Every platform has the exact same goal.
Show the right thing, to the right person.
Every platform measures the goal in similar ways.
To keep it simple: after the viewer saw the thumbnail or first seconds of the video, did they:
- click on it or stay?
- watch it, and for how long?
- engage with it?
Every creator should do the same thing.
Help the platform understand your content so it can accurately show it to the right person.
Stop telling platforms to show it to “anyone!”
If you could show your video about corgis to a million people, which people would you pick?
- a million random people, anyone! or
- a million corgi and dog lovers
Obviously, 2 is the answer since it’s the right audience. They are most likely to click on it, watch it, and engage with it. Therefore, it aligns with the platform’s goal of showing the right content to the right person.
Showing the video to people who are not interested in corgis would result in fewer clicks, more swipe-aways, and less engagement. Therefore, it would work against the platform’s goals and directly against the video’s success.
Here’s why adding viral hashtags can hurt your content.
Adding #fyp, #viral, #explorepage #happy #trending and other non-fitting hashtags tells the platform that creators want the video to be seen by anyone. It’s also super spammy.
That doesn’t help the platform show the video to the right audience.
Stop that. (please 🙏)
Instead, find common, popular, and trending hashtags that directly match with the right audience.
Tell the platform to show your video about corgis to people who have #corgilove, live that #corgilife, or love to look at #corgisoftiktok.
Target the right audience.
Crush your niche.
See you next time.
👋
