With TikTok still going strong as a rising star in the social media industry, there are crucial trends companies need to keep track of to make the most of the platform. The app is growing and cannibalizing audiences from other social media, while interesting usage patterns are emerging from newer markets it has managed to ensnare. That’s why we’ve put together the most note-worthy TikTok Trends for 2022.

TikTok Surveys & Trends

As it stands, TikTok ads cost very little currently (more information in the business trends section). The influencers are fairly cheap compared to Instagram (as we’ve covered previously). This could be subject to change as the platform gains increasing popularity. However, TikTok already has 1 billion active users every day, so it is already a major platform.

New research has confirmed certain points that may seem obvious to some (although it is nice to have data). As one would expect, larger audiences equal more shares, likes, and comments for your videos. Similarly, going viral is easier with a larger following. According to estimates, a 1% increase in followers corresponds to a 0.65% increase in average views per post.

Remuneration on TikTok depends on whether you have enough subscribers (over 1,000) and apply for the “Creator Fund”. The platform pays somewhere between 2 to 4 cents per 1,000 views on a video. So, how much does TikTok pay you for 1 million views? $40-$50 on a video. Comparatively, YouTube can net you far more for the same but the level of effort for the average TikTok is far lower.

TikTok User Trends

According to an analysis by Hootsuite, daily time spent on social media is increasing annually. Moreover, the time spent on mobile apps like TikTok is also increasing. The number of US TikTok users grew by 550% over the past year.  47.4% of the total users in the US are between the ages of 10 and 29.

An interesting fact about TikTok is that the gender split is more even than on the average social media platform. While 53% of TikTok users are male with 47% female, this difference is less pronounced than the industry average. The age group also skews younger than most other platforms.

So, what’s a good engagement rate on TikTok? Organic engagement rates can range from 3% to 9% based on the number of followers. On Instagram 3% is a good rate while 6% is fairly high. On TikTok, inorganic rates can go as high as 18%, so there is a lot of engagement for brands to capitalize on.

One reason that TikTok is particularly good for engagement is that users spend more than 850 Minutes Per Month on the App. It is also the platform with the highest social media engagement per post. While it is very popular all over the world, it has unique pockets of outreach in Asia and Saudi Arabia, making it a good means of reaching customers in those regions.

Business Trends

TikTok brand deals are an interesting prospect right now. What’s most noteworthy is the hesitance: some of the biggest brands aren’t yet on the platform. Google, Facebook, YouTube, and IKEA are some of the biggest brands on the market but have virtually no TikTok presence. This could be a viable area for competitors to gain influence among Gen-Z users.

For brands, the best performing accounts were posting at an average rate of 3.52 times per week. In terms of video descriptions, most items in the analysis had 87 characters and 3.26 hashtags on average. Generally, 100 views generate 12 engagements (comprising the sum of likes, comments, and shares).

There are multiple ways brands can capitalize on the app’s different features. Here are the average engagement rates for different types of sponsored campaigns:

• Top-View: In-feed video with sound on; 12% to 16% CTR
• Take Over: Starts when opening TikTok; 7% to 10% CTR
• In-Feed Video: Standard in-feed ad unit; 5-7% ER and 1.5- 3% CTR to site

How to get a good engagement rate on TikTok

Building large or dedicated fan bases should be a primary TikTok growth strategy, utilizing engaging content with more interactive qualities. Tech, Food, and Gaming brands are the most popular on TikTok. Prominent brands Samsung, Alibaba, and Chevrolet to name a few.

Amazon has been very successful on the platform, but its strategy consists of uploading upwards of 40 videos a day. This may not be tenable for most companies as they may not have the content (Amazon mostly posts clips from its streaming TV shows).

In terms of topics, TikTok trends change all the time and there isn’t a settled topic that does well. Among the most famous brands are entertainment concepts like “So Satisfying”, where mundane items are shown with symmetric beauty or specially cleaned. Similarly, another surprise hit is the World Health Org’s TikTok channel, with their most famous video being an anti-smoking ad.

Advertising Trends

TikTok ads are currently lower in price than their Facebook counterparts. However, the audience is not as big or diverse as on other platforms but TikTok does have higher engagement. Still, both TikTok and Instagram are great outreach tools for reaching younger people with TikTok having the edge in pricing.

TikTok is still growing, so it doesn’t have advertising tools as advanced as other platforms (yet). Conversion tracking can be comparatively weak for example. On the other hand, TikTok allows for very creative advertising formats and design tools. It is also a very interactive platform, showing massive success for creative endeavours like music.

Small campaigns that give users something to do can be very useful here as well. Campaigns like the Chipotle lid flip became trends on TikTok. The simple campaign had users playing with Chipotle packaging and recording themselves flipping the lids. These videos raised millions of views with the brand’s name at the forefront.

Fashion brands have found success on the platform as well, using influencers to sell their items. Some popular TikTok clothing brands include Amazon Fashion and UGG. These brands have been getting direct traffic to their sites.

Tiktok Design Trends

Hot TikTok trends usually involve using memes and songs in a proper context. While there is no data about this, research on other platforms suggests that when brands join in on a joke it rubs the community the wrong way. That’s not to say it can’t be done well, but it should be used sparingly.

In terms of how to get more engagement on TikTok with content, there are more original ways. The platform’s users are very open to using branded hashtags and it’s a good idea for companies to use this feature to get trending.

TikTok photo editing trends show that people are very interested in photos with high contrast filters. These sorts of hacks or tricks also get popular on TikTok, as they provide a formula for enhancing the filters to add a unique flavour to photos. TikTok photo editing styles change all the time, with many trends coming and going across the platform.

Content Marketing

The hottest TikTok trends are easy to find using the search bar but predicting them to create your own can be very difficult. The data indicates there are certain aspects that are present in many successful videos that brands can use as a guideline.

If anything, strange forms of novelty arise on TikTok that brands can take advantage of. What is very clear is that the music you use can make or break the video’s shareability. The most popular types of music were generally upbeat followed by no music. Of course, the choice of music is contextual but this speaks to most TikTok videos favouring an upbeat tone.

Similarly, brands should use the features like filters, TikTok countdown/ timer, and branded hashtags. However, sometimes simpler is better. Case in point: the most-viewed TikTok video of 2021 had no fancy software features. It is simply a pretty funny illusion trick and Harry Potter reference.

All in all, TikTok has many different types of features that brands can benefit from. If your TikTok is not getting views, you might want to try other types of content on the platform. There are several options for paid content that might be better suited to the brand.