22 TikTok Video Ideas To Inspire You & Engage Your Audience (+ Examples)
Struggling to come up with new TikTok video ideas? I’ve got you covered.
In this post, I’ll be sharing 22 ideas for TikTok videos that are proven to get more views and engagements.
Plus, I’ll also share examples of viral videos to illustrate what each idea might look like in practice and get your creative cogs whirring.
By the way: I’ve made sure to include a mix of video ideas for both brands/marketers looking to promote their business, as well as ideas for creators/influencers looking to grow their audience.
#1 – Start a product trend
Tons of products go viral on TikTok every week. And when they do, they often generate thousands of sales for the brands behind them.
Try searching for #tiktokmademebuyit or #trendingproducts for a glimpse at just how powerful it can be when you start a new product trend—the most popular TikTok videos with these hashtags get millions of views and inspire hundreds of copycat videos.
The ones that go viral often feature creators showcasing unique products in action to illustrate how useful they are in different situations.
Example
Check out this video from @myscrub.gun, which showcases their Scrub Gun product in action.
It’s a super simple, 15-second demo video showing how someone using it to clean a pan—nothing special. And yet, it’s racked up 12.3 million views. That’s a heck of a lot of exposure for very little effort.
#2 – Share your expert tips
Everyone’s an expert in something. So, why not make a TikTok video sharing some bite-sized tips about the thing you know better than anyone else? That could be dog training, vacation packing, ironing, Photoshop…anything.
These kinds of easy-to-digest, useful educational videos can go super viral on TikTok and get millions of views. They often feature captions to make it easy for the audience to follow along and absorb what you’re trying to teach them.
Example
Here’s a good example of a post we published over at Blogging Wizard:
In this short video, we cover the main 4 ways to make a blog profitable. It’s based on a blog post I wrote a few years ago.
This style of video may look complex to create but you can easily create this sort of thing using online design tools like Visme or Canva.
#3 – Use trending sounds
TikTok revolves around trending sounds—short snippets of dialogue. An easy way to get more views and engagements is to create videos that include these trending sounds.
The most straightforward example of this is lip syncing videos, in which you silently mouth the words from a movie/TV show to give it a different context.
Example
One of the most iconic trending sounds of last year was ‘I’m just a baby’. It originated from a viral video in which a mother asked her young daughter Cosette to stop misbehaving, and she responded ‘I’m just a baby’ as an excuse to carry on.
This led thousands of other creators to take that audio clip and apply it to different contexts to create their own video memes. Here’s an example from creator Laura88Lee, which garnered over 3.3 million views.
#4 – Use trending music
Aside from trending sounds, you can also create your TikTok videos around trending music. Certain songs blow up on TikTok, and featuring them in your videos is a surefire way to increase their reach.
Tokboard provides a weekly chart of the most popular TikTok songs, so this is a great place to go for inspiration.
Example
There’s no better example of the power of trending music than Strawberry Chocolate by creator @pr4yforgabs:
In the video, the creator moves her camera to the beat of ‘What You Won’t Do for Love – Bobby Caldwell’ (a trending song on TikTok) as she zooms in and out on chocolate-covered strawberries.
Nothing special, and yet it’s blown up with an eye-watering 417.2 million views (and counting). It’s so popular that it’s on its way to breaking Bella Poarch’s record for the TikTok video with the most views and likes of all time.
#5 – Educate your viewers
TikTok isn’t just for entertainment—it’s a great place to share educational content too. In particular, short educational videos about history and science tend to perform very well.
If you’re a brand, you could also create educational videos about your products, such as tutorials that show viewers how to use or assemble your products correctly.
Example
@mulligan.tv is a popular TikTok creator known for his educational videos that often cover topics like astrophysics and astrophysics. In this video, he explores what happens if you were to fall into a black hole.
Thanks to his ability to break down complex, often mind-boggling topics like black holes, string theory, and time dilation into easy-to-understand, bite-size videos, he’s gained over a million followers. And all of his videos get hundreds of thousands of views.
#6 – Start a dance trend
Like I said earlier, TikTok revolves around music and trending sounds. So naturally, some of the best-performing videos on that platform involve creators dancing to popular songs.
Over the years, there have been dozens of ‘dance trends’, in which a particular creator has choreographed a dance that has gone viral and inspired thousands of other creators to share videos with their attempt at it.
If you can do the same, you can reach millions of viewers through your dance videos and get a ton of exposure for your brand.
Example
One of the biggest dance trends of 2024 was the #thaidancechallenge. It involves three or more people who start off bobbing up and down and then take turns dancing in sync before all of them dance together at the end of the clip.
Over 700k videos took part in the viral dance, including this one from creator @happykelli, which has over 20 million views.
#7 – Share something inspirational
Create a video to inspire your viewers and give them a lift. Share an inspirational quote, a personal story of how you overcame a challenge, or just offer some motivational advice to anyone who might be struggling.
Example
TikToker @GMBadass does one thing and one thing only: Uploads aggressively motivational videos for viewers to watch in the morning to get their day off to the right start.
Their videos remind viewers what they’re capable of and what they can achieve, and they get often millions of views.
And the best part is they’re super easy to make. The creator just overlays captions over inspirational images, with an AI-generated voiceover to read out the inspirational script.
#8 – Weigh in on the news
Look at what’s happening in the world right now and use that as inspiration for your TikTok videos. For example, you could weigh in on the presidential debate, give your take on the latest celeb gossip, share your Oscar pick, or react to the Superbowl commercials.
Example
Hasanabi (@hasandpiker) is a popular political commentator with over 705k followers on TikTok. He often shares TikTok videos with his reaction to the latest news in politics, and this has helped him to grow super quickly.
For example, in this video, he offers a balanced recap and analysis of Biden’s State of the Union address.
#9 – Make a shocking edit
One surefire way to get viewers to stop, take notice, and engage with your videos is to shock or surprise them.
And that should be easy if you’re a talented video editor who knows how to work with SFX and VFX. You can use those skills to cook up a video that plays with the viewer’s expectations and delivers something unexpected.
There’s a whole niche of TikTok videos that do just that, and they often get millions of views.
Example
Creator @jurrienhendrikx is a master of these types of TikTok videos. He regularly uploads ‘visual illusion’ videos that look completely innocuous but are cleverly edited to deliver a shocking twist that you weren’t expecting.
For example, in this video, the viewer is expecting to see the cat pop the balloon—but that’s not what happens at all.
Jurrien’s videos have collectively garnered over 30 million views, and the channel has racked up almost a million followers to date.
#10 – Make an epic edit
Another way you can put your video editing skills to use is to create a truly ‘epic’ TikTok video. This one’s easier to illustrate with an example, so let’s look at one.
Example
TikToker Legendary Jay recently blew up on TikTok with this epic Uno edit:
It’s had over 208.8 million views in just a couple of weeks, and there’s currently a movement to try to make it the most-liked video in TikTok history.
And the reason why it’s so popular is purely on the strength of the edit. Viewers love the way the creator has taken something as simple and uninteresting as a game of uno and turned it into a cinematic masterpiece.
#11 – Create a comedy skit
If you’ve got a good sense of humor, why not write a comedy skit and turn it into a TikTok video? If you can make the audience laugh, it’s almost guaranteed to perform well.
Just remember that TikTok viewers have short attention spans, so it’s got to be fast-paced—you’re not aiming for a 10-minute standup routine.
Example
TikToker Nicholas Flannery is a master of the comedy skit format. He’s known for his funny videos in which he plays different characters and pokes fun at common movie tropes.
#12 – Offer a sneak peek
This is another great TikTok video idea for brands, musicians, and producers. Build hype around an upcoming product launch, album drop, or movie/episode release by offering your viewers a sneak peek of what’s to come.
Example
This video from Kylie Cantrall offers viewers a sneak peek at Descendants 4, and it blew up, racking up 3.2 million views in just one week.
#13 – Show your creative process
If you’re a talented creator, why not create a TikTok video showing viewers your creative process?
For example, if you’re a graphic designer or illustrator, you could let viewers watch over your shoulder as you draw an illustration in Procreate or Illustrator. Or if you’re a game developer, you could create weekly videos showing the progress you’ve made that week. You get the idea.
Example
In this video from @vthedev, the creator breaks down the progress he made over one year of working on his game, Capybara Rush. He shares what he accomplished each week and month, and how it all came together to bring the game to life.
#14 – Make a short vlog
Vlogs (video blogs) give viewers an insight into your day. The most common format is the ‘daily vlog’ or ‘day in my life’ video, in which you share the highlights of what you got up to over 24 hours.
If you’re a brand, you might share a daily vlog that showcases what a day in the office at your place of work looks like, or a day in the life of one of your product developers. This can be a great way to connect with your audience on a more personal level and humanize your brand.
Example
Here’s an example from TikToker @anna.lamos. In this video, she shares a day in her life living in Paris. It’s had over 1.8 million views to date.
#15 – Share a recipe
If there’s one thing that everyone likes, it’s good food. Share your secret recipe for a killer mac & cheese, or show viewers how to properly season a steak, and watch as the views roll in.
This TikTok video idea is perfect for food-related brands and professional chefs. But even if you’re none of the above, you can get involved. You never know who will be interested in your personal food hacks and home-grown creations.
Example
TikToker Nicole (@simple.home.edit) made this TikTok video showing viewers how to make a delicious dish of crispy sweet chili chicken on a budget, and it’s had over 15.3 million views to date.
#16 – Share or test a viral hack
Another format that’s super popular on TikTok is the ‘viral hack’ video. The idea is to share a neat trick that viewers can make use of in their everyday lives. For example, that might be a way to get the last bit of ketchup out of the bottle a little easier. Or a better way to clean the dirt from inside the cracks in your keyboard.
If you can’t think of your own hack, you could also make a video in which you test out a hack (or multiple hacks) that someone else came up with.
Example
This viral video from TikToker Kirsten McCready shows the hack she uses to avoid dealing with clogged-up toothpaste tubes.
She squeezes all her toothpaste out into a bottle and attaches a pump to the end to squirt it out. This novel idea resonated with a lot of people, as the video racked up 29.4 million views.
#17 – Go Live
Did you know TikTok has a livestream function? If you’ve only been sharing pre-recorded videos so far, mix it up and Go Live to connect with your audience in real time.
TikTok livestreams are a particularly good way for brands to announce new product launches, share news, and answer Q&As. And what’s also cool is that your viewers can gift you points during your livestreams which can be exchanged for funds.
Example
TikTok influencer spudman (@spudarmy) regularly goes live to thousands of viewers, who eagerly tune in to watch him as he goes about his day at work in the spud van.
He’s so popular that he’s amassed over 3 million followers to date, and earned thousands of new customers for his spud business in the process.
#18 – Stitch a viral video
No time to make your own original video content? Remix someone else’s! TikTok’s stitch feature lets creators offer their own fresh take on another creator’s video.
When you stitch a viral video, the original video plays first, followed by the content you’ve stitched on. This allows you to ‘piggyback’ off of the viral success of the original video while also adding value of your own.
Example
@khaby.lame is the most followed TikToker on the planet, and he owes a lot of his success to TikTok’s stitch feature.
He regularly posts stitched TikTok videos in which he first shows complicated viral ‘life hacks’, and then shows him performing the same task in a much simpler way as a way to poke fun at it.
This formula has proven to be incredibly successful. Not only does Khaby now have over 161.5 million followers, but his best-performing video clips get hundreds of millions of views.
#19 – Duet a viral video
Duets are another way to capitalize on the success of a viral video. Like Stitches, Duets let you remix someone else’s content to add your own spin on it. But while Stitched videos play in sequence, Duets play simultaneously in a side-by-side split-screen view.
Example
@richardsalesofficial is a TikTok creator who’s mastered the art of the Duet. He’s amassed 8.4 million followers thanks to his viral formula of sharing his play-by-play, incredulous reactions to viral life hack videos. This one has 29.4 million views.
#20 – Start or join in a challenge
Another week, another new TikTok challenge. Join in with the next big one to tap into its virality and you might see your view count soar. Or even better, start your own challenge and get others to join in: If it goes viral, your TikTok account could blow up overnight.
Example
In this video by @sociallybrooke, two friends attempt the #partnerchallenge, in which two friends pull each other up from a sitting position to a standing position in sync. It’s had 33.3 million views so far.
#21 – Give your viewers a look behind-the-scenes
Let your viewers peek behind the curtain to see what goes on behind the scenes at your business, office, studio, etc. This is great for brands and musicians who want to foster a deeper connection with their audience.
Example
In this video by @zhiyun.global, you get to see behind the scenes of the award-winning short film Hammer.
It shows the creative genius that goes into filming specific scenes and has been viewed over 9.6 million times so far.
#22 – Tell a story
Humans love stories. So, one of the simplest but most effective TikTok video ideas is to just tell your viewers a story! That could be something as simple as a funny anecdote recounting something that happened to you that week
Use the #storytime hashtag to maximize reach and keep it interesting, and you could easily have a viral video on your hands.
Example
Creator @kevinjamesthornton is known for his storytime videos in which he shares funny stories from his life. What makes his videos stand out from others, though, is the way he uses an electronic voice modulator to make his stories more interesting.
He also adds captions to help viewers follow along even without sound. As a result, he’s been hugely successful, amassing 1.6 million followers.
Final thoughts
That’s a wrap. By now, you should have enough TikTok video ideas to get started with.
Hopefully, they’ve given you some inspiration. Just remember that success on TikTok is all about pushing the boundaries and finding your niche. These video ideas have worked for some creators, but you’ll have to experiment to find what works best for you.
If you need more inspiration check out my article on social media post ideas.
It’s also important to make sure you’re posting your TikTok videos at the right time—that’ll help them get some initial traction and give them the best chance of going viral. You can use social media scheduling tools to help with that.
