TikTok is a hugely popular short-form video sharing app, with over 1 billion monthly active users. According to Backlinko, in 2023 alone TikTok’s monthly active users grew by 639 million. With its addictive scrolling feed and powerful content creation tools, TikTok has become a go-to platform for brands, influencers, and regular users alike. Scheduling TikTok posts in advance allows users to plan and organize their content calendar for maximum impact.
Scheduling posts is an essential tool for managing a successful TikTok presence. It enables users to space out content at optimal times, avoid constantly having to post manually day-of, and collaborate with a team. Scheduling also provides the benefit of being able to draft and preview videos ahead of posting. Overall, having the ability to schedule TikTok posts in advance saves time, drives more views and engagement, and leads to an improved and more strategic posting approach.
Native TikTok Scheduling
TikTok recently introduced some built-in scheduling options directly within the TikTok app and website to allow creators to plan and schedule content in advance [1]. The new Video Scheduler feature lets TikTok creators and business accounts schedule a video post up to 10 days in advance.
To use TikTok’s native scheduling, you simply create your video content as usual within the TikTok app. Before posting, tap “Schedule” and select a date and time up to 10 days in the future that you would like your TikTok video to be posted. You can also provide details like captions and hashtags in advance. Once scheduled, your video will be automatically posted at the specified date and time.
TikTok’s built-in scheduling is convenient for planning content in advance directly within the main TikTok app. However, it only allows scheduling up to 10 days out which may not work for longer-term content planning.
Third-Party Scheduling Apps
While TikTok doesn’t yet have a native scheduling feature, there are several third-party apps that allow you to plan and schedule TikTok posts in advance. Some of the top options include:
- Scheduled – Allows you to create an unlimited number of draft posts and schedule them to go out whenever you want. Provides analytics on performance.
- Plann – Specializes in TikTok and Instagram scheduling. Offers drag-and-drop calendar scheduling and auto-publishing.
- Hopper HQ – Social media management platform with options for bulk TikTok scheduling and post recycling.
These scheduling apps allow you to plan out your TikTok content in advance and free up time otherwise spent publishing to the platform. Most offer calendar scheduling, drafts, analytics, and other helpful features.
Key Features of Scheduling Apps
Some of the key features that make TikTok scheduling apps useful for content creators are:
Posting Automation
Scheduling apps allow you to automate posting to TikTok so you don’t have to manually post each video. You can schedule videos to be posted at specific times optimized for your audience. This saves time and makes it easy to maintain a consistent posting schedule.
For example, Later’s autopublish feature lets you set a queue of scheduled videos so you always have content ready to go without any effort (source).
Content Planning
The best scheduling apps have content planning features to help you visualize and organize your posting strategy. You can plan and schedule content in advance and collaborate with your team.
Loomly offers a content calendar so you can map out your videos and plan when you want each one to go live (source).
Analytics
Scheduling tools provide analytics on your scheduled posts so you can see key metrics like views, likes, comments, follows, and shares. This helps you identify your top performing content.
Sendible’s analytics give you insight into how your videos are resonating with your audience (source).
Setting up Scheduled Posts
Setting up a scheduled post on TikTok is easy, whether you use TikTok’s native scheduling tool or a third-party app. Here are the basic steps:
Using TikTok’s built-in scheduler:
- Open the TikTok app and tap the “+” button to create a new video.
- After recording or uploading your video, tap “Next” to go to the posting screen.
- Tap the calendar icon in the bottom left corner.
- Select a date and time to schedule your video.
- Tap “Schedule” and your video will be posted at the scheduled time.
Using a third-party scheduling app like Hootsuite (https://blog.hootsuite.com/schedule-posts-for-tiktok/):
- Link your TikTok account to the app.
- Create and edit your video within the app.
- Choose a date and time to schedule the post.
- Hit “Schedule” and the app will post it for you.
The process is quick and straightforward. Scheduling ahead of time allows you to plan out a posting strategy and free up time in your day.
Tips for Effective Scheduling
When scheduling TikTok posts, keep these tips in mind for maximum effectiveness:
Post at the best times. According to Sprout Social, the optimal times to post on TikTok are Wednesday at 5 AM, Friday at 10 AM, and Sunday at 4 PM in your target market’s time zone. Keep the audience’s typical schedule in mind when determining peak posting times.
Use relevant hashtags. Include a mix of popular and niche hashtags so your content surfaces for a wider range of users and to target specific audiences. According to Hootsuite, using 5-10 total hashtags is ideal.
Mix up content formats. TikTok supports several content formats like videos, images, text, links, and live videos. Vary your scheduled posts between these formats to keep your audience engaged with diverse content.
Check your analytics to identify top performing post times and formats. Use this data to optimize your scheduling strategy.
Analytics
Most third-party scheduling apps provide robust analytics to help measure the performance of your scheduled TikTok posts. For example, Plann and Later both offer analytics on impressions, reach, likes, comments, shares, and more. This allows you to see which types of content resonate best with your audience and when your followers are most active. According to Hootsuite, analytics can reveal insights like your top performing videos, peak viewing times, and audience demographics. Understanding this data can inform strategic decisions about when to schedule content. The analytics in scheduling apps provide more robust metrics than TikTok’s native analytics features.
For instance, TikTok’s Creator Portal offers basic analytics on followers, likes, comments, plays, and traffic sources. However, third-party scheduling apps provide additional metrics to optimize your posting strategy. By leveraging these insights, you can fine-tune the timing of your scheduled content to maximize engagement.
Pricing
Most TikTok scheduling apps offer both free and paid plans. The free versions allow you to get a feel for the platform and schedule a limited number of posts per month. Paid plans unlock more advanced features like bulk scheduling, unlimited posts, and analytics. Here’s an overview of some of the top apps:
Planoly’s free plan allows you to connect 1 social profile and schedule 10 posts per month. Upgrading to the Influencer plan at $9/month lets you connect 5 profiles and schedule 100 posts/month. The Team plan at $49/month offers unlimited scheduling.
Later’s free version permits 30 scheduled posts per month. Their paid Creator plan at $10/month offers unlimited scheduling. You can also get features like analytics and comment moderation.
AgoraPulse has a free 30-day trial. After that, pricing starts at $99/month for their Pro plan which includes unlimited scheduling, analytics, and team management features.
Hopper HQ’s free plan allows 1 user, 1 Instagram profile, and 60 scheduled posts per month. Upgrading to the Starter plan at $24/month offers unlimited scheduling and users.
Overall, free plans allow basic scheduling while paid unlocks more robust features, analytics, team access, and an unlimited amount of scheduled posts across multiple networks.
Conclusion
Scheduling TikTok posts in advance can provide many benefits for content creators and brands. Pre-planning and scheduling content allows you to be more strategic with posting times to reach your largest audience. It also saves time by letting you batch create content instead of posting in real-time. Scheduling keeps your content pipeline full and consistent even during busy periods when you don’t have time to be active on the platform.
Based on the key features and user reviews, Later, Planoly, and Scheduled seem to be the top apps for scheduling TikTok posts. All three provide user-friendly interfaces, analytics, flexible scheduling options, and integration with TikTok’s API for seamless posting. Later in particular stands out for its collaborative team features. Planoly offers robust visual planning capabilities. And Scheduled is known for its budget-friendly pricing. Any of these solutions will empower you to get the most out of TikTok by taking control of your content calendar.
References
Most of the statistics and facts referenced in this content piece come from recent social media reports by leading analytics firms like Hootsuite and Sprout Social. Specific reports include:
- Hootsuite’s 2022 Social Media Trends report, which provides data on TikTok usage and growth.
- Sprout Social’s 2022 Index, which analyzes social media scheduling habits and preferences.
- Influencer Marketing Hub’s TikTok Benchmark Report, highlighting best practices for brands on TikTok.
Additionally, some scheduling statistics and features are based on product websites and help documentation for Later, Planoly, Hopper, and other leading scheduling apps.
