Social media marketing professionals and users have found a gem of a TikTok resource: influencer marketing. As one of the simplest and most effective TikTok marketing tactics, it’s not hard to see why influencer marketing is a common approach among global and local brands alike. So what kind of influencer are you searching for? When sourcing influencer candidates, here are three must-have qualities to maximize your marketing potential.
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The Right Followers & Past Experience
What good is seeking out influencers with a huge number of followers if none of those followers can see the value in what you’re offering? Seeking out influencers with the best-targeted fanbase for your TikTok marketing campaign is foundational. If you’re deciding between a few influencer candidates to work with, avoid the temptation to go with whoever has the highest number of followers. People often buy TikTok followers to become influencers.
When seeking out the right fanbase, quality reigns, and rules over quantity. Contrary to what you might think, getting 500 interested followers to see your brand advertised with an influencer will actually pay more dividends than 2000 uninterested or unengaged followers seeing the same ad. Additionally, contacting experienced TikTok influencers will help save you time and possible let-down. Going with someone who has experience working with brands in the past is a more airtight approach than working with someone who is just starting to build traction with their fanbase.
Why this matters: Recent data shows that smaller-tier TikTok creators often deliver high engagement rates, making them a potentially better match for brand campaigns than large but unengaged accounts.
Creative and Compelling Content
Although it goes without saying, content is king. There are thousands of TikTok influencers with all types of follower counts, but not all of these influencers are creating original material on a regular basis. Here’s the secret sauce to finding the best influencer match for your campaign: Originality. Find a TikTok influencer who inserts their personality into their brand. This shows that anything they post is wholly and unquestionably theirs. One of the best parts about working with the right influencer is getting access to their creative content. After all, they’ve reached influencer status because of the unique content they create. Once you develop a relationship with an influencer, you can position your work agreement with them to leverage your own campaign and position it to benefit from their content.
In other words, you can use the content you did not have to create yourself to benefit your own brand—double win.
Why this works: Influencers who produce original, authentic content and interact naturally with their audience tend to generate stronger audience trust and higher engagement — which in turn helps with conversion or brand recall.
High Engagement Rate
Freight loads of followers and stellar content is all for naught if users aren’t feeling what you’re posting. The same goes for TikTok influencers. When sifting through influencer candidates to find the best match for your campaign, make sure the influencers you are considering consistently maintain a high engagement rate for their content.
At the end of the day in your ROI analysis, it won’t do much good if your content reached a follower base of 20,000+ TikTok users, but less than 1% of those users actually clicked on your ad. Conversions still lead the ROI charge, and since there is not much return for you for content that carries a low engagement rate, it’s probably not worth the initial investment either.
Deciphering an influencer’s engagement rate is easy and can be done in the “research phase” when you’re sourcing potential influencers with whom to partner.
The number of interactions an influencer receives per post will give you a good idea of how engaging their posts actually are and, ultimately, if it is worth pursuing a collaboration project for your TikTok campaign. The right fanbase, solid past experience partnering with brands, a high engagement rate, and creative content function as your checklist and guiding compass when considering the must-have qualities of a TikTok influencer. Search away!
Modern benchmarks: In 2025, small- and mid-tier TikTok creators regularly achieve engagement rates higher than many other social platforms.
Additional Context — Engagement & Influencer Tiers in 2025
To help you evaluate influencers more objectively, here’s a quick breakdown of engagement expectations by influencer size (as of 2025), based on recent studies across the influencer-marketing industry:
| Influencer Tier / Follower Range | Typical TikTok Engagement Rate* |
|---|---|
| Nano (1,000–10,000) | ~ 7%–10% (or more, for especially engaged niche creators) |
| Micro (10,000–100,000) | ~ 5%–8% |
| Mid / Macro (100,000–500,000) | ~ 4%–6%, often dipping as follower count increases |
| Large / Mega (500,000+) | ~ 3% or lower — but reach may offset lower per-follower engagement |
* Engagement rate here refers to the ratio of interactions (likes, comments, shares, etc.) to total follower count per post — a widely used metric to assess influencer effectiveness.
Implication for brands: Smaller influencers often give you more bang for buck if you aim for authentic engagement, niche targeting, and better ROI. Larger influencers may reach more people, but their per-follower engagement tends to drop — which might mean a larger investment for mediocre returns.
Why This Approach Matters (Over “Just Go for Followers”)
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Authenticity over vanity metrics: A big follower count doesn’t guarantee genuine interest or purchase intent. Engagement and relevance to your target audience matter far more when measuring impact.
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Better ROI from niche or smaller influencers: Influencers with smaller but loyal and engaged communities tend to drive better conversions, stronger brand affinity, and more reliable results compared to large but passive followings.
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Lower risk of poor performance: Smaller-scale partnerships are often more affordable, easier to manage, and less risky — especially when you test a campaign first and measure performance.
This approach aligns with recent research in influencer-marketing dynamics: as the field becomes more data-driven, brands are increasingly focusing on engagement, community quality, content authenticity, and performance metrics — rather than just follower counts or impressions.
Final Thoughts
TikTok influencer marketing can be a powerful, effective tool — but only when done thoughtfully. By focusing on the right fanbase, creative and authentic content, and high engagement rather than just chasing big follower numbers, brands stand a much better chance of converting interest into meaningful results.
If you evaluate potential TikTok influencers using these criteria, you’ll be better positioned for successful campaigns that resonate with audiences — and give you a better return on your investment.