Why Would Someone Follow Me on TikTok?

tiktok on phone

Have you ever looked at your TikTok followers and wondered where these random people came from? The reason you may be getting random followers on TikTok is if a big account has duetted or reposted you.

Do you think anyone who follows you actually watches all of your TikTok videos, or are they only following you to get more likes and views for their videos?

Followers are an important metric for TikTok users. The more followers you have, the more people will see your posts and get a glimpse into your life.

When you create a TikTok account, you’re given the option to “follow” other users. It’s a simple way to get updates from the accounts that interest you and keep up with the latest trends.

It’s nice to feel you’re part of something and even get some validation. It’s one of the reasons we all check our likes so often we’re looking for that immediate feedback.

But when you get random followers who don’t match your interests, it can make you feel like you’ve been kicked out of your club.

Fake followers are often bots and do not engage with posts—which means they do not help brands and individuals reach their target audience or grow their business. But why is this happening? And how do you stop it?

Why Do Random People Follow Me On TikTok?

There are a few reasons people follow you on TikTok, besides just their plain liking of your videos. A big factor is to grow their following.

They’ll want some new eyes on their account – and they may think yours are the best ones to attract. Here is another reason you are getting random followers.

Another Account Duetted You

If one of your TikToks gets duetted by an account with a lot of followers, it can often mean that you’ll start getting new followers quickly.

When someone sees your post being duetted by someone else, they’re more likely to check it out.

A big account duetting you also provides you some credibility and exposure for your work—and if they’re duetting your awesome video, other people will start following you too!

So what should you do now? Well, first off—congratulations! That’s awesome! Now keep doing what you’re doing: posting great stuff and interacting with your followers.

The more you engage with them and show them how much you appreciate them following you, the more likely they’ll be to stick around for even longer.

Spam And Bot Accounts Keep Following Me On TikTok

Have you noticed that you are getting followed by random people on TikTok? This isn’t always a bad thing. Sometimes, you may be followed by someone who has seen your content and wants to follow you back.

However, it’s also possible that someone is utilizing your account on third-party software to spam other users.

How does this happen? Some apps and services promise to get more followers on your preferred social network.

They work by connecting with your account and collecting information about you and your interests. These followers are robots, though, used to inflate follower counts artificially.

If someone is using your account, the first thing to do is check your settings. If there are any third-party apps listed there, delete them immediately.

Go to Settings> Tap security and login > click on Manage app permission > click on the apps you would like to remove. If you don’t have any services connected, it will say, “No authorized apps.”

tiktok app permission

If you have any third-party applications connected to your TikTok account, you’ll see a list of those apps. Each app will have a list of permissions granted, such as viewing your videos and liking posts.

If you see that an app has access to your basic information, Revoke Access from that app.

You can also reset your password if you believe a third-party app has been up to suspicious activity on your TikTok account or know of a service associated with your account.

Open the app and click on the profile icon to change your TikTok password. Next, choose “Settings” from the menu.

On iOS, go to “Manage Account” and select “Password.” Enter the 6-digit code you receive Replace your old password with a new one and save.

You can increase the security of your account by setting up two-factor authentication, which requires anyone trying to log in to enter a special login code sent through text message. We highly recommend this extra layer of protection.

You Paid For Fake Followers.

If you’re a business owner or influencer, there’s a good chance that you have purchased some fake followers. The reason?

It’s tempting to boost your social media following numbers and make yourself look more popular.

So how do we stop this? Unfollow people who aren’t following back: This may sound obvious, but it’s easier said than done and requires manual effort on your behalf.

You can also use TikTok Apps that help you identify fake accounts and unfriend them.

How To Prevent Spam Accounts From Following You On TikTok

If you’re sick of fake accounts following you on TikTok, the best way to prevent them is to make your account private.

This will stop anyone who isn’t already following you from being able to see your TikTok videos and follow you.

With a private account, only people who have followed you can see your posts.

This makes it easy for you to know who has been added as a follower, and it also prevents spammers from finding and following your account. Also, any hashtags you use won’t appear in search results.

To make your profile private, open TikTok and tap on your profile page. Tap the Settings icon in the top right corner.

On the Settings screen, tap Privacy. Under Account Privacy, tap Private Account. Now you can decide who gets to see your videos.

You’ll also approve any new followers you get. When someone new follows you, they’ll send a Follow Request.

As soon as you log in to the app, you’ll see a notification with their name. Tap their name to view their profile. You can then choose to delete or confirm them.

Turn Off Account Suggestions.

Accounts Suggestions is a feature on TikTok that recommends other accounts you might enjoy following.

TikTok’s algorithms are designed to surface accounts that might be interesting to you based on your searches, the accounts you choose to follow, the accounts of people you know, and even how much time you spend looking at a given account.

Of course, it’s useful. It makes sure that you follow people who are relevant to your profile or interests, and it recommends your profile on other users’ profiles to get additional followers.

But if you want to prevent your account from being suggested on other people’s profiles, you can do that too! Here’s how:

First, log into your account from either your mobile phone or your computer browser.

To edit your profile, click on the Profile icon at the bottom of the app. Now click on Settings in the top right of your screen.

On the settings page Tap on Settings and Privacy. Now click on Privacy, and then tap Suggest your account to others. Here you should toggle off all of the options you choose to

Report And Block Them

TikTok has a very clear policy on spam accounts, and they are committed to get rid of them. Unfortunately, it’s possible to find a fake account in your name on TikTok.

This can happen whether you are a well-known public figure or not. Fake accounts can be annoying because they never stop bothering you.

Also, influencers who use fake followers to make themselves look more popular than they are will find it harder to partner with brands.

Brands are starting to realize that people with fake followers aren’t necessarily the best influencers to work with.

Influencers who want to partner with brands need to ensure that their followers are real people who follow and engage with their content.

Here’s how to report spam and weird TikTok Videos

To report a video on TikTok, press and hold on to the video you would like to report. Then choose ‘report” and follow the instructions provided.

report tiktok

If you report a post as inappropriate, TikTok will verify the claim. TikTok will remove the video from public view if your report is correct.

Also, If you’ve come across fake accounts on TikTok that are using your name, photo, video, and other information from your existing account, it’s important to report the fake profiles to TikTok so they can be terminated or banned.

Next, fill out TikTok’s impersonator form. There are many types of impersonation. Please fill in the one that best reflects your situation.

To report an impersonation, you’ll need to provide TikTok with some information, including a photo of your government-issued ID.

You will also have to provide a link to the profile impersonating you and evidence that the account is posing as you, including links to comments, images, and other activity.

How To Spot Fake TikTok Accounts

1. Look at the Profile Picture

A fake account won’t have the person in their profile picture in any other posts, nor will they have a bio describing their profession. A legitimate account would want to be found by friends and family members.

If it’s blank or has a generic image that doesn’t match up with the account’s username, it’s probably fake. When they mention a profession in their bio, their posts usually don’t relate to that field.

For example, if someone claims to be an expert in TikTok marketing, but their profile picture is blank with no text or logo, it’s probably not real. You should be able to recognize these disparities quickly by skimming their profiles.

2. Look For Provocative Statements in Their Bio

You can tell if a TikTok account is fake or not by looking at the user’s bio, which should include a link to their website if they have one. If it doesn’t, it’s likely a fake account.

If you’re on the lookout for fake accounts, look for provocative statements in their bio. These could be about things like money, or provocative things.

Fake TikTok accounts will often try to use provocative language to get you to click on their profile page and engage with more of their videos.

If you see any mentions of provocative or other similar phrases in the bio of an account that you’re considering following, then it’s best to stay away from it unless you want your TikTok experience ruined by spam and scams.

3. Do they post like someone normal?

Please pay attention to how often the account posts and when most of its posts are made.

Since people who make fake accounts want to sell them quickly, they may create several posts to make the account seem populated. You will notice that their posts rarely receive comments or likes.

They are also prone to leaving spam comments. But when these accounts make comments, they sometimes appear to be written by a bot. Their comments are usually generic and lack substance.

4. Following and Follower Ratio

Fake accounts often buy followers and like to make themselves seem popular, but they can’t fake engagement with their followers.

Look at their posts and see if they have any engagement with other users or if they post a lot of content receiving no comments or likes in return.

This is another sign that your followers might be fake, as actual users usually engage with one another on TikTok through comments and likes on photos and videos.

Also, It’s no secret that fake accounts are created to follow other accounts. This can lead to them soon reaching the maximum number of accounts they can follow.

A typical follower-to-following ratio on TikTok is 1:1 or less, but fake accounts often follow many more people than they are followed.

5. Posts Are Mainly About Promotions Or “Competitions.”

These accounts often have no followers and have been created to promote brands and products through sponsored posts.

They will post photos that contain links to websites where users can claim prizes for completing surveys or signing up for newsletters.

Also, the accounts are mostly new. Many scammers set up accounts just months before they start to spam users with ads and malware.

6. The TikTok Account Has No Posts Or Followers.

If you see an account with no posts and no followers, it’s probably fake. If you click on the profile, there should be some information about who the person is and what they do. If there is no information, then it’s a fake account.

7. Posts Pictures Of Different People

If all the photos on the account are of different people, it’s a fake profile. Mostly they post pics of attractive men or ladies. Spammers who want you to click on the links in their bios usually create accounts like these.

Did You Just Do A Giveaway

Giveaways are an excellent way to attract new followers and increase your engagement. It works best when the product being given away is related to the business and its target audience.

In this case, TikTok users interested in your brand are likely to follow you back.

Giveaways help you build relationships and trust with your followers, which will make them more likely to purchase from your business.

They are also a great way to gain brand recognition. You’ll have made a lifelong customer if people can recognize your logo, name, and style.

However, there is a risk that you may attract audiences that are more interested in rewards than your brand.

Some people will follow you for a giveaway but then unfollow you after the giveaway is over or remain inactive and reduce your engagement rate.

If someone is following you but hasn’t interacted with your content, they aren’t interested in what you do.

Review the followers you have just added if you don’t want to receive spam comments on your TikTok account.

Remove them from your list right after following them. Removing these users helps you gain real and active followers for your brand.

Conclusion

Know your followers. While it’s thrilling to see someone new follow you or ‘like’ your photos, it is better to know why they are doing so.

This is especially true if you get a random follower who doesn’t seem to fall into your target audience demographic.

Take some time to look at their account and assess whether you have similar interests. If not, it might be better to unfollow them as they may not add much value to your feed.

Dozie Ejizu
Dozie is the founder of Vergizmo.com, with 10+ years of experience in Social Media and consumer tech devices. Dozie has written hundreds of articles with tried and tested methods to provide you with up-to-date information.