How to Make a Slideshow on TikTok: INSANELY Easy Steps

Updated on February 28, 2024

9 min to read

Content Writer

Published October 2, 2023

How to Make a Slideshow on TikTok: INSANELY Easy Steps
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Are slideshows still a thing?

Turns out, TikTok says…

Absolutely!

And what’s even better? Learning how to make a slideshow on TikTok is incredibly easy.

TikTok slideshows allow your clients to show off their stunning product photos and other images to followers in a more fun and engaging way.

The photo slideshows can be a breath of fresh air among standard TikTok video formats, adding flair to the For You Pages (FYPs) of your clients’ followers and boosting engagement opportunities.

So what are you waiting for?

Start creating TikTok slideshows for your clients with the easy steps and tips below. 

Table of contents

What you’ll learn:

  • What are TikTok slideshows?
  • Why create TikTok Slideshows?
  • 5 Crazy easy steps to make a slideshow on TikTok
  • Tips for making a slideshow on TikTok
  • Common questions about making slideshows on TikTok
  • Dominate TikTok with slideshows

What are TikTok slideshows?

A TikTok slideshow is pretty much what the name suggests: a presentation of compiled still photos in a sequence shared on the platform.

Think of it like flipping through a digital photo album.

TikTok’s slideshows work like regular videos, where each photo displays for a few seconds.

Why create TikTok slideshows?

Creating slideshows on TikTok has the following perks.

  • Engagement booster. TikTok slideshows can be engagement magnets. You can create photo slideshows that keep your clients’ viewers hooked and excited for what you dish out next. More engagement means more eyeballs on your clients’ content, expanding their reach and conversion opportunities. 
  • Unleash your creativity. Slideshows on TikTok let you play with effects, transitions, and music to make a masterpiece. You can create unique, creative  content that helps turn passive viewers into loyal followers and paying customers. 
  • Nail your storytelling. Slideshows are great for telling a compelling story in just a few slides. You can weave a narrative into your clients’ slideshows that captures the viewer’s attention and keeps them swiping until the end, boosting engagement rates.  
  • Versatility. TikTok slideshows allow you to share various content, whether your clients want to share quick tips, tell a brand story, or launch a new product. You can adapt slideshows to a theme or message while keeping your clients’ content fresh and exciting. 
  • Time saving. With slideshows, you can share a bunch of content in one post, saving you precious time and effort. You can create top-quality content and get them on your clients’ TikTok feeds without posting them individually. 
  • Shareability. Engaging TikTok slideshows can spread like wildfire. Slideshows are bite-sized and visually appealing, making them easy to watch and highly shareable with a huge potential to go viral.

Seamless content collaboration. Collaborating with influencers and other TikTok creators often involves sharing multiple content. With slideshows, you can easily share multiple collaboration-related content in one TikTok post. 

5 Crazy easy steps to make a slideshow on TikTok

Follow the amazingly simple steps below to make engaging TiKTok slideshows for your clients.

1. Open the TikTok app and select a template

Open the app and log into your client’s TikTok account.

On your client’s TikTok homepage, tap the plus (+) button at the bottom of your screen.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok1

Select Templates, swipe left to preview the slideshow options, and tap on your chosen template.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok2

Each template shows the number of photos you can add to the slideshow.

Remember to choose a template that can fit all the images your client wants in the TikTok slideshow. 

2. Upload photos

After deciding on a template, tap on the Upload photos button.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok3

Choose the photos your clients want to include in the slideshow from the device’s gallery.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok4

3. Edit the slideshow

You can edit the existing effects and elements in the slideshow template to keep it on-brand or align it with your client’s taste.

You can tweak or add music, effects, texts, stickers, filters, captions, and voiceovers.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok5

For example, tap on the sound icon that shows the song’s title and artist at the top to change the slideshow’s background music.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok6

If your clients have a song in mind, type in the title in the search bar.

You can also choose from TikTok’s recommended songs since these are typically the most popular.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok7

Remember to preview the slideshow’s filters and effects when adding or changing them.

Some filters and effects can look great on a static screen but can be surprisingly bad in the slideshow or when used together.

So don’t make that TikTok slideshow blunder; preview the slides before moving to the next step.

Also, avoid using font styles, colors, and sizes that make the slideshow’s text too distracting, long, or hard to read.

After all, each slide appears for only a few seconds, so include text your client’s viewers can easily read and see at a glance.

Don’t forget to check the grammar and punctuation, too.  

4. Set the slideshow sharing settings

Configure your client’s TikTok slideshow-sharing settings by selecting who can view the post and allowing comments from other users.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok8

If the slideshow promotes a product, brand, or service, switch on the Disclose post content option.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok9
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The option indicates to TikTok users that your client’s post is for commercial purposes. 

Learn more from the TikTok guidelines on promoting a brand, product, or service.

You can save the slideshow to your device’s gallery if you need more time to review it or get the go signal from your client before publishing.

5. Share the post

Tap the Next button and add your client’s hashtags, mentions, or give credit to other creators’ TikTok trending videos that inspired the post.

You can write a post description of up to 4,000 characters (including the hashtags and mentions) and choose a still from your client’s TikTok slideshow to be the cover.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok10

You can tag other TikTok users, geotag the post, add links, manage the video’s privacy sharing, and quality, set audience controls, and share the post to other platforms like Facebook.

Slideshows can also be great content to help promote your client’s TikTok Shop.

For example, create slideshows of your client’s product photos. It helps entice viewers to visit your client’s shop.

How to make a slideshow on TikTok11

Review everything to ensure nothing in the slideshow will get your client in hot water with TikTok and avoid violating the platform’s Community Guidelines.

Save your client’s videos as drafts or tap Post to post photo slideshows immediately.

There you have it.

You’ve just created and published your client’s first TikTok slideshow without a hitch.

Posting a creative and catchy photo slideshow, from brand-focused photos to clipboard-related topics and images, helps boost your client’s audience engagement.

Also, be mindful of your posting frequency. Stay consistent and post as frequently as you can.

“TikTok is one of those social platforms that reward frequent posting. The more videos you post to your TikTok account, the higher your follower rate is likely to be. The more times you post, the simpler it will be for people to find your account and decide to follow you.” — Werner Geyser, Founder of InfluencerMarketingHub

The higher the engagement on your client’s video, the more likely the TikTok algorithm will showcase the post on numerous For You Pages.

Tips for making a slideshow on TikTok

Make your clients shine on TikTok with these tried and tested tips for creating engaging slideshows.

  • Start the slideshow with a bang. Grab your target audience’s attention from the get-go. Use a visual knockout as your client’s first slide to stop viewers in their tracks. Include captivating colors, a catchy hook, and stunning images to reel viewers in and make them stick. 
  • Keep it short and snappy. TikTok is all about instant content and gratification so keep your clients’ slides short to hold the viewers’ attention. Go for three to five seconds per slide to keep the entire slideshow’s momentum going. 
  • Mix up the media. Your client’s TikTok slideshows don’t have to be all images or short video clips. Mix up the content types such as text overlays, photos, animations, and videos to keep your clients’ slideshows dynamic and fresh. 
  • Throw in a narrative. Random photo and video collections in one slideshow can be fun but it’s best to give your clients’ slideshows a narrative arc. Doing so helps you weave a compelling story that engages viewers. It gives focus to your clients’ message, whether they are sharing customer testimonials, unveiling new products, posting a content series, or taking audiences behind the scenes. 
  • Include trending music. Set a popular tune as your clients’ slideshow background to help get the content to the target audience’s FYP. Use sounds or music that complement the content and set the mood to really achieve the vibe your clients are going for with their slideshows.
  • Use attractive transitions. Smooth slide transitions help your clients’ slideshows flow seamlessly, allowing for a great viewing experience. Try various transition effects to give your clients’ slideshows that extra wow factor.
  • Add Calls-to-Action (CTAs). Make the most of your clients’ TikTok slideshows and include a CTA at the end. For instance, add a CTA that asks viewers to like, share, or comment on the post or visit your client’s website or product page. Make the CTA clear and irresistible to entice viewers to act on it. 
  • Make it mobile friendly. People use TikTok on their phones so ensure key elements in your clients’ slideshows are visible and easy to read. Think bold fonts and visuals and simple layouts. 
  • Have fun with the slides. Let your creative genius shine on your clients’ TikTok slideshows. Try experimenting with colors, fonts, and texts. Images, sounds, and videos without going overboard. Keep your clients’ slideshows on-brand but unique and fun. 
  • Test it out. Not all TikTok slideshows can become a viral hit on your first try, but that’s okay. Test various styles, formats, and content types to see what works best for your clients’ target audiences and tweak and refine accordingly.  
  • Jump into trends. Incorporate the latest trends into your clients’ TikTok slideshows, such as a popular hashtag, viral meme, or a dance challenge. Riding the What’s trending wave can give your clients’ videos that extra visibility boost. 
  • Make room for User-Generated Content (UGC). Encourage more interaction and engagement by sharing content from other creators. Share slideshows of UGCs, such as reviews and real-life testimonials, making your clients’ content relatable. 
  • Weave in interactive elements. Turn your clients’ TikTok slideshows into interactive experiences for viewers. Include quizzes, polls, and interactive stickers to encourage viewer participation and engagement. 

Sneak in surprises. Keep your clients’ viewers on their toes by including sweet surprises in their TikTok slideshows. You can add a quirky animation, a burst of confetti, or a plot twist in the storyline to keep audiences hooked and coming back for more.

Common questions about making slideshows on TikTok

Let’s go over the common questions people ask about TikTok slideshows.

1. Can you use your own audio on TikTok slideshows?

Yes.

You can keep the original audio on your TikTok slideshows or upload your own music and apply it to the video.

2. Can you create a TikTok slideshow without using the templates?

Yes, you can create a custom slideshow without using a template.

Tap Upload and select photos. Customize the post accordingly and apply the AutoCut option.

The feature automatically edits and displays your client’s photo carousel as a slideshow on TikTok.

3. How do you create a slideshow like a swipe-through photo carousel?

Select multiple photos from the device’s gallery when uploading a new post, and tap the Photo mode.

The option will display your client’s TikTok photos as still images in a photo carousel that viewers can swipe through to see the next picture.

4. Why can’t I create a slideshow on TikTok?

If you can’t create photo and video slideshows on TikTok, you’ll need to do the following:

  • Update the TikTok app to the latest version to resolve potential bugs and technical issues that keep it from working correctly. 
  • Restart the app.
  • Clear the app’s cache. 
  • Uninstall and reinstall TikTok on your device.

You can also go to the TikTok Help Center for further assistance and troubleshooting tips or report the problem.

5. Can you share TikTok slideshows as Stories?

Yes. 

After choosing a template and editing the slideshow, you can tap the Your Story button to publish it directly to your client’s TikTok Story.

Another option is to publish the post on your client’s feed, tap the three dots icon,  and select Add to Story.

You can also share the published TikTok slideshow on your clients’ other social media pages, such as their Instagram Stories, Facebook pages, X (formerly Twitter) feeds, YouTube channel, and other platforms.

Dominate TikTok with slideshows

Use the tips in this guide to create high-performing slideshows on TikTok.

With TikTok slideshows in your marketing arsenal, you can get more likes, follows, and comments through your TikTok initiatives.

Also, if you’re looking for reliable social media management software to streamline your social media marketing (SMM) campaigns, check out Vista Social.

While Vista Social isn’t able to publish TikTok slideshows as of this time of writing, our SMM platform is packed with modern features that agencies use to skyrocket the social media profiles they manage.

These are some of Vista Social’s game-changing features:

  • Advanced scheduling and publishing
  • Highly customizable reports
  • AI assistant
  • Unified inbox
  • Asset library
  • Etc.

Sign up for a Vista Social account today.

About the Author

Content Writer

Jimmy Rodela is a social media and content marketing consultant with over 9 years of experience, with work appearing on sites such as Business.com, Yahoo, SEMRush, and SearchEnginePeople. He specializes in social media, content marketing, SaaS, small business strategy, marketing automation, and content development.

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