TikTok views are important for creators and brands alike: Creators make money on TikTok based on the number of views their videos receive, and businesses can turn viewers into customers on TikTok Shop and beyond.
Mike Alfaro, founder of Millennial Lotería, experienced the power of TikTok firsthand. On an episode of Shopify Masters he explained how an unplanned, no-budget video he posted on the app got millions of views and led to a product sellout at Target.
“It was a very, I guess, just endearing video for a lot of people who saw it, because they were like, ‘Wow, here’s this kid who’s like investing his own money and the product is doing well, and it’s all about Latinos.”
In this guide, you’ll learn how to get more views on TikTok, with tips from Mike and other successful business owners.
What is a view on TikTok?
Any time another user watches your TikTok video—even if they immediately scroll away—it counts as a view in TikTok analytics.
The Creator Rewards Program, a monetization initiative for eligible creators, prioritizes views as one of its most important factors. It looks for qualified views, which must meet certain requirements.
A qualified view is at least five seconds long. For videos users find via search, the required time extends to 30 seconds.
Qualified views only count if the viewer lives in a country where the Creator Rewards Program is available (the United States, Brazil, Mexico, South Korean, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Japan). TikTok also focuses on authentic views, or views that aren’t fraudulent, paid, or disliked. Repeat views only count as one view.
How to get more views on TikTok
- Post intentionally
- Participate in trends
- Post engaging content
- Create longer videos
- Optimize for TikTok search
- Talk in your videos
- Build a community
- Check your analytics
- Promote your content
One of the best ways to get more views on TikTok is to make it onto users’ For You page (FYP), the algorithmic feed that shows new content similar to accounts they follow. According to Dash Social, FYP views have grown from representing 31% of brands’ total views in the beginning of 2023 to 51% by the end of 2025.
Here are nine tips that can help you get more viewers on the TikTok app:
1. Post intentionally
You may have heard that posting every day is the secret to going viral on TikTok, but that may not be the case for brands.
The same Dash Social report found that brands posting less than six times per week saw higher FYP engagement than frequent posters. On TikTok, engagement was 63% higher for less-frequent posters.
Doll brand American Girl focuses on intentional storytelling over volume, posting about two to three times a week. Different dolls provide details about holidays like Eid-al-Fitr or practical advice, like how to prepare your bed for the perfect sleepover. This practice emphasizes quality over quantity.
2. Participate in trends
Participating in a trend gives you an opportunity to capitalize on content already resonating with users, potentially opening you up to land on a wider number of people’s FYP.
Stay up to date on viral TikTok trends by watching content on your For You page or checking the platform’s Creative Center to see emerging and currently popular trends. This tool lets you see trending hashtags, songs, creators, and TikTok videos from the past seven to 120 days.
When you create content for trending topics or layer popular audio clips on top of your videos to engage with trends, remain true to your brand message to encourage people to keep interacting with your videos.
In March 2026, Beautyblender jumped on the trend of editing something innocuous (in this case, behind the scenes of a photoshoot) like a high-stakes reality TV show, complete with dramatic music and screaming. The video was timely and humorous but also featured plenty of shots of the brand’s signature pink makeup sponge.
If you’re using trending sounds, follow ethical marketing practices by choosing songs approved for business use (you can filter for this in the Creative Center). Alternatively, try contacting the creator who started the trend.
“Ask an artist or ask a creator of a sound if you can use their work, and if they say no or don’t respond, respect that boundary,” social media consultant and author of the newsletter Link in Bio Rachel Karten says.
3. Post engaging content
A high engagement rate shows TikTok that people care about your content, which can lead to the TikTok algorithm promoting your content to users beyond your followers. Post content that captures the viewer’s attention and inspires them to leave a comment and share with others.
Skin-care brand Dieux engages viewers by explaining the science behind products. “We call ourselves a too-much-information brand,” cofounder Charlotte Palermino says on an episode of the Shopify Masters podcast. “We share what your skin needs and what it doesn’t. That resonated with people because it’s real.”
In one video, Charlotte talks about why Dieux decided to create three moisturizers: “Absolutely nothing is for everyone,” she says. The video received more than 70,000 views, making it one of Dieux’s most-viewed posts of 2026.
At the end of the video, Charlotte says the brand will probably make even more moisturizers in the future, and encourages viewers to share their requests in the comments. The video received more than 100 comments.
4. Create longer videos
According to Pew Research, the most popular creators’ videos are about twice as long, on average, as videos from the least popular creators.
Longer videos can get viewers to slow down and learn about your company. Sonsie Skin CEO Kailey Bradt says “slow content” is one of her favorite trends for 2026.
Kailey says the brand is “really leaning into this kind of short film format. It gives you such a greater opportunity to do the storytelling of the brand, which I think is so much fun. It’s much more creative.”
In one video, Sonsie cofounder and actress Pamela Anderson spends one minute and 39 seconds sharing her rules of the garden in a voice-over paired with cinematic shots of herself chomping on a carrot, picking rose petals, and dancing in the rain with rhubarb stalks. The video has almost 150,000 views—a significant achievement for a brand with 20,000 followers.
A commenter notes:
“Oh my goodness, THIS IS ART. Everyone involved in this masterpiece of storytelling is incredible. The coloring, the music, the narration, the angles, the rules, the product. I am so moved and so intrigued.”
5. Optimize for TikTok search
The For You page isn’t the only way for TikTok users to find your account. According to TikTok, 57% of users engage with the app’s search function.
“Showing up in search results requires a different approach than appearing on the For You page,” says Leslie Ann Hall, founder and CEO of social agency Iced Media. “TikTok’s search ranking is driven by intentional keyword usage—specifically within captions, on-screen text, transcribed audio, and relevant keyword-based hashtags.”
Leslie recommends brands use keyword research tools like Google Ads Keyword Planner to find niche keywords that aren’t yet saturated, and then incorporating those keywords into text elements like captions. As an added benefit, Leslie says TikTok SEO can also help get your brand featured in answers from generative AI tools like ChatGPT.
6. Talk in your videos
Pew Research found that the most popular creators include speech in 40% of their videos, compared to just 20% for less popular creators.
For Millennial Lotería Founder Mike Alfaro, going in front of the camera and telling his story as a business owner helped him get millions of views. But he acknowledges that this can feel vulnerable.
“All of a sudden, you have all these entrepreneurs that have to become social media influencers,” Mike says. “For some people that’s going to come more naturally, but I think it is important to share your story and what you’re doing.”
Mike recommends posting a mix of content related to the business and stuff that feels less like marketing. “It just has to feel like something that’s really coming from you,” Mike says.
One of Millennial Lotería’s most popular videos from 2026 had eight million views and is titled “Day 122 of teaching you Bad Bunny Spanish before the halftime.” In it, Mike dances along to the song “DtMF” by Bad Bunny as lyric translations flash above the screen.
It’s fun, timely (posted five days before Bad Bunny performed at the Super Bowl), and relevant to Millennial Lotería’s audience, without feeling like marketing.
7. Build a community
If you want to get more eyes on your business and increase your followers on TikTok, encourage creators to post about it. According to Dash Social, creators receive three times more engagement than brands on TikTok.
You can do this through TikTok affiliate marketing or by soliciting user-generated content (UGC) on platforms like TYB or Discord.
If you’re a creator, consider partnering with other creators to make a video together, then tagging each other in the caption. This will encourage viewers to check out each of your profiles.
Other avenues to build community include interacting with users who comment on your posts and collaborating with TikTok creators on influencer marketing platforms.
8. Check your analytics
Use video performance data to refine your TikTok content strategy. TikTok analytics provides information on video views, watch time, and video completion rate, as well as demographic insights about your specific audience.
Reviewing this data can provide insight into what your audience likes. Take a strategy-based approach by identifying your most successful videos and looking for common threads. Then, use what you learn to create videos using similar techniques.
For Michelle Razavi, cofounder of protein dessert brand Elavi, TikTok analytics confirmed she was on the right track when she started posting more “unfiltered, raw, vulnerable, off-the-cuff type of content.”
“I started being very data-driven,” Michelle says on an episode of Shopify Masters. “And the numbers were stronger—people resonated more—with a more casual, random video versus some very polished, perfect professional photography.”
One of Elavi’s most popular TikToks from 2026 is a simple, slightly shaky selfie video of Michelle that cuts from a living room to the Elavi warehouse with the “How hard can it be? Boys do it” trending audio. The video has almost 15,000 views.
9. Promote your content
Cross-promote your content by sharing links on other popular social media platforms. If you have a dedicated Instagram following, for example, post an Instagram Story to let your followers know you’ve shared a new TikTok video.
Running TikTok ads is another way to get more views. TikTok ads blend into a user’s feed. They can appear as in-feed videos, branded hashtags, or sponsored effects (like augmented reality filters).
One of the benefits of ads is that you can target specific audiences. You can create custom audiences on TikTok Ads Manager based on user engagement, targeting those that have interacted with content similar to yours.
How to get more views on TikTok FAQ
Why do views matter on TikTok?
TikTok’s algorithm treats views as a measure of high-quality content and boosts popular videos within the app. In the Creator Rewards Program, more TikTok views can mean higher compensation.
How do I increase TikTok views?
The best way to attract views on TikTok is by consistently posting engaging, high-quality videos that keep people watching.
How much does TikTok pay per view?
Depending on the video, TikTok pays between a few cents and a few dollars per thousand views. The TikTok Creator Rewards Program compensates creators who meet the eligibility requirements and post high-performing videos.
Is 500 views on TikTok good?
TikTok success is relative. Getting 500 views on a TikTok video is an impressive achievement for a new account, but it might be disappointing to a creator with 20,000 followers. Eligible videos need at least 1,000 qualified For You page views to receive compensation from the TikTok Creator Rewards Program.
Should you buy views on TikTok?
Buying views to increase your visibility may be tempting, but it violates TikTok’s terms of service and can put your account at risk. Doing so disqualifies you from the Creator Rewards Program and can lead to penalties, even if you’re not pursuing rewards. If TikTok detects fake engagement, the algorithm may suppress your content, reducing your visibility.
Any tactic perceived as manipulation, similar to what’s known as “black hat SEO,” such as “click farms,” paying for reviews, or buying followers is frowned upon.
