Social media has proven to be a fun and effective way for financial professionals to connect with existing clients, prospects, and other influencers. While we’ve worked with firms to successfully connect with their target audiences on top platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook for years, TikTok is the new kid on the block in the world of financial marketing.
Should we be using TikTok? We get this question from financial professionals often. In this post, we’ll tell you all you need to know if you’re considering joining TikTok.
What is TikTok?
TikTok is an app for sharing user-created short-form videos. It tends toward entertainment, comedy, viral dances, and interaction in the comments section. While the app used to be all fun and games, it has now become a helpful and credible source of information for its users. Communities have been formed around different topics like politics, pet care, nutrition, and yes, finance. The site uses keywords and hashtags to create the user’s personalized feed. Informally, the TikTok channel that focuses on finances is called “FinTok.” The platform’s users are very different from other social media. 69% of TikTok users are under the age of 40 and 47% are under the age of 29. While there is a range of income among users, 37% have an income of $100,000 or more. TikTok users are engaged, spending an average of 95 minutes a day on the app.What am I signing up for?
Making an impact on TikTok requires a different type of content and a different approach to participation than other social media platforms. Here’s what you should be prepared to do:- Post consistently. One of the hallmarks of TikTok is that it requires fresh content and consistency for posts to remain in the mix. So, if you want to make an impact on the platform, it’s important to post several times a week, at least.
- Interact with other users. TikTok is also very interactive, so you should be prepared to engage with other posts and respond to comments on your own posts.
- Tailor your tone to your audience.. For financial advisors especially, we know you might be used to buttoned-up, professional communication. Be prepared to loosen up your tone when you make TikToks to appeal to a younger audience of individuals who are looking to take control of their financial futures earlier than past investors.
- Keep videos short and sweet. On TikTok, videos you upload can be up to three minutes long, but the average video is about 15 seconds. Work on summing up your message in a quick, digestible way to adhere to the short attention span of today’s social media users.
Explore TikTok
TikTok is a big world, but you can use the hashtag #FinTok to narrow the posts you see. Here are a few accounts that stand out to us:- @Johnsfinancetips: John Liang, a real estate investor, offers finance tips and explainers for tax and savings options. Watch him talk about why investing is better than saving.
- @YourRichBFF: Vivian Tu is an ex-Wall Street professional who brings her expertise to help younger investors “get rich.” In this TikTok, she breaks down the Earned Income Tax Credit for low-income earners.