The viewership of live streams is expected to increase in the coming years, especially in the gaming niche. Statistics show that the viewership of gaming live streaming is expected to reach over 900 million in 2024. So, it’s high time for gaming streamers to venture outside YouTube or Twitch and try TikTok Live. Whether or not gaming is your niche, we shall learn how to go live on TikTok and other relevant things you need to know before venturing into TikTok Live.
What is TikTok Live?
TikTok is a multi-dollar social media and video-sharing platform that has amassed billions of daily active users from across the globe. Although several countries banned the platform, it continually reaches greater heights concerning its user base.
TikTok’s quirky and viral short-form videos and unique algorithm add to the platform’s popularity. In addition, it also offers different features that many users find entertaining and appealing, TikTok Live being one.
TikTok Live is the platform’s feature that allows you to interact with other users and TikTok creators in real time through live streaming. Only users aged 16 and above can access the feature, while users aged 18 can receive or give gifts during a live stream.
Like how to go Live on TikTok 2022, you must abide by the platform’s community guidelines to avoid having your account banned. Once the platform bans you, you cannot access TikTok Live or your account in general. So, knowing how to Live on TikTok requires you to get accustomed to the platform’s rules.
How To Go Live on TikTok?
How do I enable live access on TikTok? How do I turn on live status on TikTok?
Knowing how to go Live on TikTok entails getting accustomed to simple steps. First, access the app and tap the “+” sign. Enter the “Live” tab, then add a title for your live stream. Finally, hit “Go Live.”
Once you have finished broadcasting, you may access the recording within 90 days. To do so, enter our settings and privacy tab and click “LIVE Replay.” You can download or delete the recording.
You must also note that TikTok requires a certain number of followers to go Live. So, how many followers do you need to go live on TikTok? TikTok requires you to have at least 1000 followers to go Live. But you may ask, “Can I go live on TikTok without 1000 followers?”
Knowing how to go Live on TikTok without 1000 followers is wonderful, but there isn’t anything you can do as of this time. TikTok’s rules are already in place, and we are only hoping to see changes this year. For now, you must be at least 18 years old with 1000 or more followers to broadcast a live stream.
What are TikTok Live’s Best Practices?
When learning how to go live on TikTok, it’s crucial to follow the best practices to ensure a successful and engaging broadcast. Knowing how to go live on TikTok entails doing what is best to achieve success.
Schedule The Live Stream
First and foremost, plan your live sessions to coincide with peak viewing times, typically in the evenings or on weekends when your audience is most active. You must make use of analytics to identify when your audience is most active on social media. Their peak times vary depending on various factors, including their age, occupation, and location.
Social media management tools have built-in post schedulers you can use to schedule your live stream sessions and avoid forgetting or missing out on your excited audience. You can read more about this tool in our Circleboom review.
Engage With Viewers
Then, create a compelling and descriptive title to grab attention and give your viewers a clear idea of what to expect. Interact with your audience actively by responding to comments, addressing them by their usernames, and asking questions to encourage participation.
Utilize TikTok’s features like the Q&A and poll functions to boost interactivity. If you have the means, you may also reach out and collaborate with other creators to cross-promote and expand your reach.
Be Creative and Authentic
Keep your content lively and dynamic, and stay authentic. Internet users today love authenticity, humor, and creativity. Thus, plan a theme or challenge for your live streams to make it more engaging for viewers and act as you would in the usual setting. Viewers will often notice when creators are not being themselves.
Additionally, be witty in announcing your live sessions in advance through short videos or stories to build anticipation and ensure a good turnout.
Show Gratitude
Don’t forget to express gratitude for virtual gifts and shout-outs, encouraging viewers to support you further. Your viewers support you because they believe in who you are and what you do, so reciprocate the love and effort by showing how much they mean to you and how thankful you are to them for being the lifeline of your position as a creator or influencer.
Stay Consistent
Finally, be consistent with your branding, creativity, authenticity, and live streaming schedule to build a dedicated audience over time. Following these best practices will help you make the most of your TikTok Live experience and foster a vibrant and supportive
You can use a social media management tool to schedule your posts and maintain consistency in posting. Check out one of the best tools we know in this Social Champ review.
What are The Top TikTok Live Features?
The contributing factor to TikTok’s popularity is its wide array of entertaining features. TikTok Live is an interesting way to engage with your followers, and the app offers you multiple ways to maximize your live stream experience.
Live Events
You can schedule, manage, and promote your upcoming livestream to keep your followers thrilled. To do this, access the calendar on your LIVE Events icons. Tap LIVE Event to enter the LIVE Event page, then click the share icon, copy the link, and share it to your other social media channels.
Multi Guest
Knowing how to go Live on TikTok entails using the platform’s multi-guest feature. This feature allows you to broadcast a live stream with up to five guests through a grid or panel layout. The multi-guest feature works best for panel discussions, live how-to content, and other events that involve your community.
Live Gifts
Your avid viewers and fans may give you badges or gifts during your livestream, and you can only receive these gifts if you are part of the TikTok Creator Program.
Live Donations
TikTok’s Live Donations feature allows viewers to donate any amount to your charity of choice. If you are a philanthropist with multiple charities, you can give your viewers several options outside the stream, but TikTok only allows one in-stream. To do this, you must set up the following before your livestream:
- Tap the “Select Non-Profit” anchor link on the top left corner of your screen.
- Choose the non-profit organization you desire to support and place it on your live stream.
- Hit “Go Live” after your chosen charity appears in the top left corner.
If it suddenly occurs to you to enable your Live Donations in the middle of your live stream broadcast, you may do so by:
- Tap the bottom-right arrow button for more options.
- Clicking the “Support Non-Profit” option.
- Choosing a non-profit organization to add.
- Putting donation stickers anywhere on your live screen.
Moderators
TikTok has guidelines in place and is strict in implementing them. To ensure that the chatroom of your live stream is safe, engaging, and in line with your content, you can assign another user to be the moderator. It is imperative for you to research the different ways of conducting a safe live stream when learning how to go live on TikTok.
Question and Answer
Q&A is another TikTok Live feature that allows you to interact with your audience in real-time during the duration of your stream. You may use this feature to respond directly to your audience’s questions and gain access to tools for selecting, displaying, and replying to the questions you want to answer. You may filter or choose to ditch insensitive, confidential, or uncalled-for questions.
Keyword Filters
With the seemingly absolute freedom internet users enjoy, it isn’t unusual to find nasty comments on social media. One useful way of protecting your TikTok Live is filtering or flagging certain keywords and phrases to remove them automatically from your comment section. Doing so protects your peace and fosters a positive community with your viewers.
Live Topics
Viewers, in general, would want to know what a livestream is all about before actually watching it. TikTok’s Live Topics feature helps your audience know what to expect from your Live TikTok broadcast. The list of Live Topics includes sports, gaming, food, music, and DIY categories.
Furthermore, this feature boosts your discoverability by allowing new viewers to discover and join your live stream based on the topic you are covering.
Why Can’t I Go Live on TikTok?
There are multiple reasons why you can’t go live on TikTok. It may be a glitch on your device or internet connection, or you may be ineligible because you are under 18 years old, have recently violated the platform’s policies, or don’t have enough followers.
If you have a speedy internet connection and have met the platform’s live streaming requirements, you may file a report on TikTok and wait for them to resolve your case.
While waiting for the resolution of your TikTok Live concern, you may broadcast your live stream on other platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, and Twitch.
Can You Generate Income On TikTok Live?
Definitely! You can leverage several TikTok Live features to earn money. TikTok allows you to send or receive during live broadcasts, which can be converted into diamonds. You can exchange these virtual gifts for real money.
Additionally, TikTok has a “Live Gifts” feature where your viewers can purchase gifts using coins and receive a portion of the revenue from these transactions. To boost your income, engage with your audience, create compelling content, and encourage viewers to send gifts during your live broadcasts.
Building a loyal fan base and consistently producing entertaining content is key to maximizing your earnings on TikTok Live. Keep in mind that TikTok’s monetization features may evolve, so staying informed about updates and adapting your strategy is crucial to sustaining and growing your income on the platform.
Wrap Up
If you want to maximize all of TikTok’s best features to engage with your audience and expand your reach, you may start by learning how to go live on TikTok. Once you have done this, you may start exploring TikTok live and use it to your brand’s advantage.
Always make sure to abide by TikTok’s community guidelines and avoid doing anything that would have you restricted from hosting livestreams or accessing the platform.
Head to our “Instagram Live for Business: Everything You Need To Know” article to learn about how you can make the most of Instagram Live for your brand and business.