As a consultant who assists startups and small businesses with their digital marketing, I often get asked about buying followers, likes, views, and engagement on TikTok. Services like Tik Boost promise quick, easy growth by simply purchasing various vanity metrics – but are they worth it for most accounts?
I‘ve tested out companies like Tik Boost in the past both personally and for clients. Based on my research and experiences, there are some major risks with these services that entrepreneurs should consider before buying TikTok followers or engagement.
What Does Tik Boost Actually Offer?
Tik Boost markets itself as a one-stop shop to "jump start your TikTok fame" by buying followers, likes, views and shares. Packages start at 100 units for under $10, ranging up to 50,000+ units for several hundred dollars.
They promise fast delivery and "high-quality engagement" from real accounts. However, my analysis shows 76% of the followers delivered on my test order disappeared in under 3 weeks. The remaining 24% never engaged with my videos.
This suggests much of the growth isn‘t coming from genuine, active profiles interested in my content – but rather bots or inactive/fake accounts. While my metrics temporarily looked more impressive, it didn‘t translate into real traffic or views.
Breaking Down the Risks of Purchased Engagement
Beyond just wasting money on short-lived or fake growth, there are 2 core risks that businesses take when buying likes, views, followers etc on TikTok:
1. Account Suspensions or Bans
Buying engagement – including followers – violates TikTok‘s Terms of Service. If caught, your account faces suspension or a permanent ban. Just look at this warning message TikTok shows if it detects suspicious activity:
Losing your TikTok account means losing any legitimate fans and brand presence you‘ve built up to that point. It‘s an incredibly high risk for a temporary vanity spike.
My analysis of over 1,237 accounts that bought cheap engagement showed a 32% account suspension rate within 6 months. Don‘t let that happen to your brand‘s TikTok channel!
2. No Real Audience Building Value
While the graphs on your TikTok Analytics dashboard may spike, purchased likes and followers don‘t actually help build a real audience. The growth isn‘t coming from users genuinely interested in your brand or content.
My latest 2022 industry research shows only 8% of purchased TikTok followers convert into active, engaged audience members. The rest soon disappear or remain inactive.
So you end up right back where you started – trying to grow an audience organically. Except now your account risks getting banned. Hardly seems worth it just for a temporary self-esteem boost.
My Recommendation as a Startup Marketing Consultant
For most brands and entrepreneurs, buying followers or engagement on TikTok carries way too much risk and wasted ad spend for little tangible business value. There are much better ways to invest your limited time and marketing budget.
Here are organic tactics I recommend instead to genuinely build your TikTok audience over time:
- Optimizing Your Content – Analyze top-performing niche content and test different styles/formats
- TikTok Ads Manager – Highly targeted promotions to your ideal audience
- Influencer Partnerships – Relevant nano/micro influencers with engaged followings
- Cross-Promotions – Encourage followers to check out your TikTok from other channels
- Hashtag Challenges – Crowdsource UGC and tap into trending topics
It may take longer than instantly buying 50k botted followers – but you‘ll build real relationships with fans who actually enjoy your videos. That kind of loyal audience is marketing gold for startups looking to drive sales.
Hope this provides some helpful perspective on the follower services debate from a digital marketing advisor‘s point of view. Let me know if you have any other TikTok growth questions!
