We have WhatsApp for chat, Instagram for filters, and Zoom for live video streaming. Still, there’s always a scope for innovations. It’s never full. TikTok app is a great example of that. In a few time, it has become one of the excellent sources of entertainment, keeping users busy with amusing in-app activities.
The video social media app has taken the world by storm. TikTok has become an on-going trend among the family of entertainment apps, not showing any signs of slowing down. The app is a home of millions of users across the world. People find it hard to resist the app and end up spending hours watching videos – fulfil the urge to create their own.
The unexpected success of TikTok has led many opportunistic to ask one simple question: “How to make an app like TikTok?”
If you are the one, you’ve landed on the right ground. Through this mini-guide, you will learn how to create a mellifluous app like TikTok. We will peek in the features and the factors responsible for the success of this popular video-sharing app.
First and foremost, let’s take a look at how TikTok works:
How does TikTok work?
TikTok allows users to create and share their music-supporting videos online. This is the most basic reason why users love the app as it enables them to make their own movie in a matter of seconds. It doesn’t take rocket science to create a video with TikTok. Additionally, the app offers multiple options to edit the videos using various filters, effects, and more.
In bonus, TikTok gives users an opportunity to show and share their talent or knowledge with a wider audience. One can convert a video into a live wallpaper to make their home screen emerge into life. Users can save different videos to watch later or to decorate their home screen.
Hence, all these features combinely made TikTok a popular app in a short span. The karaoke-like features attract the broad audience towards the app.
Besides, here are some interesting facts about TikTok:
- As per Sensor Tower, 1.1+ billion global users are using Android or iOS version of TikTok
- The video-sharing app rules over 500 million monthly active users (and still counting)
- TikTok was the most downloaded app in the first quarter of 2019, with more than 33 million installs
- Sensor Tower also identified that TikTok’s developer, ByterDance, has crossed $75 million in revenue via in-app purchases.
So if you are heading to build an app like TikTok, this is the right time to get started with most lovable features of the app.
The most admired features of TikTok
The success factors of app include:
- Short-form content: To create a 15-second video is a child’s play. The content works perfectly well among today’s short-attention-span generation.
- Young targeted audience: TikTok is a favorite app of users aged between 16-24 – a social media and smartphone-addictive era
- Celebrity-like feel: TikTok makes users feel like a celebrity, making them curious to create videos and build fan-following.
- Money-making machine: Thanks to its features, TikTok has become a money-making machine for users collaborating with brands to promote content, win contests, and receive gifts during the live stream.
Now let us see how to create a whimsical video app like TikTok.
How to build an app like TikTok?
Most of the time, wannabe app owners start with creating an MVP (application with basic functions). Once they notice some success with their basic product, they start rolling out new and advanced functionality. Likewise, before building a TikTok-like app, you must consider basic, essential features to include in your app.
Basic features for TikTok-Like app
1. Sign up / login
The primary feature for any mobile app is allowing user login or sign up. You can also offer direct sign in via social media accounts like Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, etc. in favour of lazy users.
2. Edit profile
Next comes giving the users the freedom to customize their profile. Users may get lazy at the first step of sign up but when it comes to designing a beautiful profile, they want customized options to create a profile that goes well with their personality.
3. Upload video
Here comes the most essential feature of a video-sharing app – a feature allowing users to either upload their ready-made videos or make their own videos in the app and upload them on the spot.
4. Edit video
Similar to Snapchat, TikTok also offers an impressive editing toolkit including AR effects to change the color of face, eyes, & hair. It also provides stickers, masks, and other animated objects to add an extra layer of fun to the video.
5. Live streaming
Live streaming is a premium feature of TikTok. It permits video creators to go live and receive virtual goods – purchased using TikTok coins – from their fans.
6. Soundtracks
Users can search their favorite songs from the in-built TikTok library and add them to their short-video collection.
7. Social sharing
TikTok users are free to share all their videos on their social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, WhatsApp, and others.
8. Likes, comments, & follow
Similar to Facebook, viewers can like and comment on TikTok videos. They can also follow the person/brand who is creating the videos.
9. Notifications
To keep the users coming back on TikTok, the app must send them a push notification. You have to update users whenever their favorite TikTok stars post a new video. This brings them back often, never allowing them to forget the app – a surefire way to make an addictive app.
10. Duet option
All those users who love to create videos from TikTok and lip-sync with the song enjoy the Duet option feature. The feature asks users to create duet videos with other users, adding extra fun.
11. Admin panel
Admin panel gives the app manager control over user management (an ability to edit, delete, or block users). Additionally, it assists in counting posts of users, submits data of new users, and more.
You can start with only basic features to roll over your app. However, the more users your app collects, the more advanced and unique functions you can add in future…
Four steps to create an app like TikTok
If you have decided to create a TikTok-like app and grab an opportunity to be a part of users’ daily life, here are the four steps that will help you get started as soon as possible.
1. Find and research your target market
The first step to make an app is to find out your targeted audience and know more about them by following the below-given steps:
- Demographic profile: Learn the average age of your targeted audience, where do they live, what devices they use, and so on.
- Behavioral patterns: It includes acknowledging the increasing and decreasing desires of users towards the app. Rapidly decreasing the attention span and patience for slow speed apps. Little tolerance for security matters. High concerns over app utility, etc.
To create a better video sharing app that responds to users’ desires and needs, you have to build a buyer persona i.e. a detailed picture of your ideal users.
2. Select the monetization model
Once you understand your future customers, you can start choosing the right app monetization strategy given below:
- Fundraising: At the beginning of your project, you can collect investment via fundraising. It includes finding individuals and businesses who would donate money for your app.
- In-App purchases: Users buy virtual currency in TikTok with real money to support live broadcasters. They can exchange this currency for gifts. You can invent more alike options to generate money via in-app purchases.
- Advertising: You can earn from various advertising models like Cost Per Click – charging users each time they interact with the app. Cost Per Mille – charging advertisers for every 1000 impressions they receive on their ad. Cost Per Action – charging advertisers for specific actions like app install or newsletter signup.
When you decide your app monetization model, take a step forward to the app development process.
3. Hire an expert app development team
With enough knowledge of prospective users and monetization, you have to hire an experienced app development team that turns your idea into a reality.
Generally, an app development team is a group of:
- Business Analyst: to analyze your business for the app
- Project manager: to lead the team towards the app goal
- UI/UX Designer: to design the app
- Android/iOS Developer: to develop the app
- Back-end developers
- QA Engineer: to test the app and deliver it bug-free to the app stores
Basically, there are two phases of the app development process. One is Discover Phase involving business analysis, app requirements, the technology needed, estimated cost, and project planning.
During the discovery phase, an app development team conducts the following activities depending on the app requirements:
- Identify the Project Scope
- Define the key features of the app
- Clarify business priorities attached with the app
- Build an app development workflow
- Consider monetization strategy
- Design an app concept
- Create project milestones
After completing all these tasks, your app transits to the second phase called MVP
4. Create an MVP
Building a video sharing app is a complex project. Hence, instead of approaching a fully-functional app – which costs a fortune – go for an MVP product with basic features. In this way, not only you save time, money, and resources, but also find out whether users like your app or not. When your app starts receiving the feedback, you can dive in further app improvement processes.
Takeaway
Social media apps instantly gain traction among the masses. No matter how many apps enter the market, there’s always a space for more. In fact, now is the right time to turn your dream into a reality and make it your business or a part of your business. All it takes is to hire a development team that understands your business values and make your idea come to life.
