On TikTok, you don’t necessarily need a lot of followers to make an impact, thanks to the platform’s algorithmic For You page. But that doesn’t mean follower count isn’t important.
When Mike Xhaxho decided to start posting on social media about his idea for his hydration company, Waterboy, he focused on TikTok.
“It felt like that was the one [platform] where your content reach is not dependent on how big of a channel you have,” Mike says on an episode of Shopify Masters.
After an early video went viral on the platform, Mike gained tens of thousands of followers.
“By the end of the weekend, it had maybe a million and a half views. Our account has grown from 6,000 to 7,000 followers to 25,000,” Mike says. The attention helped the brand capture an SMS list of about 20,000 people.
Below, find 11 ways to build an engaged follower base on TikTok, with tips from Mike and other business owners who have successfully grown their companies’ TikTok accounts.
How to get more followers on TikTok (11 ways)
- Create a series
- Host a giveaway
- Show your passion
- Jump on trends
- Collaborate
- Create high-quality content
- Build in public
- Talk about more than just business
- Engage with your viewers
- Increase your discoverability
- Pay attention to the analytics
Here are some ways to use TikTok to increase your follower count and drive real engagement:
Create a series
A multipart series encourages viewers to follow you on TikTok so they don’t miss an episode. For example, snack brand Pretzelized gained 17,000 TikTok followers, reports Marketing Brew, from its four-episode series Pretzel or Pita Chip. The series was inspired by comedies like Seinfeld, as well as by the success of social media campaigns like Tower28 Beauty’s The Blush Lives of Sensitive Girls.
Soda brand Olipop took things a step further by co-producing a YouTube TV show called Shanked.
“[It’s] basically like The Office, if it was filmed at a country club,” Steven Vigilante, director of media and partnerships at Olipop, said in a Shopify panel.
“I fundamentally believe people hate being advertised to,” Steven says. “I want [Olipop] to be in content that people want to watch as opposed to interrupting the content that they’re watching.”
Olipop’s series served up content that felt engaging rather than overtly promotional. The brand wasn’t the focus of the show, but it made an appearance in each episode, like in this TikTok clip.
According to Steven, the series was cost-effective, too: “[Co-producing the show] costs a fraction of what you would spend in a month [on ads] to reach that amount of people on YouTube.”
Shanked has more than 26,000 subscribers on YouTube and about 9,700 TikTok followers.
Host a giveaway
One way to get more followers on TikTok is to host a giveaway that encourages viewers to follow your account. Accessories brand Heaven Mayhem decided to partner with influencer Becca Bloom on a giveaway after Becca went viral on TikTok.
Becca had shared a video admitting that she bought a new laptop because she “fell in love” with a Heaven Mayhem laptop case, but it didn’t fit her current laptop.
To enter the giveaway, TikTok users had to follow both Becca and Heaven Mayhem on TikTok and leave a comment with their favorite laptop case design. The results were powerful—the video announcing the giveaway received nearly 9,000 comments.
The giveaway also helped continue the momentum Becca’s video created around Heaven Mayhem’s laptop cases.
“Our laptop cases were already taking off, but [the giveaway] just blew them up,” Heaven Mayhem Founder and Creative Director Pia Mance says on an episode of Shopify Masters.
Show your passion
Showing how passionate you are about your brand can be infectious and can help you get more followers on TikTok. For Haley Pavone, founder, president, and CEO of convertible shoe brand Pashion Footwear, in-person events let her share her excitement about her company.
When attending pop-ups and trunk shows, Haley realized she made more sales on days she put on product demonstrations and used her skills as a salesperson. But the company didn’t have the budget to send her on the road to talk about her product at different events. So, she started dedicating more time to TikTok videos.
“It’s just me with my phone an hour a day, every day, talking about the product and the company that I love. That was really the big breakthrough,” Haley says on an episode of Shopify Masters. “Much to my delight, it caught fire.”
Haley still talks about her business regularly on her personal TikTok, where she now has 1 million followers.
Jump on trends
The TikTok algorithm recommends videos based on factors such as what users watch and engage with, as well as content information like sounds and hashtags. Participating in TikTok trends can increase your chances of reaching beyond your follower base. If new viewers like your content, you may persuade them to follow you.
Iconic historical doll brand American Girl reported a 5% increase in TikTok followers after incorporating more trends into their content, according to Marketing Brew. By posting a mix of trend-inspired videos and evergreen videos featuring American Girl dolls in everyday situations, the brand is able to mix up its content and stay relevant.
Collaborate
Collaborating with other brands and TikTok influencers gets your videos in front of new audiences. This can be an effective way to get more followers on TikTok. For example, beverage company Vita Coco leaned into playful content on TikTok by partnering with Romeo Bingham, a content creator known for their viral Dr Pepper jingle.
Romeo’s followers had rallied behind them because they wanted Dr Pepper to collaborate with the creator, and Vita Coco capitalized on this buzz by asking Romeo to write them a jingle of their own. The paid partnership went viral, with Romeo’s video receiving more than 50 million views. After creating the jingle and starring in Vita Coco’s online Super Bowl ad campaign, the business’s TikTok follower count increased by 130,000 in the span of a month, reports Marketing Brew.
When choosing a collaborator, you can take a cue from Vita Coco and partner with someone during a viral moment. You might also consider nano- and microinfluencers who have smaller niche engaged audiences.
Create high-quality content
According to TikTok, high-quality posts can lead to 40 times the follower growth of other posts.
TikTok defines high-quality content as:
- Well crafted. Use high-effort production and editing to tell compelling stories that captivate viewers.
- Engaging. Engaging content keeps viewers interested and eager to participate in conversation with you.
- Specialized. Create content that shows both your creativity and your expertise.
Build in public
If you’re starting a new business, taking viewers along on your journey can have a similar effect as a recurring series. You can use this approach to get more followers on TikTok because users may want to know what happens next. (And as an added bonus, their feedback and interest can help validate your product ideas.)
Mike started Waterboy with an email and SMS capture landing page and a TikTok account. The first video he posted from the Waterboy account led to around 7,000 followers.
“After we launched that first video, then it was OK, like, ‘We have something here. People like the story,’” Mike says on an episode of Shopify Masters. But an even bigger boost happened when Mike got personal about why he was founding the brand. “It was really my story of: ‘This is why I drink Pedialyte after a night out, and this is why I think Waterboy makes sense,’” Mike says. The account grew to 25,000 followers in a few days.
Activewear brand Set Active Founder and CEO Lindsey Carter thinks every founder should build in public.
“You have to show your consumer what you’re working on,” she says on an episode of Shopify Masters. “They want the passion, they want the story to buy into, they want to root for the underdog. And you can’t do that if you’re not putting a face to the name or the brand.”
Lindsey says cottage cheese brand Cotto is the perfect example of how to build in public. Founder Kendall Kransdorf is “documenting every single thing she’s doing: testing new ingredients in the kitchen—ones that taste really good, ones that don’t—what her failures are, what her success is,” Lindsey says. “I am so invested in her, and I’m rooting for her because she’s showing me what she’s doing every day.”
Talk about more than just business
Expanding beyond business and showing parts of your life makes your TikTok content more dynamic. This strategy has worked for Maggie Sellers Reum, an angel investor and founder behind the Hot Smart Rich podcast who has more than 200,000 followers on TikTok.
Maggie recommends approaching content creation the same way you would a conversation with a friend at dinner.
“We don’t just talk about business at dinner,” she says on Shopify Masters. “We talk about fashion. We talk about travel. We talk about relationships.”
She wanted her TikTok account to show a more human touch.
“I knew I wanted my content to resonate with people in a healthy, positive way,” she says, so audiences could connect with her and feel like they’re part of her story.
Engage with your viewers
Engaging with your viewers shows you’re approachable, which can help you to stand out and get more followers on TikTok. Consumers say how brands engage with their audiences is one of the top ways to stand out on social media, according to a 2025 Sprout Social report.
There are different ways to engage with your followers. You can use TikTok’s Q&A feature, respond to comments, or, if you are at least 18 and have 50,000 followers, create a bulletin board, a one-to-many broadcast channel where you can share content. Anyone who joins your bulletin board automatically follows your account.
Lindsey personally responds to DMs from Set Active customers.
“I did that from day one, [and I] do it today,” she says. “I think being able to feel connected to me as a founder makes people feel special.”
Increase your discoverability
The For You page isn’t the only way for your target audience to come across your content. Nearly 50% of surveyed US consumers use TikTok as a search engine, according to Adobe. This makes TikTok SEO an important part of your TikTok marketing strategy.
“Showing up in search results requires a different approach than appearing on the For You page,” says Leslie Ann Hall, founder and CEO of social agency Iced Media. “TikTok’s search ranking is driven by intentional keyword usage—specifically within captions, on-screen text, transcribed audio, and relevant keyword-based hashtags.”
Leslie suggests using keyword research tools like Google Ads Keyword Planner to find niche keywords that aren’t yet saturated. You can also use TikTok’s Creator Search Insights to identify popular searches and content gaps on the platform.
Pay attention to the analytics
TikTok analytics reveal trends in your follower count, post performance, and overall engagement. Studying your past video analytics can teach you what content performs well, helping you create similar content to get more views and followers on TikTok.
In TikTok Studio’s Analytics section, select the “Content” tab to see your top posts, then choose “Most new viewers” to see each post’s total views and new viewers over the past seven days. This helps you identify posts that reach people who haven’t previously watched your content. Take note of any patterns, such as related themes, within this content.
You can also select the “Viewers” tab on your analytics page and look at gender, age, or locations to inform your TikTok strategy. If you see that your content performs best with people in your city, for example, you might focus on a more local angle.
Should you buy TikTok followers?
While it might be tempting to buy followers for social proof or to make your account seem more popular, it’s something you should avoid. Purchased followers, like bots and other fake accounts, may not engage with your feed or help you get in front of more users and meet your brand goals.
Such practices may also violate TikTok’s Community Guidelines. TikTok can remove fake followers and may restrict or ban your account if you engage in deceptive behavior.
How to get more followers on TikTok FAQ
Do brands pay for TikTok followers?
Some businesses may offer to boost a brand’s TikTok followers, likes, comments, and shares for a fee. However, deceptive behavior and fake engagement violate TikTok’s Community Guidelines and can lead the platform to ban your account.
How do you get TikTok followers fast?
To attract TikTok followers, post high-quality content regularly, participate in relevant trends, and use keywords and hashtags to help users discover your videos. Review your TikTok analytics to identify which posts attract new viewers and use those insights to guide future content.
Why am I not getting followers on TikTok?
If you’re struggling to gain TikTok followers, your content may not be reaching your target audience or giving viewers a reason to follow your account. Review your TikTok analytics to see which videos attract new users, and then experiment with different topics or formats, such as video series or videos that share more about the non-business aspects of your life.
