In the digital environment, algorithms decide which film we see, which investment strategy is recommended, or which book we order online. The functionality of the mathematical operations keeps coming into focus, mainly because of their effects. Most recently, TikTok’s recommendation algorithm received harsh criticism because the company did not disclose the criteria for the evaluation.
We clarify which factors decide whether the TikTok algorithm plays videos on the “For you” page and what you have to do to land there yourself.
In 2021, TikTok cracked the one billion active users mark. The social media platform has fought its way into the upper echelons of social networks within a very short time. It is inferior to its big siblings YouTube, Facebook and Instagram, in terms of popularity. To date, the app has been downloaded over 2.6 billion times. In January 2021 alone, there were 62 million downloads.
The heart of the app is the “For you” page, also known as “For you”, on which users are shown selected videos that match their interests. It’s the category in which users spend most of their time.
The sorting of the feed is based on a recommendation algorithm, as is the case with other social networks. Nevertheless, the TikTok algorithm is increasingly coming into focus – not least when re-examining the issue of the so-called filter bubble in an investigative dispute.
Recommendation algorithms ensure that social media users are only shown content that corresponds to their views and interests.
The filter bubble concept describes the critical side of the coin – namely, that diversity and other opinions are not heard.
The bubble boundaries in which users find themselves continue to harden until they ultimately only receive homogeneous content, without opposing opinions or different perspectives.
In mid-2021, the tech giant presented the criteria that are relevant for rating videos on TikTok. The experience with the app starts the same for all users: Popular videos are played in an endless stream. When registering, you also can indicate interests so that the algorithm can deliver relevant content from the start.
From then on, the system learns from the interactions of the users. According to TikToks, the algorithm includes the following criteria in the assessment of relevance:
This includes likes, shares, comments, your content that is created and accounts that the person follows. Based on the interactions, the algorithm plays videos from the same category.
Information such as description, sounds, filters or hashtags are also read out to show clips that are similar to people.
The algorithm also learns from language settings, location, device type and other technical settings. The third category receives the least relevance but is necessary to ensure good user experience performance.
These three factors have a decisive impact on which content is shown to a user. For example, if a person frequently likes dance videos, the algorithm will adjust the user experience and display more videos from this category on the “For you” page.
According to TikTok, the awareness and number of followers of an account are no guarantee that a video will be played frequently. The platform would rather offer its community a personalized user experience tailored to its interests.
For videos on TikTok to receive a lot of interactions, they have to attract attention within a very short time. In the case of videos that achieve a particularly high level of engagement and are known to the entire community in no time at all, marketers speak of viral content.
The videos are not only entertaining but also spread like wildfire on social media platforms. The algorithm evaluates the content better and thus plays it to a larger target group.
Unlike Instagram or YouTube, TikTok doesn’t work so much at the profile level. This means that a single viral video is not enough to stay in the minds of followers. Instead, content creators must constantly deliver relevant content to remain visible.
Now you may be wondering how you manage to land on the “For You” page. To get your TikTok marketing strategy going, you need to keep in mind how the algorithm works. After all, as described above, this is adapted to the interaction of the users. If users will receive your content, the algorithm will also evaluate it better and play it out more often.
To get the most out of your TikTok marketing strategy, you should also heed the following tips. How to create content that your fans and the algorithm like:
People love stories – even on TikTok, videos that emotionally pick up their audiences are particularly successful.
TikTok is a kind of mix of Instagram and 9Gag in video format. In addition to inspiring content, funny videos also have a high level of engagement on the social network.
The TikTok stream plays one video at a time, without a break. The user’s attention span is therefore not particularly high. This forces you to create short, memorable video content that ideally will be watched until the end.
Challenges and sound effects are a big USP (Unique Selling Proposition) from TikTok. Create videos for current challenges or create your own. The music selection is also a recurring scheme that defines the user experience of the app.
This gives people the chance to find your videos and interact with them outside of the “For You” page.
To find out the best time to publish your videos on TikTok, it is also worth looking at the analysis area. In the first step, switch your profile to a pro account. To do this, go to your profile, then to settings and data protection and finally to “Switch to Pro Account”.
The analysis area is now available to you: To do this, click under “Settings and data protection” on “Creator tools” and then the analysis. Now you can find out where your followers come from. This can help you figure out when is a good time to post content. For example, if you have a lot of fans from North America, you should pay attention to when your followers are awake and active on TikTok.
TikTok has quickly become one of the most popular social media networks worldwide. Last but not least, this involves the recommendation algorithm, which creates a personalized user experience for users by playing interest-based videos on the “For you” page. Interactions, video information and general settings determine whether a video is rated as suitable by the system or not.
Also Read: The Most Important Social Networks At A Glance
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