Module 4: TikTok Trends & Growing Your Following
Now that you understand how TikTok works, let’s talk about how to actually grow there. Because posting consistently is one thing, but growing a following that actually converts to customers is another.
Understanding TikTok Trends
Trends on TikTok move fast. A sound or format that’s viral this week might be old news next week. But participating in trends strategically can significantly boost your reach.
Types of TikTok Trends
Sound trends: A specific song or audio clip that goes viral, and everyone uses it in their videos.
Format trends: A specific way of structuring a video (like “Get Ready With Me” or “Day in the Life” or “POV” videos).
Challenge trends: Usually started by a big creator or brand, where people recreate a specific action or concept.
Hashtag trends: A hashtag movement that gains momentum (like #BookTok or #SmallBusinessCheck).
Dance trends: Yes, these exist, but you probably don’t need to do them for your fashion brand.
How to Find Trends Early
The key to trends is catching them early, while they’re still climbing but before they’re oversaturated.
Where to spot trends:
Your For You Page: If you see the same audio or format multiple times in one scrolling session, it’s trending.
TikTok’s Discover page: The search/discover tab shows trending hashtags and sounds.
TikTok Creative Center: creativecentercenter.tiktok.com shows trending sounds, hashtags, and creators by region.
Other creators in your niche: Watch what similar brands are doing. If everyone’s using the same sound, it’s trending.
Look for the upward arrow: Next to sounds in videos, you’ll sometimes see an arrow indicating it’s trending up.
Participating in Trends Strategically
Not every trend is right for your brand. Here’s how to decide:
Ask yourself:
- Can I adapt this trend to showcase my products or values authentically?
- Will my target audience find this relevant or entertaining?
- Does this align with my brand personality?
- Minimum: 4-5 videos per week
- Ideal: 1-2 videos per day
- Maximum: Don’t burn yourself out, but there’s no real maximum if you have good content
- Start with text that creates curiosity: “This is why your dresses never fit right…”
- Start mid-action: Jump right into showing something interesting
- Ask a question: “Can you tell which dress costs $20 vs $200?”
- Make a bold statement: “Everything you know about sustainable fashion is wrong”
- Slow intros: “Hey guys, so today I wanted to talk about…”
- Starting with your face just smiling without context
- Generic text: “New post!” or “Check this out!”
- Keep videos short: 15-30 seconds when possible
- Cut out dead space: No pauses or slow moments
- Create a loop: End your video in a way that makes people want to rewatch it
- Build to a payoff: Give people a reason to watch until the end (the reveal, the answer, the transformation)
- Use text to keep engagement: Add new text every few seconds so there’s always something to read
- Ask questions in your caption: “Which one would you choose?”
- Create slight controversy: “Am I wrong for this?” (not actual controversy, just gentle debate)
- Make relatable content: Content that makes people say “this is so me” gets shared
- Include a poll in your caption: Use emojis to create options (👗 for option A, 👖 for option B)
- Leave something open to interpretation: Let people discuss in comments
- A clear profile photo (logo or recognizable brand image)
- A bio that immediately explains what you do: “Sustainable linen clothing | Made in Portugal 🌿 | Ships worldwide”
- Your website link (use a Link in Bio tool if you need multiple links)
- A pinned video showcasing your best work or explaining your brand
- An empty profile with only 2-3 videos
- A confusing bio that doesn’t explain what you sell
- No link to actually purchase from you
- Early morning (6-9am)
- Lunch time (12-2pm)
- Evening (6-10pm)
- Share it to your Instagram Reels (same content, different audience)
- Share it to your Instagram Stories with a “just posted on TikTok” message
- Mention it in your email newsletter if it’s particularly good
- Spam your other platforms constantly with “follow me on TikTok”
- Prioritize TikTok over platforms where you already have an engaged audience
- Duet with customers who post wearing your pieces
- Collab with complementary brands (not competitors, but related—like a jewelry designer and a clothing designer)
- Feature other small businesses in your niche
- Do “small business check” videos featuring each other
- Which videos got the most views?
- Which videos had the highest completion rate?
- Which videos drove the most profile visits and follows?
- Your content is entertaining but not making people want more
- Solution: End videos with “follow for more” and make sure your content has a clear niche/theme
- Hook isn’t strong enough, or completion rate is low
- Solution: Work on hooking people faster and keeping videos concise
- You won’t see momentum with sporadic posting
- Solution: Batch-create content so you always have videos ready
- You might not be doing it authentically or adapting it to your brand
- Solution: Find your own angle and voice
- Don’t delete it immediately: Sometimes videos pick up later
- Analyze why it might have underperformed: Bad hook? Wrong timing? Not relevant to your audience?
- Move on: Post your next video and don’t dwell on it
- Remember: One flop doesn’t mean your strategy is wrong
Good trend participation:
A sound trending about “little treat culture” → You adapt it to show yourself buying special fabric or celebrating finishing a collection.
A format about “realistic day in the life” → You show an honest day as a fashion designer, including the unglamorous parts.
A trend about “things I love” → You show three pieces you designed that you personally wear constantly and why.
Forced trend participation:
A dance trend → You awkwardly attempt the dance while holding your product (unless dance is genuinely part of your brand, this usually feels off).
A trend that has nothing to do with fashion → Jumping on it just for views won’t attract your target customer.
How to Adapt Trends for Your Brand
The best TikTok creators don’t just copy trends—they make them their own.
The formula: Take the trending element (sound or format) + add your unique angle (fashion, your products, your story)
Example 1:
Trending sound: “I’m looking for a man in finance, trust fund, 6’5″, blue eyes…”
Generic use: Lip syncing to it
Fashion brand adaptation: “I’m looking for a fabric supplier, reliable, fair trade, responds to emails…” (showing your search for ethical production)
Example 2:
Trending format: “I tried the [celebrity]’s routine for a week”
Fashion brand adaptation: “I wore only my own designs for a week (here’s what I learned about my collection)”
Example 3:
Trending sound: Any upbeat, energetic sound
Fashion brand adaptation: Quick cuts showing your design process from sketch to finished piece
See how you’re using the trend’s momentum but making it relevant to your brand?
Creating Trend-Proof Content
While participating in trends can boost reach, you also need evergreen content that works regardless of what’s trending.
Evergreen content themes:
Educational content: “How to tell if clothing is good quality” will always be relevant.
Styling tips: “How to style oversized blazers” doesn’t depend on trends.
Behind-the-scenes: People will always be interested in your creative process.
Story-driven content: Your brand story, your why, customer stories—these are timeless.
Product showcases: When done well, showing your products in use always has value.
Build your content strategy on 70% evergreen content and 30% trend participation. This way, you’re not constantly chasing trends, but you’re still capitalizing on algorithmic boosts when relevant trends appear.
Growing Your TikTok Following
Let’s get tactical about growth. Here’s what actually works:
1. Post consistently
This is non-negotiable. Aim for:
Why consistency matters: Each video is a lottery ticket for virality. More videos = more chances. Plus, TikTok’s algorithm favors active creators.
2. Hook people in the first second
If your video doesn’t grab attention immediately, people scroll and your video dies.
Strong hooks:
Weak hooks:
3. Optimize for completion rate
The percentage of people who watch your entire video is the most important metric for the algorithm.
How to improve completion rate:
4. Encourage engagement
Comments, likes, and shares signal to TikTok that your content is good.
Ways to encourage engagement:
5. Respond to comments actively
Especially in the first hour after posting. Your responses count as engagement and boost the video.
Bonus: If a comment gets lots of likes, create a follow-up video responding to it. Use the “reply with video” feature. These often perform well.
6. Optimize your profile for conversions
When someone watches your video and clicks your profile, what do they see?
Make sure you have:
Don’t have:
7. Post at strategic times (but don’t overthink it)
Check your TikTok Analytics to see when your followers are most active.
General good times:
But honestly, on TikTok, a good video can take off anytime. Consistency matters more than perfect timing.
8. Cross-promote strategically
When you post a TikTok:
But don’t:
9. Collaborate with other creators
Strategic collaborations:
How to reach out:
Send a genuine DM: “Hey! I love your content about [specific thing]. I’m also in the fashion space and thought it could be fun to create some content together. Would you be interested in [specific collab idea]?”
10. Analyze and adapt
Every week, look at your analytics:
Do more of what’s working. Adjust what’s not.
What NOT to Do
Don’t buy followers or views: This ruins your engagement rate and doesn’t help your business.
Don’t post and ghost: If you post and never respond to comments or engage with others, growth will be slow.
Don’t copy other creators exactly: Be inspired, but find your own voice.
Don’t give up after a few videos flop: Even successful creators have videos that underperform. Keep going.
Don’t post only promotional content: Every video can’t be “buy my stuff.” Provide value first.
Converting TikTok Followers to Customers
Here’s the thing: TikTok followers don’t automatically become customers. You need a strategy to convert them.
The conversion path:
TikTok video (they discover you)
↓
Profile visit (they want to learn more)
↓
Link click (they click your bio link)
↓
Email signup or Instagram follow (they join your ecosystem)
↓
Purchase (they become customers)
How to facilitate this path:
In your videos: Subtly mention “link in bio” when relevant. Don’t be pushy, but make it clear where they can find you.
In your bio: Make the next step obvious. “Shop sustainable linen dresses ↓”
On your website: When TikTok traffic arrives, capture emails with a popup offering 10% off first purchase or similar.
Through retargeting: Once they visit your site, retarget them with Instagram or Facebook ads (more on this in Program 3).
Via email: If they join your email list, nurture them with your story, values, and products.
Content Series That Build Loyal Followers
Instead of random one-off videos, create series that give people a reason to follow you:
“Behind the Collection” series: Multi-part series showing the creation of a new collection from concept to launch.
“Styling Saturdays”: Every Saturday, post a styling tip or outfit idea.
“Small Business Reality”: Weekly honest updates about running your fashion business.
“Ask Me Anything”: Regular videos answering follower questions about fashion, your brand, or design.
“Customer Spotlight”: Feature a different customer each week.
Series create anticipation and habit. People follow you because they don’t want to miss the next installment.
Dealing with Slow Growth
Let’s talk about what to do when you’re stuck:
If your videos get views but no followers:
If your videos get low views:
If you’re not posting consistently:
If you’re copying what works for others but it’s not working for you:
Growth takes time: Most successful fashion brands on TikTok spent 6-12 months building their following. Be patient and consistent.
When a Video Flops
Not every video will perform well. Even accounts with millions of followers post videos that get relatively few views.
What to do:
Your TikTok Growth Action Plan
This week:
1. Commit to a posting schedule: Decide how many times per week you’ll post and stick to it for at least a month.
2. Batch-create 5-7 videos: Spend a few hours filming so you have content ready to go.
3. Find 2-3 current trends you can adapt to your brand and create videos using them.
4. Review your profile: Make sure it’s optimized to convert viewers to followers and customers.
5. Engage actively: Spend 20-30 minutes daily engaging with content in your niche.
TikTok can feel overwhelming, but it’s one of the few platforms where you can still grow organically without spending money on ads. The key is consistency, authenticity, and patience. Show up regularly, provide value, and let the algorithm do its job.
Next up, we’re moving to Pinterest—a completely different platform with completely different strategies for fashion brands.