A social experiment: My TikTok journey
The time has come: I’ve officially launched on TikTok. After coming up with excuse after excuse [my two toddlers are a tad demanding of my time these days 🤯], I am committed to building our M.T. Deco community on the platform. It’s nerve-wracking, don’t get me wrong, and I’m intimidated by the vast number of talented creators on there. Not to mention that it’s daunting to think about investing in an entirely new platform, but I have to and it’s worth it… just ask… myself.
Yep, sigh, one of the hardest things about being a digital strategist is not only coming up with innovative ways to help clients thrive across digital platforms - owned and social alike - but also staying on top of the latest trends in order to back up what I say. Things would be so much easier if I were an influencer and I always say that if I could rewind time, I would be all over growing my personal social media platforms starting with when I signed up for Twitter at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. I was well-positioned to be an early adapter, but I let my intimidation and career aspirations get the most of me.
Back then, I really wanted to become an on-air tv news reporter and I was certain that I would misstep and post something blatantly incorrect on social, or say something stupid on-air. I didn’t trust myself and ultimately walked in circles talking myself into being on-air and then rationalizing that I couldn’t do it. I even went to the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism because I wanted to be 1000% certain I could do the job perfectly, and still, I hesitated and didn’t go for it.
Looking back, the way I reconcile the crazy is that my heart and my brain were in conflict [hello imposter syndrome!]. And I lived like this well over a decade, choosing instead to throw myself into mastering marketing, editorial, digital video, and social for brands and talent across both NBC News and CNN [perfectionism is a curse, not a blessing]. I built all kinds of communities, did tons of cross-platform campaigns, produced loads of content, but none of it for myself. I walked away from it all with roughly 1500 Instagram and over 3,000 Twitter followers [which, side note, if you work at a large media company, in today’s world it’s much more culturally acceptable to post on your personal social platforms which you SHOULD take advantage of while you are there. Having a community is valuable, no matter what job you have].
Now as I position myself to shoot TikToks daily, or as close to that as I can, I’m feeling major deja vu to setting up cameras in my 20s and shooting standups - or fake broadcast live shots - for my on-air reel. It’s the same process of sketching out what I’m trying to say, mentally counting down, hitting the record button, hating how I sound, and then editing it together. Only this time, I’m not going to quit. I’m not going to back down or stop if the views are low or nobody follows me, I’m going to keep my nose down, listen to the audience, pivot, and do the work. I’m taking the same advice I give to my clients and holding myself to it [with the help of Jamie Farnworth Finn and Megan Collins ;) my accountability coaches]. I’ve also created a mini TikTok digital strategy to help me not only plan content but to build upon my personal and M.T. Deco brands.
Here’s a look to help you with your own TikTok strategy:
Content
Start with traditional digital strategy techniques and stick to roughly 5 content pillars. Mine are: Digital/social, entrepreneurship, lifestyle/wellness, mom things, philanthropy
Overall, shoot to publish 80% high-value niche content and 20% personal content - @itxmejules [aka I want to be mostly known for my digital strategy know-how and to drive back to my business. But also, no fun if you don’t get to see the rest of my life right? 😏]
Tactics
Try to post for 21 days straight when you start - @tinx [ugh this will be hard]
Lead with the hook and use quick cuts; TikTok likes quick cuts - Megan Collins [for example, in this TikTok, the middle part about the “shoemakers children have no shoes” could have been my lead; I’m going to redo it in a couple of weeks and post again to see if it hits differently]
Use the trending music and sounds. This is also a learning curve for me [especially since I’m so used to Instagram], but incredibly necessary for growth and elevating your content in the algorithm
At any rate, I have my work cut out for me but I am energized, I’m nervous-excited, I’m open to learning, and I’m feeling really good heading into this. At the very least, I will most definitely learn a lot which will, in turn, help my clients and make me a better digital strategist, so there’s no downside to this, only plus.
And of course, please follow me @melissataylorblum. Hopefully, I won’t make any of those egregious mistakes that used to keep me up at night and that I eventually get to a place where I can do some of these dances. Eek, okay screw it, here we gooooo 🤩🤩🤩🤩