Mathilde says: “Don’t forget about TikTok SEO. TikTok is the future platform future and future search engine for Generation Z, so it is very important.”

Is it only that particular generation? What happens to X, Y, and even Generation Alpha? They’re also starting to get into their teens, aren't they?

“They are, and that's also why TikTok can’t be overlooked. It's the platform for Gen Z, but also the younger generation and the older ones who are also joining the platform each day. It is a platform that has a lot of potential, and despite it being a very new platform, it’s also a platform that is already quite a big channel in itself.”

**So you’re essentially saying that most of the users that initiated the use of the platform were from Generation Z. Still, over the last year or so, you've seen more X and Y and maybe Generation Alpha getting into it.

“Yeah, exactly, they’re all joining. It’s not just singing and dancing videos anymore, it's so much more. It's everything you want it to be. I would dare say that you can find anything on TikTok. You can sell cars on there. You can get inspiration on where to eat. You can see videos on how to clean your fridge, do your hair, knit a sweater, etc. So, everything you want to find on TikTok, you can find it.”

It originally started as Musical.ly which is it started with many music videos and then evolved into more general videos.

“Exactly. It started as Musical.ly and was bought by the Chinese company that owns TikTok who bought Musical.ly and turned it into TikTok. A lot of the original videos were singing and dancing, but now it's just turned into so much more. I also think that's why many people overlook it because they think it's still singing and dancing. It's something that young kids do to pass the time, but it's not that anymore.”

You say that many younger generations use TikTok as a search engine, but how does TikTok work as a search engine?

“On TikTok, you have the 'For You Page', which is where the main activity is going on, and the algorithm on TikTok will recommend videos that you watch. If you want to search internally on TikTok, that's one way. But also, TikTok has an algorithmic search function that comes up in the comment section sometimes, and it will scan the algorithm and the comments section and see what people are talking about and then recommend the top result as something you want to search for internally on TikTok?”

So it combines a discovery channel and a more conventional search channel?

“Exactly, but it’s important to say that the algorithmic one is not always accurate. I've seen a lot of videos where it was present, but it didn't make any sense for what went on in the video or the comment section, so I wouldn't necessarily focus on that one.

But the internal search function is where we want to be, especially because we see Wikipedia snippets get pushed to that search interface and we see Google search results getting pushed into the interface and ads too.’’

So if the internal search function is where we want to be, how does an SEO optimize to be there?

“When optimizing on TikTok you first need to understand the algorithm and what impacts the algorithm is the video information, your profile information, how users interact with your video, it's also the device they're using, the account setting, what language they speak, what country they're based in, and it's also how much time they spent on each video.

It's really important that when you make TikTok videos, you ensure you're hooking your audience within the first two seconds. But of course, when considering all these things, you also need to find keywords that you need to put into your descriptions, profile, captions, etc., and if you're saying things out loud, you need to add those keywords. So, keyword research is fundamental in all things SEO, but especially for TikTok SEO.”

Hooking your audience in the first two seconds sounds particularly scary. There must be a set of things that work well, or a set of things that are a bad idea to do. Can you cover both there? What are some good things to be doing in the first two seconds? And what are some mistakes that you're seeing video producers make?

“The sound is the most important thing on TikTok, in the first two seconds and the entire video. So, you have to use a sound that's either trending, or that will catch the user’s attention immediately. That's a good thing to do when doing TikTok videos.”

Does that only mean musical sound, or are you just saying something?

“It can be both. So, doing a voiceover or using a sound. It could be a funny sound, or it could also be music pieces that have been remixed. Sound in general is good, so use that, and then talk to a certain ‘Tok’, as it's called.

We have hashtags on TikTok, such as #hairtok, #booktok, or #cleantok, and if you speak to those hashtags and those audiences, you will hook that audience much easier within the first few seconds. If you have a haircare product that you want to sell to the #hairtok community, then a good way to hook that audience is to talk about it in the beginning, show a product in the beginning, or write something about the product in the beginning so the user knows what the video is about immediately.”

What sounds or visual elements do you see in the first two seconds that make you want to scroll past and not be interested in watching it further?

“Typically it will be if there weren't any captions on the video. If you have a sound that you're using, or if you're speaking, and you haven't made the text on the screen, that will be a wrong move.”

Does it have to be the full caption? Or can it be just a headline or a sub-headline of your topic?

“It can be a headline or sub-headline, but the best way to do it if it's not automated captions would be to put the whole captions in it or have a headline. So, how to do your hair with this curling iron and, or something like that.”

Is it important for SEOs to determine if their target audience exists on TikTok? Or does everyone exist on TikTok now?

"That's a tricky one. Everyone exists on TikTok, but it is mostly Generation Z. So, you must do that audience research. You need to know whether your audience is on the platform. Because if you're selling, for example, a B2B product, your core audience that you target and all of your other marketing activities might not be present on TikTok yet. So, of course, if they're not, it's not the right platform for you.

In general, I would say your audience would be on the platform. It's just how you're going to target that audience in the platform that might be different from what you're doing and all of the other marketing channels that you're targeting.”

And what about keyword research? Do you have to conduct keyword research?

“I would do it normally for Google first and then choose the most important ones from that keyword research and put them into TikTok to see what's already trending and what videos are performing well on the platform. We don't have any TikTok-specific keyword research tools for this yet. TikTok has a tool called Keywords Insights, but it's very ads-focused and not SEO-focused.”

Okay, so when it comes to keywords, then focus on more traditional tools, but I guess when it comes to content, focus on TikTok and don't use pre-existing content to publish on TikTok?

“The main thing that TikTok users love about the platform is the uniqueness of the platform. It's the uniqueness of the content on the platform, how the algorithm is tailored, and the For You Page, where all the content is tailored to each user.

The same also goes when you're making TikTok videos or doing ads on the platform. You need to tailor them to the platform so they become TikTok native and not use creatives from Meta, Snapchat, or Twitter and use them on TikTok, because that’s not going to work.”

Is it possible and a good idea to have a call to action from a TikTok video and be able to measure traffic from TikTok?

“It could be. It depends on how you use the platform. Let the content live organically if you use it to spread awareness about your brand or product and then have the links to your website and stuff like that in your profile, or leave a comment in the comment section with that link to your website. Put it in the description if you're using the sales channels more. But keep in mind that the users are there to be entertained and not to be sold stuff to.”

Did you say you could potentially use it as a sales channel, or when are people open to watching videos and having a thing sold to them on TikTok?

“They are more interested in the inspiration part. But you can sell products, and we have a #cleantok or #organizingtok. I think it's called #reorganizingtok, where we see people stock up on their office essentials at your desk. They’ll link to the Amazon storefront page where users can buy these products. And this is a very big sales channel, the Amazon storefront. Many people tap into that because they get inspiration from how others organize their desks, fridges, or cabinets, etc, and they will get that inspiration and buy those products to do the same thing, and that will be the same across other products as well.”

That almost sounds like Pinterest.

“It is somewhat like Pinterest, but combined with Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook. It's like a combination platform.”

What's the best publishing schedule on TikTok, and how often should you publish videos?

“To ensure that you are not forgotten about in the algorithm, I would say at least once a day, not multiple times a day, because then the videos will overlap each other. But if you go too long without posting anything, that algorithm will make it harder for you to push your content. So, I will not say over a week apart but every day or every other day.”

Is there anything else apart from producing great quality content and publishing frequently that you can do to enhance the chances of that content being discovered on TikTok?

“You have to find your own way to do it. It's hard to give a specific way for a brand or a product to do TikTok SEO. It would be best if you found what works with your product and what makes it more organic and viable.

One example that I like to use is Duolingo, a language app. They have this owl that's their mascot, and they will actively use it on the platform. It’s known for being a very sassy bird, and it will roast other people, roast users, and roast other companies. So, that's how they have chosen to use TikTok, but not explicitly selling their product, which is translation.”

You’ve shared what SEOs should be doing in 2024. Now, let's talk about why SEO shouldn't be doing. So, what's something that's seductive in terms of time but ultimately counterproductive? What's something that SEO shouldn't be doing in 2024?

‘’It's not related to TikTok specifically. However, we see a lot of structured data getting removed from websites because of the removal of FAQ-rich and Q&A-rich results in the search results. Many clients are beginning to remove the structured data they've already implemented, and that will be very counterproductive because data about data is always a good idea, especially in this AI generation or era we’re living in.”

Mathilde Høj is an SEO manager at Transact, Denmark, and you can find her over at omctransact.dk.