Going live on an online content-sharing platform is all the rage nowadays. Everyone, from individual creators to major brands, does it, and as TikTok users, we should get in on the action. And depending on what our goal is, our TikTok Live may be intricately structured and long, or it could just be a short, impromptu affair.
So, how does a content creator go live on TikTok? In this article, we crack that code and provide some of the most useful tips and tricks on TikTok Lives.
But before we move onto the meat of the issue, let’s first discuss why TikTok Lives are so useful.
Benefits of TikTok Lives
Broadly speaking, the single biggest benefit of going live on TikTok is engagement. Namely, by going live, we get a chance to communicate with our user base. They can ask us questions, share experiences, and interact with us in real-time.
In the modern age, content creation is all about interaction. To use a different platform as an example, an average YouTube video will get an algorithm boost with each new comment and/or like. Views are still important, but if the user feels like they’re having a conversation with the creator directly, they will be more likely to stay subscribed and share the content with others.
How to Go Live on TikTok
In order to go live on TikTok, we first need to fulfill two major conditions. The first is that we have to be at least 16 years old. The second condition is that we can’t go live unless we have at least 1000 followers.
Once all of the conditions are set, we can go live. Here’s how it’s done:
- On the bottom screen of the app, we first need to tap the Create icon, i.e., the little plus sign.
- We then swipe left until we reach the Live option.
- Next, we pick an appropriate image and title for our stream.
- With everything set, we click on the Go LIVE option and wait a couple of seconds.
- While we’re live, we can fiddle around with different effects and options. We can access them by tapping on the three dots.
- Finally, we end the stream by tapping the X in the top-left corner of the stream.
Can We Circumvent the Over-1000 Follower Rule?
Multiple articles online will post instructions on supposedly going live without having 1000 followers. The trick they cite roughly goes as follows:
- Go to the Settings and Privacy section of the main menu.
- Pick the Report a Problem option.
- Find the “I can’t start a LIVE” section and choose “No” when prompted about the issue being solved.
- Fill out a report claiming something like, “I used to have access to live broadcasts, but now I don’t.”
However, we, alongside many other users, tried this trick, and it didn’t work. At the time of writing this article, users still can’t go live unless they have 1000 followers. Of course, they can always join a live stream of a different user. All they have to do is head to the comments section of their stream and click on the two smiling faces icon. The person who’s live will then either approve or deny the guest access to the stream.
Tips and Tricks on Pulling a Successful TikTok Live
If we want our TikTok live to stand out, we will need to apply every tip and trick that successful streamers with millions of views do. Interestingly enough, these tricks are fairly simple and common-sense, and they include the following:
- Optimal recording conditions (i.e., proper lighting, outside noise elimination, engaging camera angles, stable internet connection)
- Choosing an engaging topic to talk about
- Lots of cross-promotion using other platforms, such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and so on
- Collaborating with other content creators
- Planning out what we’re going to say (off-the-cuff stuff works sometimes, but not always)
- Choosing the right time to stream (ex., not to stream when our target audience is asleep, at work, at school, etc.)
- Making sure that the live stream doesn’t go on for too long; the usual sweet spot for stream length is around 30 minutes.
