Going live on TikTok has exploded in popularity over the past couple of years. According to TikTok, livestreams on the platform averaged over 5 billion views per month in 2021, showing the huge appetite viewers have for engaging with live content.
As more creators look to go live on TikTok to connect with their audience in real time, one common question arises: can I go live with less than 1000 followers?
TikTok Live Overview
TikTok Live allows users to broadcast live video streams to their followers in real time. It offers an interactive platform for creators to engage with their audience through features like live chat, virtual gifts, and more.
With TikTok Live, users can go live at any time to share moments, answer questions, host Q&As, provide behind-the-scenes access, and much more.
To go live, users simply tap the “+” button on their profile and select “Go LIVE.” They can title their broadcast, set privacy settings, and invite friends. Once live, followers are notified and can join the livestream comment on it in real time. Creators can choose to save broadcasts to their profile when they end for 24 hours for followers to replay.
For more details on how TikTok Live works, check out this overview from Status (https://brands.joinstatus.com/tiktok-livestream).
TikTok Live Requirements
In order to go live on TikTok, there are a few baseline requirements that need to be met. First and foremost, you must be at least 18 years old to broadcast live video on TikTok, as specified in TikTok’s Community Guidelines. This age requirement is strictly enforced when you first sign up for an account on TikTok and enter your birthday.
Additionally, your account must be in good standing without any violations of TikTok’s terms of service or community guidelines. Accounts that have been banned either temporarily or permanently will not have live streaming capabilities.
Lastly, the general guidance is that your account should have at least 1,000 followers before going live, according to TikTok. However, this follower requirement is not a hard rule. There are ways to go live with fewer followers, which will be covered in the next section.
Follower Requirements
TikTok has a rule that you need at least 1,000 followers to host a Livestream on their platform. This requirement is in place to ensure that only established creators with a solid following are streaming content to audiences. According to TikTok, the 1,000 follower minimum provides “authenticity and safety” for viewers.
Reaching 1,000 followers can take some time and effort as a new creator. You’ll need to consistently post quality videos, use strategic hashtags, run promotions, collaborate with others, and actively engage with your audience. While frustrating at first, this rule pushes you to build your brand and reputation on TikTok before going live.
Some users have found workarounds to host Livestreams under 1,000 followers, like going live with a user who has the followers or using third-party streaming apps. However, this violates TikTok’s policies and could get your account suspended. The safest way is to organically gain followers until you hit the 1k milestone. With persistence and great content, you’ll reach the requirement sooner than you think.
Overall, TikTok’s 1,000 follower rule sets the bar for livestreaming and aims to deliver authentic and high-quality Live content to viewers.
Sources:
https://www.outlookindia.com/outlook-spotlight/go-live-on-tiktok-without-1000-followers-how-to-go-live-on-tiktok-without-having-1000-followers-news-318892
Going Live with Low Followers
Even if you don’t meet the standard follower requirements to go live on TikTok, there are some tactics you can use to still gain access to live streaming:
- Use TikTok’s new “Guest” feature, which allows accounts with as few as 1,000 followers to invite another user to go live with them. This gives you access to their follower base. Be sure to bring value by co-creating engaging content with your host (Source).
- Leverage live events like TikTok Lives and hashtag challenges that provide temporary access to live streaming without follower requirements (Source).
- Strategically time your first few live streams during peak hours for your target audience to maximize viewers.
- Heavily promote that you’ll be going live across your other social platforms like Instagram to drive viewers to your stream.
- Go live consistently to build anticipation and create an engaged community eager for your next stream.
- Provide enormous value by making your live streams entertaining, educational, or useful for viewers.
While challenging, it is possible to successfully live stream on TikTok without a huge following. Focus on OVER-delivering value, leveraging other creators’ audiences, and relentlessly promoting to drive viewership of your live streams.
Building Your Following
TikTok recommends having at least 1,000 followers before going live, which can take some time and work to build up. There are several strategies you can use to gain more followers before your first livestream:
Post consistently 1-3 times per day using engaging captions, hashtags, and viral trends to get on the For You page (https://metricool.com/how-to-gain-more-followers-on-tiktok/). The algorithm favors accounts that post daily content.
Optimize your profile with links, a strong bio, profile photo, and highlights to showcase your brand (https://whimsysoul.com/how-i-got-10k-tiktok-followers-overnight-8-hacks-to-rapidly-grow-your-following-on-tiktok/). Complete profiles get more engagement.
Collaborate with other creators in your niche to tap into their audiences and do “follow for follow.” Cross-promotion can rapidly increase your followers.
Run follower contests and giveaways, incentivizing people to like, share, comment, and follow. Consider giving away your products, gift cards, or shoutouts.
Engage genuinely with your current audience by liking comments, responding to messages, and checking out their content. People follow those who follow them.
Promoting Your Livestream
There are several effective ways to promote your TikTok livestream and drive more viewers to tune in. According to TikTok’s guide, you should start promoting your stream at least one day in advance. Create hype by making announcement posts and letting your followers know when you’ll be going live. You can also post short teasers from your stream preparation to give them a sneak peek.
In addition, utilize TikTok’s built-in Promote tool which lets you target your promotions to relevant users. As TikTok explains, you can choose your budget, duration, and target audience to get your stream in front of more potential viewers. Make sure to set an enticing caption and custom thumbnail to catch their attention.
Going live with other creators through Guest mode is another great promotional tactic – you instantly gain access to a new audience. You can also cross-promote your stream through other social platforms where you have a following. Share the link to your TikTok in your Instagram Story, Twitter, etc. This will notify your broader community about your upcoming livestream.
Engaging Your Audience
Keeping viewers engaged during your livestream is crucial for building an audience and driving growth on TikTok. Here are some tips for engaging your audience during your stream:
Run contests and giveaways – Contests are a great way to spike engagement during your stream. Give away merch or gift cards to viewers who share your stream or comment. Tools like TikTok Gifting can help manage giveaways.
Ask for viewer participation – Get your audience involved by asking questions and prompting them to comment. Ask for advice, opinions or suggestions to get them actively participating.
Show behind-the-scenes – Give viewers a unique perspective by taking them behind-the-scenes. Show your workspace, introduce coworkers or give a facility tour.
Feature user-generated content – Display user videos, photos or comments on screen during your stream. This makes viewers feel involved.
Go live with fans – Invite followers to join your stream live for interviews or collaborations. This creates an interactive, engaging experience.
Moderate chat – Keep an eye on comments and respond to viewers in real-time. Engage with their questions and feedback.
Avoid long talking heads – Mix up your stream with multiple segments, graphics, etc. Long monologues lose viewer interest quickly.
Promote livestreams beforehand – Build buzz for your stream by promoting it on your other social channels before going live.
Check analytics – Track engagement metrics like hearts, comments, shares and view duration to optimize what resonates with your audience.
Measuring Success
When going live on TikTok, it’s important to track key metrics to measure the success of your livestreams. This allows you to optimize your approach and grow your audience over time. According to TikTok’s analytics dashboard [1], some of the most important metrics to monitor include:
- Peak concurrent viewers – The maximum number of viewers watching your livestream at any given point. This indicates your ability to attract an audience.
- Average concurrent viewers – The average number of viewers watching throughout the duration of your livestream. Higher averages indicate engaging content.
- New followers gained – The number of new followers you acquired during the livestream. This shows your ability to convert viewers.
- Comments – The total number of comments posted during the livestream. More comments suggest higher engagement.
- Shares – The number of times viewers shared your livestream. This demonstrates content worth spreading.
Regularly tracking these metrics can reveal what works well and where there’s room for improvement. Over time, you can test different streaming approaches and content types to boost your key metrics and grow a highly engaged following.
Conclusion
To summarize, you can go live on TikTok without the standard 1,000 follower minimum by using some workarounds. While having an established audience does help boost views and engagement on livestreams, you can still start live streaming with lower follower counts using creative strategies to build momentum and increase followers. Focus on promoting your livestreams in advance, interacting with viewers in real time, and producing compelling content to attract new followers and regular viewers. Be patient and consistent, analyze metrics to optimize and improve, and use livestreaming combined with other tactics to grow your overall TikTok presence. With persistence and thoughtful content, you can achieve TikTok livestreaming success even starting out with fewer than 1,000 followers.
