Deleting Videos on TikTok – Yes or No?

Most content creators on TikTok have the same questions these days. Should you delete your videos on TikTok if you feel like you posted something private or embarrassing, or content that violates TikTok’s community guidelines and it’s too late to make amends? Or would the loss of followers, likes, and views that may result be too disastrous for your account? Are there any ways to remove your content from TikTok without losing out on likes, followers, and views?

Many content creators on TikTok might have warned you from frequently deleting videos as this could potentially get you shadowbanned on TikTok. Additionally, they may have pointed out a number of alternatives to deleting videos that you could consider. This article provides all necessary information on when you should be deleting content on TikTok as well as how you could remove content without losing your following.

Is it a good idea to delete your TikTok video?

Why do people usually delete videos?

In order to assess whether it is a good idea to delete your video or not, the first question you should be asking yourself is: why do I want to delete this particular video? If you’re here, you probably already know why you want to delete it. Do these top four reasons for deleting videos on TikTok ring a bell to you?

Poor performance

Many content creators delete videos they feel have performed poorly overall on TikTok after merely a few days or a week of posting them. If you see a decline in your views, likes, and comments after posting a particular video that did not do too well on the for You Page, you may be tempted to delete it.

Embarrassment/privacy concerns

Sometimes, however, you may have ended up posting a video in a bad state of mind, or when intoxicated, or may have posted something that violates your own privacy or someone else’s. Otherwise, you might feel embarrassed that certain content or personal information you would not have wished was out there, is out there now and you feel like you made a grave mistake and would want to delete the content in question.

Upload error(s)

Another common reason for deleting videos on TikTok is errors in uploading a video. You may have posted the wrong cropped version of your video or an unedited version and may wish to delete it. Otherwise, you may have ended up with an audio or video error such as a time lag and may be tempted to delete and repost your video.

Broken community guideline(s)

Violating TikTok’s community guidelines is also a key reason for deleting videos on TikTok. This is because if content creators violate any of TikTok’s Community Guidelines in a particular video and choose to not delete it, it may get their account shadowbanned if it does not get to the stage of content removal and a permanent ban.

Should you delete videos on TikTok?

Deleting your content after posting on TikTok is easy. With just a click of a button, your content is permanently removed from the application and also from the TikTok algorithm. However, you may get that uncomfortable feeling in your stomach once you press delete. That’s because it’s not always a good idea to delete content on TikTok.

When should you delete videos?

Our experts at AudienceGain recommend deleting content only in the following case scenarios:

a) Community guideline violations

When your video breaks TikTok’s Community Guidelines it is probably best to delete it. Content that violates TikTok’s community guidelines may be permanently removed by the TikTok algorithm itself if you do not delete it! The following link to TikTok’s official Community Guidelines as of December 2020 is attached below for your convenience:

https://www.tiktok.com/community-guidelines?lang=en

However, for your ease, we have also provided a summary of the primary community guideline violations that solicit deleting your video(s).

1. If you used swear words or profane language in your video or used a song in your video that had explicit content (sexual or profane language), then you should most definitely delete your video before the TikTok algorithm removes it.
2. If you mentioned or showed any tobacco products (including vapes and e-cigarettes), drugs (including marijuana and marijuana-based products) or alcoholic drinks (and other alcoholic products) or used song(s) in your video referencing any of the aforementioned products you should be looking to delete your video.
3. If you feel your video targets or discriminates against an individual on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion (and sect), caste, sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, serious disease, disability, immigration status and age, you should delete your video before your account gets banned.
4. Copyright violations are also a good cause for deleting content. If you used your own version of a song in your video and did not load it from the TikTok music library, you are in violation of TikTok’s copyrights and you should delete your video.
5. If your video shares confidential information about another individual, party, social group or organization, you could get your account temporarily or permanently banned. Therefore, the best idea would be to delete such a video.
6. Referencing or directly or indirectly promoting self-harm and/or suicide in your content is a common cause for permanent account bans. Therefore definitely delete any such content that you feel may prompt or trigger others to harm themselves.
7. Delete videos that support or reference any terrorist organization, even as a joke, and do not post any content that is malicious and based on terrorist activities.
8. Delete any videos that show, reference, or promote any form of animal abuse and cruelty as this could result in an immediate permanent ban on your account.
9. You should also be deleting any videos that show, reference, or promote any kind of violence, including animal abuse and cruelty, and/or depict human or animal remains, as such videos will get your account permanently banned for sure!

b) Banned words

One significant thing the community guideline violations do not cover is certain words and phrases that are banned on TikTok. In addition to using any kind of sexual or explicit language or music, there are a number of words that are banned on TikTok and you should avoid using them in your videos. Most of these words, however, have connotations in the abovementioned community guidelines. Here are examples of banned words you may have used in your video that solicit deleting it:

– “pissed”

– “gun” (in a violent context)

– “dead” (in a violent context)

– “cigarette(s)”

– Naming genitals

If you have violated any of the aforementioned TikTok Community Guidelines or have used any banned words, it would be best to delete your video before the TikTok algorithm or content analysts choose to remove it and/or ban your account. If your content is not removed and the account not banned, however, we would still recommend deleting your content because any such videos would leave a negative mark on your account which would lead to a suppression of likes, comments, and views getting you shadowbanned.

When should you not delete videos?

Deleting videos when they do not break TikTok’s Community Guidelines or use banned words is not recommended

However, if you did not use any banned words or violate any community guidelines in your video, then you should undoubtedly consider deleting it. Most TikTok experts recommend choosing to not delete one’s videos as a content creator in the following cases:

1. Your video performed poorly on the For You Page for a limited time frame.
2. You feel that your content is not too embarrassing or private and you can live with the consequences of that particular information being public.
3. There was a minor and unnoticeable upload error in a post that has already received a handful of likes, comments and/or views.

What are the impacts of deleting videos on TikTok?

If your video did not violate any community guidelines or use any banned words, your reasons for deleting are any of the three aforementioned, and you’re still not convinced about not deleting your video, then it’s better to learn some valuable information about the impacts of deleting videos on TikTok in general. We recommend going through the following three main consequences of deleting videos on TikTok so that you may be able to get a better insight on the subject and make an informed and carefully assessed decision before deleting your content.

Loss of information and poor account health

Tiktok does not generally view content removal positively, as it results in a loss of precious information resulting in overall lesser content on the application. This is a problem for TikTok as it has to continually update and optimize the For You Page for specific users with new and exciting content. However, this loss of information does not only negatively affect TikTok. Content removal and loss of information also have a significant relationship with your overall account health.

This is because deleting a video removes all metrics associated with that video. Retrospectively, this erases any data TikTok’s algorithm has associated with that particular video. Every video leads to a classification of your account and content to a certain niche which is called the account authority concept.

Therefore, deleting videos results in a removal of precious information associated with your account that is stored in the TikTok algorithm about your content, niche, or particular themes. Removal of such information makes it harder for the algorithm to as accurately classify your account authority concept as possible. This means it would be harder to push your content onto the For You Page or show it to relevant audiences. This leads to a decrease in your For You views, a suppression of likes and comments on other posts, and may even slow down your following growth!

Consistent content deletion has a negative proportional relationship to account health.

Moreover, consistent deleting of content results in overall poor account health as your account is associated with bad patterns in TikTok’s algorithm. In fact, consistent content removal is believed to be proportional to poor account health so even if you want to delete a video, do not delete more in the future and be careful about what you post!

This is because negative pattern association formation for a particular account by the TikTok algorithm is not very nuanced. For example, whether you are deleting content or faking metrics, the TikTok algorithm picks up such negative patterns alike and also suppresses your content and user engagement in the same way, without really knowing the difference. After all, it’s a bot and not a content analyst!

Moreover, since the TikTok algorithm is continually updating, content removal could seriously damage your user engagement rates as deleting videos is like starting from zero in terms of metrics and niche-specific data on your account stored in the algorithm.

Lesser chances of delayed video explosion

The second primary impact of content removal on TikTok is reducing the chances for delayed video explosion for your content. This refers to a video going viral weeks or even months after posting even though it may have performed poorly initially. A number of videos on TikTok do not perform well the first few days after posting but go viral weeks or months later which is known as delayed video explosion.

This is a very interesting facet of TikTok that most individuals are not aware of, and may occur because the TikTok algorithm rotates your videos back onto the For You Page at random. Therefore, in such a random rotation of your content, you just might get lucky so do not get discouraged if a post does not perform well a few days after posting.

Chances of delayed video explosion in the case of viral videos are significantly reduced as a result of deleting videos on TikTok.

What alternatives can you use to deleting videos on TikTok to ensure you do not lose likes, comments, views, and followers?

Now that you are well-versed in the dos and don’ts of content removal on TikTok, you might be wondering if there may be any viable alternatives to deleting videos on TikTok that would not negatively impact your account in the same way that content removal does. Indeed, eureka! There is a way.

Our TikTok experts at AudienceGain present the following alternatives to content removal that you could use, based on the three aforementioned reasons for deleting videos when you should ideally not be deleting them!

1. If you want to delete your video(s) due to poor performance, do not at all. Every content creator gets inconsistent views every now and then. Moreover, Tiktok shows users the most viewed posts at the top when they visit a content creator’s profile anyway. Focus on your fresh perspective and not worry too much about superficial vanity metrics. A good alternative could be to create a new video and duet the old one.
2. If you wish to delete your video due to privacy concerns, it would be a better idea to just private the video instead. This not only maintains the data and metrics on your profile in TikTok’s algorithm but also allows you to still show the video to a select group of people if you want to. However, avoid making a lot of your content private as this is also associated with negative pattern association and poor account health.
3. If you wish to delete a post due to an upload error, a better alternative method would be to make that particular upload private and repost the video with the correct metrics and without the same or other upload errors.

In Conclusion

Conclusively, deleting videos on TikTok is only a good idea if your content violates any of TikTok’s Community Guidelines or you’ve used any banned words in your videos. If you wish to delete your video due to any other reason ranging from privacy concerns and embarrassment to poor performance and upload errors, we recommend carefully considering the impacts of deleting your video before doing so.

This is because with consistent deletion you could end up with poor account health and a shadowban or worse. Your content would also have fewer chances of gaining fame a few weeks after posting in the case of a delayed video explosion. Moreover, you could always just make your post private instead of deleting it.

However, sometimes the choice to delete a video may not be that simple. For example, if you already have poor account health due to consistent content deletion and wish to delete another video that may seriously hinder your account’s following growth, you may be stuck in a loop trying to figure out the best way to go forward.

We here at AudienceGain are committed to finding the best strategy for you in terms of deleting content on TikTok, and if you feel like you may not be well-informed or experienced in this regard you should sign up for our services right away!

We promise to deliver a carefully assessed and researched decision in terms of content removal and we urge our readers to do the same in order to thrive as successful content creators or businesses on TikTok.

For more information, please contact us via:

• Hotline/WhatsApp: <span’>(+84)70 444 6666
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