17 Ways to Make Real Money on TikTok in 2023
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| 17 Ways to Make Real Money on TikTok in 2023 |
Top 17 Ways to Make Money on TikTok.
Hello, dear readers of the “Salyou” blog. After the merger of the Chinese social network Duoyin and the music platform musical.ly in 2018, the world became acquainted with TikTok - an online service for publishing and viewing videos, the number of users of which has long exceeded the one billion mark.
It's not surprising that leading bloggers on this platform are now earning millions, and major brands are creating their channels in search of a target audience.
What is TikTok? It is a video platform similar to a social network, where anyone can publish short videos or simply view others'. The essence of this platform lies in creating unique content that is not found on platforms like YouTube or similar websites.
The emphasis here is on short and predominantly entertaining videos that eventually go "viral" and set trends for the entire internet community. Like other social networks, TikTok has familiar features such as followers and subscriptions, likes, and comments, which determine the popularity of the creators.
How to earn money on TikTok through views?
This platform is relatively young, and its content is predominantly entertainment-focused. However, many wonder, "Can you earn money on TikTok?"
The larger the audience of this platform becomes, the more valuable it becomes for advertisers, and therefore, more monetization opportunities arise for both bloggers and indirectly related professions on TikTok (ranging from SMM specialists to niche entrepreneurs).
It's worth noting that earning money on TikTok is quite different from the traditional way of generating income on YouTube.
Until recently, TikTokers didn't receive any compensation for their views. However, the platform's management decided to establish the "TikTok Creator Fund." From this fund, it was planned to pay popular bloggers, but the amounts were relatively symbolic.
In particular, a TikToker could earn around $15-30 for every million views. Although the developers promise to regularly increase this rate, these amounts are not surprising to anyone, especially considering that on YouTube, for a similar million views, one can earn $100 or more.
To apply for participation in this fund, you can do so on a special page in the TikTok app.
If you still decide to earn money in this way, you need to:
- Register for this fund.
- Reach 10,000 followers and 10,000 minutes of video views within a week.
So how do bloggers manage to earn millions? There are alternative sources of income on TikTok, and there are plenty of them now.
Recently, TikTok announced a paid subscription for creators. This feature will simplify monetization, but it is still difficult to imagine that users will be willing to pay for subscriptions.
How else can video creators earn money on TikTok?
The goal of a channel creator is to constantly increase or at least maintain the number of followers, views, and likes for advertisers to see some value in their content.
The more popular their profile, the more they can potentially earn, but it all depends on the method of monetization.
Method 1: Engage in direct advertising.
Earning money through direct advertising is an unstable but very promising source of income for TikTokers with an audience of over 50 thousand or at least 10 thousand followers.
At this stage, advertisers are more willing to reach out to content creators (especially if the person appears in the video themselves) to have them promote their products or services to their followers.
How to earn: Promote products and services directly in the video itself or the description according to the agreed-upon terms. This can be done through hidden or native advertising mentioned by the creator in the video, as well as encouraging participation in various challenges or competitions sponsored by the advertising company.
How much can you earn with this method on TikTok: Bloggers with an audience of over 100 thousand followers can confidently set a price tag of around $500 for direct advertising, although this naturally depends on various factors.
How much can you earn with this method on TikTok: When a blogger has an audience of over 100,000 subscribers, they can confidently set a price tag of around $500 for direct advertising, although it naturally depends on the quality of the content and its theme.
To allow advertisers to see your statistics (subscriber demographics, engagement, etc.), you need to switch to a Creator account in your account settings.
Method 2: Earn through affiliate networks.
Although TikTok doesn't allow direct affiliate links in the description, TikTokers can redirect traffic to their YouTube channel and place referral links there.
The earning scheme, in this case, is simple: promote links to offers from affiliate networks or specific advertisers and earn income for each conversion (e.g., for submitting a service application or for the purchase of partner products).
Channel owners with at least 50,000 subscribers can independently search for affiliate programs on aggregator websites like CityAds, Admitad, and others, choosing suitable topics.
How much can you earn: There is no set ceiling here, it all depends on your ability to effectively promote the product, target audience characteristics, and other nuances. For example, it will be easier for a fitness blogger to "sell" sports nutrition rather than credit card applications, while a humor channel may focus more on the entertainment industry.
You can negotiate either a fixed payment for each advertising post (ranging from $100 to $200 for placement on a channel with 100,000 subscribers) or a percentage of the sales of the promoted products (around 20% of the amount paid by the customer to the advertiser).
Method 3: Promoting other TikTokers
You can also earn money by mentioning your fellow TikTokers. To do this, simply talk about the blogger-client in your videos, and encourage your audience to visit their channel, subscribe, like, and so on.
As an alternative, TikTokers can collaborate with the promoted author in a duet or create so-called reaction videos, where you film a response to another blogger's video. In this way, a more popular TikToker can benefit financially, while a newcomer can attract attention from subscribers and gain popularity.
How to earn money: Respond to requests from other TikTokers or take orders on external platforms.
How much can you earn: With 50,000 followers, you can charge around $500 per recommendation or more, depending on the order requirements and channel's theme.
Method 4: Becoming a Brand Ambassador.
YouTube millionaires often receive offers from major brands to become their ambassadors. The essence of this work lies in native advertising of the customer's products and services.
For example, a blogger wears clothing from the same brand in their videos, or a fitness influencer uses dumbbells from a specific manufacturer, talks about them, attends the brand's exhibitions, shares their news, and so on. Essentially, they embody the image of a fan of the product, which increases its recognition and stimulates sales.
How to earn money: Enter into contracts with advertisers, fulfill the client's conditions, and receive a fixed salary.
How much can you earn: Typically, we're talking about contracts worth hundreds of thousands of USD for several months, a year, or more.
Method 5: Receiving "Diamonds" from Followers.
Content creators on TikTok can receive virtual gifts called "Diamonds," which are emoji-like symbols that fans can send to their favorite bloggers. These are a form of donations that are valued in the platform's internal currency and can range in cost from 5 to 5000 TikTok Coins.
Each "Diamond" is worth about 0.5 cents, and once the author's wallet accumulates an amount exceeding $100, they can withdraw the funds using PayPal.
How to earn money: Create content for which fans are willing to pay (even symbolic amounts).
How much can you earn: It depends on the number of followers and their loyalty. However, this method of monetization is rarely used as the primary source of income for bloggers. It is more of a pleasant addition than a significant earning opportunity.
Method 6: Monetizing Live Streams.
Once you surpass the milestone of 1000 followers, you gain access to a new feature on TikTok – conducting live streams (similar to streams on Twitch or YouTube).
In addition to being an additional means of "communication" with your audience, live streams also serve as a tool for earning money. Followers can donate to their favorite bloggers directly during these live streams, using the familiar TikTok Coins. However, larger amounts are required for donations, starting from $10 (at a rate of 1 TikTok Coin = 1 cent).
The platform keeps a 20% commission, and the rest goes to the content creator. Once your internal account reaches $100 or more, you can withdraw the money to your bank card or PayPal account.
How to earn money: Increase the loyalty of your audience so that they are willing to financially support your content rather than just engage on TikTok.
How much can you earn: Again, it depends on the activity of your audience, the number of followers, and many other factors.
Method 7: Selling Merchandise.
Launching your line of products is equivalent to starting a full-fledged business, so only experienced TikTokers with high stable incomes opt for this option.
The essence of earning money lies in selling merchandise under your brand. This can include personalized merchandise or any other products you want to sell.
How to earn money: Stimulate sales on TikTok and receive a percentage of the profit from the sales of your brand's products.
How much can you earn: It is impossible to determine, but it is a promising opportunity. Recently, blogger Li Jiaqi sold cosmetics worth $1.7 billion during a 12-hour livestream.
Method 8: Introduce Your Services to the Audience.
TikTok is a great platform to showcase your portfolio, and although not all professions are suitable for it, you can always use a bit of creativity to find your audience among the users of this social network.
Hairdressers can share hair care tips, bakers can create videos on cake and dessert preparation, choreographers can share dance routines, and so on.
The only downside is that TikTok does not provide the option to sort your audience by location. Therefore, not all of your followers will necessarily meet the main criterion of a potential client, who is residing in your target region or country.
How to earn money: Publish videos related to your professional activities.
How much can you earn: You may not earn anything, but you can find potential clients among your followers.
Method 9: Promoting Accounts on Other Social Media Platforms.
Unlike YouTube, TikTok does not provide the direct option to include a clickable link in the description. However, you can still mention and promote your YouTube channel or Instagram profile in your TikTok videos.
This way, you can cross-promote your other accounts or even promote accounts belonging to others by attracting your TikTok followers to them.
How to earn money: Grow your other channels and monetize them through traditional advertising methods, or encourage your TikTok followers to visit your clients' channels and receive a fixed payment for it.
How much can you earn: Rates are negotiated individually and depend on the number of your followers and the niche of your channel.
Method 10: Promoting Musicians.
Music is an integral part of TikTok videos, with creators using popular tracks as background music for their content. Unlike YouTube, there are no copyright issues on TikTok, making it a great platform for young musicians to promote their songs.
How to earn money: You can negotiate individual agreements to create videos featuring a musician's new song. The more people view the video, the more exposure the promoted song receives.
How much can you earn: It primarily depends on the number of your followers, but collaborations of this kind typically cost around $5,000 per video featuring a track.
Method 11: Selling Video Greetings.
This is an additional way for already popular TikTokers to earn money.
How to earn money: Create personalized video greetings and send them to your customers to delight your fans.
How much can you earn: You can earn around $5,000 per greeting, depending on the duration of the video and the popularity of your channel.
Recently, a new trend has emerged on the platform called TikTok houses. These are real houses where a group of bloggers live together. They create and collaborate on content, which positively impacts their popularity and increases the potential for earning money through advertising.
How to earn money on TikTok without creating videos:
Method 1: Selling likes and comments.
The simplest but less lucrative method is to "sell" your likes and comments. This can be done through services like "TikTok Free," where you can earn money by completing mini-tasks and accumulating funds in your account.
Once you have accumulated a sufficient number of coins, you can exchange them for rubles and withdraw them to your bank card. However, this is just one example, and there are other platforms available as well.
TikTokers promote their accounts and channels by allocating a budget for "bots" or paid TikTok users who leave feedback and engage with videos for money.
However, it's important to note that earning significant amounts of money through this method is unlikely unless you have a large network of suitable accounts for the mass promotion of other people's videos.
How to earn money: Look for offers on freelance platforms or websites related to TikTok promotion, respond to them, and fulfill the requirements of the order (e.g., "Like all videos from the past week" or "Leave a comment with a minimum of 250 characters").
How much can you earn from likes on TikTok: It can range from $10 to several tens of USD for each completed task/like/comment.
However, it's not advisable to rely on this method for significant income, as it falls into the category of gray or even black hat methods of channel promotion. Typically, this method is used by new channels or TikTokers experiencing a crisis.
Method 2: Earning from Referrals.
This method operates on the "Refer a Friend and Get a Cash Reward" scheme, but it's not as simple as it seems. To make substantial money, it makes sense to take on large orders and refer "friends" in large quantities.
For this purpose, it's advisable to promote other TikTok accounts only if you already have a sufficient audience and the promoted channel is at least indirectly related to the theme of your profile that you're promoting for money.
If you don't have any followers, then you need to advertise these referral posts, but for that, you need to have an appropriate budget and some understanding of targeting — otherwise, you'll simply exhaust your budget and earn nothing.
How to earn money: Look for offers to publish videos or promotional links on your TikTok account. Fulfill the order requirements and receive money either as a fixed amount for the publication or for each referred user/every targeted action (like after clicking your link, views, subscriptions, etc.).
How much can you earn: The cost of advertising posts on TikTok varies, ranging from $100 to thousands of dollars, depending on the popularity of your account, country, and individual conditions of such orders.
Method 3: Administering someone else's TikTok account.
The more companies, celebrities, and other individuals join TikTok, the higher the demand for administrators who manage their accounts on a paid basis.
The thing is, stars and businessmen often don't have the time to moderate comments from followers, create captions for videos, and engage in other administrative activities. Large companies often hire SMM agencies for this or look for individual contractors for outsourcing, and you could be that person.
How to earn money: Look for clients on freelance platforms, respond to open positions in SMM agencies, or privately reach out to your favorite stars and bloggers if they have announced their search for a good content manager.
How much can you earn: It all depends on the channel's topic, your experience, range of responsibilities, and other nuances, but as a rule, you can expect to earn at least $15,000 per month and more.
Method 4: Creating and Growing TikTok Accounts for Sale.
It should be noted right away that this method of earning is unlikely to be suitable for TikTok newcomers. It is a good source of income for those who have experience in creating and growing accounts on this platform.
There are two ways things can unfold:
- The first way is to comprehensively develop channels: create accounts from scratch on different phone numbers, populate them with videos, and promote them using any methods you are familiar with until you gather an audience of around 10,000 to 100,000 people. Once you have enough subscribers, you can put the ready account up for sale.
- The second way is to sell self-made videos. However, it's important to understand that the demand for such content is not as high, so you need to make efforts (plan the script, acquire a professional camera, set up lighting and sound, use various video effects, etc.).
How to earn money: Sell ready-made content on various freelancing platforms.
How much can you earn: Starting from $1,000 for a well-established account with 7,500 subscribers, and starting from $100 for videos.
Method 5: Producing a Young TikTok Star.
Another less obvious way to earn in TikTok is to find young talents, promote them, and earn money through advertising contracts that potentially can bring in millions.
You can act as either the content manager for this person or as their producer. However, it's important to have the relevant skills and a budget for promoting aspiring video content creators.
How to earn money: Finance the development of other authors' content by entering into appropriate contracts with them, promoting the personal brand of these individuals, etc.
How much can you earn: It depends on many factors, so it's impossible to give an exact amount.
Method 6: Setting up Advertisements for Specific Videos and Channels.
On TikTok, there are opportunities to promote your channel, but for these purposes, large brands and popular bloggers often hire SMM specialists to professionally set up and manage advertising.
Through the TikTok Ads service, a specialist can define and set placements, configure targeting towards the desired audience, forecast the advertising budget, and use it wisely.
How to earn money: Respond to open vacancies for TikTok tautologists or get a job as a full-time employee at an SMM agency.
How much can you earn: Starting from $20,000 per month.
How much do TikTokers earn?
It is quite difficult to provide exact figures, but according to TikTokers themselves, with a million-strong audience, you can expect an average monthly income ranging from 200,000 to $300,000.
As for smaller channels, the price range for advertising services is even more varied. Therefore, it is challenging to determine how much one can earn on TikTok.
Some people with 300,000 subscribers manage to earn up to $25,000 for placing partner links on a thematic channel about technology; others can collect tens of thousands of USD in donations from their fans during live streams - it's all very individual.
The country where the content creator is located and their target audience also play a significant role in this matter. Domestic TikTokers will generally earn less than Chinese, European, or American bloggers.
For curiosity's sake, you can search for TikTok income calculators online. There, you can find approximate figures for specific bloggers, statistics on subscribers and their activity, as well as the cost of advertising with such traffic.
The 5 Key Rules of TikTok Monetization:
Rule 1:
initially, you will indeed have to work hard on developing your channel. Regular video uploads, collaborations with fellow creators to recommend each other in your videos, and gaining followers are essential steps to promote your account in its first year. An exception applies to creators of creative content who manage to go viral.
Rule 2:
it is crucial to maintain a certain level of quality. To retain audience interest, videos should be released consistently, and their content should be engaging. They should either meet or exceed the standard set by the videos that initially attracted attention to your account.
Rule 3:
it is better to stick to a specific theme. If you have focused on humor, it is unlikely that you will be able to please your subscribers with fitness or financial-themed videos. At the very least, the topics should be related, but it's even better to stick to the same theme.
Rule 4:
The fourth important aspect is to avoid excessive artificial boosting. Artificial subscribers and likes are only beneficial in the early stages or as a supplement to natural traffic. Otherwise, you risk building an audience made up of fake accounts that will only simulate activity as long as you pay for it.
Additionally, on TikTok, subscribers are not as important as views, watch time, and user engagement. If a blogger has a large subscriber base but their videos only receive a few thousand views, it's considered a negative outcome.
Rule 5:
The fifth and final rule is to monetize your account wisely. Integrating your content with advertisements should only be done when you are confident in your success and audience. That's why, after reaching the first thousand subscribers (especially if there are artificially boosted accounts among them), it's advisable to refrain from overt monetization.
When your audience grows to 5, 10, or 50 thousand subscribers, you can experiment with advertising, but there should be as few ad breaks as possible, their quality should be high, and they should be minimally intrusive. Otherwise, you risk disappointing not only the advertisers but also your audience. If your followers start getting bored or annoyed, you will lose their loyalty and may witness mass unfollowing.
Conclusions:
TikTok earnings still lag behind the incomes of successful YouTubers, but SMM specialists see significant potential in this video platform. Competition among TikTokers is growing in proportion to their earnings, so young creators now have every opportunity to enter the video content market on this platform and potentially earn significant money.
Although TikTok is not yet considered a lucrative platform for promotion, just think about how the same was said about Instagram a few years ago. Draw your conclusions.
Good luck to you! See you soon on the pages of the blog “Salyou”