How To Become a Content Creator on TikTok: Influencing 101

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Carolyn Howell

Last Updated: May 21, 2024

TikTok 101
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Content creation is an exciting venture that involves generating and distributing information or media content to specific audiences. Everyone on social media engages in creating content. But posting isn’t enough to qualify one as a content creator. Pursuing this line of interest entails a lot more. It goes beyond shooting and publishing random videos because professionalism comes into play. So, many people wonder how to become a content creator on TikTok.

The strong interest in TikTok comes from the saturation of other social media platforms by influencers. This indicates that it can be challenging to enter the scene. But with TikTok being more recent than the other platforms, it’s easier for beginners to manage.

Additionally, TikTok’s algorithm aids virality, so it’s an excellent platform for publicity. These explain the necessity of learning how to become a TikTok content creator.

A picture of a content creator making a video with a mobile device and a phone hold.

Steps on How To Become a Content Creator on TikTok: Monetizing Your Content

Learning TikTok content creation requires concentration, dedication, and effort. Just like every other professional endeavor, content creation has its complexities. But every skill is easier to master with a well-explanatory guide. So, below are the basics for starting your influencer journey.

High Social’s screenshot of a TikTok food influencer’s content.

Pick a Niche

To monetize your content on TikTok, you have to become an influencer. Don’t worry; this falls under the spectrum of content creation. Influencers are the creators with the most pay and highest fame. But to be an influencer, you don’t just begin producing videos. There are preparatory steps to follow.

The first step is picking a niche. A niche refers to the theme that binds your work together. It’s the central topic in all your creations. There are several niches, making it difficult to choose. So, some people use their favorite topic to determine what type of content to create.

While being passionate about your job is nice, this may not be the best way to decide. The reason is that not all niches thrive. Some have slow markets, so it’ll take lots of time before you amount to anything on that path. But if you’re all for passion, do as your mind leads.

However, if you make the smarter decision, you can research popular TikTok niches and choose a relatable or enjoyable one. That’s because relatability will make your job easier and enable you to connect with the audience. Popular niches in influencing include skincare, travel, food, fashion, tech, and lifestyle.

Choosing a niche doesn’t relegate you to one monotonous idea, as several sub-niches are under each. For example, the food niche has sub-niches like food preparation, meal critique, restaurant discovery, local and international cuisines, etc. So, whatever kind of content creator you are, there are many topics to explore.

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Specify Your Target Audience

One of the main important things of choosing a TikTok niche is that it narrows your target audience. Like selling a product, your content cannot appeal to an entire market of buyers. So, you must distinguish your content to attract only the right kind of people.

Your target audience is the users most likely to buy your products, which is your content. Having a target audience makes it easier to connect with people who find your content highly relatable. With a good level of relatability, acceptance comes naturally.

So, you must know who your target audience is. A combination of a well-defined target audience and high-quality video leads to viral content. TikTok’s algorithm is highly efficient in delivering relevant videos to the For You Page of users passionate about a niche. So, the curation of TikTok’s For You Page matches user interests. So, finding your target audience is important if you want the right people to engage with your content.

Thankfully, a target audience isn’t hard to find as it revolves around your niche. You can learn how to become a TikTok content creator in the food niche. Pursuing this, your target audience will be food lovers. If you’re a skinfluencer on TikTok, skincare aficionados will be your target audience. With a defined niche, you won’t have a problem identifying your appropriate audience.

A picture of creative gadgets on a table with the words “CONTENT MARKETING” by the side.

Begin Creating Content

After determining your niche and target audience, start brainstorming and making interesting viral videos to share your knowledge & entertain people. You should know that content creation is a thing of the mind. So, you have to focus on ideation before making any move.

You can begin production when you’ve found the perfect idea for your video. But I must warn you that this is not an easy game. You have to get quality equipment for creating original content. You’ll also need to learn how to make TikTok voiceovers. You must also have editing and AI content creation tools in your arsenal.

Having these tools implies knowledge of how to use them. So, to know how to be a content creator on TikTok, you must equip yourself with many skills. Both digital and manual. You should also have expertise in setting up scenes and lighting for shooting your content. When creating content, you must pay special attention to your introduction.

That’s because your introduction or first scene is a crucial hook that will either attract or make you lose followers. Most people won’t watch your video to the end if they don’t find the start interesting. So, you must make the first three seconds of your video attention-grabbing. The song you add from TikTok’s commercial music library or sound recommendations can go a long way.

And if you’re making a voiceover video, get a catchy start. Users should stop scrolling and pay attention if you nail the first three seconds. Then, ensure the rest of your video is interesting enough to give you sufficient TikTok views with complete watch time.

An image of a laptop on a bed showing TikTok’s official account with over 60 million followers.

Grow Your Follower Count

Several factors go into making an influencer popular. One of them is the number of followers they can boast of. Interestingly, this is one of the metrics brands look out for before choosing influencers to collaborate with on sponsored content. The same applies to branded videos, affiliate marketing, and other forms of influencer marketing.

Therefore, as a content creator, you must devote time to growing your TikTok followers. There are various methods to employ when attempting to grow your followers. You can use TikTok follower growth strategies. In addition, it helps to incorporate good practices like posting at the right times and using relevant TikTok hashtags.

You can also join challenges, add a new flair, and inspire your followers and more people to recreate the trend. Your followers are very important and crucial to your success on TikTok. They can also determine your pay rate. So, aim to have many followers.

Build Engagement From Your Followers and Fans

It’s important not to have dormant but active followers who relate to your content. Your followers’ interaction proves your efficiency and specialization to brands. It also proves your ability to influence people’s buying and thinking patterns. If you can achieve this, it shows that you command social proof and are good to work with.

So, a high level of engagement increases your chances for visibility, collaboration, sponsored deals, and more. Building engagement is easy but requires tact. Your followers have to like your videos, comment, and repost. Also, impressions (the number of people viewing your video) count.

There are several ways to create engagement for your TikTok videos. However, getting on the For You Page can help. You can also post consistently and follow the growth strategies, as they also help with user engagement.

A picture of Scrabble tiles arranged to spell the word influencer.

Categories of TikTok Influencers: Climbing the Social Ladder

There are five categories of influencers. Influencer categories depend on the number of followers they have. You can be a content creator with few followers. But to monetize the opportunity and become an influencer, you must have at least 1,000 followers. 

Nano influencers have a follower count of 1,000–10,000. After that, there are the micro-influencers with 10,000–50,000 followers. Mid-tier influencers are next on the line and have a following of 50,000–100,000. The number of followers of macro influencers exceeds 100,000. The last category is that of mega influencers with over a million followers.

Even as a nano influencer, you can make lots of money. Brand influencers usually get the most pay. But as a nano influencer, you may not make as much when working with brands. However, you still have other monetization options like live subscription, TikTok diamonds, creator fund, or creating an influencer series. There are several other ways to monetize your TikTok as an influencer. But regardless, you should aim for growth.

A picture of hundred dollar bills in and around a briefcase.

How Much Can an Influencer Make on TikTok? Exchanging Content for Dollars

Several factors determine the pay influencers get. No two influencers are worth the same. These criteria are the standards that TikTok influencers use to set their rates. Below are the three major factors that determine how much influencers make.

  1. Niche relevance.
  2. Follower count.
  3. Engagement Rate.

If your niche is budding, you have many followers, and your engagement is high, you can make thousands of dollars. If you want an estimate, you can use a TikTok influencer rate calculator to get an estimate. However, you should also consider the nature of the campaign and your level of expertise when negotiating for deals.

The reason is that some deals are more costly and time-intensive. For example, branded deals require consistent promotion. Your fee should reflect your effort. Considering these factors will help you learn how to become a content creator on TikTok. You can earn hundreds and thousands of dollars as a successful influencer.

However, you can up your game and earnings with the help of High Social, an effective follower growth agency. High Social specializes in advanced targeting, helping users grow their followers according to interests and passions. This specification ensures the right connection with engaging followers, which can help you increase your rate as an influencer. So, start growing your TikTok today.

TikTok 101