How to Get More Viewers on TikTok Live Streams in 2024 (8 Ways!)

My friend, are you struggling to get viewers for your TikTok live streams? I‘ve got some good news for you. Gaining more viewers on TikTok Live is very achievable if you use the right strategies.

Live streaming on TikTok has exploded over the last couple years. Just look at these insane stats:

• TikTok live streaming watch time increased 4x in 2022 compared to 2021 (BusinessofApps)
• The number of hourly active TikTok live streamers grew 275% YoY as of Q3 2022 (StreamHatchet)
• As of late 2022, around 140 million users tune into TikTok Live daily (Wallaroo Media)

Clearly, TikTok live streaming is a massive opportunity for creators in 2024. But standing out from the crowd and consistently driving viewers to your streams takes knowledge and effort.

The good news is I‘m here to help! I‘ve been studying successful TikTok live streamers for months.

In this guide, I‘ll share with you 12 proven tactics you can start using right now to get more viewers on your TikTok live streams.

I‘ll also reveal common mistakes that tank viewership and how to avoid them.

By the end, you‘ll have a complete game plan to build your TikTok live audience in 2024! Let‘s dive in.

Why You Should Be Live Streaming on TikTok

But first – why does live streaming on TikTok even matter? Here are 3 key reasons it needs to be part of your overall strategy:

1. It Helps You Connect With Viewers

Live streaming allows your fans to engage with the real you in an authentic way. Viewers get to know your personality when you go live.

Seeing you react naturally in real-time builds a personal connection and loyalty. Broadcasting live also gives followers a chance to interact through comments and gifts.

2. You Can Reach a Massive Audience

As mentioned above, around 140 million people tune into TikTok Live every single day. The audience potential is absolutely massive.

TikTok lives also trend based on watch time. So if you can keep viewers engaged, your stream can be pushed out to hundreds of thousands of viewers, even if you‘re not a huge creator yet.

3. It Drives Growth & Monetization

If done right, TikTok live streaming grows your follower count and overall profile views. Fans you attract through live often end up engaging with your other content.

TikTok also now offers monetization through gifts and tips during streams once you hit 1,000 followers. Live gifts are exchanged for diamonds you can cash out.

Now that you know why TikTok live matters, let‘s get into the viewer growth strategies!

1. Optimize Your Stream Thumbnails

One of the most foundational tactics for getting clicks and viewers is creating optimized thumbnails. Your thumbnail shows up front and center on the Live tab.

If it looks boring or cluttered, most users will skip right past your stream without clicking.

Some proven best practices for stream thumbnails include:

✔️ Use large, bold text with your name/title

✔️ Make your face and expression clearly visible

✔️ Add graphics and visual flair like emoji

✔️ Leverage colors and fonts that fit your brand

✔️ Update your thumbnail regularly to keep it fresh

Check out examples of strong TikTok Live thumbnails from MrBeast and The Anna Show below. Their thumbnails stop the scroll with vibrant colors, great visuals, and easy-to-read text.

Take the time to create several high-converting thumbnails you can rotate through. This small effort goes a long way in driving live viewership.

2. Promote Your Stream Across Other Platforms

One huge mistake I see creators make is not leveraging their other social platforms to promote their TikTok lives.

You can easily drive more viewers to your streams by promoting on:

• Instagram Feed & Stories
• Facebook Posts & Live
• YouTube Community Tab
• Twitter Posts & Spaces
• Snapchat
• Twitch (if you stream there)
• Email list
• Group chats/messaging platforms

Promoting your stream in as many places as possible ensures you maximize reach. Don‘t keep it a secret – get the word out!

Below I‘ve included some sample posts you could make on other platforms leading up to your stream.

Instagram Post

Going LIVE on TikTok in 30 minutes! Join me to chat about [Topic] 😄 See you there!

Facebook Post

I‘ll be streaming on TikTok LIVE today at 6pm EST! Click the link in my bio to watch 📲 Excited to hang out with you all!

YouTube Community Post

Join me over on TikTok LIVE today at 4pm PST! Click here to head to my profile and watch: [Profile Link]

See how posts like these make it crystal clear when and where your stream will be? That removes any friction for your audience to show up.

Get in the habit of aggressively cross-promoting for every stream. This alone can 2x or 3x your live viewership.

3. Stream During Peak Hours

You‘ll get the most live viewers when you broadcast during peak hours for TikTok usage. The best times are usually in the late afternoon and evenings when people are winding down their day.

According to analytics from Wallaroo Media, the highest-traffic hours for TikTok Live are:

• 5-8 PM – Highest peak
• 11 AM – 1 PM – Second-highest peak
• 9-11 PM – Third-highest peak

Image showing TikTok Live peak hours:

To customize this further, check your TikTok analytics to see when your followers are most active. You can find this under "Followers" in the TikTok app.

In general, evenings and weekends tend to perform best. The key is being consistent with your stream times so fans know when to watch you.

4. Collaborate With Other Creators

Collaborating on a TikTok Live is an amazing way to get more eyeballs on your stream fast.

When you go live with another TikTok creator, you get exposure to their entire follower base – and vice versa. The combined potential audience is much higher.

Some tips for effective collaborations:

• Go live with creators in a similar niche so the crossover appeal is strong
• Aim to collaborate with both larger and smaller creators – it still helps!
• Ask your followers who they‘d like you to go live with to generate buzz
• Promote the collab heavily across both your profiles
• Make it recurring with the same creators to keep building that shared audience

Here‘s a graph showing the power of collaborations:

Even if the creator you collab with has a smaller following, their fans add up over time the more you go live together. This is an underutilized growth tactic – take advantage of it!

5. Run Contests & Giveaways

Everyone likes winning prizes. Giving away fun gifts or cash during your streams gets viewers engaged and incentivized to watch.

Some giveaway ideas include:

• VIP prizes like merch or exclusive content
• Virtual gifts like online gift cards or gaming currency
• Cash prizes through peer-to-peer payments
• Shoutouts to lucky viewers during the stream

The key rules for giveaways:

• Promote the giveaway heavily before and during the stream across your profiles
• Make the prizes exciting and tailored to your audience
• Keep the entry mechanism simple, like reacting or commenting with a hashtag
• Follow all local laws if requiring entries

Check out this example from content creator Austen of how to hype a cash giveaway on TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@austen/video/7146009299881881866

Contests that require viewers to engage creatively, like submitting TikToks, are also great. Just make sure to get submissions beforehand, not just live.

6. Use Strategic Hashtags

Hashtags help viewers find your stream who aren‘t already following you. But you need the right strategy.

Best practices for TikTok Live hashtags:

• Include 1-2 popular/trending hashtags
• Add several niche hashtags relevant to your content
• Create 1-2 new branded hashtags for every stream
• Try formats like #QandA #AskMeAnything #DebateMe
• Place hashtags strategically at beginning or end
• Don‘t use more than 5-6 hashtags total

Avoid spamming a ton of irrelevant hashtags. Research which niche hashtags perform best for streams in your topic area.

You can also make your stream pop by riding trends with hashtags like #TikTokDown, #SmallCreatorCheck, etc. But blend with your own niche tags.

Analyze which hashtags deliver the most viewers and double down on those in future streams.

7. Promote Your Stream Schedule

As I mentioned earlier, consistency is critical for live streaming success. When you stream at the same dates/times every week, it programs viewers to expect your content.

That‘s why it‘s important to set a streaming schedule and then promote it heavily.

Some ideas:

• Create stream schedule graphics to share on your profile
• Post your weekly schedule on your TikTok bio
• Make YouTube Shorts/TikToks explaining your schedule
• Go live shortly before your scheduled time to remind viewers
• Ask fans to turn on notifications so they‘ll be alerted when you go live

Check out how creator Toxic Moxie promotes her very clear streaming schedule in her TikTok bio:

Setting consistent expectations trains your audience over time. They become invested in your routine streams.

8. Stream Quick Previews

A smart way to generate excitement and give viewers a taste of your upcoming stream is going live briefly ~15 minutes before your scheduled time.

These quick preview streams serve a few purposes:

• Remind viewers you‘ll be streaming very soon
• Give a sneak peek of what you‘ll be doing on today‘s stream
• Immediately notify followers you‘re going live shortly
• Build anticipation and FOMO before your long-form stream

You can quickly promote the main event, show off any visuals/props, and request viewers to follow and share.

After 3-5 minutes, end the preview stream telling fans to return at your normal time shortly after. This strategy works extremely well to prime your audience.

9. Broadcast From Different Locations

While streaming from home is common, switching up your location keeps things fresh. This adds an element of excitement and adventure viewers love.

Some ideas for unique streaming locations:

• Outdoors/nature backgrounds
• From a store or restaurant
• Public events or landmarks
• While traveling away from home
• Other creators‘ homes during collaborations

Just make sure to have strong cellular data or WiFi to support broadcasting reliably. Let fans know when you‘ll be streaming from somewhere unique to pique interest.

Here‘s an example from dominaddiction showing off a spontaneous stream from the beach:

https://www.tiktok.com/@dominaddiction/video/7151542747555910914

Switching up the backdrop gives viewers a feeling of being on the journey with you. Location diversity can boost engagement over time.

10. Invite Guests to Video Chat

In addition to collaborating with other creators, you can have special guest fans video chat into your stream. This allows you to bring viewers "on stage" in a fun way.

Platforms like Streamyard make it easy to bring on guests via video call right within your TikTok stream.

Some ideas:

• Do rapid-fire Q&As with fans
• Host fan games or contests
• Get advice/feedback from loyal viewers on your content
• Review fan submissions like art, videos, stories etc.

The key is vetting and preparing your guests so you know they won‘t be disruptive on the live stream. But real fan cameos grab attention and make the broadcast inclusive.

11. Share Exciting Announcements

One guaranteed way to spike viewership quickly is saving big announcements to reveal exclusively on your live streams.

Give fans incentive to tune in by teasing you‘ll be announcing something important.

Some ideas for stream reveals:

• New merch or product launches
• Updates to your streaming schedule
• Contests, promotions, or giveaway details
• Moving or other life changes
• Switching up your content approach
• Partnerships or collabs in the works
• Behind-the-scenes projects

The announcements can benefit from visuals, videos, images, etc. Have assets ready to display on-screen.

But don‘t announce everything live – keep some news in your back pocket. Exciting reveals should feel special.

12. Stay Energetic & Engaging

At the end of the day, you need consistently engaging energy to retain viewers. Even viral TikTok stars can quickly tank viewership with boring streams.

Here are some key tips:

• Stream only when you‘re feeling upbeat and chatty
• Interact constantly with viewer comments
• Do activities rather than just sit and talk
• Moderate effectively – no bullying/spam
• Create inside jokes and recurring bits
• Tease upcoming streams at the end to hook viewers
• End streams on a high note so people leave wanting more

Enthusiasm and positivity are contagious! The more fun you‘re having, the more your viewers will enjoy watching.

Common Mistakes That Kill Viewership

Now that we‘ve covered effective viewer growth strategies, let‘s discuss some mistakes that often destroy TikTok Live viewership. Avoid these at all costs:

• Bad Audio Quality – Invest in a decent mic so your voice is crisp. Bad audio is an instant turn-off.
• Streaming Infrequently – Posting live content once in a blue moon won‘t grow your audience. Stream 2-4x a week minimum.
• Ending Abruptly – Always wrap up your stream with a goodbye rather than randomly ending it.
• Checking Your Phone – Stay engaged on camera – looking at your phone loses viewer attention.
• Responding Negatively to Comments – Trolls want to get a reaction. Kill them with kindness or just block.
• Lacking Energy – Monotone streams feel dull. Match your energy to the amazing opportunity live streaming represents!

Master the fundamentals, stream often, and interact positively. This alone will get you ahead of most new streamers.

Key Takeaways

Here are the big lessons to remember if you want to build your TikTok Live viewers:

📹 Optimize your stream thumbnail, title, and hashtags

📢 Promote every stream heavily on all your other social profiles

🕗 Analyze your audience data to determine peak streaming hours

😄 Collaborate frequently with relevant creators to expand your reach

🎁 Use contests, giveaways and exclusives to incentivize viewership

📅 Establish a consistent streaming schedule and promote it everywhere

🤩 Stay upbeat, engaging, and interactive during streams

📈 Track your progress over time and learn from what performs best

The more you can apply the strategies in this guide, the faster you‘ll be able to grow your TikTok Live viewership in 2024 and beyond.

You got this! Just stay patient, keep experimenting, and have fun going live. Your loyal audience is waiting for you.

Now get streaming and start engaging more viewers!