Welcome to our Creator Coffee Chat: Presented By the TrendTok App where you get to learn about the very best tips, tricks and advice for growing your TikTok account from viral creators! We know that growing your TikTok account can feel overwhelming at times, so we’re breaking down the strategy that these creators used to help you through the process! Whether you’re a new creator on the platform that hasn’t chosen their username yet or a creator with a huge following behind you, we believe that this series will provide you with some new insights that you can apply to your TikTok strategy!
Today’s coffee chat is with Allyson Robinson! Allyson (@HeyGirl_itsAllyson). Allyson is a wife, a twin mom, an international educator, an author and explorer! She loves to discover new things. Life is an adventure for her. One of her passions has always been working with youth, especially young women. Her biggest drive and motivation is to ensure that they have the tools that she didn’t have growing up so that they can be further ahead of her by the time they’re her age.
Allyson was a teacher for 4.5 years, then joined TikTok, to see what her students were up to. She deleted it for a few years because she wasn’t that into it, and then downloaded it again in 2019, posting a few videos here and there.
We asked Allyson to share some advice, tips and thoughts with us that could help creators with their TikTok journey!
What is your TikTok handle and did you have a strategy behind choosing your handle username?
My TikTok handle is HeyGirl_itsAllyson. This handle is actually attached to my business, Hey Girl! International, so I wanted to be able to create an online presence for my business, using a name that was universal.
What was the process behind creating your first video on the platform? How did it feel?
My first video was just a video of me and my twins. I did a voice over video just for fun because I was a stay at home mom their first year. It felt weird and exciting at the same time. Nothing happened with it and being a mom became more challenging, so I stopped for a while.
How did your first video perform? What was your reaction to it’s performance?
I didn’t get more than a few views and likes on it. I didn’t really know how to utilize the platform like that, so when I saw the response, I wasn’t too concerned about it because I didn’t know much about TikTok (musical.ly) at the time except that my students loved to post dancing videos on there, and that was something I wasn’t doing at the time.
How did you decide what kind of content you wanted to post on your platform or what audience you wanted to reach?
I’ve always wanted to communicate and grow a community empowering young girls. So I had to figure out what to post and how to post after TikTok started getting popular with the age group I wanted to work with. To be honest? I prayed about it. I didn’t want to get caught up in what everyone else was doing because I didn’t want to get stuck in creating something I really didn’t like. I didn’t want to follow the trends because I would have to rely on them to help me with my purpose. So I prayed and asked God for a strategy. At 2am that next day, He said “Big Sis Tok” and told me to start that day. So I did and the rest is history!
What advice do you have for creators that are still trying to find their niche on TikTok?
Stop worrying about likes and follows. Stop trying to be a carbon copy of someone else. If you’re not on TikTok to be yourself and help or entertain in your own special way, take a step back. What I always tell my Lil’ Sisters on TikTok is that being your unique self is what’s needed in this world. We already have so many copy cats and people who are trying to outdo the other person by copying them. If you get stuck in the box of trying to be someone you are not for likes and follows, it will be hard to get out of that box later when you realize that’s not what you want to do or who you are. You don’t want to compromise who you are for the tap of some stranger’s thumb. Think hard. Pray hard. What has been put on the inside of you to do? How are you meant to change and impact this world? Start there.
How many videos did you post before you had your first “viral video”?
Since I started doing #BigSisTok and being the #InternetBigSis, I posted 17 videos before my first one went viral. Since this was an idea from God, I promised Him that I would make a video every day and not think about the likes, comments, or follows.
What did it feel like when you realized your video was going viral?
I was completely shocked to be honest. I made the video after leaving the grocery store. I was sitting in my driveway and said “Oh I didn’t make a video today. Let me make one.” The video is 10 seconds long. I honestly didn’t know what to do. I just remember checking my phone every 10min and watching my followers start taking off.
What happens when one of your videos does not perform how you expected? Do you ever recreate or repost the video?
I have tried to recreate videos and repost them if they didn’t perform well. Sometimes they do better, and sometimes they don’t. In those moments, I try to repurpose the content if I know its informative and display it in another way, like on a blog or an IG story where they can interact with it.
What advice do you have for creators on creating the TikTok videos? Any there any tools or softwares that you use?
Just get started. Stop trying to wait for the perfect day. Stop trying to wait until you have money for the best camera and light. Go for it with what you have and over time, save up and change it up if you want to. But stop using a lack of an expensive camera or software as an excuse not to start. There are people out there waiting for what you have. People need that information to help them. People are searching for someone just like you. How much longer will you make them wait?
Do you ever get nervous posting on TikTok? If so, how do you deal with it?
When I first got started, I would be nervous because I didn’t fit the “TikToker” mold that I felt people were attracted to. But I had to remind myself that there’s only one of me and that comparing myself isn’t going to get me anywhere. Every time I compare myself to someone else, I automatically come in second place. I’ll never be them… but they’ll also never be me. Once I stopped making it about me and made it about how I could help those I was talking to, I stopped being nervous because I knew what I had to offer was valuable, even if only 1 or 2 girls saw it.
Are there any tricks/tips that you have used to boost your posts that you’d like to share with creators?
Anytime I have some type of “call-to-action” that asks my audience to respond or answer a question, I see a boost in my posts. I also see a boost in posts when my Lil’ Sisters see that I’m answering questions about certain topics. When they see that I respond to questions, they either comment a new question or send me one.
How do you keep your community/followers engaged with you and your content on TikTok?
I give my community multiple opportunities to get in touch with me. I try my best to respond to all comments, make it my mission to respond to all messages and answer questions. Even if my community isn’t engaged 100% of the time, they know that if they were to reach out to me, I would answer. I know how it feels to be seen by someone who I look up to or admire. I try my best to make sure my community know that they’re not just my followers, but a part of my life. I wouldn’t be the creator I am without them.
How do you handle the negative comments on the platform?
I’ve rarely gotten a negative comment on TikTok. I believe this is because of the tone I set. I don’t gossip. I don’t talk bad about others. I spend my time empowering and encouraging all who find my profile. When I do get one or two comments, many times it’s because they didn’t understand what I was saying or looked at it from a different point of view. Since I know we’re a world full of people with different backgrounds and understandings, I take the time to explain my point of view and letting them know that they’re entitled to their own opinion as well. If the conversation starts to take a turn in the comments, I send a DM. I do this to let the person know that I hear them, but to also avoid any type of public confrontation or embarrassment for them and for me.
What’s one thing you wish you knew when you were first starting out on the platform?
One thing I wish I knew starting out was that TikTok was more that just dancing to songs, but that there were other people discussing other topics as well. I thought it was just about music and didn’t take the time to try and build anything when TikTok first got popular.
Who are some of your favorite TikTokers or accounts to follow?
I love @itsthescotts, @mommalikestosave, and @trendycurvy a lot on TikTok. All of these TikTok accounts are true to their brands and are helpful in the material they post or just entertaining in their own special way.
What is next for you on the platform, anything we should be on the lookout for?
I am going to be a new addition to the Wellness hub on TikTok, which I’m excited about. I’m currently a part of the Black Creatives Program with TikTok as well, so I’m excited about the outcome of this program.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Try your best not to get caught up in the TikTokers that are always going viral and have millions of followers. You’ll see their videos sometimes and want to compromise what you’re doing for the same reactions and responses. Don’t. Be You. The world needs more original creators. Even if it’s something that’s never been done before, it may be just what someone needs. As soon as I said I was willing to be the #internetbigsis, there were thousands of girls who flocked to my account because I was filling a need they had, but didn't know how to identify, until I showed up. Show up as YOU. There is a gro
up of people in the world that are your audience. There are BILLIONS of people in the world. Somebody, somewhere, even if it’s just one, will be forever changed because of you. Be YOU.
Where can our readers connect with you?
You can connect with me on TikTok @heygirl_itsAllyson, IG at @heygirlitsAllyson, subscribe to my YouTube channel “Hey Girl! It’s Allyson”, my podcast “Hey Girl! It’s Allyson”, (seeing a pattern here LOL), and my website for booking and some helpful tools about motherhood, anxiety, and my books at allysonarobinson.com
We loved chatting with Allyson and if you enjoyed her coffee chat, make sure that you check her out on TikTok! And drop a comment on her video that you saw her here on the TrendTok Coffee Chat series!!
This series is presented by the TrendTok App, the platform for TikTok Analytics that helps creators go viral! Check it out here!
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