TikTok Is Silent About How Creators Should Prepare for a Potential Ban but Talent Agencies Are Setting up Their Playbooks

Plus, posting on Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube helps creators better understand their audience.

“If you’re going to spend your time elsewhere, and there’s another platform that you want to take on, double down on what’s already working for you on the other platforms,” said Alora Society’s Wade.

Building your own brand

A personal brand is essentially how a creator wants others to perceive them. For example, a creator who frequently posts videos on TikTok reviewing clothing can take steps to establish themselves as a leader in fashion trends. Establishing this reputation in a specific niche beyond TikTok is essential if the ban happens. This helps creators be viewed as a thought leader and not solely a TikToker, said Wade.

“I’m constantly drilling into their minds [to] focus on your personal brand, not just growing a social media account online,” said Wade. “How are you creating a career out of your name, image, and likeness that goes beyond a certain platform?”

Own your audience

Many people mistakenly believe that TikTok creators own their audiences. That’s not true. Platforms can disappear or be banned at any moment. Creators must find tools and strategies to own their audiences, ensuring that regardless of what happens to a social media platform, they still have a way to connect with their followers.

One way to do that: Repurposing social content to a website or newsletter, said Pamela Zapata, founder and CEO of influencer management and marketing agency Society18.

“Having a mailing list on a newsletter is money because you own all of that—you own the eyeballs,” Zapata said. “If you can find a way to repurpose your content onto your website, I feel like that is key.”