How to use TikTok to Grow Your Instagram Following
Want to migrate your TikTok followers to Instagram, the right way? Read this quick article to learn how, and build an organic, genuine following.
Posted 2 years ago
Written by
Julia CohenPosted 2 years ago
TikTok has exponentially increased in popularity over the past three years (obviously as everyone and their brother is trying to replicate TikTok on their own platforms). As a platform that is specifically designed to encourage its users to take part in challenges, utilize their creative talents, and discover fun trends, it’s no surprise that the platform saw a huge uptick in users over the years. And, with over 750 million monthly users, that’s a lot of opportunities for audience conversions if you are trying to grow your Instagram following using TikTok, both organically and authentically.
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Why should you use TikTok?
On Instagram, you may use different types of content to achieve different goals. For example, when we spoke to Finn Mckenty, he spoke about the different content he uses to target potential audiences at different parts of the marketing funnel. Some posts were geared towards awareness, with some targeted at driving conversions. In a similar way, TikTok achieves a different goal from Instagram. As a much quicker, video and viewership-based platform, TikTok allows users to see success by going viral, and by sharing their original, unique, and entertaining ideas, in a very short timeframe. Therefore, TikTok is great for driving awareness and potentially migrating followers from platform to platform.
However, you can’t expect your Instagram followers to immediately migrate to TikTok, and vice versa especially if you are posting the same type of content on both platforms. The key to converting your audience is by hooking them with an original idea and making them want to see more and visit your page.
#1 Jump on the right trends at the right time
One of the best ways to grow a following on Instagram is by paying attention to what’s trending. A lot of users are suggested content on their ‘For You Page’ on TikTok based on what is popular – in other words, what is trending. You can find out what videos are trending by either swiping through your feed or by looking at the music section of TikTok. This will show you the top viral music of that moment, and likely will lead to a video trend related to that track which you can use for inspiration. Put your own spin on it to make your video unique and get people clicking. This is a great way to initially attract awareness, and views and drive users to your page.
💡Top tip: The more you post, the more your content is shown to wider audiences. There’s lots of room for experimentation on TikTok, so don’t be afraid to make a lot of content.
#2 Create unique content
One of the main ways to really drive conversions from TikTok to Instagram is by creating unique content or starting a trend from scratch. With millions of videos appearing on the For You Page of millions of users, just like Instagram, your content needs to stop scrollers in their tracks. Whether you have a unique story to share, are a dance aficionado and want to create a viral dance trend, or just want to create short and snappy comedy videos, get creative with your personal feed.
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Because TikTok is a platform that favors relatable content, you can take inspiration from your everyday life to create your videos. Think about what videos or memes you would share with your friends, as well as what you would deem ‘share worthy’, and try to recreate something similar – this is what will give your page that share-worthy impact that will give your content the momentum it needs to go viral. Once users see that you are creating unique, entertaining content, they are more likely to click on your profile and discover the other types of content you are creating.
💡Top tip: Sometimes mundane moments make the best material. Look around you for inspiration, whether it be common ‘moments’ that come up when you are talking to friends or typical things that happen to you at work. Also, think about spinning an existing challenge or trend on its head if you are struggling for ideas – sometimes the best inspiration comes from TikTok itself.
#3 Tease Instagram content within your TikTok videos to drive followers
Another way to drive conversions from TikTok to Instagram is by directly driving users from one platform to the other. For example, you can include text CTAs on your videos to drive viewers to either your TikTok or Instagram profiles. By teasing content on TikTok, and letting users know that they can find similar videos or creative posts on your Instagram feed, they may be compelled to click!
💡Top tip: You can also tease users by posting part of a video on your TikTok, directing users to your Instagram profile for ‘part 2’ or the rest of the video.
#4 Post across all of your channels
In order to drive initial traction, you can start posting some of your TikTok content on your Instagram feed. This lets your existing following know that you are posting on a new channel, and if they are interested they may join you. Also, make sure to share your TikTok videos on your Instagram Stories every time you post a new video – this lets users know that your content is connected and cohesive across all platforms – and, it’s also a great way to repurpose your existing content.
If you have any Instagram videos that you have already created that you think could work on TikTok, you can also try and post them there. What is important is that this will drive your initial traction and views on TikTok, meaning your videos will be shared to an even wider audience – who may not already be following you on the platform.
What’s the difference between Instagram Reels and TikTok?
One of the biggest reasons that TikTok has exploded throughout the years is because of its specialty. Unlike IG, it doesn’t try to be the best at absolutely everything. It knows exactly what it’s good at and sticks with it. It focuses solely on a vertical format that you can mindlessly, and endlessly scroll without a thought in the world. Whereas on Instagram, there are tons of features in one app that you can don’t mindlessly scroll and spend hours on the app like Instagram.
When it comes to growing your accounts on both channels, sometimes the best thing to do for you to get more people through the door is repurpose your content! If you’re already creating content for one of the platforms, you can use that same piece of content to grow elsewhere that you might not have known you had followers.
Why should you repurpose your content?
Repurposing content can help you save a lot of time and effort that you’ve already put into creating the original content. If you’re putting lots of time into shooting, editing, crafting captions, and more, you want to make that go as far as possible.
AKA: Repurpose!
Social media is a super fast-paced job and just because you posted content on one platform doesn’t mean it was seen by everyone. You’ll get more bang for your buck (and time!), if you post the content across all the platforms you can.
Can you post a Reel as a TikTok?
Yes, absolutely yes! If you’ve already created the content, why wouldn’t you make it into a TikTok? However, one of the most important things to do is make sure that you download your Instagram Reel without a watermark so it goes further for you on TikTok.
TikTok (and Instagram!) likes to downgrade videos that have watermarks from other platforms. If you’re unsure how to download a Reel without a watermark, here’s how to do just that:
How to download Instagram Reels without a watermark
If you’ve created the perfect Reel for yourself and want to post it on TikTok, here are our favorite websites to download Reels without a watermark:
Can you post a TikTok as a Reel?
Like above, yes! Make sure to repurpose your content across the board so you can get the most exposure and the most amount of people to engage with your content. Be sure to remove the TikTok watermark from your video before posting it.
How to download a TikTok without a watermark
If you want to download a TikTok video without a watermark, you’ll need to use a third-party converter like the three we mentioned above.
- To get started, you’ll need to find the video you want to download and copy its link.
- Then, simply paste the link into the converter and hit ‘Download’!
- Once the download is complete, you’ll be able to view the video in your camera roll or hard drive.
- And since there’s no watermark, feel free to post it wherever you’d like!
Tip: If you’re planning on reposting a TikTok with music to Instagram as a Reel, you’ll want to overlay audio from Instagram’s library rather than using the audio from TikTok. This will help make sure the video’s audio registers with Instagram’s algorithm.
Remember, TikTok is a place to get creative, be original and provide something unique to users, so don’t be afraid to try an idea you have and just be yourself. One of the great things about the platform is that it favors relatable content, so you know the followers you convert from TikTok to Instagram are both organic and genuine.
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