While it may seem complicated when you first start making videos, TikTok is actually pretty easy to use. In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about how to use TikTok that is how to make a TikTok account. These include watching, how to create and go viral on TikTok.
Getting started on TikTok
Generally to begin with, the very first step is of course downloading the TikTok app. Once you’ve gotten it on your smart device, follow the instructions below to set up your account but first click on the button below to download your TikTok app.
How to create a TikTok account
It's time to establish your TikTok account now that you've downloaded the app. You can watch videos and browse the For You page without creating an account, but you'll need one to like, comment on, message other accounts, and publish your own Content.
Here’s how to create a TikTok account:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the Me button at the bottom-right of the screen.
- Choose a method to sign up.
- Follow the app’s instructions.
You can sign up using an existing social network account, such as Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, or you can use your email address and phone number to make an account. It's entirely up to you which method you use.
Read Also: How To Make Money On Tiktok
How to change your TikTok username
If ever you decide to change your username, you can. In fact, you can change it as many times as you want — and it can be changed to just about anything you want, so long as the name isn’t already taken.
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the Me button at the bottom-right of the screen.
- Select Edit Profile.
- Tap your username.
- Tap the text field box to delete your old username and reenter your new one. When the green checkmark appears next to it, you’ll know it’s been approved.
Letters, digits, underscores, and periods are the only characters that can be used in your username, eventhough no periods can be used at the conclusion. Once every 30 days, you can change your TikTok username.
How to switch to a TikTok Pro account
When you sign up for a new TikTok account, automatically it will be a personal account. However, you can switch to a TikTok Pro account at any time.
Pro accounts are for businesses and creatives who want to access TikTok analytics and potentially make money from the platform. Here’s how to switch to a TikTok Pro account:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the Me button at the bottom-right of the screen.
- Tap the three horizontal dots at the top-right of the screen.
- Navigate to Manage Account > Switch to Pro Account
- Select either the Creator or Business account type.
- Choose which category best describes the type of content you’ll be creating.
You can switch back to a personal account at any time, but doing so will prevent you from using TikTok Analytics.
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It's time to learn how to make your own TikTok videos now that your profile is all set up and ready to go.
How to make your first TikTok video
Pushing a few buttons is all it takes to make a TikTok video. Here's how you can make your first TikTok video:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the + at the bottom of the screen.
- Hit the Add Sound button at the top of the screen and select your sound.
- Add any filters or effects you’d like to use.
- When you’re ready, press the red button at the bottom of the screen to record.
- Press the checkmark on the right side of the screen when your video is complete.
- Add any additional filters, sounds, text, or stickers.
- Press Next.
- Write a caption and fill out the video details.
- Press Post or save it to your Drafts to post later.
How to make your own sound on TikTok
While TikTok has a massive song library for you to choose from, you can also upload your own sound to the app.
Here’s how to do that:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Upload and publish a TikTok video using the above instructions with your own sound, and don’t add any additional sounds or voiceovers to it.
- Once the video is published, navigate to it on your profile.
- Press on the sound in the bottom-left corner of the video.
- Press “Add to Favorites.”
Now, whenever you make a new video, you can quickly locate and add the sound you previously submitted. You can also post it with restricted privacy settings if you don't want viewers to see the original video.
How to search effects and filters on TikTok
In addition to a massive library full of famous songs and funny sounds, TikTok is loved for its library of cool filters and unique effects to use on your video.
Here’s how to find and search through TikTok effects:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the + at the bottom of the screen.
- Press the Effects button at the bottom-left of the screen.
From there, you can navigate through the library tabs such as Trending, New, Funny, and Animal, and select which one you want to try.
How to find your drafts on TikTok
If you’re saving videos to your Drafts, either to publish later or because you’re unsure if you want to post them, you want to know how to find them.
Here’s how to find your Drafts on TikTok:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the Me button at the bottom-right of the screen.
- Press the left tab on your profile.
This is your Draft Library, where you'll find all of your video Drafts. By touching on the video and adding a caption, you may easily share them to your profile. It's crucial to understand that if you deactivate the TikTok app, all of your drafts will be lost.
Browsing TikTok and watching videos
While creating videos on TikTok is entertaining, the app's main purpose is to allow you to browse and view videos on your own time.
For You vs. Following
On your TikTok home page, there are two tabs you can use to browse videos. The one that will pop up automatically is the For You page.
The For You page is the first page that opens when you open your TikTok app. Similar to the Discover tab on Instagram, the For You page is a curated feed of popular videos from accounts that you might not follow yet. Accounts you follow can also appear on the For You page, as it’s tailored to contain the type of video content you watch and interact with the most.
The Following tab, on the other hand, is a feed simply of the accounts you’re following.
How to get TikTok to show you videos you like
Because each For You page is tailored to the interests of the app user, it's critical to understand how to manipulate the algorithm to get TikTok to show you videos you enjoy.
Based on what you view, like, and share, the app decides which videos to place on your For You page. So the most crucial thing for you to do is to watch and like videos that you enjoy. Here are a few more ideas for making your For You page genuinely yours:
- Follow accounts that post content you like.
- Search for keywords and sounds that show videos you like.
- Share videos you like with friends.
All of these behaviors will alert TikTok to the type of content you're looking for, and your For You page will start to reflect it soon.
How to find a specific video on TikTok
The best way to make sure you can easily access a video you like on TikTok is to “like” it. Pressing the heart button will move the TikTok video to your Liked Library, which can be found by clicking the Me tab.
Here's how to find the video if you didn't save it to the Liked Library:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the Discover button at the bottom-left of the page.
- Tap on the Search bar.
- Type in the video creator’s username, the name of the sound they used, or any hashtags you remember seeing on the caption.
- Scroll through the results until you find the video you’re looking for.
How to watch a TikTok Live
Like other social media platforms, TikTok users have the ability to go live and interact with their followers in real-time.
Here’s how to watch a TikTok Live:
- Open the TikTok app.
- Press the Discover button at the bottom-left of the screen.
- Type the word “live” into the search bar at the top of the screen.
- Press the “See more” button under the “LIVE now” section that appears.
- Scroll through until you find a Live video you want to watch.
- Tap the video to start watching the live.
While watching a live video, you can comment and ask questions to the person who is going live.
How to slow down a TikTok video that you are watching
The TikTok videos you're watching might be moving a little too quickly at times. Fortunately, you can easily slow them down so you can take in all of the information. You will, however, need to utilize Snapchat for this, so make sure you have it downloaded.
Here’s how to slow down a TikTok video you’re watching:
- Open your TikTok app.
- Navigate to the video you wish to slow down.
- Press the share button (which looks like an arrow pointing right) at the bottom-right of the screen.
- Tap the Snapchat icon under the “Share to” tab.
- Scroll right on the Snapchat filters until you reach the snail icon, which puts the video in slow motion.
Viola! You can use this to watch a TikTok video in slow motion.
Conclusion on how to make a TikTok account
We hope this guide helped you understand the ins and outs of TikTok, whether you're wanting to develop your online profile or just spend some downtime scrolling through the For You page.