Speak soon. Ciao, Marcus 🦑