How to rank your content on TikTok Search Results using data

Content discoverability and categorisation has never been more important on TikTok. The platform has become more than just a social media, and it is now one of the most powerful search engines where users actively search for answers.

Already in 2022, core Google services such as Search and Maps were impacted by a growing preference for short-form videos as the first step for discovery among younger users. This shift in search behaviour became so pronounced that Google started indexing videos from TikTok search as their own top results. But it didn’t stop there.

Google introduced a new feature in the search menu where users can select Short Video as format of results they want to receive. This aggregates short-form content from YouTube, Instagram, and most of all TikTok.

As such, understanding how to rank higher in the TikTok’s search results page can significantly increase the exposure that your content or products have to your target audience - both within and outside the platform.

Ranking higher on TikTok’s search results requires a thorough understanding of:

• Users search and engagement patterns
• Related search queries for target keywords in your niche
• Level of competition in your niche and for specific target keywords
• Content optimisation techniques
• and more.

Given the large number of information required to successfully rank your content, leveraging data is particularly critical to this task. Getting access to TikTok search data and deriving insights from it allows creators and brands to build content strategies that drive visibility.

Below we discuss what data and insights you need to build effective content strategies and how to use them. If you want to access TikTok Search Data at scale, check out ShortFormData.

How TikTok’s Search Algorithm Works

The first step to get your content ranked on Search Results is to understand how the TikTok search algorithm works and familiarise with its mechanics.

The TikTok’s search algorithm determines which videos appear as the top results for a given query based on:

1. The relevance of the videos to the search query and
2. The interest of the audience in the video.

To measure this, the algorithm looks at:

1. Video metadata to understand and categorise your content, and
2. Engagement metrics to decide if and in what position to rank your content.

The better the algorithm understands your content and the more people interact with it, the higher your chances to be ranked on search result and get larger exposure to a highly interested audience, who is actively looking for you.

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Before discussing how you can leverage data to increase your content visibility, let’s give a closer look to what video metadata and engagement metrics are.

Video Metadata

The term video metadata refers to all kind of data associated with each individual video on TikTok. This can include various details such as:

• Video title, description and hashtags
• Spoken words in the video
• On-screen and off-screen texts, including captions and text overlays
• Sounds
• Video duration
• Date and time of publication
• Author’s name and account details (number of followers and following, bio description, username etc)
• Specific content tags or effects used in the video
• Language and country of publication

To understand and categorise content, the algorithm mainly looks at keyword-rich fields such as descriptions, hashtags, video script and text overlays. Learn more about how to find the right keywords for your content and how to effectively use them here.

Engagement Metrics

TikTok engagement metrics are the interactions users have with content on the platform, which reflect the level of interest a piece of content generates. The key engagement metrics are:

• Likes
• Comments
• Shares
• Saves
• Watch time - the total amount of time users spend watching a video.
• Completion rate - the percentage of viewers who watch the video all the way to the end.
• Replays - the number of times a video is replayed.

The TikTok algorithm mainly looks at engagement rate, which is a composite metrics that measures how actively viewers interact with a specific video relative to the total number of views it receives (Share and Saves being the engagement metrics with more weight as they signal a stronger interest compared to likes). Therefore it is not the absolute number of interactions that matters, but the proportion to the number of views - which means that also smaller accounts in smaller niches have the opportunity to rank on top for relevant queries.

How to Use Data to Rank on TikTok Search

Now that we understand how the TikTok algorithm works and the data points it uses to rank videos for a search query, let’s discuss how you can leverage these same data to identify ranking opportunities in your niche and ensure your content is the one your target audience finds.

You can leverage TikTok Search Data to find ranking opportunities by:

1. Finding High-Performing Keywords and Hashtags

Metadata like titles, descriptions, and hashtags provides the TikTok algorithm with essential context. Therefore optimising your videos by including the right keywords is essential. By accessing search data at scale you can:

• Identify the exact terms your target audience searches for and incorporate them in your video title, description and script or as hashtags.
• Derive long-tail keywords from a single search term by leveraging TikTok autocomplete.
• Find low-competition keywords which offer easier opportunities to rank.
• Identify related searches in your niche and create videos to address these, incorporating the exact keywords users searched for.
• Identify frequently used hashtags by creators that consistently rank in your niche.

2. Finding Content Gaps

Data can help ensure your content directly addresses user needs and matches their search intent. By analysing search data you can:

• Understand the specific questions or problems users are actively searching for.
• Analyse the videos are currently ranking for these search queries and their performance metrics with the goal of identifying those videos that can be improved on - either because the videos that rank are not fully relevant to the search query (indicating a content gap), or you can achieve higher engagement.
• Tailor your content to deliver precise, valuable answers and improving on what the existing content is lacking.

3. Analysing Competitor Content

Search data can reveal which videos and creators are currently ranking for your target keywords. You can evaluate:

• What keywords they are targeting. Are they aiming at the same keywords you are incorporating in your videos? Or are they following a different strategy? What can you learn from it?
• What makes their content successful. Are their captions optimised? Do they include specific calls to action?
• Gaps or improvement opportunities in their content. Can you provide more value or a unique perspective? Is there something users are asking in the comments and can you provide an answer to it?
• How well their content performs in terms of engagement. Can you create content to achieve better engagement?

4. Evaluating Successful Content Characteristics

With search data you can analyse which types of videos perform best for specific queries and identify patterns or features that set them apart. This include video duration, format, sounds and more. For instance:

• Longer video tutorials may rank higher for educational keywords or “How to” queries.
• Short, engaging clips may perform better for entertainment-focused or discovery queries.
• You can use this information to tailor your content format to match user expectations for each search query.

5. Monitoring Trends and Seasonal Opportunities

Trends and seasonal events heavily influence TikTok results. By analysing search data over time, you can:

• Identify rising (or decreasing) trends in your niche. For example, you can look at changes in search results videos and respective metrics over time for specific queries in your market.
• Rising trends can also refer to sounds, hashtags challenges of video formats that are gaining traction in your niche.
• Plan content around relevant events to capture increased interest.

Optimising Your TikTok Content for Search

The next step is to optimise your TikTok content based on the insights you derived from analysing TikTok Search Data as explained above. This involves integrating keywords naturally and optimising your hashtags selection.

Embed your target keywords into all the essential parts of your video. Optimise video title, description, captions, hashtags, on-screen text, and spoken words with these keywords so that the algorithm fully understands your content.

• Title and Description: Make sure your title and description contain the main keyword you are targeting. Your description should also contain some of the low-competition long-tail keywords you identified in your analysis.
• Audio and Captions: Write concise captions that incorporate your keywords naturally. You want your script to be optimised while still being entertaining and informative enough for your audience to keep watching. Mention in your voiceover the target keywords in your script as the TikTok algorithm not only reads the caption you write, but also takes the words you speak into account.
• On-screen text: Use text overlays to highlight the main keywords. This is helpful both from an optimisation perspective, but also for keeping your viewers focused. Remember that the algorithm can read everything you write on your videos, not only what is visible by your viewers. Remember to hide some additional keywords in the background.
• Hashtags: hashtags are still relevant - use them strategically to further signal to the TikTok algorithm what your content is about. Check out this article if you want to learn how to build an effective hashtag strategy.
• Comment Section: The keywords you include in the comment section when engaging with your audience are also taken into account by the algorithm so make sure you write your comments strategically.

Monitoring and Refining Your TikTok Strategy

The process of ranking on TikTok search results doesn’t end once your content is published. To maintain and improve your performance, it’s important to monitor results and refine your strategy continuously. Here’s how to do it:

Analyse Video Performance

Track key performance indicators for your content, such as:

• Search rankings: Are your videos appearing for your target keywords?
• Engagement rates: How are viewers interacting with your content?
• Click-through rates (CTR): Are viewers clicking on your videos from search results?

You can find this data for each video in your TikTok Analytics.

Monitor Performance Metrics

Keep refining your content using Search Data to monitor your performance:

• Monitor Keyword Rankings: Regularly check if your videos maintain visibility for target keywords and assess changes in ranking positions over time.
• Analyse Engagement Trends: Review data on likes, comments, shares and saves. Identify which elements drive the most interaction and replicate those successful strategies.
• Experiment with Content Variables: Test different approaches, such as alternate hashtags, captions, or video formats, to determine what works best.
• Evaluate Competitor Strategies: Study the performance of competitors ranking for similar keywords. Understand what makes their content effective and explore opportunities to differentiate or improve upon their strategies.

Conclusion

Ranking in TikTok’s search results requires a strategic, data-driven approach that leverages platform-specific insights to outperform competitors and capture audience attention.

Get access to the best TikTok Search Results on the market at ShortFormData.