500Want to build a brand from scratch on TikTok for overseas markets, but have no budget, no followers, and no resources? Don’t panic. As long as you grasp the core gameplay of the platform, you can get your brand seen by overseas users within 72 hours.
No complicated theories, just practical methods. Real cases will show you: how to shape your brand image with content during the cold start phase and quickly leverage the first wave of traffic.
Image source: Internet
Step 1: Find your “persona” and break the ice with differentiated content
TikTok users are naturally resistant to “brand preaching,” but the real stories of founders or key figures can instead become the breakthrough point during the cold start phase. The key is to bind personal traits with brand values, so users remember “who you are,” not just “what you sell.”
Case: Zhang Lan’s “Zhan Lan” persona leverages overseas traffic
After Zhang Lan’s Douyin account was banned in 2025, she switched to TikTok within 24 hours and quickly established her persona:
1. Strengthen personal symbols: Livestreaming at 3 a.m. teaching overseas viewers to cook spicy chicken and chive boxes, wearing her signature apron, shouting in Beijing-accented English “Life is short, don’t eat tasteless food,” and imprinting the “desperate working woman” image into users’ minds;
2. Output values: Repeatedly emphasizing the “Zhan Lan spirit”... grassroots counterattack, never giving up, linking her entrepreneurial story of South Beauty with brand resilience.
Despite ongoing controversy (such as being accused of hyping family conflicts), Zhang Lan’s differentiated persona did drive traffic: with only 3,000 followers initially, her account leveraged high-frequency interaction and content contrast (a 67-year-old livestreaming at dawn) to give Ma Li Ji products exposure.
Image source: TikTok
Step 2: Ride hot trends, create memes, play with interaction, and leverage organic traffic at low cost
At the zero-budget stage, brands need to learn to “leverage trends.” TikTok’s algorithm naturally favors trending content. Riding hot topics, creating memes, and launching challenges can all help content spread quickly.
Case: Fitness brand Merach’s “counterintuitive” viral video
When promoting an abdominal trainer, Merach didn’t directly showcase the product’s features, but instead attracted attention with a series of short videos titled “Fitness newbie challenges 30-day abs.” In the videos, ordinary users recorded their daily training process and created suspense through Merach device data feedback (such as calories burned). The first video in the series exceeded 500,000 views, driving over 2,000 product sales in 3 days.
Low-cost content templates:
Review type: Real person testing + pain point amplification (e.g., waterproof mascara water test).
Story type: Use life scenarios to introduce the product (e.g., portable coffee machine in an office scene).
High-frequency posting: During the cold start, post 3-5 times a day, matching the target time zone’s morning and evening peaks (e.g., US Eastern Time 19:00-21:00)
Image source: TikTok
Step 3: Collaborate with creators not by budget, but by “precision”
When the budget is limited, instead of spending big on top influencers, it’s better to focus on small and medium creators in vertical fields. Their followers are highly engaged, collaboration costs are low, and their content is more easily trusted by users.
Case: Sportswear brand Halara’s “ordinary people seeding” strategy
Halara screened over 5,000 creators on TikTok with 10,000-100,000 followers, using a “free sample + 15% commission” model. Creators only needed to post one outfit video with the brand tag to receive a share. This model enabled Halara to get over 2,000 product videos in 7 days, with monthly sales exceeding $4.45 million.
Practical tips:
Creator selection formula: 10,000-100,000 followers + average video views in the past 7 days > 5,000 + content verticality > 80%.
Image source: TikTok
Summary: The core of cold start is “content is brand”
There’s no shortcut to cold starting on TikTok, but the methods are replicable: attract attention with a differentiated persona, leverage trends and interaction to drive organic traffic, use a creator matrix to amplify your voice, optimize content efficiency through data, and ultimately solidify brand awareness with values. Remember, users may forget your ads, but they won’t forget the emotional value you bring them.
