TikTok algorithms in 2024: how to profit on TikTok

It’s a time when TikTok views are a top priority, adults can’t go to sleep without watching the trending videos, and children begin starring in TikTok before they’ve learned to form sentences. However, for business owners, affiliate marketers, bloggers, and media buyers, TikTok is more than just a social network; it’s an endless traffic source. Their interest lies in learning how to promote videos on TikTok, not for a dopamine rush but strictly for increasing income through monetizing TikTok traffic. Today, we’ll reveal as much as possible – we’ll discuss how to promote on TikTok, how the platform works, and how to achieve popularity here. Let’s dive into the algorithms of TikTok, understand the community rules, and learn how to promote your videos.

Understanding TikTok’s Algorithms in 2024

At the heart of TikTok’s algorithms lies its sophisticated recommendation system. The app has grown more adept at presenting users with content it believes they’ll want to engage with, prompting bloggers and advertisers to craft high-quality, personalized content. Yet, the intricacies of TikTok’s algorithms remain largely enigmatic, even in 2024, with the platform’s operational secrets closely guarded. Everything that is known about the social network today is based on users’ personal experiences. Let’s explore how TikTok operates, drawing on content creators’ insights.

1. TikTok’s algorithms are built on artificial intelligence, that is, fully automated. Everything that happens in the video (music, voiceover, actions) is analyzed by AI, devoid of any human intervention. It also decides which video to show to the user. We recommend learning more about AI for those skeptical of AI’s capabilities.

When selecting relevant content, TikTok’s algorithm takes into account the topic of the videos and the depth of views, repeat views and view duration, user reactions, and shares. 

Fact: Contrary to popular belief, the volume of reactions (likes and comments) isn’t the primary metric for TikTok. Instead, the platform favors videos that captivate viewers enough to be watched, saved and watched again, with shorter videos more frequently making it into TikTok’s recommendations.

2. There is no single proven algorithm for getting into recommendations. Content visibility is influenced by numerous factors, many of which remain undisclosed. However, rest assured, we won’t leave you hanging; insights on tactics employed by TikTok’s most successful content creators to climb the ranks will be shared in due course.

3. It is easier for newcomers to advance, as the system allows them to “ride out” solely on random views.  While TikTok diligently monitors new accounts, videos from profiles lacking a substantial subscriber base are easier to promote. The algorithm autonomously curates the audience, circulating the video widely until it pinpoints the most interested viewers. A video can enjoy prolonged promotion until a decline in engagement is observed. Conversely, random views alone won’t suffice for promotion on TikTok if a video fails to capture interest from the start. Yet, the situation is complex, with some users speculating about TikTok’s use of bots to manipulate engagement metrics.

Fact: The platform’s algorithm is designed to discourage inactivity; if no new videos are posted, visibility for existing content diminishes, and vice versa, where publishing new content can rejuvenate interest in older posts. This system is crafted to motivate TikTokers to consistently produce new material, a vital tip for newbies aiming to establish their presence.

4. The feed continuously adjusts to the viewer’s interests. Initially, a user is presented with 10 random videos, but the selection of the following 10 is determined by the user’s interaction with the previous content. That being said, there is no way to change TikTok recommendations other than activity. If a viewer wants to change the content of the feed, they need to search for topics of interest, watch the whole video, and interact with videos in their areas of interest.

5. TikTok’s algorithms never stop changing, improving, and self-learning, and the platform doesn’t always notify users of changes. While they notice the updates and adjust to them, views can easily drop. It’s a struggle where you have to be ready for everything, attentive, and analyze a lot to stay afloat.

Fact: Whereas TikTok previously generated initial views within the first hour, by 2024, content creators might need to wait several hours or even a day to see their view count start to rise.

6. The result of TikTok’s recommendation is directly related to the continuous retention of viewers. The more videos are watched in full, shared, and re-watched again, the better. 

Fact: In a significant shift from its original short-form video format, TikTok, as of 2022, now supports uploads of up to 10 minutes in length. With this trend, TikTok will soon catch up to YouTube in terms of video length. For bloggers and advertisers, this allows them to retain their audience’s attention longer.

7. From time to time, views drop sharply for no apparent reason. Perhaps it’s due to increasing competition or another round of updates to TikTok’s algorithms. The most effective strategy in such scenarios is to persist and continue producing content.

8. A general guideline for TikTok creators is at least one interaction for every 10 complete video views. Achieving this ratio can signal TikTok’s algorithms to broaden the video’s distribution, increasing its visibility.

For now, Tiktokers are guided by such social network principles but are not particularly used to it. The platform is evolving, and the AI is getting smarter, making tracking behavior patterns more and more difficult every year.

How to Promote your TikTok in 2024 to Make a Profit

TikTok is good because anyone can reach the top. However, not everyone can secure a place in the recommendations and return there consistently. From the first steps of your career on TikTok, stick to our recommendations, and your efforts will surely be recognized by viewers’ attention or profit, depending on your goals.

1. Design your profile fully and qualitatively. Choose a high-quality avatar, a simple and clear username, and a concise yet interesting description. If it’s a business account, your “guests” should have no questions about your business.

2. Upload quality content. It’s not so important how you make videos – filming, making unique versions of someone else’s content, or editing compilations. The main thing is that they should be well thought out and original. Keep in mind that TikTok’s algorithms can analyze a lot of things: angles, composition, effects, filters, text, music, and voiceovers.

3. Quality video content for TikTok includes videos of good resolution with an original short description, a change of locations, a clear message, and the right hashtags. Authors often wonder why TikTok reduces the quality of their videos. This happens for two reasons: 

• when the user has enabled the save function in the TikTok app, which reduces the file’s size and resolution;
• when the video material is shot on the front camera, which has fewer pixels than the rear (main) camera. Generally speaking, it’s better to acquire professional equipment to shoot quality content that TikTok and people will enjoy.

Prepare content in advance. To avoid losing touch with your audience, you should post 3 videos a day, having content “in reserve” ready for emergencies or when inspiration is lacking. Research your audience to understand the best times to post videos on TikTok.

4.   Engage with other authors. Your reactions to other people’s TikTok videos also affect your profile’s ranking.

5.     Make your profile public. You can’t collect subscribers or get views, and in general, you can’t make a profit in TikTok with a closed account. This is the most stupid mistake you can make.

6.   Increase view duration. The TikTok algorithm sees videos watched to completion as a sign of compelling content. While you can create videos up to 10 minutes, initially focus on crafting short, 10-20-second videos that start with intrigue and save the most engaging part for the end. Teasing a sequel or including a surprising twist can keep viewers hooked.

7.  Go beyond the platform. TikTok “appreciates” when a video with the TikTok logo resonates with users of other platforms. It’s essentially free and effective advertising.

8.  Use hashtags. Hashtags help both viewers and the TikTok algorithm understand the relevance of your video. However, avoid spamming hashtags to prevent penalties.

9.    Repost videos. Add subtitles and voiceovers, change the music, and reupload the video again. Just don’t go overboard with deleting videos; TikTok can penalize you with a shadow ban for mass deletion of videos.

10. Incorporate English subtitles. With a vast English-speaking audience on TikTok, subtitles can make your content accessible to viewers worldwide, increasing its potential to receive likes.

11. Host live broadcasts. Live streaming offers a direct path to promotion by TikTok. A calendar of live broadcasts will become available once you reach 1,000 subscribers. If your content aligns with TikTok’s interests, it might feature your live broadcast in its schedule of upcoming streams.

12.  Edit and process your videos with TikTok’s tools and not third-party services. Content edited within TikTok tends to reach a wider audience, as noted by experienced creators.

13.  No more than 30% of borrowed video content should be in your profile to avoid falling out of favor with TikTok’s algorithms. Better yet, rely on creating original content altogether. 

14.  Avoid subscription splash screens. TikTok’s algorithms may penalize videos that overtly prompt viewers to subscribe, treating them as redundant content.

How to Gain Subscribers on TikTok

Promotion in TikTok is possible by both paid and free methods. Let’s start with paid options; they are especially effective for new profiles lacking followers and views.

Influencer Advertising

While it’s true that securing a promotional spot with top-tier bloggers can be costly, influencer advertising holds significant potential for boosting your profile’s visibility. If you opt for advertising through various influencers, it’s wise to schedule your promotions on different days and ensure your account is mentioned both in the video and its description. Careful consideration is essential when selecting influencers for promotion on TikTok. Today’s platform is crowded with countless emerging stars, and the authenticity of their follower count and engagement rates can vary.

Let’s take a look at strategies for influencer promotion on TikTok:

• Promotional videos that bloggers will incorporate in their video content.
• Collaborations with the promoted user.
• Embedded advertising – in this case, the influencer mentions or reviews a product within their content.
• Hashtag challenges, trending effects, and filters greatly increase recognition and attract the audience’s attention. Participating in such flash mobs is a great way to promote your profile more actively.
• Advertising banners in popular bloggers’/influencers profiles.

The choice of advertising format largely depends on your product and the demographics of your target audience. Selecting the right type of promotion is crucial for achieving a strong ROI. The cost of each advertising format varies; while some collaborations might not require financial compensation, the price of a promotional video can depend on how involved the influencer is with your content.

Yandex.Direct Advertising

Yandex.Direct serves as a reliable alternative to influencer marketing. Advertisers can tap into a wide audience by placing ads within Yandex’s mobile advertising network and adhering to the platform’s guidelines.

Targeted Advertising on TikTok

Targeting within the platform is not available for all regions, not for all accounts, and certainly not for all budgets. However, by 2024, the platform has become more accessible for users with even modest budgets to engage in targeted advertising. Advertisers can tailor their campaigns based on GEO, user interests, and demographic profiles.

Before promoting on TikTok using this method, you need to register with TikTok for Business. This platform provides access to various advertising formats, each designed to meet different marketing objectives:

• TopView: The advertising video is integrated into the social network’s content stream, displaying full-screen on users’ devices in MP4, MPEG, MOV, or AVI format.
• Brand Takeover: Extremely brief ads that appear full-screen in the same video formats as TopView, plus JPG and GIF. They include a direct link (to a product page, website, or app), a hashtag, and a description.
• In-Feed Ads: These ads appear within the recommendation feed and include links and hashtags. They allow viewers to interact by leaving reactions, commenting, and visiting the advertiser’s website.
• Branded Hashtag Challenge – the ad is displayed in the recommendation feed for 3-6 days. This format is known for its potential for viral spread.
• Branded Effects: Commercials in MP4, MOV, MPEG, and AVI formats that may incorporate AR effects to engage users further.

Mass-Liking and Mass-Following

Mass actions for promotion in TikTok is a slippery slope. Everyone knows about it but continues to exploit automatic likes and follows to gain traction. Target audiences can be identified through competitor profiles or relevant hashtags. However, it’s important to note that such strategies often attract a high number of bots rather than genuinely interested users despite the potential to reach a large audience through specialized services for boosting behavioral factors.

Now let’s move on to free ways to promote on TikTok:

• Traffic from promoted accounts on other social platforms – YouTube, Instagram, etc. Leave a link to your TikTok account on and under the video, in the comments, and in the profile header.
• Hashtags – research hashtags popular creators use to find ones that resonate with your content. Limit yourself to no more than 10 tags, ensuring they are thematic and accurately reflect the video’s essence. Including popular brand hashtags can also be beneficial.
• Trends – tools like Google Trends and TikTok Metrics allow you to keep tabs on trending content and popular queries. This insight ensures you know what your audience is interested in, enabling you to align your content with current trends for more effective promotion.
• Buying a promoted account with a built-in audience. Although the platform prohibits this, it is challenging to monitor, and this approach can be effective if the account’s theme and concept remain consistent post-purchase. Accounts can be acquired through exchanges or directly from willing sellers. Caution is advised to ensure the account’s follower activity is genuine and not predominantly composed of bots.

How to Promote Videos on TikTok

After exploring various strategies for promotion on TikTok, you might wonder which method suits you best.

• First, before you promote your content and your profile on TikTok in general, you should determine your target audience. Without understanding who might be interested in your videos, creating content that trends or gains views is challenging. Understanding your content’s potential consumers is essential for generating engaging videos.
• Secondly, clearly formulate the goal of TikTok promotion. Is it to gain subscribers, increase reach, boost product or brand awareness, or drive sales or traffic to your resource?

• If you’re struggling with reach, use hashtag challenges, connect mass actions, and make sure to follow trends;
• To increase sales, buy targeted ads such as Brand Takeover or In-Feed Native Video format;
• Attracting subscribers can be effectively done through collaborations with bloggers, harnessing traffic from other social platforms, and utilizing trends and mass-liking techniques.

And finally, before you promote on TikTok, seek advice from more seasoned creators. Investing in expert guidance can save you from costly mistakes and accelerate your path to success.

How to Tap into TikTok Trends in 2024

Trending content gets a lot of views and recognition due to its popular format, concepts, topics, and content. Besides TikTok Metrics and Google Trends, the hottest trends can be found on the TikTok platform itself, particularly in the “For You” section, where top topics are showcased. Typically, the evergreen themes on TikTok are humor, sports, animals, fashion, and beauty.

World trends, while ephemeral, can significantly boost activity levels on your TikTok account. Despite the sophistication of TikTok’s algorithms, they might not immediately catch on to what’s trending globally on any given day. This lag presents an opportunity for TikTok creators to stay ahead by closely monitoring trends within their specific niche.

To run trending videos on an entertainment account, watch for popular memes. For example, if your profile is dedicated to business, finance, and trading, a detailed presentation of the new legislation regarding cryptocurrency transactions will do well. Tutorials, streamings, and news reviews of popular games are also relevant.

Ideally, you should find and start a popular topic before it becomes mainstream. Companies with some barriers to situational marketing have the hardest time nailing down trends. They usually jump on the last wagon of a passing trend, but they also get a boost in reach. 

Important: Don’t forget that TikTok is also a music platform. Be sure to use trending music and popular sound effects.

What You Can’t Post on TikTok in 2024 (Prohibited Topics)

Violating the platform’s rules is fraught with a shadow or public ban. Therefore, before getting into the trends and becoming popular, it is important to remember what you can not post on TikTok. Certain types of content are strictly off-limits, even if intended humorously or seen as harmless. Here’s a rundown of what to steer clear of:

1. Advocacy of violence, particularly animal cruelty.
2. Demonstration of weapons, drugs, tobacco, alcohol, explosives.
3. Insults and discrimination towards minorities, in particularly harsh language. The degree of “harshness” ultimately determines the platform, so it is better to keep your opinion about LGBT to yourself and not discuss the characteristics of other people.
4. Foul language or audio.
5. Discussion of topics 18+ pornography and any nudity.
6. Presence of children under the age of 13.
7. Demonstration of scenes with terrorist and banned organizations and their symbols.
8. Spreading misinformation.
9. Fraudulent schemes.
10. Advertisements for casinos, betting, and pyramid schemes.
11. Incitement to suicide.
12. Advertising of other social platforms and streaming services.
13. Promoting software or methods to manipulate TikTok’s algorithms.
14. Political agitation.

TikTok imposes numerous restrictions to safeguard its community, especially considering its significant underage audience. Ignoring these rules can easily lead to a ban. It’s important to approach TikTok’s guidelines seriously, as they are designed to maintain a safe and positive environment for all users, prioritizing the informational well-being of younger viewers.

You Have Advanced on TikTok – Monetize TikTok Success

Advancing on TikTok opens up various avenues for generating income. Many users aim to trend, increase views, and grow their follower base not just for fame but for financial gains. Here’s how you can monetize your TikTok presence:

1.     Join the Creator Fund. TikTok offers a monetization program for creators over 18 with engaging and quality content, who have amassed over 10,000 subscribers and at least 100,000 views in the past month.

2.     Receive donations and “thank yous” for live streams, including from the platform. The balance of Live Gifts can be converted into cash or virtual gifts. 

3.     Receive income for promoting other people’s products, services, and brands within their content. Compensation comes directly from the brand owners. For secure collaborations on TikTok, the Creator Marketplace is the go-to service.

4.     Become a content creator for other authors, companies, and brands. You’ll get paid well if you know how to make quality videos on TikTok.

5.     Promote affiliate links. Social traffic from TikTok converts great across many key affiliate marketing verticals. Familiarity with the platform’s moderation policies can lead to significant profits. Starting with a Smartlink, which dynamically directs traffic to suitable offers based on analysis, can be an excellent strategy for beginners. CPA – Networks like LosPollos offer a variety of Smartlinks tailored to the most lucrative verticals, making them a solid starting point. If you encounter geo-restrictions from affiliates or direct advertisers, Smartlinks can also help redirect non-targeted traffic efficiently.

For example, directing TikTok traffic to dating services involves a specific strategy that maximizes engagement and conversion rates:

Usually, posts look like regular videos of girls, but when you go to the profile, we see an affiliate link to the offer:

P. S. So far, this is all we can tell you about TikTok algorithms. It’s important to recognize that firsthand experience with the platform remains your most valuable asset in navigating TikTok promotion. While gathering insights on algorithmic patterns can be useful, a single update can render all previous data obsolete. One thing is for certain: the platform is continuously evolving, and TikTok in 2024 will not resemble its former self from a year prior. Adaptation is key 😉 We’ll keep an eye on emerging traffic sources, trends, and crucial updates to assist you in uncovering new and effective online monetization strategies.