TikTok has been one of the most important tools in the digital marketing mix of artists and labels for some time: 80% of the tracks in the Spotify viral charts are almost exclusively influenced by the platform and its strong connection to music. In German-speaking countries, users from the music industry are still reluctant and the platform is polarizing. TikTok is still wrongly decried as a platform for young people to upload funny videos. This is by no means the case, meanwhile all musical niches and age groups are successfully taking place on TikTok.

In this workshop, Steffen Geldner (BERMVDA) will present TikTok as a marketing tool. Digital self-marketing has changed fundamentally in recent years. While it used to be possible to grow organically quickly through good content, the marketing of music-related content has become much more complex due to algorithm- and data-driven platforms. On TikTok there is (still) the chance to grow quickly, organically and without using large budgets.

After an introduction to the TikTok algorithm, Steffen goes into the connection between TikTok and music and talks about the sounds and artist page, playlists and targeting, among other things. In this workshop, the participants should also learn in a practical way which content currently works best on TikTok and how it can be used most effectively. An essential part of the lecture consists of presenting best practices from various musical niches. If we find the time, the workshop ends with a walkthrough through the TikTok Ads Manager.