How Does TikTok Work: TikTok Algorithm Explained

TikTok has grown to be one of the most popular music streaming apps. In 2019, TikTok was the most-used music app in the US and the second-most-used app for video clips in the world. TikTok is an incredible app for new artists to launch their music and for established artists to gain new fans. The TikTok algorithm is one of the best-kept secrets to getting your video on the homepage and even trending.

TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, are masters of algorithms. In fact, the way that TikTok uses personalization to grow its user base is an incredibly fascinating topic for those who want to understand how ByteDance’s monopoly works. To help you understand the inner workings of the TikTok algorithm, we’re going to break down how this amazing platform works.

TikTok: Fastest Growing Social Network

TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social media apps around. It’s a combination of YouTube, Snapchat, SnackVideo and Likee. That’s right – it’s a video-sharing platform that combines the best elements of user-generated content and self-expression with those of brand-generated content and self-promotion.

Famous Hip Hop “TIK Tok” Song

There is a fun fact associated with the name of social media TikTok that many of you might not have ever heard of Kesha, a famous pop singer, got so much popularity and made a huge record with her “TIK TOK” song that she launched back in 2009. The song is still a staple for birthday and dance parties. Little did she know that there would be a famous social network to be named after her popular song.

Tiktok is not just a typical social media network like Facebook and Instagram or WhatsApp. It is a little different from normal networks where people can socialize, befriend each other, and communicate in different ways. I would say that Tiktok is more or less like a great socializing platform for those teenagers who love to create, make, and share their videos online for fun.

Basic Introduction of Ever-growing Network

Tiktok is a kind of atypical, unique, and new genre of the subculture, enabling its users to do what they want to do, what they want to express, and what they wish to become. To be honest, here, teenagers are using this platform a bit differently, showcasing their talent, sharing their opinions, utilizing the freedom of speech and some are even mimicking their famous celebrities' idols. You will find all sorts of people on this entertainment platform, and for this very reason, it is growing very fast. It's not too soon to expect that it is a perfect entertaining alternative to Facebook, Instagram, and VK.

Tiktok is more famous than other networks because its users can enjoy freedom of speech its best by creating videos based on their personal ideas. There are tons of creative features and add-ons that are being added to this ever-growing social network from time to time.

More Users socialize on Tiktok everyday

Social networkers, particularly, teenagers are fond of this network. You will find teenagers as young as only 7 years old using Tik Tok framework for making their cute videos, which is kind of very impressive. There has never been a network like this before that allowed its users to portray themselves in any way they desire. According to current statistics, there are more than 1 Billion users on this network to this date and this number is expected to grow with time.

According to a 2024 Statista report on age and gender, over half of global TikTok users fall within the 18-34 age range, primarily comprising Millennials and Gen Z.

This network is famous in almost every country among youngsters and teenagers because it has so many fun features to keep them entertained.

No Strict Rules and Regulations for Users

Tiktok does not send its users to the so-called “ temporary Jail” for breaking the rules or regulations, instead it sends out a warning and never disrupts the experience of users. However, there are still some community guidelines issued by the network that every user on the network deems to adhere to, such as abuse in any kind, shape, or form is prohibited. No religious or hate speech against religious, political, or secular institutions is allowed or entertained. This social platform also restricts the users from sharing their personal information such as passport, security number, address, private email address, and private phone number.

All these precautionary measures are taken in order to protect the privacy of users on the networks and it makes a lot of sense as well. Most users love Tiktok for its best features such as:

• The network does not restrict its users from doing what they desire, love, and want.

• So many great videos and photo features are offered for free.

• The options to make vines and funny videos.

• Free add-ons for video bloggers.

• Options to make and share the video without any fee,

• No jail time like Facebook.

• Freedom of speech without strict rules and regulations.

• Lip syncing feature with the background music

• Fun filters, stickers, video editing tools, and overlays.
• Live-streaming

TikTok Algorithm Explained

Just like any other social networks, Tiktok Algorithm works by assessing, evaluating, and scoring the quality of the content shared by its users every single day. Understanding the social media algorithms is quite complicated since their system keeps updating from time to time with new updates. System updates ensure secure networking for the users thereby adapting to new algorithm rules for bringing about better changes than before. In other words, Tiktok apps usually adapt to the changing algorithm in order to display user content on the network.

The algorithm also impacts how your videos, content, and pictures are shown to others and how your followers engage with your posts.

Tiktok Machine, how Does Tiktok Algoritm work? 

With time, Tiktok has made numerous changes to its networking features and tools. Among many notable ones are algorithm updates they work by making use of pre-defined statistics, figures, and measurement tools to evaluate the content as well as the quality of every video a user uploads on the network.

Now the question is how does the Tiktok machine work?

How does it assess your content for good or bad quality, its worth, usefulness, and engagement? 

To get more views on TikTok, post high-quality, engaging content that your target audience will love. If your videos are good, people will like, share, and comment on them, which will help them get seen by more people.

• TikTok's algorithm uses machine learning to evaluate videos and show them to users who are most likely to be interested.
• The algorithm considers a variety of factors, including watch time, likes, shares, comments, and retention time.
• Videos that are engaging and have a high velocity of engagement are more likely to be seen by more people and go viral.
• According to TikTok's November 2023 stats, a good video should earn at least 8 likes for every 12 views.
• A video that earns 20 likes out of 25 views is likely to go viral very quickly.

Tips for creating videos that get views:

• Create high-quality, engaging content that is relevant to your target audience.
• Use relevant hashtags and promote your videos on other social media platforms.
• Respond to comments and engage with your followers.
• Post consistently and experiment with different video formats.

Also Read: How does Social Media Bots Work?

Remember, the best way to get views on TikTok is to create videos that people love to watch. If you can do that, you'll be well on your way to social success.

Any Video Can Go Viral

Unlike other networks, you don’t need to have tons of followers in order for your video to go viral. Even if you have no followers whatsoever, your content is presented to some users during the test. The test lodges important data into the Tiktok Algorithm machine to further decide whether your video should be shown to more users or not. While TikTok's algorithm promotes diverse content, strategic use of trends, hashtags, and engaging content is crucial for increasing visibility and potential virality. So if you are not even a celebrity on Tiktok, a famous athlete with millions of followers, or a hip hop, pop, rock, or metal singer, you can still get success and make your videos go viral. You need to follow the steps mentioned below if you are looking to get the attention of more Tiktokers: Be creative.

Create Engaging and Ethical TikTok Videos to Inspire Others

Create short, engaging, and ethical TikTok videos to deliver a good moral message and inspire others.

• Keep your videos short and to the point, ideally 15-20 seconds or less.
• Focus on creating content that is positive, uplifting, and inspiring.
• Avoid vulgarity, profanity, and hate speech.
• Be creative and use TikTok's features to make your videos fun and engaging.
• Post consistently, even if it's just one video per week.
• Engage with other users and watch their videos to get ideas.
• Follow the TikTok community guidelines to ensure that your videos are ethical and appropriate.

Remember, content is king. If you create high-quality, engaging, and ethical TikTok videos, you'll attract viewers from all over the world and build a loyal following.

TikTok's Unbiased Algorithm: A Chance for All Users to Shine

TikTok stands out as a unique and impartial social media platform in the 21st century. Unlike other networks, TikTok's algorithm evaluates every user's videos fairly, without bias based on factors like geography, gender, or age. It assesses videos on a scale from ten views to ten million views, considering factors like retention time - how long users engage with the content.

The algorithm distinguishes quality content by analyzing viewer behavior. If users consistently watch and engage with a video, it gets wider distribution. This means that delivering compelling content to the right audience can easily result in increased views, from 10 to 1000 to 10000 and beyond. Unlike other platforms that often prioritize paid marketing, TikTok provides a level playing field for users to showcase their talents and skills.