How to Make Money on TikTok

10 min read

TikTok is the fastest growing social media platform, and there are now over 116 million TikTok users in the US alone. Of the top downloaded apps of 2020, TikTok was downloaded 850 million times, with social media giant Facebook coming in third with just 540 downloads. What’s more, each TikTok user spends about 23.5 hours per month on the app, which equates to almost 36% of daily social media time.

If you are looking for new income streams that might let you quit your day job, making money with TikTok should definitely be on your list. You don’t need to be a TikTok start to earn money, although popular creators with more followers reach their financial goals faster with video content. Here are some of the ways you can make money on TikTok, how much you can earn, and tips for success.

5 Ways to Make Money on TikTok

There are several ways you can earn money on the TikTok social media platform, and there is no reason to limit yourself to just one. The most successful TikTok creators offer a wide variety of content geared toward specific revenue streams. TikTok’s creator fund can provide you with automatic, passive income, but there are more lucrative ways to earn money on the social media platform.

1. Growing, selling, and consulting on TikTok accounts within a specific niche

TikTok is still a fairly new social media platform, and it is primarily used by young adults aged 18 to 25. There are many businesses, authors, musical artists, and other entities that want to use TikTok but don’t know where to start.

Starting a TikTok campaign is much easier when you already have a well-established account, so entities of all types are willing to pay for them. Create TikTok accounts in your specific niche, then sell the established accounts in your ecommerce store.

2. TikTok consulting or management

Getting a TikTok account up and running is just part of the battle for most marketers. Use your knowledge of TikTok to offer consulting for businesses new to the platform. You can also offer management services just as you would for any other social media platform. An ecommerce store can also be used to sell these services.

3. Solicit donations

Membership platforms have been popular for creatives, but TikTok gives you a different community platform for this purpose. TikTok users purchase coins then donate them to their favorite content creators. Coins can be exchanged for diamonds, which converts to real money sent to your PayPal account.

4. Sell your own tangible or digital products

You can sell almost anything on TikTok, so if you have an established business with a product line you can use TikTok to increase your sales. You can easily connect your online store to your TikTok account. Regardless of what you sell, if your target audience includes young adults TikTok must be part of your content strategy.

5. Become an influencer

Like Instagram, the best way to earn money on TikTok is to become an influencer. Influence marketing isn’t new, but TikTok takes it to a whole different level. Influencers offer clients sponsored content in which they feature a product for their established followers.

There are several other ways that you can earn money as an influencer, including:

Making money on brand deals — forming brand partnerships with companies you can believe in and fall within your niche
Sponsored videos can demonstrate products of interest or benefit to followers
Sell short sponsored ads or unboxing video ads for new products or services
Band and artist promotion through audio clips
Host interview live streams to build brand awareness

How Much Money TikTok Creators Can Expect to Earn

The amount of money you earn on TikTok depends on how many followers you have, how much content you post, your niche, and several other factors. TikTok’s outstanding engagement rates increase earnings over other social media platforms, but some methods are more effective than others.

For example, the creator fund pays out so little that a personal finance influencer with over 1 million followers will earn less than $2,000 in half a year. On the other hand, well-established TikTok creators with millions of followers can charge up to $2,000 for one sponsored post.

A beginning influencer can charge between $5 – $25 per sponsored post, with average rates of $20 – $200 per post for TikTok creators with more followers. The more followers, the more you can charge for sponsored content. Brand partnerships in which you frequently demonstrate or promote a particular line of products will earn the most money on TikTok.

Having millions of followers does increase your chances to earn more money, but this isn’t the only determination. Being TikTok famous doesn’t automatically equal higher revenues, and having over a million followers is often unnecessary. More important than followers is how much creators post. Experts claim you should have at least 10,000 followers and 12 million views per month to net about $100,000 per year.

Tips for a successful TikTok account

There are several things you should keep in mind as you build and establish your TikTok account. TikTok stars all offer the same advice: be quick to take advantage of new trends and choose a specific niche based on your personal knowledge and experience. Here are some more tips.

Get familiar with TikTok’s community standards

As with any other social media platform, TikTok has strict rules against hate speech and copyright infringement, as well as other rules designed to create a positive and safe experience for all. Some of these rules apply to specific types of products and services, while others apply to influencer marketing and sponsored posts. Make sure you review them fully before starting your account.

Create your TikTok profile and start posting immediately

Your next task is to create a stellar TikTok profile and start posting content right away. You should have many pieces of content ready before you start the TikTok account. The more videos you have the more likely you will build a following quickly.

Keep in mind, however, that you have to offer your viewers variety and entertainment if you want them to continue following you. If every post you make is promotional in nature, you will be almost guaranteed to fail. Consider what you like most about your favorite creators, and you’ll have a good idea of what you need to do on your own TikTok.

As you post, share your TikTok videos across social media platforms. This will help you build your social network on TikTok faster by funneling in followers from other social media platforms. Don’t forget to link your TikTok account to your blog or website as well.

Take advantage of TikTok influencer marketing and ecommerce tools

While setting up your profile, link your online store and marketing tools. Influencer Marketing Hub is a resource for influencers, including those on TikTok. The site offers tools, tips, and automation for those running influencer marketing campaigns.

If you are selling anything on your site you will need an online store and/or a payment processor. An ecommerce store can offer more than just tangible products. You can use it to sell digital products as well, including the TikTok accounts mentioned earlier.

Consider carefully before choosing a platform for your online store. If you need to get started with a smaller investment, a platform that allows you to start with few features and increase SaaS costs as your business and income grow.

Ecwid is a very affordable and scalable option that can even start with a free account. The Venture subscription fee is still relatively low and offers all of the features you need to connect your online store to your TikTok and other accounts.

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Jun 27, 2021

About the author

Max has been working in the ecommerce industry for the last six years helping brands to establish and level-up content marketing and SEO. Despite that, he has experience with entrepreneurship. He is a fiction writer in his free time.