With TikTok growing to become the most popular video platform for traditional college students (age 18-22), more colleges are joining the popular smartphone app to better connect with their students through TikTok marketing.
But TikTok is a platform like no other: With its short-form video and limited caption abilities, it stands out from all the traditional platforms that colleges have mastered. With that in mind, it’s time for a quick crash course and some TikTok marketing tips for community college content that does well on TikTok.
Campus Tours as a TikTok Marketing Tactic
A great way to showcase your awesome campus to potential students is through a campus tour! It’s one thing for you and your marketing team to create this video, but if you want it to be more genuine, which Gen Z really gravitates towards, pass the phone to a student and have them go around campus and film a few of their favorite spots and what they like about them.
If you’d rather create the videos yourself, here are some parts of campus we recommend showing off:
- The food court: Show off all of the delicious cuisine options on campus.
- Student resource departments: Be it the counseling department, tutoring center, or campus clinic, these resources often go unnoticed by incoming students and even senior students. Showcase the services they have to offer!
- Best study spots: Whether it’s the cozy nooks of the library or the front lawn by the quad, TikTok is perfect to showcase the best places to study or do work in peace.
- Clubs and organizations: What groups or clubs make your campus unique? How do they add to your campus’s dynamic? Show off the good that they do through a quick TikTok video!
Don’t forget to show off the natural ecosystem. Is your campus near a beach or nestled near a forest? Get creative by showing off your school’s natural beauty.
Here’s another TikTok marketing tip: Does your campus have dorms or on-campus housing? Show that off, too! If your school’s campus has multiple locations, you can make a mini-series of tour content from a student on each campus.
Highlight Departments and Programs on Your College TikTok
It’s difficult to do a marketing campaign that shows off EVERY single program, degree, and certificate your college offers. This is why TikTok marketing is a great tool to showcase all your programs in digestible pieces of content. Plus, it’ll quickly fill your content calendar with months’ worth of videos and content!
It would be best to have students from those programs show off what they’re learning and working on. Some other video ideas include:
- Department tours: Show where students are learning! Be sure to highlight any equipment or high-tech facilities they’ll be using in their program.
- Students in action: Have a student give a quick tutorial on what they’ve learned. For example, a student electrician wiring a fuse box, or nursing students practicing their skills on a mannequin.
- Benefits of the career program: What’s the average income for students who graduate from that program? How long does the program take to complete? What jobs can you get with that degree?
By sharing this important information, you’re presenting potential students with an inside look into what to expect at your college. Not to mention, makes it easy to share and presents the information in a simple, informative way.
TikTok Marketing to Showcase Campus Culture
Show students what it’s like on your college’s campus! People want to get the college experience, and with many believing that you can only get that on a traditional 4-year college campus, it’s up to you to prove them wrong. What special traditions does your campus have? Check out some other videos ideas to integrate into your content:
- Game days: Does your college have sports teams? Have a student record what it’s like to go to a game and root for the home team.
- Holidays: What holidays do you celebrate on campus? From national holidays like Memorial Day to silly holidays like National Donut Day — what does your campus do to have fun?
- Other fun traditions: Does your school have a mascot? A superstition before a big game or finals? Spread the word!
You could even invite students to share their own experiences with your college by using hashtags or tagging your college’s official TikTok account in their videos. Encourage students have fun with your college’s TikTok marketing campaign!
Show Off Your Students’ POV
What’s the day in the life like for a student on campus? Share their POV (point of view). College can be nerve-wracking for a newcomer. Make prospective students feel at home by having current students share tips and tricks in a short, simple TikTok video. Some possible video topics could include:
- How to register for classes: Make this daunting task simple with a quick how-to video on your TikTok.
- Tips and tricks for navigating the library: Showcase the simple things like how to check out a book, rent a laptop, find a librarian, and more!
- Best study strategies: For some students, studying can be daunting. Does your college have tutoring services? A study club? Shout it out in a video!
- A day in the life video blog, or vlog: Have a student record what it’s like to live a day as a student on campus.
Bonus TikTok marketing tip: Make sure to include faculty in these videos! Have a student interview an instructor to get insight and advice for the upcoming semester. You could also have a faculty member record their own perspective of their day in life on campus.
Don’t Be Afraid to Get Creative!
TikTok is a great platform to have fun. There are always new video trends to participate in. There are plenty of opportunities to create something entertaining that relates to your community college. Here are some extra examples of creative TikTok video ideas below:
- Create your own college video challenge: Trends on TikTok move fast. Either jump in on one or create your own!
- Enlist your mascot to participate in a dance trend: Not only is a dance video quick and easy to make but easily shareable amongst students and your college community.
- Repost student TikTok videos: Let students do the work! Invite students to make their own videos and repost them to your college’s official account.
People are eager to know more about your college before they apply. And even after they’ve enrolled, there’s plenty that your students don’t know about. So use this platform to welcome people to campus on a more intimate level and show the culture you’ve created for your college. TikTok holds a great amount of potential for your community college, so give it a try, and don’t be afraid to try new things that you normally wouldn’t do on other platforms.
Unsure where to start to get your college going on the TikTok train? Schedule a free consultation — we’d love to help you get started!
