When it comes to leveraging social media, it is always recommended to pay attention to key social metrics and TikTok is not an exception. When you receive a large number of TikTok views and likes from authentic users, it shows that people are interested and engaged in your content. This can also assist you with the overall performance and growth of your TikTok presence. Let’s delve into what views and likes mean on TikTok, why they are important, and which of these metrics matter the most on the platform.  

What are TikTok views?

When a TikTok user starts playing a video, it is counted as a view. Moreover, a view is counted when the video loops, auto-plays, or a viewer watches it again. Every watch is considered a new unique view because views are not unique to each viewer. Note that watching your video on the platform will not be counted as a view. So, you must ensure that another authentic person watches your video.

What does TikTok like?

Likes on TikTok are not merely a number shown on your account or posts, but an important metric related to popularity and user engagement. A like is counted whenever any user clicks the Like button on any video. The liked videos are saved to the ‘likes’ folder on the profile of a user (public or private). Gaining lots of real likes shows how users are responding to your content and how it converts to the algorithm. Having more likes on your TikTok content means you will receive higher visibility.

The algorithm uses subject matter, activity, audio, and location to deliver the appropriate content to related users. Moreover, bringing an increasing number of real likes on your videos improves chances for better brand engagement within your demographic and improves the growth potential of your business.

About 35% of users follow most brands on TikTok. So, brands or businesses finding the platform to showcase their products or services can leverage TikTok to create brand awareness, attract potential customers, and boost sales.

TikTok views or likes: which matters the most?

Both likes and views are crucial metrics to improve overall TikTok performance and presence. On one hand, the view count reflects how many users are watching your content and can assist measure the overall impact and reach of your TikTok content.

On the other hand, likes indicate how people are enjoying your content. It reflects that users have enjoyed your video enough to click the like button. If you are not receiving lots of likes, it means users are not engaging with your content and want to see something else. Based on your likes count, you can get insight into how engaging your content is and how perfectly your content resonates with the target audience.

Likes or views – which metric is more important depends on your goal. For example, if you have created your TikTok account to boost brand awareness and expand your audience base, then you must focus on maximizing your view count. However, if you are more interested in generating videos that serve the users’ preferences and bring engagement, then you must strive to boost your likes count.

How to increase real views and likes organically on TikTok?

1. Focus on your video’s first few seconds.

If you manage to engage the viewer in the first few seconds, then you can expect a like and other forms of engagement from them. The higher retention time for a video tells the algorithm that specific content is worth sharing with other viewers.

The first 2 seconds are significant not just for TikTok likes but also for recall and brand awareness. To keep users engaged for a long time, you can create a sense of curiosity in the first 2 seconds. It tends to improve your chances by 1.4x to help you keep your viewers hooked.

2. Optimize for search results

Keywords are important for TikTok SEO and allow interested viewers to find your content. So, add popular keywords that resonate with your content to ensure your videos appear in front of an audience interested in those topics. You can include keywords in the TikTok captions, text overlay, and/or your voiceover.

3. Emphasize content quality

Users are not interested in watching unauthentic or poor-quality videos that do not serve their interests and preferences. So, create original and high-quality content with decent lighting, clear audio, and exciting transitions or edits to keep it dynamic.

The minimum and maximum length of a TikTok video is 5 seconds and 10 minutes respectively. However, TikTok recommends videos to be longer than 10 seconds and less than 30 seconds to make the best impression. Keep sound on and focus on a vertical orientation to let your content look good on mobile devices.

4. Use trending hashtags

Hashtags are the most powerful elements to let users find your content in the first place. Use the TikTok Creative Center to locate trending hashtags. Also, you can focus on your target audience and discover the top ten hashtags they interact with using the TikTok Audience Insights.

5. Interact with other users

Engaging with other users on TikTok can be the best trick to develop engagement and let the algorithm understand that your account is worth appearing on the FYP of the audience. TikTok suggests a brand and individual content creators follow a ‘react, respond, and remix’ strategy for better engagement. You can try video replies to comments, stitches, and duets to engage this strategy. TikTok’s default setting allows users to create Duets and Stitch videos with each other.

Conclusion

At the bottom line, both likes and views are important in measuring your content’s reach, impact, and engagement with the target audience. By balancing your strategic approach on both of these metrics, you can connect with your potential followers meaningfully and successfully grow your TikTok presence. So, work on the above-mentioned strategies to boost both views and likes and get a strong competitive advantage on the platform.