TikTok is growing at a meteoric rate, and its short-form videos play a huge role in growing your audience and brand. It's no wonder creators invest so much effort into perfecting the art of making bingeworthy videos as part of their TikTok marketing strategy.

Want in? In this guide we’ll show you how to make a TikTok video, so you can turn your concepts into engaging videos that delight your audience and grow your brand. And hey—you may even go viral on the social media platform in the process.

Types of TikTok videos

Brainstorming ideas for TikTok videos can be tough, especially if you’ve hit a creative block. To spark some inspiration, here are some evergreen TikTok video ideas to use, no matter your niche.

Lip-sync or dance videos

Lip-syncing defined TikTok early on and became a signature feature of the video content often found on the platform. Users film themselves lip-syncing or acting out comedy sketches, then share their lip-syncs on TikTok. 

Some users often pair their videos with trending sounds or dancing, though that’s not always the case—especially if your brand style doesn’t really include performative content. For example, you can create lip-sync TikToks using inspiring quotes or other audio tracks that don't need dancing or singing, like this one by Nobo.

But lip-syncing isn’t the only viral content on TikTok. Dance videos also took over the platform to the point where you couldn’t scroll down the app’s For You Page (FYP) without seeing many videos of the same dance.

To create a dance video, pick a short and trendy move set to a song’s catchiest snippet. Then, pair it with the right gestures, shimmies, and an earworm of a music clip. This will boost your chances of being found and mimicked by millions of other TikTok users eager to learn a new dance routine.

There are tons of super fun dances you can try out, which are super easy to learn and your audience will love—or hop on a trending dance challenge, like Jiggy’s #jubislidechallenge.

Educational and how-to videos

TikTok creators don’t just entertain; they also educate through how-to videos and informational content with actionable tips. 

Educational and how-to videos put valuable information in front of your audience in a quick, easy-to-digest format. Users will feel like they’ve learned something important in a short amount of time, inspiring them to take the next step.

Elise Dopson, for example, uses TikTok to share freelance tips and advice from her own experience. 

There are tons of how-to TikTok ideas you can try. For example, you can show how to produce art, demo a recipe, or explain how a scientific process works.

Depending on the number of ideas you have, you can film how-to videos and use them for a series. This gives you enough content to post throughout the week or month.

Product reviews and recommendations

There’s a reason the #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt hashtag still trends: it drives engagement and purchase. TikTok is known to make anything and everything—including obscure products like globbles, a type of children’s toy—disappear from store shelves. 

People are deeply intrigued by videos from their favorite TikTokers reviewing cheap stuff, like spatulas that can dice veggies, to luxe items, like a levitating plant pot. These videos inspire them to splurge on stuff they can relate to personally and are super worth it.  

A fantastic example of this comes from Summer Noel, who often reviews different products she and her audience find useful.

Behind-the-scenes and day-in-the-life videos

Once popular in YouTube’s glory days, behind-the-scenes and day-in-the-life vlogs had a resurgence on TikTok, with trending hashtags like #dailyvlog and #dayinmylife amassing a combined 89.8 billion views.

A day-in-the-life video gives viewers a glimpse of a creator’s daily rituals. These types of videos are perfect for lifestyle creators or small business owners, helping them build audience trust, grow their follower count, and even convert leads into sales—like Meredith Hayden.

Behind-the-scenes and day-in-the-life videos make you, the creator, the main character in the story, giving your audience the relatable, vulnerable, and real content they crave. 

How to create a TikTok account

Getting started on TikTok is easy. You’ll first need to choose a personal account or TikTok Business account.

Personal accounts are designed for content creators, artists, public figures, and influencers, while business accounts have functions tailored to brands, organizations, retailers, and other businesses—regardless of their size or profitability. However, both account types offer features, such as LIVE Analytics, Creator Playlist, Branded Content toggle, Q&A, and more.

Once you’ve decided, follow these steps to create a TikTok account:

Step 1. Download the app. Download and install the TikTok app from Google Play Store for Android devices or the App Store for iOS devices. 

Step 2. Sign up for an account. Tap the TikTok app on your device to launch it, then tap the Sign up link at the bottom to create a new account. You can either sign up with a phone number or email address, or use an existing Facebook, Google, or Twitter account.

Step 3. Customize your info and profile. Tap Profile in the bottom right corner of your screen. Then, tap Edit Profile and click the little camera icon to set a profile photo or video.

Step 4. Start creating. Tap Create (plus sign) to upload a video from your device or use the TikTok camera to record a video. Add enhancements, like filters, a trending sound (or your own original sound), text overlays or captions with fun font styles, and other effects. Then, tap Post to publish your video. 

How to make TikTok videos like a pro

With your account set up, you’re ready to create TikTok videos and tap into the power of TikTok. Below, we’ll walk you through different tutorials from how to record your first TikTok video to five techniques for making engaging TikTok videos.

How to record a TikTok video

Here’s how to record a TikTok using the app’s native video recording tools.

Step 1: Open TikTok. Tap the TikTok app on your Android or iOS device to launch it.

Step 2: Tap Create (plus sign) at the bottom of your screen to create a new video.

Step 3: Create videos. Swipe to select a video recording length (15s, 60s, or 10m), then tap the red Record button to start filming.

Step 4: Add enhancements. Use the editing tools to trim the video length, switch between templates, and add trending sounds, filters, green screen stickers, emojis, voiceovers, or captions to improve accessibility. Note: TikTok will recommend soundtracks based on the content of your video. But you can use the search bar to find other suitable sound effects or songs. 

Step 5: Publish your video. Tap Next to open the video publishing settings. Add hashtags, adjust settings like Allow Duet or Allow Stitch, so other users can create a split-screen TikTok using your video or edit clips of your video into their own. Then, tap Post to publish your video!

How to make a TikTok video with pictures

In the same way you use creative effects, add sound or music, and apply transitions to make TikTok videos shine, you can also bring photos to life with special effects designed for still images. Here’s how.

Step 1: Upload photos from your camera roll. Open the TikTok app and tap Create (+) to upload photos. Tap Upload. Select Photos, tap Select multiple, then choose up the images to include in the order they should appear. Note: Once you select photos for your TikTok video, you can’t reorganize them when editing the clip.

Step 2: Add enhancements. Tap Next to upload the selected photos. Your photos will display in Video Mode and play in the order you selected them. Switching to Photo Mode allows you to toggle between images like a slideshow. Use the editing tools on the right sidebar to crop, add filters, stickers, a trending sound, and text. 

Step 3. Adjust video settings. Pick a cover for your video, add hashtags, adjust Allow Duet, Allow Stitch, Allow stickers, or Allow comments preferences, and tag other users.

Step 4. Publish your video. Tap Post to share your TikTok video with your audience.

How to make a TikTok with multiple videos

You can also create epic TikTok videos by stringing multiple videos together. Here’s how.

Step 1: Upload videos. Tap Create (+), then Upload to access your camera roll. Select the videos you want and click Next to upload them.

Step 2: Reorder your videos. Tap Edit to reorder your videos, add music or sound effects, text, and more. Tap Next in the top right corner.

Step 3: Add captions and hashtags. Add a cover image, relevant hashtags and captions, tag other users, and change your settings to allow Duet, Stitches, or stickers, and enable/disable comments. 

Step 4: Tap Post to share your video. 

How to make a TikTok with pre-recorded videos

While you can record a new video and post it to TikTok, there’s the risk of on-air flubs and tech glitches, which can affect your video’s quality. Pre-recorded videos sidestep such drawbacks. Plus, it’s easy to upload and edit existing clips with a few taps.

Step 1: Tap the “Create” icon. Open the TikTok app and tap Create (plus symbol).

Step 2. Upload an existing video. Tap Upload to open your camera roll. Then, select Video and tap the thumbnail of the clip you want to upload. Tap Next.

Step 3: Edit videos. Tap Edit to trim or make other adjustments to your video. Add effects like sound, filters, stickers, and more. 

Step 4: Adjust video posting settings. Select a cover for your video, add the relevant hashtags and/or captions, tag other users, and adjust settings to allow comments, stickers, Duets, or Stitches.

Step 5: Tap Post to share your video.

How to make a TikTok video with music

TikTok videos are more fun with sounds and music. Luckily, there’s an extensive built-in library of sounds and music to search, discover, preview, and add to your video. 

Here’s how to make a TikTok video with music:

Step 1: Upload or record a video. Tap Create (plus sign). Then, tap Upload to select a pre-recorded video or swipe to select a video recording length. 

Step 2: Tap Add Sound at the top of your screen. Select your desired audio sound or song.

Step 3: Trim the sound. TikTok’s built-in sounds have different time lengths, so you may find a short 10-second clip or a track as long as one minute. Choose a track with the appropriate length for your video and matches the tone and vibe of your video. Tap the trimming tool (scissors icon) next to the song or audio you want to use. Trim the audio to fit your video’s length and tap Done. 

Step 4: Finalize and publish. Next, edit your TikTok video sharing settings, and add a cover image, hashtags, or captions. Then, tap Post to share your video.

How to make a TikTok video with Descript

Making TikTok videos using the app’s native features is easy to do. But if you want to upscale your content and create truly high-quality videos, you’ll need an external, dedicated video recording and editing tool. 

Descript lets you do everything from recording social media videos to editing to transcribing audio to exporting to publishing and more—all in one place. 

Step 1: Download and install Descript on a Windows or Mac computer, or use the web version.

Step 2: Upload or record a video by going to Select New > Video project. Select Add file to upload a video or click Start a recording to start filming.

Step 3: Edit your video. Use Descript’s editing tools to add effects, animations, or transitions and other special effects to your video. Convert its aspect ratio to a TikTok-friendly vertical format, then apply audio effects like Studio Sound to remove background noise and echo for quality audio.

Step 4: Export or publish your video: When you’re finished editing, click Publish to export your video to your device and upload to TikTok or hit publish to share it to YouTube or Wistia.

⚡️PRO TIP: If you want an engaging description for your TikTok video, just use Descript’s built-in Ask AI tool for suggestions. It’ll generate different description suggestions in seconds, which you can edit, add relevant hashtags, and include with your video before publishing.

Do’s and don’t of creating TikTok videos

4 tips for making great TikTok videos

TikTok video creation can be challenging, especially when you’re new to the platform. Plus, there’s no guarantee you’ll be an overnight success on TikTok. But you can boost your chances of being seen by following these quick tips.

• Keep it short and sweet. On TikTok, simplicity and brevity reign supreme, so don’t try to fit too much into one video. People scroll for tips or a quick giggle — not long, drawn-out, and complicated videos. Instead of posting an entire recipe, for example, post one or two tips about the key ingredient. TikTok’s algorithm places serious weight on how users interact on the platform and whether they watch a video in its entirety.
• Engage with your audience. When making TikTok videos, keep in mind about 70% of TikTok users are under the age of 35. No matter your industry or the video ideas you come up with, make sure your content is relatable, engaging, and entertaining. And with attention spans reducing over time, your audience may only stick around for a few seconds. Ensure your videos grab their attention in the first few seconds, keep them hooked, and are worth their while.
• Use the right hashtags for maximum visibility. Hashtags expose your content to your audience and other audiences you might not expect. TikTok uses hashtags to categorize your content and know who to push it to. If, like Tineke Younger, you post a video about making Thanksgiving turkey and use the #turkey hashtag, TikTok will push your videos to people who are looking for that content.
• Master video effects and transitions. TikTok runs on creativity, but its native features aren’t as robust if you’re filming on a phone. If you’re familiar with video editing, it’s easy to make a TikTok video on a computer and add transitions and special effects to make your clips look more cinematic. Keep exploring how to use different effects and transitions in your videos, so they stand out in the FYPs.

4 common mistakes when creating TikTok videos

While TikTok is a platform that’s difficult to get wrong, there are some mistakes that creators tend to make when creating content on the platform:

• Neglecting video quality. Poor quality videos are not only off-putting to viewers, but they can also reduce your reach, engagement, and follower count. Simple fixes like using a good microphone, natural light, and the right editing tools can significantly enhance your video quality. 
• Copying other creators’ content. While remixing can be a great way to build on other content, outright copying won’t fly. Combining creative TikTok ideas with high-quality videos makes it easier to capture and retain viewers’ attention, while boosting the perception they have of your content or brand. 
• Rushing video production. You may be eager to start posting TikTok videos, but you’ll need to plan them out before you begin. Get the right video recording equipment and editing software, like Descript, make a rough outline of what you’re going to say, then take as much time as you need to generate quality TikToks.
• Disregarding the video description. When viewers come across your video, the description is the first thing they read. Use a concise, witty, and engaging description to pique their interest and compel them to watch the whole video. 

The best and easiest way to make TikTok videos

Descript is the perfect all-in-one audio and video editing solution for making great, scroll-stopping TikTok videos. The software is easy and fun to use, offering amateur and professional users intuitive tools and AI features for seamless friction-free editing. 

Instead of creating directly from TikTok, Descript’s video editor gives you the added advantage of creating videos without time limits and full control over all the ingredients of your video clips.

You can:

• Use AI-powered automatic transcription to edit your video like a document
• Improve audio quality with Studio Sound
• Add text, stickers, free GIFs, filters, animations, and subtitles to your TikTok videos
• Fix audio mistakes—without re-recording—using AI Voices
• Convert your video’s aspect ratio for TikTok, then export and share it to the platform

Ready to go viral on TikTok? Join thousands of creators who edit their TikTok videos with Descript by taking a free trial today.

How to make a TikTok video FAQs

How easy is it to make TikTok videos?

Making TikTok videos is easy. All you need is a personal account, video ideas, and some creativity. You can record or upload a video directly on the TikTok app or use Descript to create great videos, then upload and share them on TikTok. 

How do I upload my own video to TikTok?

1. Open the TikTok app on your Android or iOS device
2. Tap Create (plus sign) icon
3. Swipe to select a video recording length (15s, 60s, or 10m)
4. Tap Upload to use an existing video from your camera roll
5. Then, tap Next and edit your video, add cool effects, and choose a trending sound
6. Tap Next and adjust your sharing preferences
7. Finally, tap Post to share your video to TikTok

What’s the best tool for creating TikTok videos?

Descript is the best tool for creating TikTok videos. You can record a video or upload one onto Descript’s intuitive editor. Then, trim, crop, change the aspect ratio or edit to add background music, various effects, captions, and enhance the audio. When you’re done, export your video for sharing on TikTok.

How do I make my TikTok videos better?

1. Remove background noise
2. Use subtitles and captions
3. Think of creative ideas
4. Use effects and transitions
5. Improve video quality
6. Use trending sounds
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