Building A Better you - Contextual Report
- es50055
- Oct 31, 2021
- 4 min read
My digital artefact is a Tik Tok Series called “Building A Better You”. The problem I needed to address was that users were finding a lack of motivation in lockdown to exercise, eat well and take care of mental health. I wanted to create content that would help make it easier for users to build a better version of themselves, hence the DA name.
This artefact would allow me to build confidence by practicing teaching simple workouts and tips as I am completing my certificate 3 and 4 in fitness to become a Personal trainer. I was inspired by a series of Tik Tokers such as Janeelle Rohner, Savannah Pesant, Gabby Depietro and Ashley Mescia.
I chose Tik Tok as I already had an account and Tik Tok is also one of the fastest growing social media platforms. My target audience was 16-24 years old which accounts for 60% of TikTok users but also fits into the #FIST principle.
We learnt in week 4 lectures how important it is to find a target audience as “If you are aiming at everybody, you won’t connect with anybody”.
I started the process by first narrowing down my audience’s needs by generating an Instagram poll, as my followers are majority girls and are within my target audience range.
Based on their responses I decided to produce at home workout videos, food inspiration (what I eat videos), general advice and workout clothing ideas.
Then to better visualise my audience I created a starter pack.
And before starting I developed my project statement.
My DA began during lockdown so focused on home workouts that didn’t require weights, as during lockdown a lot of people can’t afford to purchase weights or have access to a home gym. My meal ideas were easy to follow and affordable, so perfect for those living on a budget. I wanted to try to produce a good amount of content as we learnt in the week 2 lecture that “frequent content releases tighten feedback loop between creators and users.”
I decided that I will develop this project by testing content, and analysing the feedback which will allow me to iterate and make any necessary changes to better reach my audience. In order to follow #FEFO (Fail early, fail often) I began testing different types of content and changing hashtags and aesthetic in order to see the type of response I got.
My first Tik Tok video was a lower body workout. I received a lot of positive feedback in the comments of this video, but it was mainly from my friends supporting me so it was biased.
I wanted to see more genuine and objective feedback so decided not to notify my friends which content was university related and what was not. After this decision I did not receive as much engagement, but this told me that I needed to iterate my content.
I then tested clothing content, as I believe that a big part of becoming a better version of yourself is building confidence. I also would like to market activewear or become a fitness influencer, so by showing my collection of activewear I will have a better chance of appealing to brands. These types of videos had higher levels of comments, as hauls are popular on Tik Tok.
These videos received more comments and shares!
Our week 6 lecture explored how you must “use your problem statement to generate a wide spectrum of ideas pulling it in different directions”. I tried to apply this concept to my DA, by producing a variety of content that all aims in helping my users become better versions of themselves.
I noticed that in my other workout videos the engagement levels were lower, so I looked at how they differed from my first video and wanted to test if it had anything to do with the visual aesthetics. In my next videos I prioritised producing more aesthetic videos, and this increased my engagement levels. My audience prefers to see content that is visually appealing, so by assessing my feedback loops I have been able to iterate my content accordingly.
This Quads and Glutes workout video had poor lighting and lack of colour and visual appeal so I made sure to focus more on the visual elements for future content.
I have also tried to test hashtags, and see which ones are proving to reach an audience. I have found that the videos with #uni in the description have received higher levels of engagement at a faster rate, receiving comments in only 0-2 hours instead of 7+ hours. This gave me positive feedback that this specific hashtag will help me reach my target audience at a faster rate than videos without it.
I was inspired by Stefana, known as @defining.fitness on TikTok. She posts a lot of body positive content showing herself posed and unposed. Which inspired this video, which received both shares and comments, which communicates that users enjoy this type of content.
I have not faced many technical issues except that I found it difficult to find trending sounds that matched the type of content I wanted to produce that was long enough for my videos. As trending sounds will increase engagement and overall reach, these sounds are usually 15-30 seconds and I can require up to 45 seconds to 3 minutes.
I also began testing advice content as this would help raise awareness for issues that young girls face. I received many comments and shares from my Birth control side effects video and managed to help a few users.
[Note this video now has nearly 1000 views!]
My DA is not yet where I would like it to be, but I have developed a stronger Feedback loop, and have a deeper understanding of my audience and the type of content they need and enjoy.
Here is the link to my Tik Tok account: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZSejmC9tJ/
Sources
How to jump on TikTok trends [Internet]. The Verge. 2021 [cited 24 October 2021]. Available from: https://www.theverge.com/22585656/tiktok-trends-sounds-hashtags-how-to-videos
TikTok Statistics - Everything You Need to Know [Sep 2021 Update] [Internet]. Wallaroo Media. 2021 [cited 31 October 2021]. Available from: https://wallaroomedia.com/blog/social-media/tiktok-statistics/
Comments