A TikTok ban survival guide for news creators

Published in partnership with Liz Kelly Nelson of Project C

It’s looking increasingly likely that TikTok will be banned in the U.S. starting January 19th. And while that doesn’t mean it will disappear from anyone’s phones on Sunday, app stores will no longer make it available for download and it will no longer be updated, left on your phone to die a slow death.

For news-centric creators, the end could be much swifter. It isn’t clear whether the ban will block new content uploads immediately, but if ISPs do block access to TikTok’s servers, creators will lose the ability to share new content on the platform on Sunday. Or, if not, the audience will slowly degrade for that content.

Either way, there are some clear steps TikTok creators should take before Sunday to preserve their content and put their audience on notice about where to find them if in fact TikTok is banned.

Liz Kelly Nelson of Project C and I put together a checklist of steps to take that not only achieves those goals, but goes a step further to set you up for long-term ownership of your relationship with your audience.

1. Download your videos
   Settings -> Account -> Download your data
   Don’t lose all your hard work. This request takes a few days for them to approve so do it now! You will get a folder from them and you’ll need to go to all the TXT links and download each video from there.

2. Start an email list
   The only way to fully have control over your relationship with your audience is to preserve a way to reach them directly, without reliance on a platform. Although video-first creators will likely migrate to another video-forward primary platform, now is the time to to do the work to own that relationship. Tools that make it easy so you don’t have to sweat the platform: Perch (a free AMA tool with email capture), SignUpAnywhere (Free email capture), LaunchList (waitlist tool free up to 100 signups, one time payment after that)

3. Buy or hook up a domain
   Like the email list above, have a platform-agnostic home for your work. Go to a site like Hover.com and search your name OR username, secure it and then forward it to the email list. You can change this to a publication name later on. Make it easy to glance at, remember and type in.

4. Put your domain on screen as text on all videos
   Start training your audience on how to reach your domain now. Marketers say it takes about seven instances (the “Rule of 7”) of encountering a brand or message before a consumer takes action or registers it meaningfully. Make it a regular part of your videos: “Email list: beccanews.com”

5. Give a max of 2 calls to actions
   The most-recent video in your TikTok account on ban day should include clear instructions about where to find you: The email list AND the primary channel you’re moving to.

6. Comment on your popular, older videos with your calls to action
   In case people get fed those, they’ll see the new info, too.

7. Use only one link in your bio (avoid link tree/stan store)
   Less is more. Link trees are lame. Just include the email list OR the primary channel you’re moving to.

8. Talk about your plan multiple times
   Start now, if you haven’t already. Let your audience know where you’re going and about the email list in as many videos as you can on TikTok, but also across any other platforms (Bluesky, etc.) where you’re active.

9. Evaluate your options for where you want to land

   AdWeek is predicting YouTube and Instagram will be the most likely landing place for TikTok creators looking for a new home. Instagram has a hub to help creators get started on their platform, though YouTube offers a microsite specifically for news creators. Meanwhile, newsletter juggernaut Substack is offering a $25K prize to the TikTok creator who makes the most compelling video about why creators should move to their platform.

10. Develop a plan for growing your audience on the new platform

    This should feel familiar from the early days when you were building your TikTok audience:

• Re-introduce yourself. You’ll be reaching new eyeballs, too: Explain who you are, why you are covering a particular topic and what credentials you have. Share your standards, your advertising policy and any other information that will help tbuild your credibility and the audience’s trust. 

• Share some of your best TikTok work again on the new platform, but remember you may need to rework some of that content to fit the tone and format and audience expectations of the new platform.

• Look for partnerships or opportunities for cross-promotion with other creators on the new platform. 

• And, of course, engage with the audience. Get in those comments. 

Have more suggestions? Share them in the comments.