When the first profiles began populating the uncharted digital lands of social media, no one could have imagined that it would turn into something so global. The pioneers were simply testing the waters. Let's look back and remember the times of awkward 640 × 640 pixel photos, poem-long hashtags, revelations in a live journal, all those things done as the spirit moved us. Having been chaotic then, it was strikingly sincere, though.
Yet, now the situation has changed dramatically. Content on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube is viewed by 62.3 percent of the world's population. The average user spends 149 minutes per day on social media as of mid-2024. In other words, a huge number of target audiences entered the online space, which made socials a fine piece for businesses and brands. It is simply enough saying that social media ad spend stood at approximately 270 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, with the expenditure expected to surpass the 300-billion-dollar mark by 2024.
To cope with the content glut that hampers search for data, users tend to rely on streamers, bloggers, and influencers who act as experts in various niches. Thus, maintaining an account is no longer a creative process, but a professional path that has its own rules and standards. Since the main goal is to build a consistently large following, you need to fit into the aesthetics of the platform, embrace new formats, stay on top of trends, and fulfil many other mandatory things to succeed.
So, is there a way to get out of the matrix? It is high time we found it out.
A Thing to Learn About Before Cutting to the Chase
We will look at the main myths about content creation ideas for TikTok using the example of TikTok videos from ReesaTeesa. But first, a little clarification might be helpful. The TikTok sensation shocked the world with a 50-part series called “Who Did I Marry?”, shedding light on having been married to a “real pathological liar” and a “master manipulator”.
The eight-hour saga tells how a girl from Atlanta lived with basically a stranger for almost a year. A whirlwind romance which started with a regular couple match on Facebook’s dating led to moving in together after two weeks they have met. Since it was a tough Covid-19 period, spending a lockdown in Reesa’s house seemed as the only alternative to go on with relations.
Legion (name changed) lived in the studio, but assured his partner that it was temporary. The man said that he wanted to buy a house for himself, but after the girl got pregnant, it evolved to a family nest idea. Reesa thought she had found the right man: Legion wanted the same thing as Reesa: a home, a family, and children.
A few months later, Reesa began keeping an audio diary about the “dark side” of her relationship with the Legion. There was something bothering her, yet she couldn’t take in things. Each time, the house deal fell through for some reason. Reesa was nervous and ended up losing the baby. Despite this, the couple got married in January 2021.
In the following months, Reesa learned that Legion was not the vice president (the man was allegedly promoted during the relationship) or a former football player, forged legal documents and bank statements, lied about his Social Security number and conducted fake phone conversations. It was soon revealed that the man worked as a forklift driver and got arrested several times, including for impersonating a police officer.
The series has collected more than 200 million views, and the number of subscribers has exceeded 3.7 million and continues to grow.
You might think that such a grand slam is due to the aesthetic pictures and incredible editing. Well, not even close.
So, it's time to…
Explore TikTok Myths With ReesaTeesa’s Case
In fact, TikTok, like any other visually oriented platform, requires high-quality content. The vast majority of bloggers on the platform are adepts of masks and filters, posh backgrounds, they have impressive dancing skills and very emotional facial expressions to nail convincing lip-syncs. Basically, these are the ingredients for top trending content on TikTok.
ReesaTeesa is definitely not one of them. Most likely, she doesn’t know how to create content on TikTok with any of the above, or at least it hasn’t become the main arsenal for winning over the audience. All the girl had been a remarkable personal experience and an insatiable desire to share it with people.
And it turns out that such a TikTok content strategy works too!
Take a deep breath, buckle and get ready for a crazy ride full of insights!
Successful Talking-head Videos are in the Past
About half of the planet watches digital videos worldwide. This means that the demand for TikTok clips will obviously grow. Recent data show that the average person consumes more than 17 hours of video content per week. Given such an expanded timing, it would be smart to release larger materials in order to keep them glued to the account.
Sounds like a plan! And again, as social media gurus teach us, it won’t work out. As long as the user's attention span continues to decrease and has already reached 8 seconds, thinking about sizing up your TikTok content ideas is not the one to consider. It would be better to shorten it to a minute or even less, so that the user does not get bored. We all know that clicked through videos are not propelled to the top by algorithms. So retaining a user is already a tough thing, why add an extra challenge by making the clip long.
Instead of conversational videos, TikTok content ideas without showing face take the floor. Graphs, carousels, or at least subtitles have come into fashion, which are able to convey information in a more condensed form without loss of meaning. Actually, you won’t find all this at ReesaTeesa’s profile.
Busted
In the preface to the most popular content on TikTok, the author announces uploading as much story as she can at once, so as not to stretch the narrative out. This means that watching each video takes about ten minutes (with more than fifty in total!). That is, by the approved marketing theory, a great chance to get promoted on the platform.
Now just look at how many people not only viewed clips, but also left their reactions below. We wish all eight-second videos have such engagement.
The takeaway is easy to draw. If не have something to say, go for it. Social media connects people, and on condition your content reaches people's hearts, people will be willing to give you their time.
Quality is Fundamental to Winning Public Approval
An effective content urges purchasing decisions and sparks interest in the product or your expertise. Basically, it is a cool visual which influences a positive impression when a user initially comes across your profile. It always takes time to go deep into meaningful captions, check out videos, or recognize values. It all is an inevitable process, yet visuals define if the user commits to it.
So for those who are determined to promote products/services through social networks, it is better to take care of creating a corporate identity. New wave marketers adhere to the principle that content TikTok ideas for business, like on other platforms, should not only be useful, but also bring sensory pleasure. Top content on TikTok is based on aesthetics. A beautiful picture changes perception: it is no longer about functionality, it is impressions which take the sway.
Therefore, right from the start, people invest heavily into seemingly easy TikTok content ideas. Some work with a professional team, the others stock up on ring lamps, tripods, and stuff like that. All this is then supplemented by searching for off-the-beaten-track locations, spending hours on editing, trying to shove trending memes into in season and sometimes out, to joke, to be playful, to not be boring, and many more conventions, which are to be met for remaining afloat.
Would you believe if we say that any video, with any background and without editing, have the chance to become good content?
Busted
Well, most of the ReesaTeesa’s clips were shot on a go, with no aesthetic backgrounds or post-production effects. The girl was simply telling a story while styling her hair, applying beauty products, going to work, and actually doing mundane stuff. You won't find exposed lighting, overly glamorous makeup or applied filters here. In fact, the image conveys the vibe of “imperfection”. But that’s what really grabs you.
It seems the Internet community is sick and tired of fake and polished accounts on social networks. Therefore, spontaneous and authentic videos are a much more effective strategy of how to make content on TikTok than staged and edited clips.
Unregulated UGC is of Poor Efficiency
User engagement is an important content marketing performance metric, which is typically measured by the amount of content that users create. That is, any activity on your page, whether you are liked or tagged, adds to conversions and subscriptions.
By and large, people don’t want to sacrifice sleep, communication with loved ones, or watching their favorite TV series in order to comment on your posts or interact with it in any other form. Therefore, marketers have to further stimulate the audience.
Calls to action remain one of the most effective ways to get your audience related Post a link to the post and ask users to comment, encourage shares, put questions in captions. The ultimate goal here is to provoke a dialogue.
You see, UGC will work for you after you have prepared the ground.
Busted
Or just stir up the entire TikTok community with a life story. ReesaTeesa did none of the above. No clickbait phrases like “follow for more”, “like for part 2”, but her videos generated such an avalanche of user-generated content that it was simply impossible not to stumble upon it at the peak of its popularity.
Let alone numerous reactions and reviews. People were really excited about the case and were just eager to speak out. The story of a failed relationship, no matter how strange it may sound, gave rise to funny content ideas for TikTok. Many people sneered at the fact that they had abandoned their work and simply binge-watch.
Basically, ReesaTeesa has brought a genuine form of storytelling to TikTok. The way she eloquently describes all the details creates a feeling as if she is the user's friend spilling the tea over FaceTime. And it captivates! The story IS the hook. “Who did TF I marry?” picks our interest, and we are all eager to find “who TF did she marry?”. These videos are proof that simplicity can create maximum impact.
Let’s Recap All Means to an End
It is clear that social media marketing strategies will not necessarily make you popular. Again, they can increase your chances of getting approved. However, any content can reach the top. You'll never guess. Therefore, even if you publish clips inspired by popular TikTok content ideas without showing face or endlessly completing challenges, you may be passed over by the person who is absolutely far from “social media standards”.
There is nothing wrong with following trends, as long as you have a clear message and know what values you are pushing forward. If you only know how to package a profile, but the entire content doesn't make sense, authenticity, and sincerity will likely trump it.
