TikTok for Small Businesses: A Complete Guide to Creating Engaging Video Content

In today’s digital landscape, video is king. With Instagram prioritising Reels and TikTok hitting 1.69 billion monthly active users as of January 2025, if you’re not nailing your video content, now is the time to do so!

In this blog, we’re sharing tips and tricks from Emma, the founder of Fresh Approach Digital, to help you grow your TikTok and social media channels using video!

Why does TikTok work for Small Businesses?

With so many platforms like Instagram and YouTube offering video options, why has TikTok worked so well for small businesses?

TikTok has a couple of unique features that help it stand out from the crowd:

• Easy-to-use templates that are built into the app
• Next-level editing features that even beginners can handle
• Access to new audiences and business growth (it’s not just Gen-Z on TikTok!)
• Wide-ranging video length – anything from seconds to 10 minute videos are currently enabled on the app

How to create engaging videos for your TikTok

The Critical Three-Second Hook

Audiences’ attention is getting shorter and shorter. It’s now widely accepted that you have 3 seconds or less to hook your audience.

To nail your hook make sure your video:

• Addresses your audiences’ pain points
• Quickly shows the solution to the pain point
• Use high-quality & engaging visuals
• Starts with your strongest message

Make your videos look professional

💡 Lighting

• Always film in natural light where possible
• Use well-lit spaces (Emma recommends the bathroom!)
• Always ensure your products are visible

🎧 Sound Matters

• Invest in a great microphone or quality headphones that have a built-in mic
• 85% of TikTok videos are watched on mute – always include captions!
• Always test your audio quality before posting

Optimise Your Video Content

• Always film in portrait mode to maximise the TikTok display on phones
• Make your content more accessible by using captions – remember TikTok has auto-caption options to help with this!
• Use relevant keywords in your descriptions and hashtags to help your content reach the right audience!
• Aim for consistency rather than going viral – it’s better to have 100 engaged followers, than 10,000 unengaged followers

Creating a strategy for your video content

Now you’ve worked hard to create quality video content – it’s time to make it work hard for you!

Engagement is key 🗝️

The golden rule? Never post and ghost!

Whether you schedule your TikTok videos, or post in the moment, make sure you:

• set aside time to respond to comments from your audience
• engage with other users on the platform (e.g liking, saving, and commenting on other creators’ posts)
• get involved in conversations in your industry

Analyse your data

TikTok and many other social media platforms have built-in analytics tools to help you track the performance of your posts!

We recommend tracking:

• Video watch time – this helps you understand how effective the content was
• Track engagement rates across the different types of content you create
• Most popular posting times for your audience
• Analyse the number of saves to understand the value you’re adding

Not sure where to start?

If you’re new to creating TikTok, try these ideas!

• Start with a simple product demo or service explanation to get the ball rolling
• Don’t be afraid to practise a few times before filming
• Experiment with different videos and content and see what works best for you and your business
• Focus on what value you’re bringing to your audience
• Get familiar with TikTok’s built-in features to make things easier!

Get tips and tricks from Emma’s Webinar replay here 👇

Conclusion

By following these steps, we’re sure you’ll create quality TikTok content in no time! Remember, it’s not about going viral and having the latest ‘must have’ equipment. With a few great purchases, creative thinking, and consistency, your TikTok channel can thrive!

And if you need more support, our mentors are here to help! You can request TikTok and Social Media mentoring sessions on our platform here 👇

Meet the mentor

Emma is the founder of Fresh Approach Digital. She’s been a Digital Boost mentor since 2020! And in that time she’s supported 100s of founders to develop their social media skills 🎉

When she’s not helping founders get confident on social media, or filming her famous ‘tea and tips’ segment on her social media channels, Emma can be found at sea! She’s a huge marine lover and has spent most of her life living and working in the marine industry. You’ll often find her paddleboarding her local river, sailing, or playing hockey 😊