When we first start creating content, people will definitely tell you to find your niche. It’s the first piece of advice most creators receive, and it’s advice we dole out regularly. It makes creating content easier and draws more people to your page.
But it’s not the only way to be successful – far from it! And one perfect example is longtime Clapper creator, @Tanee_Lynn. She’s been creating content since 2019 and has built a strong community not only on Clapper, but on other platforms. And while her content might fall into the comedy genre, it’s still varied. Her recent content sometimes doesn’t even fall into her usual comedy realm – and it’s still performing well!
So of course we had to reach out and learn her secrets. Luckily for us, she was in a sharing mood. And, even better, it boils down to a few key tips anyone can use for their content.
First, though, let’s talk about niches and get to know Taneé Lynn.
What Exactly is a Niche?
Your niche is a specialized area of knowledge or experience – think rocket scientists or hairdressers that are really good at bangs. Everyone has something that they excel at, but we aren’t all experts in the same fields.
For content creation, a niche might look like doing comedy skits or telling true crime stories while putting on makeup. Your niche might even be teaching history or discussing sports! Whatever content you like to watch or whatever passions you have can become your niche.
Why develop a niche? For one it helps streamline your content creation process and makes creating content easier. For another, it helps you find and build your community. If the bulk of your content is about fishing, the algorithm will push it out to people who are in similar communities – and when they see that’s what you post, they’ll be more likely to follow you. This method is tried and true, which is why so many social media platforms and content creators suggest it.
Taneé Lynn’s Content
Taneé Lynn’s creator journey began in 2018, when she was still working in direct makeup sales. She had to start Livestreaming to show how the product worked and teach people how to use it. Even though content creation is her current job, it wasn’t always smooth sailing.
“When I first started Livestreaming, I would shake the whole entire time. I was doing direct sales for makeup, so that was extremely hard!”
She soon realized that she preferred Livestreaming over actually selling the makeup. So she said buh-bye to her brushes and started going live more often. In late 2019, Taneé Lynn discovered TikTok and fell in love with the comedic content she found! She’s passionate about entertaining people and wanted to explore shortform content, so she started making videos in addition to going live.
And she did well! She steadily grew her following and posted content that she and her audience loved. Eventually an audience member told her about a little app called Clapper, and the rest is history.
“One thing I love about Clapper is the community. It’s very positive. There’s very few trolls. I feel like everybody’s there to support everybody.”
It’s easy to see just from talking to Taneé Lynn and scrolling through her pages that she loves social media and content creation. She makes content for the sake of making it – not because it’s a chore or something she has to undertake. That might be because she creates the content she would want to watch and the videos she enjoys making. So her first tip (even if it’s not something Taneé Lynn directly said) is…
SECRET ONE: Make Content Because You Love It
Don’t force yourself to create content. You shouldn’t turn it into a chore or something you have to do. What you create should come naturally and be fun to make. If it’s not checking either of those boxes, maybe take some time to reevaluate.
SECRET TWO: Don’t Pretend to be Something You’re Not
The entire content creation process goes much more smoothly if you don’t try to be something you’re not – a fact we share and were happy to hear Taneé Lynn repeat.
“It’s really important just to be yourself. Don’t try to create a different personality because if that goes, then you’re kind of stuck.”
It’s easier to create content (and often more fun) if you aren’t having to become a new person each time you record. That’s exhausting, and eventually you’ll want to (or accidentally) change things up. Not only will it be a little stressful for you, but your audience will notice if something is off. They can tell when you’re pretending or faking, and you may have a hard time hooking them in. Just like flies and honey, you catch more followers with the real you.
But, being yourself and letting your personality shine through also helps you find the kind of content you want to make. Which some of our team members hadn’t quite realized until Taneé Lynn said it!
“Do something that you’re comfortable in, but try everything that interests you. The videos that perform the best are going to be the niches that you’re kind of going to fall into.”
SECRET THREE: Do What You’re Interested In
By being yourself and following your interests, you’ll already be finding content niches or communities that you want to fall into. You’ll see what works best for you and what your audience enjoys. Plus, casting the net wide in the beginning leaves you more room to be flexible and try other things in the future!
Creating what interests you may seem obvious, but it will make a world of difference. It gets you excited to create content, to try new things and keep pushing yourself. So if something seems fun or interesting, try it. Don’t worry if it doesn’t perfectly match what you’ve already been doing or what you’d planned to do. Make the videos you’d want to watch! If you won’t listen to us, take it from Taneé Lynn. She’s followed her interests and has built an incredible career and community out of them.
“I joined a direct sales business and they really pushed that you Livestream to show the product. So, I started Livestreaming, then I came across Periscope and quickly realized I didn’t like the direct sales part of it. I like the entertainment part of it. So I Livestreamed for quite a few years and then I stumbled across TikTok. They had such fun videos that just made me laugh so hard. I wanted to make people laugh.”
SECRET FOUR: Don’t Be Afraid to Try New Things
Even if you’re following your passions and posting the content you love, creators are always worrying about their videos. Will they flop? What happens if it does? That risk can make creators a little uncomfortable, or make them second guess what they want to post. It’s why so many of us are hesitant to try new things. But Taneé Lynn’s solution isn’t to sit on the sidelines: it’s to do it scared.
“I wouldn’t be where I am now if I didn’t push past my comfort zones. So I always tell myself that good things come past those comfort zones, to stay positive and see where it leads.”
And if it does flop? At least you tried it. At least you have a better idea of the content that works on your channel. You probably had fun making it, and just because it doesn’t work on one platform doesn’t mean it won’t work on another.
As an example: Taneé Lynn loves books, a passion she gets to showcase on her YouTube. Not because she doesn’t want her audience seeing her talk about books, but because that’s where she discovered it fit the best.
“That was something that just flowed easily for me, and I felt like that was where I should stay. I can sit down and talk about books for, you know, 10, 20 minutes, if not longer for a video, and it’s like five minutes past.”
SECRET FIVE: Don’t Worry About a Common Thread
One thing that we kept wondering as we were chatting with Taneé Lynn was how she ties everything together. Often creators are told to have a specific brand, niche or not. Beyond Taneé Lynn’s lovely face being featured in every video, there’s not a lot threading all of her videos together. Yet her content feels consistent. It feels like she’s put thought into making sure everything fits.
The funny thing about that? She doesn’t.
“I don’t try to tie them together – that’s just kind of how I want to create content. It just plays out that way.”
When she makes content, Taneé Lynn doesn’t wonder how she’ll tie her videos together or if they need to have a common theme. She just makes what she wants, edits it until she likes it, and posts. Her personality is what ties everything together. Which is another reason why it’s so important to be yourself. If you want to make content across a variety of niches and communities, being unabashedly you is essential. That’s what will keep your audience coming back time and time again.
We did ask Taneé Lynn what she thought was the most important thing when it comes to her content. And the answer is probably one you’ve heard before.
SECRET SIX: Post Consistently
“I feel like consistency is the number one ticket.”
Again, we have to agree with her. Consistency is so important for people that want to seriously create content. Not in what you post, but how often and when you post.
“The more you show up, the more people see you, the more they’re going to like and engage with you. If you’re consistent they kind of get to a point where they wait for those videos to be posted. It’s really good for a lot of the algorithms, too.”
Which is why so many people recommend having a niche: you’ll show up on more people’s FYPs more frequently. But consistency and posting often is a great cheat-code in this situation! Algorithms are mysterious and none are quite the same, but all of them favor creators who post often. Being consistent and having a reliable posting schedule will get your content pushed out whether or not it’s all on brand.
Like we’ve said before, there’s no wrong way to social media. Even if you aren’t sure what you want to post, what kind of content you want to create, or what will do well. That’s not a bad place to begin – in fact, it’s a fantastic place to begin! Start with a blank slate and post the content you want to create. And if you won’t listen to us, listen to Taneé Lynn.
“Just start. Start posting, be yourself and it’s okay like to post several things until you kind of figure out what works best for you.”
Don’t worry about brand, about style, about tying it all together. Just create the content you’re passionate about, and the rest will come together.
To learn more about Taneé Lynn and add a little sunshine to your FYP, check out her Clapper profile! To read about balancing parenting and social media, check out our article with Queenager.