How to Promote Music on TikTok (and Go Viral)

The platform now has over 1 billion active users globally, so it’s no surprise that trending on TikTok can do huge things for your music career.

In short - TikTok needs to be a major part of your music marketing strategy.

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Ok, so why has TikTok been such an influential platform for upcoming artists? This is because most of the content posted on the platform is actually based around MUSIC.

TikTok users create short videos, usually based around a song’s verse or hook. But what makes TikTok videos unique from other social media platforms like Triller, Instagram reels or YouTube shorts?

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- Videos are usually around 15 seconds long & vertical aspect ratio
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- All videos are backed with an audio snippet (usually music)
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- Authenticity & group participation is more important than getting the perfect shot
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- Videos can be recorded in parts & edited together in fragments
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- Popular videos are pushed to a wider audience

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How to make music go viral on TikTok

TikTok’s algorithm creates a unique content feed for every user. This is called the ‘For You Page’ (or #FYP). The more a user interacts with the platform, the more tailored their #FYP content will become.

For example, let’s say your song’s 15 second snippet is used in a video, that video shows up on another user’s For You Page, and that user enjoys the video so much they want to create their own similar video. On the TikTok app, there’s a really easy way for people to use an audio clip they’ve heard elsewhere to make a new video of their own.

It’s this simple process of audio copying that makes it so easy for a song to go viral on TikTok.

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If a dance challenge or lip sync inspires one user, there’s a good chance it’ll inspire more people to make their own videos. The more times the algorithm sees people using that music, the more it'll feed your song to new viewers, inspiring more users to create their own content using your track.

This chain reaction has helped lots of otherwise overlooked songs go viral on TikTok. There has already been plenty of instances where artists with small followings have achieved massive exposure on the platform, or where already established artists have witnessed a massive resurgence in their popularity - such as Sophie Ellis-Bextor and her hit song 'Murder on the Dancefloor'.

So now you understand how songs go viral on TikTok, we’ll discuss how to promote your songs effectively on the platform, grow your audience and encourage people to share your music.

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How to promote music on TikTok

You can’t go viral on TikTok without putting your music on the platform. Fortunately, Ditto Music can upload your music to TikTok (as well as hundreds of other platforms like Spotify & Apple Music).

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Release your music on TikTok

Just sign up to Ditto Music, upload your music and we’ll do the rest. Your songs will then be available for TikTok users to select from the platform's music library every time they create a new video.

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Use a TikTok promotion platform

You can also look to use a dedicated promotion platform like SoundCampaign to boost your chances of going viral on TikTok. Their TikTok promotion process is simple:

1. Create a TikTok campaign by adding your TikTok sound and an optional video concept, trends, and hashtags.

2. Talented TikTok creators will publish videos featuring your song.

3. Each new video will be delivered to your dashboard, keeping you in the loop.

4. Enjoy real-time campaign analytics, allowing you to monitor live stats and receive comprehensive reports.

With SoundCampaign's data-driven approach and strategic influencer targeting, your music gains momentum, leading to increased video views, shares, and likes. As a result, your song can go viral and blow up on TikTok.

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Focus on TikTok-friendly tracks

If your track is going to go viral on TikTok, it needs to be TikTok-friendly. But what does that actually mean?

The optimal duration for TikTok’s music content is 15 seconds long. It also needs to be broad, catchy and relatable enough for TikTok’s users to create their own video content around it.

So study your track and narrow down the 15 seconds that have the  most "TikTok virility potential". Think about things like catchy lyrics or rhythms that lend themselves to a short dance routine.

Don’t be afraid to dig through your back catalogue and release older, more suitable tracks to TikTok. If your music’s already released through Ditto you can add new platforms like TikTok free of charge. Find out how to add your existing releases to TikTok here.

Or if you're currently with another distributor, here’s how to move your music to Ditto.

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Create a TikTok snippet

To stand the best chance of going viral on TikTok, you'll want to create a perfect 30-second snippet for users to include in their videos. The catchier your snippet, the more likely people are to user your song in the background of their clips and the better chance you have of getting turned into a trend.

when uploading your song to Ditto, you'll have the opportunity to select your snippet in your Release Builder. Check out more info on how to choose your 30-second snippet for TikTok.

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Use a mix of hashtags

Like many social platforms, TikTok’s hashtags are usually at the centre of its viral content.

If you choose popular or highly searched hashtags, you can boost your chances of your video appearing in TikTok's "Discover" & "For You" tabs.

Include a mix of hashtags in anything you post. They can be specific to you and your own content as well as more general ones. You could piggyback on current trending hashtags to help reach more people.

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Trending audio tags

Another useful tool to find out what's currently hot on TikTok is the #TrendAlert page. This section of TikTok contains all of the latest and most popular trends that are popping off.

You should regularly check this section out, by searching #TrendAlert in your TikTok search bar to find any relevant trends that your particular style or look could fit in with.

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So where should you start? Here are some of this month's best-trending tags which you can look to hop on:

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#NewMusic

#ElectronicMusic

#OnTour

#BlackMusic

#BehindTheSong

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While these hashtags and trends are definitely worth hopping on, it's also really useful to make use of these more 'evergreen' tags:

#InTheStudio

#MixToMaster

#AltMusic

#Piano

#GuitarSolo

#Duet

#LiveMusic

#ChristmasCover

#RecordStoreDay

#CoversForLovers

#Remix

#Festival

#Harmony

#Producer

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Create challenges & contests

TikTok is a place where challenges and contests thrive. So you should encourage fans and followers to take part in challenges specific to your track using a specific hashtag.

Challenges tend to blow up when they’re fun and can be interpreted in different ways by different people. You want to give people a chance to be creative and put their own unique twist on an existing trend. That’s why it’s important to choose a track that is (as we mentioned earlier) “TikTok friendly”.

Some of the most popular challenges on TikTok usually involve:

- Dance routines

- Lip syncing

- Costumes

- Comedy memes

It’s unlikely that you’ll generate a viral sensation by just posting your challenge and sitting back. You need to be proactive.

You could run the challenge as a contest, offering a cool prize for the winner - maybe signed merch, free gig tickets or even a cash reward.

Alternatively, you could run a music influencer marketing campaign to promote the challenge or trend and help get it off the ground.

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Follow, follow, follow

Dive in and start following people straight away! Follow other musicians, popular influencers and follow back everyone who follows you.

Following is the best way to start building an audience on TikTok. It’ll also give you a chance to scope out the platform's other creators to see what’s working, what’s trending and help generate more TikTok content ideas for musicians that you can use yourself.

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Do a duet

Duets are another easy way to engage with your fellow TikTokers. The Duet feature lets you put two videos together side-by-side playing simultaneously.

Dueting is a great way to reach new fanbases on TikTok. You could collaborate with another musician to help each other reach new listeners, or react to a popular influencer's videos in the hope that more people will see your profile and give you a follow.

To post a duet video, just hit the Share icon and then the Duet button.

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Authenticity rules

TikTok is all about authenticity. It’s just real people creating makeshift content to entertain one another, so don’t worry too much about perfect lighting and framing when creating your videos.

Just make it fun! You want to inspire people to follow your trend or challenge by creating their own videos in homage to yours.

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Visuals & memes

Aside from the music, two more things that have helped TikTok grow into such a huge platform - engaging, easily imitated visuals & generally funny or inspiring content.

Remember, videos don’t have to be perfectly shot. They just have to be engaging, interesting, hilarious, relatable etc. If you can turn a snippet of your track into an easy-to-copy, 15-second video - it has the potential to blow up on the platform.

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Share across other platforms

Sharing your content across more social platforms is a simple way to reach even more people with your TikTok content. It’s really easy to share your TikTok videos to Instagram Stories. It only takes a couple of clicks and you can share to your Stories directly from the app.

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Start local. Go global.

TikTok is great at providing localised content. You might start to notice this once you’ve been using the app for a while, so why not harness the power of local content to engage new fans in your area?

Showcase your hometown and stick your own music in the background. Or if you’re heading out on tour, tag the locations as you arrive.

As we’ve been saying throughout this guide, TikTok users respond well to authentic content that they can personally relate to. And where better to start then where they live?

Use TikTok Analytics

TikTok has joined other big platforms like Instagram & Twitter by hopping on the in-app analytics bandwagon.

Content creators can access important data and metrics about their content and engagement for free, via the analytics dashboard within your TikTok account.

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To view the dashboard, simply head over to the "Creators tools" tab from your account settings. Then select "Analytics" and you'll get access to stats about video views, likes, comments, shares and so on.

How to access creator tools:

1. Head to the TikTok app and tap Profile at the bottom.

2. Click the Menu button at the top.

3. Tap Creator tools.

4. Select the tool you'd like to view.

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You can also use tools like Soundcharts to gain further insights into your TikTok audience.

Convert followers into music fans

While promoting your music on TikTok through short video content is great, the overall aim is to convert your video watchers into real-life active listeners and fans of your music.

A tool you can use here is the song page, which is automatically attached to every song that's officially distributed on TikTok. This includes a link to the song on Spotify or Apple Music which will encourage users to go and listen to the full version of the song on your chosen music streaming platform.

Plus it also includes a link to the artist's official TikTok account, so make sure you have an official account that can act as a conversion point between TikTok and other music platforms.

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