For a long time, Google has been the godfather of searches. However, in the recent past,  TikTok has given it a run for its money as many users resort to the app to search for information, products, services, or entertainment. According to a study, one in every 10 Gen Zs use TikTok for searches instead of Google.

Therefore, most people are starting to use TikTok for searches. If you want your products and services to be easily discovered, you should leverage TikTok SEO. This article will guide you on everything you need to know about TikTok SEO and how to leverage it to market your products and services.

What is TikTok SEO?

TikTok SEO is the process of optimizing your content to make it more discoverable on the app. This can help you increase the number of views, likes, shares, and followers. In return, it can result in better product visibility and more sales. When doing TikTok SEO, you must research the keywords people use to research for products or services in your niche. You should then look for a way to incorporate these keywords in your videos.

By incorporating TikTok SEO best practices, you can increase the likelihood of your videos appearing in online searches on TikTok and even Google. However, while appearing in search engines is great, the main aim of TikTok SEO is to appear on the For You page, as this will increase your chances of videos going viral.

Why TikTok SEO is Important

According to an Oberlo study, people spend an average of 56 minutes on TikTok, a figure that is 17% higher than other platforms. As of now, two out of every five Americans use TikTok for searches. Another study reveals that 41% of TikTok users use the app to find products and services. Here are a few reasons to consider TikTok SEO:

• Higher engagement. By incorporating good SEO practices, you can increase the visibility of your content, increasing the chances of users interacting with it.
• Audience. When your profile and content are optimized to match the search queries your target audience is using, you can increase the chances of reaching more people interested in your brand. You can also increase the audience you get by including the right keywords.
• Reach. When your content receives higher engagement in the form of likes, comments, and saves, it can increase its chances of appearing on the For You page. This also improves its chances of being discovered by users interested in your content.

TikTok SEO Ranking Factors

Just as Google has its own ranking factors that determine the content that appears in the search results, TikTok also has factors it considers. The TikTok algorithm has created much buzz because it provides users with the content they search for on the User's and For You feeds. TikTok considers three significant factors when determining whether to show the video to the user. These are:

User Interactions

This refers to the action a user takes after coming across a video. TikTok saves this information to help improve the content the users see, creating a better experience for the user. The interactions can be likes, comments, shares, skips, and completion rates. The TikTok algorithm will pay attention to these actions to determine the content a user likes and make changes to the content it shows on the For You Page.

Video Information

The algorithm also considers the information you add to your videos, such as captions, sound clips, hashtags, and other video elements. This is a key consideration in TikTok SEO and ensures that your keywords are usually shown when someone searches for the relevant keywords. Some of the video information that TikTok considers include:

• Visuals. The algorithm will consider factors such as the cap cut template, filters, and photo carousel used in the video's visuals.
• Audio. TikTok also considers the words spoken in a video and other voice effects, such as dog barking.
• Textual elements. The app also looks at the elements you use in the video, such as video titles, subtitles, and emojis.
• TikTok Sound. The audio used in TikTok videos often has a meaning. Using trending sound clips or music can help increase your ranking.

Device/Account Settings

TikTok also considers your account and device settings. The algorithm will examine your device, language preference, and location. For instance, TikTok is more likely to recommend your videos to users in your country.

How TikTok Search is Replicating Google Search

If you are wondering where TikTok SEO applies, here are some key areas in which TikTok replicates Google Search.

Auto Suggest and Search Bar

Perhaps the biggest sign that TikTok has turned into a search engine is its search bar and auto-suggest feature. The app uses AI to auto-suggest keywords and recommend videos. It considers signals such as comments or queries others use to search for videos. Therefore, when doing TikTok SEO, you will aim to appear in this space. You can also use the auto-suggest features to see keywords that users are searching for in your niche.

TikTok on Google Search

Google is, without doubt, the biggest search engine in the world. The good news is that it is now ranking TikTok videos in the search results. According to experts, TikTok is one of the three sites that have increased the visibility of Google SERPs, Linkedin, and Reddit.

Other studies indicate that the demand for Tikok SEO has risen by 116% in the United States. That means there are many brands seeking services to help them rank their videos on TikTok. In some searches where the keywords include the term “TikTok,”  80% of the video SERP listings consist of TikTok videos.

TikTok SERP Ads

TikTok is now including ads for specific keywords in the SERPs. That means brands now have the option to rank organically for a search term to appear in the search ranking. The impact is that competition for appearing in the TikTok search results will get stiffer.

Featured Snippet

In the recent past, TikTok has also rolled out the featured snippet feature for certain queries. That means when a TikTok user searches for a particular query, a featured answer will appear in a wiki-style format that provides a step-by-step guide. This currently works with information queries such as how to cook a pizza. This feature is helpful for users who are searching for quick ways of answering search queries.

TikTok Reports

If you have used Google Analytics, you might have noticed that one of the key features of the search engine is the number of followers. This is another proof that TikTok is metamorphosing into a search engine as it has added the number of followers in the TikTok analytics. The app is now breaking down your traffic source from the search results page or the FYP page.

SEO Tips to Improve Your TikTok Content Visibility

Once you discover how TikTok ranks videos and the key areas to target in your TikTok SEO, the next step is to optimize your content for the TikTok algorithm. Understanding what the TikTok algorithm considers is one thing and getting ranked in the search results is another. Here are TikTok's best SEO practices to enable you to appear in the search results:

Perform Keyword Research

The foundation of any SEO is keyword research. That's because search engines organize content in keywords. Keywords are the words or phrases people use to search for content. It applies to search engines such as Google Search, YouTube Search, and TikTok Search.

Before creating content on TikTok, you should determine the keywords people use to find content in your niche. In fact, after determining your niche, the next step should be to find related keywords. So, how do you find keywords for your TikTok videos? Here are several ways:

TikTok creative center

Just like the Google AD planner, TikTok also has a tool known as the creative center. Once you get to this feature, you must start by selecting your location to see the trending keywords for your location in the last seven days. This will include metrics such as popularity, change in popularity, and CTR.  

Popularity is an indicator of how often ads use keywords. You can also adjust the period for which you see the search volume of the keywords, such as 30 days or even 120 days. However, this will only show results for what is trending. Check our next tip if you want to see the keywords for your specific niche.

Use the TikTok search bar

If you need to find specific keywords that apply to your business and niche, your best method is to rely on the TikTok search bar. All you need to do is to type the specific keyword in your keywords and within the specific timeframe. For instance, if you type the keyword “golf” in the search bar, the app will show you the keywords and other related phrases. You can opt for the cloud format view if you are more interested in visual results.

Use third-party tools

There are also third-party tools that will help with keyword research for your TikTok videos. These include Semrush, Ahref, and Backlinko. The good thing with these tools is that they will even show you the number of people searching for that keyword and the competition level. 

This makes them great for determining whether a keyword is popular and the competition level of the keyword. While their data isn't perfect, they can still give you a rough idea of a keyword's viability. The main downside is that these are paid tools that don't come cheap.

TikTok auto search feature

This is probably the easiest and cheapest way of finding keywords. It involves searching for a keyword in your niche and letting the autocomplete feature suggest other secondary keywords related to the main keyword. Each of those auto-suggested keywords could be an idea for your next video.

You can even narrow your research by adding letters to your initial keyword. For instance, you can search for the keyword “coffee a” or “coffee b.” In that case, TikTok will suggest all keywords starting with letter A, such as coffee auction, or letter b, such as coffee berries.  You can have hundreds or even thousands of free keywords using this tip.

Create High-Quality TikTok Videos

The other backbone of TikTok SEO is the quality of content. For the platform to recommend your content, you must create high-quality videos that your users will love. You will also need to keep publishing videos regularly. 

TikTok recommends publishing videos one to four times a day, particularly if you are trying out new content to see how your audience will receive it. You should also ensure that you post mostly when your audience is online. Here are a few tips to create TikTok content that your audience will enjoy:

• Maintain a video length of about 30 seconds.
• Make your TikTok video feel native by using the in-app editing features.
• Use memes and other trending sounds in your videos.
• Find your brand's subculture.
• Experiment with different kinds of videos.

If you create a video that performs well, pay attention to it so that you can try to replicate the success in your other videos. Ultimately, you should find a formula that works and gets you more TikTok followers.

Leverage Trending Hashtags and Challenges

With TikTok challenges being big on the platform, another key element of great TikTok content is to leverage trending hashtags and challenges. Therefore, you can increase your brand's visibility by participating in trending challenges. If you hack the challenge and create an outstanding video, your content can quickly go viral. You can hop on a trending challenge or create a challenge for your brand and invite content creators to participate in it.

Hashtags, on the other hand, help in the discoverability of your content. By using popular hashtags, your videos can appear in the search results, improving your chances of appearing on the FYP page.  A good rule of thumb is to include three to five hashtags in your captions for the best results. You can find some of the relevant hashtags by looking at your competitor data.

Use Keywords in Videos and Captions

In our first step, we saw the importance of keyword research. If you only research the keywords but do not use them in your videos, all your efforts will be in vain. Remember that the only way TikTok can tell the content of your videos is by the keywords used. Therefore, it's time to use the keywords you found in your video.

Remember that TikTok considers the keywords spoken in the video, and therefore, you will need to incorporate them in your caption. Similarly, it will also check the caption, hashtags, and any other offscreen text you may want to add to your video. By including the keywords in these places, you will solidify the relevancy of your videos.

However, you must also avoid keyword stuffing, as it might do you more harm than good. Therefore, you want to ensure that your videos are still as engaging as you want them. Let the keyword fit naturally in the caption without forcing it.

You also want to ensure that your captions remain engaging. You can do that by asking questions to make your viewers engage with your videos. You can also use the comments to create more videos. The on-screen texts are among the TikTok tools you should leverage to add your keywords. This text will also help the algorithm to understand what your video is about.

Engage with Your Audience

As noted earlier, the engagement level is one of the key factors that the TikTok algorithm considers. If your videos have a higher engagement level, this will increase the chances of TikTok recommending it on the For You page. That's why you must deliberate about driving engagement in your TikTok videos. There are several ways in which you can increase your videos engagement level. These include:

Going live

There has been a surge in the popularity of live streams in recent years. You can, therefore, use this feature to drive engagement with your videos by showcasing your brand's behind-the-scenes videos. You can go live when creating or packaging your product. Alternatively, you can hold an AMA or answer your customers' FAQs. When people join and leave comments in your live video, respond to them.

Encourage engagement

Besides encouraging comments and engagement in the live videos, you must do the same in the other posted videos. Therefore, ask your viewers to leave their comments, like them, and share the video with their friends. You can also use the comments for ideas for your future videos. Not only will such videos feel natural to your audience, but they can also encourage them to return to your previous videos, thereby increasing the number of views.

Collaborate with influencers

Working with influencers is a great way of driving engagement on your TikTok videos. Therefore, search for influencers in your niche and request collaboration in video creation. They can create UGC content and post it in their accounts, increasing your brand's visibility and growing your TikTok following.

Remember that your TikTok community will affect the growth of your TikTok account and, ultimately, your ranking. Therefore, for every minute you create videos, you should spend similar minutes engaging with your audience.

Using Trending Sounds

88% of TikTok users suggest that audio is important when deciding which videos to watch. Therefore, understanding how to find trending music offers great potential for the growth of your brand. While there are many ways in which brands can find trending sounds, here are some of the most common ones:

• For You Page: Check the For You page to see the sound the top videos on your niche use and consider using the same.
• Creator Center. Go to Sounds, and you will see some trending sounds. Just like in music charts, you will also see some of the breakout sounds. The benefit of this feature is that it will show you the TikTok metrics, such as when the sound started trending, location, audience demographics, and other related sounds.
• Third-party sites. Some third-party sites, such as TokBoards, are great places to access the trending songs you can use in your videos.
• TikTok search bar: You can also search for the trending sounds using the search bar, and you will see some of the most popular sounds.

Optimize Your TikTok Profile

Even as you optimize your content, you should ensure your profile is well-optimized. Remember that your profile is what many people will associate your brand with. Therefore, you should ensure that it communicates the right message. When you have a more appealing profile, it will be more engaging for users. You can also add your keywords in this space. Here are a few ways of optimizing your TikTok profile:

• Profile Picture. A profile picture is a key part of your social media identity. Since this will be the first thing users see when they visit your profile, make it outstanding. As a brand, you can have an image of your logo for your profile picture. 
• Bio. Use this to share a little more about your brand. You can only add a maximum of 80 characters, so make it succinct and to the point.
• Handle. Use a short handle that users can easily remember.

Final Thoughts

Instead of using paid ads, businesses can leverage TikTok SEO to increase the visibility of their brands, enhance engagement, and grow their following. TikTok SEO will also ensure that their content reaches the right audience. With the unique nature of the TikTok algorithm, every brand can have its videos appear on the For You page.

However, to increase your chances of your video appearing there, you must understand how the TikTok algorithm works and the factors the app considers when ranking videos. By using our guide, ranking your videos highly using the TikTok algorithm should be easy.