I grew to 60,000+ Tik Tok Followers — Here’s How I Did It
Plus, How I Landed My First Sponsor
I’ve been obsessed with Tik Tok since the pandemic broke out in the U.S. a few years ago. I started my first Tik Tok account which grew to around 100K followers in 18 months.
Since then, I’ve started several smaller Tik Tok accounts, creating a faceless business operation in my favorite niches.
My most successful (and most profitable) Tik Tok account grew to over 60,000 followers in the first 6 months.
I picked an interesting niche that had a passionate audience behind it, trending at the time (and still is), and put together simple short-form videos providing valuable content to viewers.
This is exactly how I built that Tik Tok account from scratch and monetized it to nearly six figures per year.
How to start on Tik Tok as a beginner
Tik Tok is all about short-form videos.
It’s beginner-friendly and its audience favors creators that are authentic and rough around the edges.
It’s not Instagram with its polished and pristine gallery-style feeds that paint an aesthetic image of the creator.
Tik Tok is real.
The most popular creators shine because they are relatable. They make simple videos that speak to their audience, straight from an app on their cell phone.
If you want to try Tik Tok but feel like it’s only for seasoned creators, you’re dead wrong.
Here’s the blueprint I followed to amass over 60K followers in under a year on Tik Tok (and I don’t even show my face)…
Step 1: Decide how you’ll get paid
First, before even choosing your niche, you want to think about how you’ll get paid.
All niches are not created equally and where a lot of creators fail is picking a topic to target on Tik Tok that can’t be monetized.
As a result, they put in hard work and effort, grow their following but have no way to monetize it.
If your goal is to create an additional income stream then you need to think about the money first.
Decide how you’ll get paid.
Here are some options:
- Brand deals/sponsorships
- Affiliate marketing commissions
- Selling products
- Selling services
Step 2: Choose a niche
Next, you’re going to pick a niche.
This is going to be a topic you’re an “expert” in and no, that doesn’t mean you need to have a degree and ten years of experience under your belt.
It’s just simply a passion or interest you have, like French cooking or lo-fi R&B music.
Consider your:
- Passions, hobbies, interests
- Job and career
- Background, childhood, or upbringing
- Dreams and goals
Passions, hobbies, interest-based niches
This is what you love doing. In your free time, you do this or think about this often, like:
- Playing piano
- Cake decorating
- Playing tennis
- Knitting
- Braiding hair
- Digital drawing
- Bodybuilding
Job and career niches
You could pick a work-based niche.
People are curious about different professions and what better way to learn about other career fields than to hear from creators that work in the industry.
When I was a child, I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up.
My dad told me to go to the library and look at books that have different jobs, read about the different careers, and pick something that sounds interesting.
Today, you can do one better, hearing firsthand from industry professionals that work in those jobs.
- Tech
- Attorney
- Doctor
- Teacher overseas
- Content creator
- Blogger
- Yoga instructor
- YouTuber
Background and childhood-based niches
This is a chance to share about your childhood and upbringing.
Everyone has a different experience as a child and if you have some stories you want to share about growing up, this could be a good niche to dive into.
- Child of military personnel
- Growing up overseas
- Growing up on an island
- Living in an impoverished neighborhood
- Living with millionaires or billionaires
You would be surprised by the audience that you will draw in and not necessarily people that grew up the same way you did.
Dreams and goals-related niches
Then, you have your hopes, dreams, and future goals you’re working toward. Share on social media and document your journey.
- Weight loss
- Graduating college
- Becoming a doctor
- Opening a new business
An example…
There’s a new Tik Tok account I started following this year about how he will go from zero to $300K in 365 days.
He’s only had his account for a few months and has over 15,000 followers!
This is it if you’re curious:
Step 3: Create content
Once you’ve decided how you want to make money and chosen a niche that aligns with that monetization method, it’s time to create content.
All you need is the Tik Tok app and your phone.
If you’re going to be filming yourself, here are some tips to make awesome videos:
- Good lighting
- Use your hands and gestures when you speak
- Clear, strong voice
For faceless videos and general tips for Tik Tok video production:
- Use trending sounds
- Try trends
- Fill out your profile and add a link in bio, when eligible to
- Engage with viewers
Those are the three steps I followed to grow my social following and income on Tik Tok.
5 Ways how to monetize your Tik Tok social following
There are 5 ways to monetize your Tik Tok account:
- Brand deals/sponsorships
- Affiliate marketing commissions
- Selling products
- Selling services
How to make money with brand deals?
A brand deal or sponsorship is when a company pays you to talk about them on Tik Tok.
You’ll usually either create an entire video dedicated to the company, mention them in an upcoming video, and/or link to them in your bio.
You can find companies to work with by joining sponsored networks like:
It’s also a good idea to provide a contact method (like an email address) in your bio so interested brands can easily contact you if they want to work together.
You can also do cold outreach where you email brands you like to discuss a possible partnership on Tik Tok.
How can you earn affiliate commissions on Tik Tok?
To make money with affiliate marketing on Tik Tok, you can either link your affiliate product in your bio or you can get viewers onto your email list where you promote affiliate products to them in the future.
Find affiliate programs to join through affiliate networks like:
- Amazon Associates
- Impact Radius
- Panthera Interactive
To grow your email list, you will need to sign up with an email marketing software tool like ConvertKit or Aweber. Then collect signups in your bio and email them affiliate products.
What are examples of products to sell on Tik Tok?
There are plenty of different kinds of products to sell on Tik Tok:
- Digital products like digital planners, e-books, courses, or templates
- Physical products like sweatshirts, coffee mugs, candy, tech accessories, etc.
Tik Tok promotion can go well with dropshipping and e-commerce sales, too.
What kinds of services can you sell on Tik Tok?
Services to sell on Tik Tok can include:
- Coaching
- Audits
- Bookkeeping
- Website reviews
- SEO reviews
Landing my First Sponsor — My Most Lucrative Deal Ever!
I cold pitched a sponsor and I’m still working with them, 6 months later.
I started making $300/month with them and now earn nearly $5,000/month from that one sponsor!
To find sponsors to work with, I researched brands that would align with my niche and audience. Then I made a list, found email addresses for those companies, and contacted them to introduce myself and pitch a partnership.
It worked!
The Secret Sauce to Growing Your Tik Tok Following Fast
What it boils down to is:
- Consistency
- Quality content
Post regularly whether it’s once a week or 5 times a day. Just stay consistent and keep creating valuable content that your audience will love.
Then, focus on the quality of your videos. Authenticity and the feel of a “homemade” video are what Tik Tok viewers like but, don’t forget about making a high-quality video.
This can be accomplished with good lighting, a mount or tripod to avoid a shaky camera, good audio quality, and a clear message.
Final Summary
So, that’s my story of going zero to 60,000 followers and nearly $100K/year in income in my first six months with this new Tik Tok account.
Everybody won’t have the same results but you can create something incredible with the power of short-form video on Tik Tok.
Would you start a Tik Tok channel?
If you already have one, what are some goals you have for your channel this year?
