Watch our hour-long webinar with Mikki Collins, University of Chichester’s Digital Content Producer, about their approach to TikTok marketing and learn how they became one of the best UK Universities on TikTok.
They’ve produced countless viral hits, grown a community well beyond their 5K students and ranked #1 on our UK’s Best Universities on TikTok Report.
University of Chichester became the best UK University on TikTok despite being widely unknown
They were one of the first Universities to join the platform and have benefited from unhinged content inspired by Ryanair and Duolingo.
Subtlety is key for the University of Chichester when it comes to creating content that ‘sells’. Thinking entertainment first, conversion second has led to hilarious and topical videos that still give the audience a sense of the university’s USPs.
Their success on the platform has afforded the social team of two the luxury of zero sign-off procedures, something unheard of for most universities, which has allowed them to react to trends quickly.
These tactics have resulted in fantastic reach, unmatched brand awareness and engagement from their prospective students.
Watch the replay or check out our summary below
Key tips
Student-generated content
Students are the University of Chichester’s Influencers.
Student-generated content allows for authenticity and the audience want to hear from students vs. faculty.
Mikki has embraced the importance of the students and relies on them to ‘stay relevant.’ She leans on them for some content ideas and staying up to date with trends amongst the audience.
Use trending/popular sounds
Moving from a creator account to a business account causes headaches for many businesses looking to grow on the platform.
As a business account, copyrighted sounds are restricted, and brands are forced to get creative.
Mikki knows the struggle but notes that other big brands use popular sounds. They’ve done the research to find the workaround and Mikki recommends that brands ‘shop’ other business accounts on TikTok to save and use their copyright-free sounds.
TikTok is critical for discovery
The FYP has allowed The University of Chichester, a small university, to make a name for themselves and amass a following of over 22k.
This reach is unmatched by their other platforms. TikTok has become their most-followed account in just one year. However, most of their views are not from their followers.
85-90% of their viewers on TikTok do not follow the account, but only 25% of their reach on a top-performing Instagram post is from a new audience.
Interact with other accounts and your audience
Actively engaging with other creators and brands on the platform is a great way to boost your account’s visibility.
Mikki is also constantly searching for Chichester students to interact with. This engagement invites the students to comment on the university’s content.
Positive comments from students serve as an additional endorsement and proof of authenticity.
Original content has generated most of their engagement
Having fun with creating original content vs. religiously sticking to trends is where the university saw some of their best performance.
Mikki’s one rule when experimenting with original content: DON’T BE BORING
Reply to comments with video
It’s an invitation for viewers to investigate the origin of the comment, spend more time on your account and watch more of your content.
Quality over quantity
Posting for the sake of posting will more likely annoy your audience vs. grow your following.
Prioritising good quality content will encourage better engagement and provide a more positive experience for those scrolling through your account.
Push the boundaries
The best content makes people say “I can’t believe a brand posted this”
TikTok is a platform to set yourself apart from the competition
Even brands or Universities that are more well-known are still competing against the many others in their respective industries. TikTok lets you create your narrative and connect with prospects at an early age.
Numbers don’t lie
Mikki was able to persuade her team to buy into TikTok with numbers. Chichester’s more fun and unhinged content has consistently performed the best on TikTok and other platforms.
Naysayers on the team can’t argue with hundreds of thousands of views and this success has afforded the social team more creative freedom.
Create a branded hashtag
This is vital for reporting as it allows you to see how many people are viewing and using your hashtag and interacting with your brand.
Local communities are possible on TikTok
Integrating local references into the content, scripts and captions can help to build a local audience despite the reach potential being so broad on the platform.
Timing may not be as important as you think
Some of their videos have gone viral a couple of days or weeks later. There is no rhyme or reason to when they post. Instead, they prioritise quality content.
Create content for the platform
Users on the platform are looking for quick, digestible and engaging content so create content with that in mind. Create a hook for your videos, make sure it’s portrait orientated, and again… DON’T BE BORING
Looking for help with TikTok?
If you’re confused about getting started or want some help with what you’re doing on TikTok at the moment, give our TikTok Marketing page a read for some more tips and options to help your brand succeed on TikTok.
Watch this space for more webinars about TikTok success!
