New TikTok Feature: TikTok Stories
Now Might Be A Good Time To Jumpstart Your TikTok Account, Sis…
Aside from TikTok being a super popular and entertaining social media platform (outranking Google since December 2021) for 1 BILLION+ users, it's also a genius way for creative entrepreneurs to leverage their businesses by posting brand-specific promotional content.
We know, we know! EVERY platform claims to be the genius way to grow. I mean, we may not even decide to go hard on to TikTok, but tap that yellow button right there to see our initial reaction! You may just feel like us when we're done talking through this!
LET’S GET INTO THE JUICE!
We’re breaking down everything you need to know about TikTok Stories, why it's important for your creative business and our personal thoughts on this new feature!
What Are TikTok Stories?
It's kinda like IG stories but with a twist!
Similar to other social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok users will now be able to upload image and video content that expires after 24 hours— with a slight twist. The thing that makes TikTok stories different is that you're able to publicly comment on the stories (similar to how you engage with regular TikTok content).
So, rather than having a private list of story views and replies like we're used to on Instagram, TikTok Stories will show comments on the story itself— introducing a new way for you to connect with your community, increase engagement and promote two-way conversations.
This is a complete game-changer if you're a content creator or business looking to expand your brand online! Here's why...
It opens the door for more engagement and two-way conversations. Now that everyone can see replies to your stories, all can get involved!
If you find it hard to be regular with posting but you do pretty well with showing up on stories, this can be a life-saver for you. By transferring your story creation energies to TikTok, now you'll get the same public interaction as you would on a regular post.
Did you know most people view stories first before viewing their feed? If that rule of thumb transfers over to TikTok, commenting on other people's stories will become a great way to engage with people who don't make it to the actual posts.
Now that you know the why, let's get into how to use them.
NOTE: If you don't already have the new stories feature, take a breath sis because you already know. Just like most rollouts, it'll hit your account in due time. TikTok has confirmed that stories will be coming to more accounts as the feature pilot expands.
To share a TikTok Stories post, follow these 4 simple steps:
FIRST. Tap the camera button as you would to create a regular TikTok video. You can either record videos on the spot or upload photos and videos from your camera roll.
SECOND. Personalize your content with TikTok's creative tools like sounds, effects, text or stickers.
THIRD. Instead of tapping the red “Next” button to write your caption, tap the “Post to Story" button.
FOURTH. Learning something new can be a beast sometimes, so remember to have some fun and enjoy the process!
And lastly, here's how to watch them.
You’ll know if a TikTok user has posted a story if they have a blue ring around their profile picture. You can press on their profile picture to view their story.
TikTok Stories will also show up on the For You Page (like a regular TikTok) and will have a small blue “Story” button in the bottom left corner.
Here’s our two cents.
It's clear the platform is positioning itself to become a one-stop shop for all short-form and long-form content, considering TikTok recently extended the length of feed videos to 10 minutes for all users: taking on Instagram and YouTube simultaneously.
But regardless if you're ready to fully jump on the TikTok train or not, we think you should mull the idea over. To recap and add a little more food for thought, here are some ways we believe TikTok Stories may be able to add value to your brand or creative business:
Provide a level of exclusivity for your core audience
Connect and interact with your community in a more intimate way to increase engagement
Offer a fresh, new take from the regular content you post on your Instagram feed
Develop a strong digital strategy to elevate your video content
We say all that to say: the new TikTok Stories feature is definitely worth experimenting. It's far too soon to determine whether or not this new feature will heavily compete with Instagram Stories, but with any new feature, there is an adjustment phase. We're definitely going to try it when time allows!
