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TikTok Analytics: Your Guide to Understanding the Metrics
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TikTok Analytics: Your Guide to Understanding the Metrics


Updated on May 13, 2020
7 minute read

We're breaking down everything you need to know about TikTok Analytics — you'll be a data pro in no time.

Published May 13, 2020
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TikTok analytics are the key to stepping up your TikTok strategy. And all you need is a (free!) TikTok Pro Account to start taking advantage of them!

With TikTok’s built-in analytics, you can target the right audiences and really understand what they’re interested in.

In this guide, we break down TikTok Pro analytics and how these metrics can help you set up your TikTok strategy in 2020!

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TikTok Analytics: What They Are & How to Access Them

After many TikTok creators asked for greater insights, the popular app debuted TikTok Pro Accounts — a free account upgrade that allows you access to juicy data you can use to grow your account.

While TikTok’s insights may seem simple at first, once you dig deeper, you’ll uncover a helpful range of metrics and information to help you better connect you with your TikTok community.

Follow these easy steps to switch to a Pro Account!

How to set up a Pro Account:

  1. From your profile page, open the Privacy and Settings tab.

  2. Choose “Manage My Account.”

  3. Tap “Switch to Pro Account” and select “Creator” or “Business”.

  4. Choose your industry (this category won’t be displayed publicly).

Setting up a Pro Account

Your TikTok account will now reload a Pro Account with access to TikTok Analytics on mobile and desktop.

ICYMI: You can now plan and schedule TikTok videos with Later! When it’s time to post, everything is sent to your phone!

TikTok Analytics: Individual Post Performance

To view the analytics for an individual post, tap on the 3 dots in the bottom right-hand corner and select “Analytics.”

The analytics for each post shows everything you need to know about its performance. This includes:

  • Number of plays

  • Number of likes

  • Number of comments

  • Number of shares

The analytics for each post shows everything you need to know about its performance

ote: Some analytics features require you to have over 100 followers to access the data.

Viewership Metrics

This dashboard also includes key viewership metrics, such as:

  • Total Play Time: The all-time data for how many total hours, minutes, and seconds this piece of content was viewed.

  • Average Watch Time: How many seconds your video was viewed for.

Utilize these metrics to help create your own averages and benchmarks. You can compare the performance between your own videos to keep growing and spreading your wings creatively.

You can also use the average time watched (and compare it to the total video time) to do an average completion rate for your video — further seeing if your videos are maximized for loop ability and repeat viewers.

Traffic Source Types

This section tells you where your audience found your content as a percentage split. This is a really good tool to use to see how your community is finding your content — whether it’s from your personal profile, the For You page, or Following tab.

Audience Territories

This shows where your video traffic is coming from by country (based on a percentage of views). This metric helps you understand what location is your top-performing.

Want to learn more about growing your TikTok account and planning your content? Tune in to our FREE 30-minute TikTok workshop where we chat through everything you need to grow on TikTok! 

TikTok Analytics: Account Dashboard

Once Pro Account is activated, you’ll find a new analytics button under your account options.

We suggest taking a look on desktop by tapping the upper right tab, and selecting “View Analytics.”

There are three main categories TikTok displays on your account dashboard: Overview, Content, and Followers.

This is where TikTok shows you top-level data for the last 7 or 28 days, depending on which option you choose.

Once data starts populating, you can dive into your account insights. There are three main categories TikTok displays on your account dashboard: Overview, Content, and Followers.

Dashboard #1: Overview

Your TikTok Analytics Overview does exactly what it says on the tin: it gives a good overview of how your account is performing.

Here, you can see up to 28 days of data for:

  • Video Views

  • Follower Growth

  • Profile Views

Dashboard #2: Content

The “Content” tab opens up a flood of knowledge and insights at your fingertips.

On the Video Posts tab, you will see the top 9 videos (that you posted within 7 days) with the fastest growth in views.

If you didn’t post within 7 days, you’ll see an empty dashboard, encouraging you to post more.

On the Trending Videos tab, you’ll see which of your videos have been trending on the For You page (within this period) and the total number of views those videos have accumulated throughout.

Trending Video Views shows the top 9 videos with the fastest growth over the past 7 days.

Trending Video Views shows your top 9 videos with the fastest growth over the past 7 days. This gives great insights into what videos are trending now, even if they were published before the 7 day time frame.

This is a great place to see if you have any “slow burner” content.

Your TikTok videos can sometimes see a spike in views days, weeks, or even months after it’s posted, so don’t rule out every post as an immediate low-performer!

Dashboard #3: Followers

The last section is the Followers tab.

Here, you’ll see a breakdown of demographical data for your followers!

Follower Activity shows your follower activity based on what time your followers are most active on the platform.

Follower count shows you how many total followers you have as of the 7-day reporting period and how many followers you’ve gained or lost week over the week.

Gender analytics show the total distribution of followers by their gender.

Top Territories shows where your followers are located by country as a percentage breakdown. This can help you understand whether you’re actually reaching the target audience for your brand.

Follower Activity shows your follower activity based on what time your followers are most active on the platform.

This is an incredibly helpful metric because not only does it showcase the hourly times on exact dates in which your audience is active and scrolling, but you can see the times your audience is the least active.

Understanding when your followers are most active is one of the best ways to discover your best time to post, which can be a great way to guarantee more interactions straight out of the gate.

Understanding when your followers are most active is one of the best ways to discover the best time to post.

Once you see the times that are the best, try uploading during those most active times.

NOTE: TikTok showcases data across all accounts as UTC timing, so keep that in mind when you’re reviewing.

Want to learn more about how to find your best time to post on TikTok? We have a whole blog post dedicated to doing just that! Check it out here

TikTok Analytics Reporting 

Now that you’re an expert at TikTok analytics, this is a great time for you to assess your performance.

On a weekly basis, keep track of the Videos and Sounds your followers have watched the most (in addition to your own content and audience metrics).

TIP: TikTok Analytics only displays data for 28 days before expiring. To avoid missing out, regularly check in to report your progress. On a desktop, you can download a CSV file for safekeeping.

TikTok Analytics only displays data for 28 days before expiring. To avoid missing out, regularly check in to report your progress.

Not only will this be a great source of inspiration, but it will also be a place for you to discover popular themes, Sounds, or hashtags to use in your upcoming content.

And there you have it, our ultimate guide to TikTok analytics!

By now you should have a good overview of the benefits it can bring to your business, but if you’re looking for even more tips, we’ve got lots of exciting TikTok resources to come!

Looking to level-up your TikTok skills? Join Later’s 10-day Challenge! Each day we’ll show you a new TikTok skill or hack that you can use on your own TikTok feed:

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