TikTok is becoming a fertile land for content creators and businesses, where videos are not only for entertainment but also a powerful tool to reach customers. In this article, Ecomobi will guide you on how to take advantage of SEO TikTok to effectively “eat” recommendations, increase organic views, and build a long-term presence on the number 1 platform for young people.
What is SEO TikTok?
Search engine optimization (SEO) today has gone far beyond the limits of Google. Many other platforms such as YouTube, Reddit, Quora, Instagram, and Pinterest are also used as tools to support information searches. In particular, SEO TikTok is increasingly attracting attention, becoming a prominent trend in recent times.
SEO TikTok is the activity of optimizing content to increase visibility on the platform. This helps the content appear on FYP, on top of search results and thereby reach more viewers/potential customers.
Although similar but different, SEO TikTok is different from Google SEO because discovering content on TikTok is different from discovering content on Google – more interesting and depends on more factors.
Why should brands and content creators not ignore SEO TikTok?
With over 49 million users in the Philippines as of January 2024, TikTok has become a vital marketing platform for content creators and brands. During the Mega Sales season (e.g., 11.11, 12.12), advertisements on TikTok influenced 97% of Filipino users to take action after viewing ads
Benefits of SEO TikTok for Brands and Sellers
- Improve internal keyword rankings: TikTok SEO helps your channel and products easily appear in a prominent position when customers search.
- Grasping TikTok trends combined with performing SEO TikTok helps you increase content value and attract more viewers.
- Increase visibility and brand recognition: Optimized videos help you reach more potential customers, thereby improving brand recognition in the market.
- Boost sales: When products appear at the top of searches, the ability to convert purchases will increase significantly.
- Optimize marketing strategies: SEO TikTok helps you create content that suits customer tastes, while effectively taking advantage of trends to improve the effectiveness of your marketing strategy.
- Differentiate yourself from competitors: By optimizing content, your brand will easily attract attention and stand out in the industry.
Benefits of TikTok SEO for Content Creators
- Improve video quality: Capturing trends on TikTok combined with performing SEO TikTok helps you enhance the value of your content, attracting more viewers.
- Increase the ability to appear in search results: Optimized videos will have the opportunity to appear regularly on “For Your Page” and in related searches, helping you reach the right audience.
- Increase interaction: When content is optimized, the ability to receive likes, comments, and shares will be higher, contributing to the growth of your channel.
- Develop personal brand: Optimizing TikTok videos not only helps you increase recognition but also promotes professionalism and prestige in the field you operate in.
- Create a competitive advantage: SEO TikTok gives you an advantage to help you stay ahead of other content creators in the same field.
How does content discovery work on TikTok?
Here are 3 ways users discover content on this platform. Or to put it more simply, when doing SEO TikTok properly, where can your videos (keywords) appear?
For You Page (FYP)
The For You page is a treasure trove of new content on TikTok. When users open the app, they are immediately greeted with videos they have never seen before, tailored to their interests and needs. The content on FYP is always fresh for each session and is UNIQUE (personalized) for every user.
The TikTok algorithm decides which videos to show on FYP. Since TikTok wants to keep you on the app longer (the longer users are “engaged” in scrolling and staying on the app, the more successful TikTok is), the algorithm will show you content it thinks you’ll like based on your previous behavior.
This is the main difference between TikTok SEO and Google SEO. TikTok promotes passive discovery, prioritizing individual user behavior to guide them. Whereas Google focuses on active discovery because you have to tell Google what you want before Google shows you anything. That makes your current behavior (the words you type into the search bar) the most important on Google.
Search bar on Tiktok
This is where TikTok SEO and Google SEO overlap (even compete). On TikTok, there is a search bar where you can type in what you are looking for, just like with a traditional search engine. There is even an auto-suggest feature that will fill in popular keywords as you start typing.
TikTok’s algorithm works very similarly to Google’s. It looks for content that matches the keywords you have entered. This also means that if you SEO TikTok correctly, and use keywords effectively, users will find your videos when they search for related terms.
Notice something special at the top of the page when the search results are displayed. That is, TikTok allows you to search for content in many ways, from hashtags to locations and even sounds. This is also an important reinforcement for how Tiktok SEO affects content ranking and search suggestions.
Google Search
This is where the two SEO worlds (TikTok and Google) collide. You can see a lot of TikTok content showing up in Google search results. This increases the keyword coverage across all fronts and all platforms. If you execute an effective TikTok SEO strategy combined with high-quality video content with high engagement, you will win the race to increase brand awareness and conversions.
5+ steps to complete and professional SEO TikTok
The initial guide to SEO Tiktok is quite simple:
Search for related keywords
One of the most basic tasks of SEO is matching content to search demand. The secret is not finding a lot of keywords, but finding the RIGHT keywords.
There are many things to research keywords on TikTok:
- Research Successful Competitors’ Keywords
- Use the search bar on TikTok: Type a word related to your brand/topic/niche into the search bar and watch TikTok add suggestions.
- Use TikTok’s Keyword Insights tool to show you a list of related and trending keywords. Keyword Insight is also one of the important references for content creators to find TikTok trends and produce viral TikTok videos.
Note: When searching and selecting keywords for SEO Tiktok, you need to pay attention to the following criteria:
- Search volume: high – meaning the keyword is searched a lot
- Relevance – directly related to the business content
- Keyword difficulty: competitiveness.
SEO standard keyword insertion technique
- Caption: Use keywords naturally, don’t stuff them with nonsense
- Subtitles: You can provide subtitles to your videos. TikTok AI will also recognize and understand the keywords in your video text.
- Video Speech: Say your keywords while recording the video.
- Hashtag: Insert #s about the keyword itself along with 1-2 other popular hashtags
- Bio: Add your most important keywords to your TikTok bio.
- Thumbnail Text: TikTok understands the text in your thumbnail, so make sure they include your focus keyword.
Effective hashtags
Like keywords, your main task is to find niche hashtags and use them wisely – helping users and algorithms find your content.
- To find a hashtag, type the root word into the search bar and press “Hashtag” to display the results.
- Search for hashtags in Creative Center Tiktok
Usage:
- Use a mix of popular (#FYP; #trending), trending (#stpatricksday, #Olympics), niche (#DIYcrafts, #FitnessJourney), and branded (#nike, #youringoodhands) hashtags.
- Use 3 – 6 hashtags.
Produce quality, engaging Tiktok videos
There are 5 ways to make viral TikTok videos that many content creators have applied and succeeded:
- Create a dramatic scenario.
- Unique features of your product or service.
- Pose a problem and provide a solution for each problem.
- Capture a special moment.
- Instructions.
>>> Post videos during the “golden” hours, which are the hours with the highest number of visits to Tiktok, to help gain more interactions right from the start (the most important thing that the latest Tiktok algorithm uses to distribute videos).
- 11 am-1 pm: Lunch break, views increase by 40%
- 7 pm-10 pm: Gen Z’s prime-time, interactions double
Promote interaction
View time, likes, comments, and shares are factors that directly affect the quality of the video and the likelihood of the video trend.
The TikTok algorithm favors videos that have:
- View Rate: Over 60%
- Likes/Comments: Minimum 5%
- View Time: Over 10 seconds
Therefore, try some tips such as: using open-ended questions, creating suspense in the first 3 seconds, or using attractive, humorous, entertaining effects, etc.
SEO TikTok is a process of continuous learning and adaptation. Content creators need to constantly update trends and adjust strategies to achieve optimal efficiency. Hopefully, through this article, you have gained more knowledge to optimize your TikTok channel yourself.
