The number of followers on social networks of the mixed martial arts organization OKTAGON MMA is unparalleled in the Czech sports world. After all, OKTAGON is already knocking on the door of the goal of 400 thousand followers on Instagram alone. And he also passed the first big milestone on TikTok, where he started actively creating a year ago. At the end of April, the number of fans on this most progressive social network exceeded 100.
Behind the video content on OKTAGON TikTok is Petr Horálek and his organization WELOVEFUN, which brings together and connects creators and companies on this platform. "It will be a year since we created together. With our team, we go to every tournament where we shoot videos and at the same time we also use the content produced by OKTAGON for other platforms. We then adjust it for the needs of TikTok so that the reach is as good as possible," says Horálek.
The promoters of OKTAGON, who were drawn into the story by the WELOVEFUN team, know that the world of TikTok is specific and that things work on the platform that would not be successful on other social networks, as do many fighters. “When we started filming tournaments a year ago, most fighters didn’t even know TikTok and didn’t understand what we wanted from them. It took a while for us to break the ice with the fighters and start pulling together with us. However, times are different now and many of the fighters even come to us themselves and ask if we would film something with them, or they come up with ideas for videos,” smiles Petr Horálek, who founded WELOVEFUN at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, when, coincidentally, TikTok itself deleted his personal account without giving a reason.
The fighters have obviously gotten used to the tiktok team, so in the videos, fans can come across funny bits from Václav Mikulášek, David Kozma, Patrik Kincl and others. "It's great fun with Pirát Krištofič or Gábor Boráros. This one is for everyone's fun, and our dance together before the tournament in Bratislava in the fall of last year is one of the most successful videos on OKTAGON's TikTok. And even the moderator Oliver Sálus and the promoter Pavol Neruda or the great Kundosaki enjoy it," he adds.
Over the past year, OKTAGON's TikTok profile has grown organically by 75 new fans. "On average, we deliver over 2,2 million impressions per month with a ten percent engagement threshold," Petr Horálek explains. "We are leaders in our fields, so we value this cooperation. We also want to gradually prepare fans for PPV sales through this channel and accompany OKTAGON in its expansion into European countries," he adds.
"The TikTok profile has numbers, but why do such videos with fighters work and are received positively by the community on this platform?"Pro"We show their different, human side quite skillfully. We show that even fighters are ordinary people who can make fun of themselves, and we are striking a chord with the younger generation, who can appreciate serious things handled in a funny way on TikTok. With the video content, we want to take the viewer even closer and show what it looks like behind the curtain. And that's why it works," concludes Petr Horálek.
