The slideshow strategy that generated 700,000 users in 275 days
Stronger Mobile is a gym workout planner app. The app itself is nothing special, but its marketing strategy is insane. It was run for a while by a single individual, Jack, the founder.
They posted an astonishing 725 videos on TikTok in 295 days. Let that sink in.They averaged 2.5 videos a day and up to 5 a day in the past few months.
Their stats are way above average, with 11 videos garnering over 1,000,000 views, 24 videos getting 350,000+ views (50 times the median for the account), and 85 videos achieving 65,000+ views (10 times the median).
I’m going to dissect Jack’s TikTok strategy to grow Stronger Mobile to more than 700,000 users in less than 365 days.
Mastering Slideshows and Hooks
98% of Jack’s high-performing videos are slideshows, an image format used on TikTok that is incredibly popular in certain niches.
If you’re not familiar with short-form content, you might be wondering: How is this type of content performing so well?
That’s a fair question with a two-part answer:In the short-form world, you don’t judge content; you judge results.
There are many videos you might consider “terrible” content that gather millions of views. The format often doesn’t matter; it’s about the story you tell. It’s about the emotion that transpires. It’s about whether you touch your audience or not.
And as mentioned above, slideshows are HUGE in certain sub-niches. You should figure out whether they are huge in your niche or not. If they are, you can easily jump on the bandwagon.
Study the content style in your niche, find the associated TikTok subculture, and adapt your content format accordingly. Jack understood this, and he is crushing it—so can you!
Mastering the Art of Creating Tension
The videos start with a strong hook and a selfie of a person (in this case, the founder) in a situation.
The hook is always short, catches your attention, creates tension, and leaves you waiting for a release.
“Grandpa was right”
“Skipping legs…”
“Suddenly I realized”
“Showing up in the gym”
These hooks are a hit with the peculiar audience of a men’s fitness app. They resonate and make you long for what’s next. That’s the idea behind a slideshow: you want to see what’s in the next slide(s). Hence, you create engagement on the video, which then tells the algorithm that it is interesting content that should be distributed to more people.
Mastering the Art of Creating Release and Engagement
The second or third slide, the “tension-releasing slide,” always showcases the app, sometimes with text, sometimes without. It wraps the entire story into an ending that matches the hook.
The hook is often “controversial” (within the niche’s subculture), which helps create conversation and engagement in the comments.
And that’s key to making the video go viral. In those comments, there are dozens asking, “app name?” This creates a huge fear of missing out when others see people interested in downloading and using the app.
Jack won. Check for yourself:
Experiment, Rinse, & Repeat
Sounds simple enough, but experimentation and consistency are key. Remember, he posted 725 videos.
You can do it yourself, though. It will take you less than 10 minutes a day to create a slideshow and post it with music, a description, and hashtags.
Once you find a hit, you just have to rinse and repeat.
Stronger Mobile often uses the same hook again and again after finding a winner (as you see in the image below). He even uses similar images once he finds ones that work.
Now it’s your turn to unlock TikTok as a marketing channel.
And remember:
CONSISTENCY + QUANTITY is the golden recipe.
Post every single day, and, if possible, multiple times a day.
TikTok,
Reels, and
Shorts
