How to Create TikTok Content with TikTok Coach Samantha Vlasceanu
February 21, 2023
As a busy business owner, I certainly don’t want to waste all of my time on social media. And I’m sure I’m not alone. If you’ve been following along with this social media series, you know that there are many platforms demanding your attention and even more ways to use these platforms as marketing tools. From Facebook ads to Twitter chats and more, you have many options for getting in front of your audience or growing your network.
If you’re considering TikTok for your business, make sure you’re using it efficiently. To do that, you need to know how to create TikTok content in a way that feels good for you and also doesn’t take up all of your time. You didn’t start your business to be a social media influencer. You started it to do whatever the heck it is that lights you up. Which is exactly why it’s important to learn how to create TikTok content quickly…and how to give yourself the grace to do it imperfectly as well. Because imperfect action is better than no action at all.
Now, if you’re one of the business owners who have a fear of performing or you’re worried about talking on screen, our guest expert, Samantha Vlasceanu, also known as the TikTok coach, wants to reassure you that there is absolutely no need to stress about this. There are so many options for all types of people to use the platform in a way that they’re comfortable.
In this episode of the Talk Copy to Me podcast, Samantha talks about how introverts (and anyone really) can approach video content creation without anxiety, and how to quickly create TikTok content that can be easily found by your ideal clients.
Wondering how to create TikTok content without wasting too much time online? Here’s what Samantha and Erin want you to know:
How TikTok content creation is a lot like learning how to kiss for the first time
The advice Samantha has to give about consistency that differs from most other TikTok coaches
What percent of working time Samantha thinks business owners should spend on social media
The reminder that joining a new platform is learning process; even the professional content creators are still practicing
How to incorporate storytelling or skits into your TikTok content
A five-day process for creating your first ten pieces of TikTok content that is easy (I’m not telling the secrets here, but definitely make sure you’re listening in at about the 19th minute!)
TikTok content creation tips so you’re always ahead and never falling behind on your regular posting schedule
SEO on TikTok: The role it plays right now and how it will change in the near and not-so-near future.
Other podcast episodes and resources mentioned in this episodes:
When asked who she’d like to meet, Samantha said the first person who came to mind was her mention, Rachel Peterson.
Samantha’spredictions for TikTok in 2023 (and Erin’s thoughts, too!):
Demographics are changing and so is advertising on TikTok
It’s important to be present where you audience spends their time, right?
Gen Z has had their time on TikTok. In 2023, Samantha predicts that people age 40 and older will be finding their way to the platform. She says, “They’ll be the highest growth on TikTok. This will tell me that a lot of businesses will also be jumping on or should be jumping on because your audience is on there.”
And it’s not just age group that she’s paying attention to. Samantha also sees that with the growth TikTok will have, it will also be a great place to advertise because the audience will be on there—some for the very first time.
Quotes about TikTok content creation from the Erin and Samantha Vlasceanu, your new TikTok coach
“Think of TikTok like kissing. When you first start kissing, yeah, it’s awkward. It’s cringy. But you’ve got to do it in order to get practice. Because you can read all the books out there about kissing and how to do so. But until you actually start practicing, it won’t get any better.” – Samantha Vlasceanu
“We have to give ourselves some grace. Learning a new platform or going all in on TikTok is a learning process…You are a TikTok coach; yet you’re still practicing. And that’s how good content is created. Period.” – Erin Ollila
“As a business owner, the social media portion of our job is probably like 10%. It should be 10%. It shouldn’t be your full time job be on social media.” – Samantha Vlasceanu
“It’s not as performative as standing on a stage or standing at the Super Bowl knowing you have that one kick, because that kick, that’s how the Super Bowl ended this year, with one kick to score the final points in the last couple seconds. Imagine being that dude? There’s a lot of pressure that goes into one kick. TikTok should not be that amount of pressure.” – Erin Ollila
“I want everyone to know that as a small business owner, doing short form video marketing—one TikTok video can change your entire business. It really can. You’re only one TikTok video away from that.” – Samantha Vlasceanu
Go grab the perfect username and do some hashtag research on what your audience is using
Samantha says, “Lock in the SEO username that you can’t lock in as a domain name.”
At first I wasn’t sure exactly what she meant, but she explained that claiming a descriptive username—like a job title or business name—helps your audience quickly find you.
She says, “So what I mean by this is if you’re a coach for new coaches become @coachfornewcoaches. If you’re a Toronto photographer lock down @Torontophotographer. I know a lot of people like to use their names in their business days, but nobody knows who you are.”
And the username isn’t the only thing your new TikTok coach wants you to concentrate on. She also wants you to do hashtag research to make sure you’re using hashtags that your audience would use…not hashtags related to your industry or offers.
And I don’t know about you, but I definitely needed a reminder of the hashtag research and how we need to adjust the type of hashtags we use. If you keep using your industry-specific hashtags, the people who follow you and interact with your content are going to be your competitors…not your potential clients.
Maybe this is why the majority of the people I chat with on Instagram are copywriters just like I am. 🤪
Learn about our guest expert: the TikTok Coach, Samantha Vlasceanu
Samantha Vlasceaunu, The TikTok Coach, is on a mission to convince businesses and brands that TikTok is not just for our teenagers (and no dancing required)!
When COVID-19 hit, her other travelling business had to shut down and she had to pivot – FAST. That’s when she realized that she’d been organically reaching her audience on TikTok all along and realized the power TIkTok could have for businesses if they gave them a chance. Fast forward to today, Sam works with marketing agencies, coaches, lawyers, corporate Brands – you name it! Sam ensures all her clients are using the app with intention as a sales funnel in finding their target audience and coaching the strategies of converting their followers into ACTUAL paying clients.
Erin Ollila believes in the power of words and how a message can inform – and even transform – its intended audience. She graduated from Fairfield University with an M.F.A. in Creative Writing, and went on to co-found Spry, an award-winning online literary journal.
When Erin’s not helping her clients understand their website data or improve their website copy, you can catch her hosting the Talk Copy to Me podcast and guesting on shows such as Profit is a Choice, The Driven Woman Entrepreneur, Go Pitch Yourself, and Counsel Cast.
Stay in touch with Erin Ollila, SEO website copywriter:
Learn more about Erin’s VIP Day options if you’d like to learn more about working together
Here’s the transcript for episode 054 with guest expert Samantha Vlasceanu, the TikTok coach, so you know exactly how to create TikTok content for your business
NOTE: This podcast was transcribed by an AI tool. Please forgive any typos or errors.
SPEAKERS
Erin Ollila, Samantha Vlasceanu
Erin Ollila 00:00
Today I am here with Samantha Vlasceanu. And she is talking to us all about tick tock. Why? Because she’s the TikTok coach, and she’s the perfect person to have this conversation. But what you don’t necessarily know about Samantha, is that she actually started her 15 minutes of fame on the why TV show up. Oh, when she was 10 years old, and she got slimed on the show. So tell me everything. I did not know that you became famous at the age of 10. I think this is thrilling. How did it feel to be a 10 year old on TV getting slimed? It was
Samantha Vlasceanu 00:36
like having a 1.5 million followers on Tiktok. About comparison. Like, oh, like I’m famous now. Oh, my gosh, this is amazing. You’re like, who are you?
Erin Ollila 00:47
Well, I mean, honestly, what I thought of when I heard that is like, I can’t even imagine going back into school. Like were you in like a public school system at the time? Yeah.
Samantha Vlasceanu 00:55
So they brought the whole school in for a field trip to the show. And so they selected some contestants. And I felt like I just like, hit the jackpot. I was like, I’m gonna be so popular now.
Erin Ollila 01:06
Yeah, like, it’s like, you cannot come out of being slammed on TV, especially in front of the kids in your school, without like, automatically getting all the street cred that you deserved in that moment. So I guess we can say you started being comfortable on the screen at an early age. Did you do anything from those, like early days of being on TV at 10 to now your Tiktok career? Or was it more that you knew you could? So that’s when you jumped into tic tac
Samantha Vlasceanu 01:35
toe? Actually, Aaron, I am actually was one of the worst presenters getting in front of people, very nervous talking in front of anyone, especially a classroom full of like 20 judgy peers. And so no, I was actually more of an introvert is believe it or not becoming a tick tock coach was all by accident, when my first business failed, there was an opportunity where I saw tick tock would be the next platform bigger than Instagram bigger than Facebook, if I just learned this at an early on opportunity. And learn it from a business perspective as opposed to just a content creator.
Erin Ollila 02:08
I really love the way that you said that. Because you know, part of I think what drives people to not do tick tock content is the fear, right? Or like the anxiety of like getting up on stage, especially feeling as if they have to be presenting or like performing at all times. And especially the introvert business owners, there’s a lot of pressure that comes to that, because it’s like, you’re not necessarily doing something that is natural for you. So I love that you came to tictac knowing that it would be a smart business decision, but not necessarily being the person who wants to like be on stage with jazz hands at all times. Do you have any advice for the people who are listening that feel that anxiety about tick tock about how to move past that and just kind of get started?
Samantha Vlasceanu 02:55
Absolutely. I don’t want to come on screen. It feels like it’s so easy. I’m an extrovert. So it must be very easy for you for me. But the truth is, it probably will take probably took me over 100 videos to get comfortable. And that was probably when it started getting bigger for you. Because after all had your videos. And so think of tick tock like kissing when you first start kissing. Yeah, it’s awkward. It’s cringy. But you got to do it in order to get practice because you can read all the books out there about kissing and how to do so. But until you actually start practicing, it won’t get any better.
Erin Ollila 03:30
I think this is my I think this is my absolute favorite thing anyone has said so far and the entire interviews I’ve done for a social media. It’s like think of tick tock like the first time we were kissing and I’m like, yes, yes, this is great.
Samantha Vlasceanu 03:44
It’s awkward for yourself. It’s awkward for a person watching. And it’s okay. Are you wonder,
Erin Ollila 03:49
Am I doing this? Right, right? Like, you know, like, what is the other person thinks so it should be like your audience like, what is my audience thinking of me? You know? No, that’s perfect. I know, you said it takes about 100 videos, do you think that that could potentially be like the average for someone or is it more just like the consistency of showing up and putting things out there.
Samantha Vlasceanu 04:11
So a lot of people a lot of other Tik Tok coaches will say that you got posts like three to five times a day in order to grow on this platform. And I disagree, because they’re usually preaching to content creators or influencers whose little job is to be on social media. But as a business owner, our social media portion of our job is probably like 10%, it should be 10% It shouldn’t be your full time job be on social media, especially if you’re not in marketing the world. And so does does posting more, make your videos better? Probably yes, because you’re getting more practice, but does not mean that you have to do so in order to grow your account. And I prefer to get my audience to produce quality content as opposed to just quick short surface level content, if that makes sense.
Erin Ollila 04:59
Yeah, that makes perfect makes sense. And I think that you know, when I first heard you talking when you’d say like other coaches will say, to posts three to five times a day, like my first reaction was like, Oh, it was Snapdragon no way like, ah, like three to five times a day, man, I don’t even know if I go to bathroom enough during the day, like, you know, like, we’re like, how much water? am I drinking? Like, I can’t show up on ticked up that many times. Exactly. Like, and again, I am an extroverted introvert. So me being on the performance stage isn’t a problem. But it’s the amount of like energy that I would need to be able to do that. So I, again, I think these like these several things that we hear the advice that we hear is really kind of what holds people back. So I think partially, it’s like what you say like, it’s not necessary. It’s more like, yes, you have to be present. Yes, you have to show up consistently. Yes, you have to be there a lot. But you don’t have to set a standard for yourself, that you you need to be on the platform five times a day in order to get the ball rolling.
Samantha Vlasceanu 05:58
Exactly. And if you’re, if you’re if whoever’s listening right now, if you’re like myself, like Aaron, who’s procreated, a couple of little Gremlins coming out of us. Chances are, you’re busy, you’re busy outside your business, you have a family that you’re also responsible for. So I don’t expect my clients to ever have to post three to five times a day in order to grow.
Erin Ollila 06:19
Imagine that someone’s listening right now is saying to themselves, you know, I’m really curious about tic tac like, I’m excited by the idea of it, but I still feel like I have no clue what the heck to do. Do you have any advice for the like, starting out people to kind of jump in and get going? Yeah, so Okay, so
Samantha Vlasceanu 06:35
my first my first tips in order to like you know, get show up on tick tock is that, avoid talking about your products and services, just avoid all that, you want to make sure that your content is focused on there hear of your content, and the hero of your content is never yourself, your services, your products, it’s actually your audience and their pain point. And you want to find a way where you can add value by solving their pain points for them. So the first way I will say is, start off with your top 10 FAQ, you get asked. So for example, maybe you sell plus size, bikinis for curvy women. So maybe while your topics could be like, different ways of dressing different body shapes, not really necessarily buy your products, but you’re showing that you’re an expert that when you start off with that way, I want you to always remember when you’re creating content, don’t try to sound smart. Every time when people try to sound super smart, they tried Kravid so much information in a 30 or 42nd video, that it becomes so overwhelming for their audience that they’ll just end up be like, I have no idea what this video is about. I’m just gonna scroll away, because now you’re using jargons, you’re trying to sell super smart. But what I want you to aim for is keep it simple and talk at a grade five reading level. Why? Because the new cycle is that a great five reading level, it’s for the general population to understand. And that’s a great way just to get practice ID to keep yourself concise to the point and keep it short at 30 seconds.
Erin Ollila 08:01
Yeah. And I think if you think about the attention that we all have, right, like, you know, this is something that I’ve kind of been curious myself as I create, you know, audio grams, video grams for the podcast, it’s like, I hear a clip of the conversation. I’m like, wow, this is really good. It’s a total of five minutes. And I’m like, nobody, nobody is going to be listening. Maybe on YouTube. Sure. That’d be a great little five minute video. But if you want to repurpose content as part of your structure of like your video content on a platform like Tic Tac, or Instagram, you really have to look for that ad bitty clip. Think of it? I don’t know, maybe I’m wrong here. So let me ask this as a question with the clips that you’re sharing specifically for repurposing not for like new content creation that you’re like, you know, filming yourself or creating, like, some type of educational content would repurposing clips work best if they are kind of like the hook, like in the sense of like that, like you have to capture the attention with that piece of content and then maybe they’ll continue to consume your content after that.
Samantha Vlasceanu 09:03
So you always do want to have a hook your all your videos, repurposing content. I mean, yes. Okay, so that the Gary Vee model that’s what I call it, the repurposing that he always calls it calls it like document as opposed to content creation. I think he he’s a little bit more privileged to do that, as opposed to most of us who don’t have a team also aren’t like always on stage. And it’s very fluid for us to talk and all that’s where we don’t have as much practice as Gary Vee. That is not to say that his method isn’t always easy. It’s not easy for you to do as well like doing B roll films, or filming yourself while on a sales call. Or filming yourself while coaching on a session or be a guest on one of the podcast episodes is a great way to create content as well. You do always want to include a hook though like so your hook is essentially what you hear a lot of people talk about is you have three seconds to capture your audience’s attention. And within your hook. You should be able to address the three questions that will Most people have in their minds when they’re scrolling on social media, which is, is this video even for me? Is this video going to solve a specific people going through? And does she or he selling an expert what she’s talking about this topic, okay. And so you want to add a text hook, if you’re going to repurpose some of your own content while you’re on a sales call on a conference or doing a speaking event. That’s where you can also add your hook into the text in your video itself.
Erin Ollila 10:26
Isn’t it wild that you just have three seconds to really kind of capture someone’s attention? I mean, I know it. And I think we all as I understand it, especially as content consumers, and not necessarily creators. But when we think about like creating the content, and really like driving immediate value, or like attention, grabbing three seconds just seems like such a small amount of time.
Samantha Vlasceanu 10:49
Three seconds is a very short amount of time. But yeah, like it does take practice. Like even my for myself, I’m still always working over hooks, hooks will either make or break your video and you have gold content at it. By also the watch will be hung up on it. Again, it just takes practice and practice to just get better and better at it.
Erin Ollila 11:07
Yeah, which I mean, which really kind of draws in the idea of like, we have to kind of give ourselves some grace that like learning a new platform or like going all in on tick tock is a learning process. And like I love that how you phrase so many things today, like you are a tick tock coach, yet you’re still practicing. And that’s how good content is created. Period. Like I will stand on a soapbox for anyone who is like, Oh, yes, I’m a professional now that I’ve mastered this, I know exactly what I’m doing. No, I have been like, I’ve owned my own business for almost seven years. I’ve been writing for like a billion it feels like, Dude, I am still trying to like better myself learn new things. Even the things that I know when I feel like I’m very competent at my skills. I keep practicing them. It’s like the Superbowl just happened in America. And you do you think those football players don’t practice? Like, that would be outrageous. The idea to think that like, you know, these pro sports people are not practicing because they already have the skill. And I think, you know, we have to kind of look at our attempts to be on a platform, especially one that is video based, like tick tock is and understand that we’re practicing and every one of our efforts, we should be patient in grace, give ourselves some grace throughout the practice. But yeah, if you need anything to make you feel better throughout this whole practice thing. Remember, the consumers of the Tik Tok content. Not I wouldn’t say that they have low expectations, but they’re seeing this everywhere throughout Tik Tok, it’s not just your account, like they don’t click over just to Aaron’s account and say, I can tell Aaron is practicing right now. They’re seeing tiny like 32nd clips from all the other content creators, they are seeing people have like really great videos, and then some not so great videos. But the point is, like, if you make it worth their while to keep watching, they’re giving you that grace to their understanding that you’re providing a value or you’re providing entertainment, whatever kind of field it is that you have. So it’s not as performative as standing on a stage or standing at the Super Bowl, knowing you have that one kick, because that cut, that’s how the Super Bowl ended, was the one kick to kind of like score the final points in the last couple seconds. Imagine me in that dude, like, there’s a lot of pressure that goes into one kick, tic tac should not be that amount of pressure. It should, I would, I would say like, if you’re having a little fun with it, that’s how you know you’re gonna get better content, right? Like versus putting that pressure on yourself to to act as if that video is that one kick?
Samantha Vlasceanu 13:48
Absolutely. And I think a lot of people who start out with tick tock or short form videos, they always try to compare themselves to someone who’s already been in industry, or doing this for years. And they think that I now have to be able to edit these crazy transitions or have all these crazy lighting and like, I have the perfect way of messaging again. But honestly, it’s your own journey. And I want to I do want everyone to know that like as a small business owner, doing short form video marketing, one, tick tock video can change your entire business, it really can’t. You only one tick tock video away from that. But again, it does take practice to just get started. Build up that consistency, learn how to do to edit a lot quicker, so you’re not absorbed and all that time, understand what works, how to message, how to format your messages, how to frame your videos, etc. So be just be patient go.
Erin Ollila 14:40
Yeah, I love that. Now let’s kind of talk a little bit about you or even maybe some of your clients and how you advise them. What type of content has worked really well for you on the platform, and what kind of content hasn’t worked so much.
Samantha Vlasceanu 14:53
Okay. So when it comes to video marketing, the easiest form of doing Video Marketing is educating with thought tips because you’re a thought leader. And it’s just easy for you to go here and three mistakes most entrepreneurs are making when it comes to social media great 123. They’re easy for us to do, because you already know those information. And it’s just easy to fill off the bat. The problem with that is that people don’t retain as much, right. So if you’ve put it into a story format, people are able to retain eight times more information, just do the exact same information just told it a different format, like a story format. And so what I mean by story format, it could be from your own personal experience. It could be from your own clients experience before they worked with you, or using an everyday example, like, why you shouldn’t open up your videos like this, that’s like going on a date. And I’d say the exact same dates, your date, blah, blah, people can usually relate back to an everyday experience, or they can see all that is a big mistake, because I wouldn’t want that either. Or even doing it in a skit format. skits are a huge for my clients, they usually make them go very viral very quickly. It’s because it relates back to the emotions these characters are feeling at that moment. It doesn’t have to be a complicated skit. It could just be like you talking to a client like, Well, why should I do this with my website? Well, reason is because blah, blah, blah. It’s a two way audience. I can relate back to the character who has that silly question that you do as an expert, but nobody else wants to ask you because they look silly for asking you. But it goes through a lot of people’s head.
Erin Ollila 16:28
I love those ideas, too. And I think that they’re very approachable, right? You know what I mean? Like, you know, if you can look at, you know, I’m a big storytelling drives, everything is hard drives, websites, it drives emails, it drives all forms of marketing. And I always say I think in some ways were in the online business world, at least we’re taught not the correct approach to storytelling. Like we don’t need drama. We don’t need anything, we just need a personal touch. That’s it a personal touch, right? So it’s like, with your example of like, kind of like sharing like something about a client, like the pre skit thing that you had said, maybe it’s a simple thing, like, hey, when Sally called me, she was almost in tears. Why? Because their dog couldn’t stop pooping on the floor, right? And then you talk about like house cleaning stuff. Like, it doesn’t have to be like, Oh, in third grade, I got bullied, right? But it’s just like, bring something a little humorous and bring something that’s every day or more mundane minutia. But people will get that they’ll be like, Oh, my gosh, when I first adopted my dog, I had that same problem. And I was like, I’ll never be able to have anyone at my house again. Right. But it’s the hook innocence. Right. It’s the story hook. And then the skits. I agree. I see a lot of skits that are fun. And I think they’re the perfect way to dip your toe in, when you’re nervous about performing. Like versus like showing up. Right? So it’s like, you’re comfortable kind of like hopping on filming yourself sharing. And you’re like, Oh, I’m not really comfortable dancing. I don’t want to be a dancer yet. Cool. You don’t need to a teeny tiny little skit is all you need to kind of like, build that muscle to get familiar to do it more in an acting way versus like a personal brand way. Yeah,
Samantha Vlasceanu 18:08
absolutely. And again, like if you’re an introvert, you feel this is very out of your comfort zone, stick with a stick with the hot tips. First, build all your confidence on that, but record one line at a time so that you don’t feel like you have to memorize your entire 30 seconds script, which feels like an eternity when you’re talking to a red dot believes it’s a lot easier for you to match your copy of your facial to your copy of what the copy of your face words.
Erin Ollila 18:34
Now, let me ask you a question about like the filming process, because and I know this is definitely one of those like, it’s going to depend for the Creator. But for the people who are just started or like, you know, kind of developing the muscle at this point in time. Do you recommend taking the batch creation approach? Do you recommend doing it in the moment is there a better way to making actually I guess we keep saying the word muscle but it’s like building the filming muscle and like that, that part of the process so that you keep creating content, Oh, guys,
Samantha Vlasceanu 19:06
write this down, write this down.
Erin Ollila 19:08
I’m ready, I got my pen on the side for my show notes. So I’ll start taking the notes for everyone.
Samantha Vlasceanu 19:12
This is what I want you guys to do in terms of getting better at Video Marketing, okay, and be efficient with your time as a CEO of your own company. So write all this out. Day one, you are now going to spend one hour doing research on the six to 10 topics that you’re gonna want to do on and you can do Google searches or look at blogs or anything that you’ve already posted before and pass as you guys go right all six to 10 IDs down day two, you’re now going to spend an hour figuring out the format’s of what you’re gonna say and the scripting of it. So maybe you just highlight the key takeaway of each idea so you don’t get confused yourself and feel overwhelming your audience. Day three. You are now going to block off in your calendar every two weeks on a Tuesday from 9am to 12pm. And you’re going to focus on only filming six to 10 content in three Three hours, okay, and you got to treat it like an exam, where you are not going to spend three hours on one, one video idea, because now you’re gonna get like 10 marks out of 100 you’re gonna spend three hours on completing all six to 10 videos and be allowing yourself to know that it’s not going to be perfect. I just move on. Okay, day four is where you’re going to edit or you’re going, Okay, you gotta block off your calendar for two hours, edit all your videos. The reason why I want you to just focus on editing on this day that are the previous day is because on day three, you really got dressed up your you got your makeup on, you got your bra, you got pants on, you’re focused on filming. If you’re in the right mindset, on day four, you can just edit before going to bed, you don’t have to be in the right mindset for that. Okay, day five to day 10 is where you’re now going to post maybe one a day, you’re gonna have all your captions saved on your Tik Tok, you’re gonna have all your hashtags already say just hey, you post post post one a day and then engage back for 15 minutes. And that way you’re spreading. Once you get to this process, you should be spending around nine hours every two weeks on tick tock, which is about 30 minutes a day. doable.
Erin Ollila 21:12
Yeah, totally doable. And I love that in the sense. It’s kind of like, I’m someone and not that I think this has to be the right approach but longer form content, non social content, I really like to be working ahead on things like meaning like have some podcast episode or the the edited film just in that scheduled function. So I know what’s going to be there. Same for blog content, like I like extra stuff being there. So I love that you say like six to 10 topics. But even when we look at days five through 10, if we’re posting one a day, then we have a couple, right, like so it’s like that one day, you’re like wake up and like it’s supposed to be a recording day. And you’re like I can not function? Nope. Like we talked earlier, like our kids have been sick, like, we cannot stop moving past our snotty noses, right? Like, that’s life, though it happens. So I’m not saying that you should skip a recording for a week or however you determined to set it up on your schedule. But if you push it one day back, you still have a couple of videos you could use, right? And then when we look at it from like an editorial calendar standpoint, because something I’m obviously we’re not talking about working this far ahead. But sometimes when I talk about like longer term planning and scheduling, my clients are like, six months of blog content, like but what if something happens? Or what if the news like interrupts this and like something like major happens, and I need to comment on it? And I’m like, can we just pause our editorial calendar, and like, throw that news related thing in, right. So if there’s a trend that works really good for your business, if there is like, again, something within the news or entertainment or something that’s like maybe you have a new product that gets launched, way faster than you expected, all of those extra pieces of content that you’ve created, especially if they’re evergreen, can kind of wait for you while you jump in and do whatever is time related. So you don’t have to worry that like, now that you’ve created so much content, you’re never going to be able to say anything until that content is done. No, it’s kind of like building a content pool for yourself that you can pull from when you need it.
Samantha Vlasceanu 23:11
Absolutely.
Erin Ollila 23:12
Let me ask a question. That’s kind of a little bit of a strange one. But I’m excited to kind of bring this into the social media conversation, especially since Instagram has, you know, clearly said that they’re going to make an effort to drive SEO related content. So do you see that coming into Tik Tok? And if so, do you ever try to lightly SEO up your content so that way you get a better group of people coming to you.
Samantha Vlasceanu 23:39
So I know a lot of people know this. But tick tock essentially has partnered up with Google. And so if you’re say you make let’s let’s choose a very okay, mortgage broker, maybe you’re a mortgage broker, and you’re starting out as a mortgage broker in the New York area. Well guess what chances are you ever ranking number one in New York as a mortgage broker is like, very, very slim. But we’re Tik Tok has partnered up with Google, you actually ranked number one on short form videos on the first page of Google. So SEO is a big is becoming bigger and bigger on Tik Tok. And it’s mattering a lot more in terms of what you say. So the words that they’re picking up, as well as the text you include in your actual video. Because what you say is not usually how someone was searched for someone like you and so you want to try and maximize the SEO side on Tik Tok as much as you can. I do see tick tock in the next like three to five years becoming the next search engine platform for people searching for like how to tie a tie or like how to like Bob hacks for toddler Bob’s like those kind of things I could see happening. It’s already happening on tick tock, but I could see it more and more happening. It’s gonna be competing against Google on that side. It’s also gonna be competing against Google and other platforms in terms of like beating the bell in terms of ads, because tick tock is now becoming more versatile in the sense that It’s gonna not only be on your phone, it’s going to be in restaurants what your what your food, it’s gonna be right beside you at play beside you. It’s going to be the elevator. It’s gonna be everywhere besides just your phone. So the SEO side is really, really important on Tik Tok.
Erin Ollila 25:13
Yeah, I agree. I remember sometime last year, someone had said to me in a conversation like, well, you know, tiktoks just ended Google’s reign or something like that. And I was like, Yeah, okay, sure, whatever. But, but, but it’s like, it really kind of hit me so hard because of being an SEO. And I’m like, I’m gonna need to do a little bit more research into this. And sure enough, tick tock has superseded Google’s most visited web domain in the sense of search. Now, does that mean that Google is no longer no longer a search engine? No, of course not. But I mean, it is actually interesting now and 2023, to see what’s going to be happening with Bing and AI, I think SEO is going to be on a wild ride an exciting ride to. But here’s where we have to think about tick tock. It’s the age of the users. So younger people are not going to Google to ask questions, they are going to tick tock to ask questions. And for a while, like I’m an older millennial. So for a while, I’m like, what is happening here? Like, why the heck would you go to tick tock for this? But here’s why. Because they can have like fam a question about like cleaning, and you go to tick tock, you see someone cleaning, you go to Google, and it’s instructions. So if this is not a native skill for you, everyone, I go to tick tock to see cleaning videos, I’m gonna be honest. But it’s not a native skill for you having someone show you how to do it. In a short, like one minute clip, is the or less is the perfect way to get like the momentum going. So I love to like I love the idea that while we don’t know exactly what SEO is happening within tick tock right now, it is definitely going to be built into the platform. It is definitely people are using it with the same intent that they use Google, they have a very specific question. And they want an answer. So as a business owner, don’t you want to show up as the question? I mean, as the answer to the questions that they have you do, trust me, you do. So I mean, I don’t think we need to like be developing SEO strategies before we sit down to film anything. But I do think that when we like maybe, right, when you sit down to write what goes with the video, we should probably be thinking, how are people searching? And that’s how we should kind of be phrasing a lot of what we title the things that we’re doing. All right, perfect. So let’s final tic tac specific question before we go into our like, ending questions, but if someone is using tic tac like they have been putting in the work, and they’re truly not seeing traction at all right now, they don’t want to give up. They are excited about it. But they’re feeling a little demotivated. What would you say to them? If you you know, kind of like did a strategy session or talking to someone who said those pain points? Do you
Samantha Vlasceanu 27:56
trust me, guys? I’ve been in that boat too. I’m like, wow, these are great content, like what happened here? Just here’s a couple of ways, okay, so take that original video and change up the first three, five seconds, that can make a huge difference. The second thing is take that exact same content that you had, and put it into a different format. So maybe it was a talking video now include they’ll do it, redo it in a green screen video. Or maybe you can redo it with a to a skit. Or maybe we could do it with a lipstick game. Or maybe we could do it with a storytelling with audio music kind of play up that emotional URL. So feel, okay. So take us just reuse essentially. And the third thing I would say, when your videos are not doing really well just go out onto tick tock and start engaging with other people, your industry and give back first, you give back, it’ll come back to your with your way. You’re also borrowing their followers to see your insightful comment. That way, you’re also showing up on their page, other people will see your comment. So insight to something similar that the other workout was offering advice on and you’re leveraging, you’re leveraging their audience. So that will help you as well.
Erin Ollila 29:05
Yeah, that’s definitely definitely the case. And I mean, honestly, like the whole social part. It’s like, we are approaching this as a marketing tool. We are using it for business, but it all boils down to we have to be social on social media, right? Like we have to build those connections and start engaging as well. I kind of feel like you already gave this answer. So I’ll give you an easy out here. If you decide you want to just stick with what you said before about your days one through 10. But based on our conversation, if you could give a simple and easy homework assignment to the listeners, what would you give them
Samantha Vlasceanu 29:37
if you’re a creative account? One thing I’ll say is lock in the SEO username that you cannot lock it as a domain name. Okay, so what I mean by this is like if you’re a coach for new coaches become at coaches for new coaches. If you’re a Toronto photographer locket at Toronto photography Okay, I know a lot of people like to use their names in their business days, but nobody knows who you are. So don’t waste the opportunity where you can actually lock in something that nobody else is using and maybe create two accounts just for safety purposes. But chances are, nobody else will take your business name if three of its three has a debate to it. So that’s one thing. The second thing is I want to do hashtag research on your audience or what they’re using. You want to create posts with hashtags more about what your audience is using, as opposed to what you do and what you’re talking about. Because what’s going to end up happening is if say, I am a mortgage broker and I keep using hashtag mortgage broker, hashtag lender, hashtag financial advisor, hashtag fights expert, my content is gonna go out to other mortgage brokers and finance expert. So just make it simple for Tik Tok, and just create, hashtag or use more hashtags when your audience is easy.
Erin Ollila 30:57
That is such an important point. And you know why? I mean, maybe it’s just me personally hearing this so other people don’t feel the same way. I completely fall in this trap. Like I know better. It’s like know better do better. And I do better for a while and then a Kate and then I like, catch myself, but I’m like, What the heck is happening here? Like, why? How did I go from like, this group of hashtags that were performing really well, that attracted new people, because that’s the whole point, right? That is the whole point, like widening the audience building the network. And then all of a sudden, I’m like, copywriter, website copywriter, SEO and I’m like, no, like, you know, better like you. How did you get from there to here? So I think, honestly, we get used to, we just kind of fall in the same trap over and over and over again. So even if you’re doing excellent on tech tag, that’s great advice for you to like, go back and review what you’re doing for hashtags.
Samantha Vlasceanu 31:47
I think you also do, because subconsciously, the short term gain is that you get to engage with from other copywriters, they get what you do, they get what you’re talking about, but they’re not your ideal clients.
Erin Ollila 31:56
totally valid, totally helpful. I love that you say that. If you could meet anyone in the world right now, who would it be and why?
Samantha Vlasceanu 32:05
I mean, I would love to be one of my mentors, Rachel Peterson. She’s amazing. I’ll tick tock. She just seems like a very genuine person. Yeah, that’s the one I’m probably I probably tell you guys all to follow her as well.
Erin Ollila 32:17
What are your predictions for tick tock in 2023.
Samantha Vlasceanu 32:21
So essentially, I do believe that a lot of the highest growth numbers have grown audience growing on there will be over 46 year olds, Gen Z’s are a bit on there. They’re a cool the millennials caught on so they’re already on there. So over the 46 year olds will be the next group of audience there’ll be the highest growth on Tik Tok. This will tell me that a lot of businesses will also be jumping on or should be jumping on because your audience is on there. Right? If you serve over 30 year olds, there’s over 400 million active users on a weekly basis for this audience. The next day, I also see it happening for tick tock side is that ads are gonna be crazy on tick tock because of the audience engagement and level of people watching. So I think I read a stat that the 30 year olds are spending about 82 minutes a day on tick tock, and they’re spending that exact same time, the same audience is also on Instagram for about 28 minutes. So that’s totally me that people are spending so much more time on tick tock MIDI ads are all gonna be on there. So if you’re working as a business looking to spy your ads, you should go to tick tock.
Erin Ollila 33:25
All right. I have absolutely no clue what to even title this episode, because we covered everything that I think you need to talk about content creation, SEO, practicing, you know, developing routines. It’s been so helpful and so insightful. So I really want to thank you for your time and energy for being on the show. Everyone who’s listening, you can find everything you need to know about Samantha in the show notes and the podcast description. Again. Thank you so much for your time day today, Samantha. It’s been so great talking to you.
Samantha Vlasceanu 33:57
Thanks, Eric. Thanks. Bye.
Erin Ollila 34:02
Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Top copy to me. If you enjoyed spending your time with me today. I would be so honored if you could subscribe to the show and leave a review. Want to continue the conversation. Head on over to Instagram and follow me at Erin Ollila. Until next time friends
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