Before we launch into how to use TikTok for your business, let's continue to get familiar with its content in culture by taking a closer look at what individual creators are creating. Remember that in an earlier lesson, we discussed some of the attributes of content on TikTok. It's authentic and original. It's also unpolished and features everyday people in everyday situations. Let's see some examples of the types of content we typically see on TikTok. Entertainment is the most popular category on TikTok, but it's a catch-all term that includes a number of different types of content. A lot of creators are writing and filming skits or small scenes, which often includes the creator playing multiple roles. Creators also address the camera and tell a joke or lip-sync to another person's comedy bit. Dancing videos, of course, are a big part of TikTok's entertainment. Creators also want to showcase their talents as both entertainment and inspiration. Finally, there are random videos created simply for entertainments that are hard to categorize. Another category is education, but not in a typical classroom type of way. They're more like trivia videos, advice, fun facts and more. There are a number of creators who have specialized knowledge in a specific niche who creates Did You Know videos, sharing trivia about anything and everything. TikTok also has a number of tutorial videos, from putting on makeup to how to do a house demolition, to how to make a cake. TikTok creators with specialized knowledge in professional areas also make videos, educating the public around specific topics like mental health, politics, or creating a business. Another type of content is storytelling or anecdotes, where creators address the camera and share a story, an observation, a cultural commentary, or simply some encouragement for the audience. As we view these videos, you will see that creators include a description and a collection of hashtags on the bottom. These help videos get recognized by the TikTok algorithm and appear in front of the right audience on their For You pages. You'll also see that a lot of creators use onscreen texts to either narrate what they're saying, punctuate what they're doing, or as a title card or commentary. When it comes to accessibility, a number of TikTok creators are also taking advantage of the new auto-captioning function to provide on-screen captions. You'll also see that each video has some kind of audio with it, usually a song or audio clip. We'll talk more about the importance of music in a later lesson. TikTok creators also share content in different niches, and TikTok is a great platform to find other people who are into the same things you are. It allows people to find a community online. There is coffeetok, breadtok, booktok, Exceltok, D&Dtok, historytok, guitartok, and even laundrytok. There are teachers of TikTok, cats of TikTok, doctors of TikTok, roller skaters of TikTok and a lot more. Niches may be great, but are they too specific to go viral? Not quite. Remember, we talked about how the TikTok algorithm looks at different aspects of a video, like hashtags and descriptions, audio, and similar accounts in order to decide whether to add it to someone's For You page. One of the things TikTok doesn't take into account is following or previous success, which means anyone creating anything has the potential to go viral in whatever niche or type of content they want to create. What about celebrity accounts? Because TikTok has created a community centered around authenticity, originality, and everyday experiences, celebrities need to fit right in as well. You'll find celebrities taking part in trends, dances, or reaction videos, or just showcasing their life in that everyday unpolished TikTok way. Just like everyone else, they need to rely on making quality content to go viral rather than relying on their name or following. There are also TikTok creators who have become well-known from their videos and have collected millions of followers, including Charlie D'Amelio and Zach King. In a future lesson, we'll discuss how businesses have the ability to partner with influencers and leverage their platform to create sponsored content, hashtag challenges and more. Hopefully, this has given you a great sense of what individuals are creating on the platform. Next, we'll take a look at how individual creators interact with one another to create a community on TikTok.
