6 min
The online landscape is ever-changing.
And thanks to the advent of social media, the nature of communication between companies, their (prospective) customers, and people in general, has gone through a major transformation over recent years.
Businesses and their clients can now enjoy far more direct contact by using social channels as an integral part of their marketing and growth strategies.
You might have already conquered Facebook and become an Instagram expert, but have you met TikTok?
TikTok is an amazing platform to build brand awareness and followers in a budget-conscious and interactive way. By making your own TikTok workout challenge, you could join the ranks of TikTok fitness influencers!
This new challenger in the market is achieving rapid success and currently sits as the most used social media app in the US for people between 16-24 years old.
And even if this doesn’t hit your main target audience, with over 689 million monthly active users, you’re going to want a slice of the future prospective customers.
So, how does your fitness business get TikTok savvy?
Below, we share 3 tips to grow your online reach and build your client base using TikTok.
1. Be Funny
Don’t underestimate the power of humor!
TikTok has developed an internal language significantly different from its predecessors such as Facebook , YouTube, and Instagram .
We know the medium of video is nothing new, but the way that it’s used is.
Replacing the polished, scripted, highly-branded aesthetic of Instagram is this new, highly personable, brand of fun!
With TikTok, humor is integral to its users’ successes.
You might be wondering- How do I use TikTok for my fitness business?
TikTok fitness influencers are taking the app by storm by making their fitness content fun and coming up with a new TikTok workout challenge.
The app boasts features such as the Challenges and Duets sections to create healthy competition and collaboration between fitness fanatics.
If you’re not too sure where to start when creating humorous content, try making videos that poke fun at fitness trends or debunk popular fitness myths; this bridges the gap between the lifestyle of a personal trainer and that of their clients.
You can be in shape and still be fun, remember!
It also doesn’t hurt to follow others in your field and take inspiration from the competition. Building knowledge of existing content can only help you when developing your own.
Humor is also an excellent way to quickly captivate audiences and communicate fitness information, knowledge, workouts, and advice, in a visually interesting way.
Think of your TikTok as a playground for quick workouts, sports challenges (like the plank or push-up challenges), dance choreography, and playful competition.
#GymFunny is the perfect place to get the creative juices flowing.
Are you curious how TikTok and video can fit in your fitness business strategy? Learn more about The Ultimate Fitness Mix for Your Gym !
Quick Tips For Your TikTok Videos
- Avoid logos
- Use the TikTok editor for your content and add visible text
- Create hashtags and include the most used ones from the Discover section. You can also search by hashtag to see what is on-trend.
- Keep it short! 60 seconds maximum.
Be Genuine
Have you heard of the ‘Attractive Character?’
We don’t mean a great-looking person!
This term refers to a person with a natural charisma that attracts followers.
On TikTok, this means the persona you share with your audience can be an effective tool for building rapport with potential followers.
The 4 Elements Of Creating The Attractive Character:
- Your Backstory- Who are you?
- Parables- What stories can you tell?
- Character Flaws- You’re not perfect, right? So what makes you human?
- Polarity- You can’t make everyone like you, so have your own firm opinions.
These elements strongly affect the way people relate to you. All TikTok fitness influencers have cultivated an Attractive Character - that’s how they gain followers!
In short, don’t be afraid to be the face of your brand; people connect to you before they connect to your product.
You can see through an act pretty quickly, too, so always be yourself and let that shine through into your content.
If you’re stuck on ideas, think about what you value within the fitness industry and try to team up with others who share your beliefs.
In the hashtag #Duet, you can see how duos work. When you find the video you want to duet with, click on the Share option and then Duet.
Solidarity challenges are also a way to team up with like-minded people. They encourage users to share messages of positivity, solidarity, and support on mental health topics.
Once you have begun to establish yourself on TikTok, find a niche. Your niche will help you to differentiate and add value.
Good communication with your clients is essential for every fitness business- learn more about it in our blog on Effective Communication Tips And Strategies For Gyms
Stay On Trend
Keeping up to date with the latest trends helps your content stay relevant and relatable.
Trends change as quickly as every week, so keeping a keen eye on them is key to your success.
If you get it right, it can generate a lot of brand traction! However, not every trend and TikTok challenge is right for your business, so choose wisely.
How To Choose Tiktok Trends
So how do you use TikTok for your fitness business? There is an art to finding the right content for your company.
Ensure you set your interests in Content Preferences—Update Interests.
This will then generate relevant trends in your chosen field.
Another option? Ask your trusted advisor- Google!
You can even try to set up your own TikTok workout challenge to get users involved; you might find yourself becoming a trend.
Music is another tool for upping views. Use music that is already going viral by selecting and segmenting trending audio in the search bar under Sounds.
Otherwise, check out other trending videos and click on the image showing the cover of the music, then click Use this sound or Add to favorites.
Hashtags are, again, an easy way to jump onto trends on TikTok.
According to Mobile Marketing , #Positivity content tripled from 24th March- 24th April in 2020 during the height of Covid, hitting 1.2 billion overall.
Searching for popular hashtags can spark creativity for new video content, particularly in the mental health space within fitness.
The Bottom Line
The world is changing. Those of us in the fitness industry must keep up or risk falling behind.
TikTok shows no sign of slowing down either and almost daily there is a TikTok workout challenge breaking through, and TikTok fitness influencers are gaining more and more reach.
At the end of September 2021, the app announced it had surpassed the 1billion active user mark, with over 60% of users reporting spending most of their time watching other people’s videos.
It could just be time to jump on board and take your fitness business over to TikTok!
