Sharing Organic Content
On short-form video platforms, and TikTok in particular, there are several misconceptions about the platform and the sort of content that artists and labels need to be posting to get the most out of it. This includes people believing that the only content that resonates with the audience there is dancing or lip-syncing. In actuality, the best way to treat the service is as an entertainment platform, as users don’t go there to be sold to, they go there to be entertained.
As an artist, your primary concern on social media is most likely going to be music, but you should post a variety of content on the platform to keep your audience interested, and also to widen your reach, so that it’s more likely to reach people who might not be in the typical demographic your music usually finds. When done well, this will result in your fanbase growing and can create a sense of community around artists and labels.
Below are several examples of varied content that your label's artists could be creating:
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Track Breakdowns: This can take whatever form feels natural for the artist, as the most important thing is that it feels genuine. They could show a breakdown of the track inside their DAW and show the stems, while explaining how they built up the track or tell the story of how they made the track and what inspired them. If there are any collaborators involved in the song, they could also be a part of this content. When creating content like this, artists should utilise the #BehindTheSong hashtag in any post. This is a priority hashtag for TikTok and it allows LabelWorx to pitch for further editorial support from TikTok.
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Photo Dumps: In the same way that you can do a carousel post on Instagram, you can now do photo dumps on TikTok. These tend to perform well and they can be easily paired with a new release. They could be a good way to reveal your EP or album tracklisting or show the artwork and then several photos documenting the creation of the track.
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Day-To-Day: For an artist, this could be something as simple as documenting yourself cooking dinner or going to the gym. Giving your audience an insight into the day-to-day things you do will make you more relatable and make people want to engage with everything you do as an artist.
- Hop on Trends: If you’re struggling for inspiration, it’s worth monitoring what trends are currently picking up traction on TikTok and seeing if there's anything you can jump on. These can take all sorts of forms, but make sure to look out for 'Effect House' & 'CapCut' filters that are popular at that time and to also look at other artist's music which is trending.
Artist Self-Certification
If you haven’t already, you should ensure that your label's artists have certified themselves on TikTok by following this link. Completing this will give them access to additional features, such as the ability to let users add tracks straight to DSP libraries from the TikTok Sound, and for the artist to be able to pin one of their videos to the top of the sound to increase traffic to their videos.