TikTok creator networks reveal who influences whom. Mapping follower-following connections helps brands find collaboration clusters, bridge creators connecting niches, and avoid sponsoring creators with redundant audiences. This tutorial uses Scavio's TikTok follower and following endpoints at $0.005/call.
Prerequisites
- Python 3.8+
- requests and networkx installed
- A Scavio API key from scavio.dev
- Seed TikTok creators
Walkthrough
Step 1: Fetch profile and following data
Pull who each creator follows.
Python
import os, requests
API_KEY = os.environ['SCAVIO_API_KEY']
H = {'Authorization': f'Bearer {API_KEY}', 'Content-Type': 'application/json'}
def get_profile(username):
user = requests.post('https://api.scavio.dev/api/v1/tiktok/profile',
headers=H, json={'username': username}).json()['data']['user']
return {'username': user['unique_id'], 'sec_uid': user['sec_uid'],
'followers': user['follower_count']}
def get_following(sec_uid, limit=30):
following = []
params = {'sec_user_id': sec_uid, 'count': 20}
while len(following) < limit:
resp = requests.post('https://api.scavio.dev/api/v1/tiktok/user/followings',
headers=H, json=params).json()['data']
following.extend([u['unique_id'] for u in resp.get('users', [])])
if not resp.get('has_more'): break
params['max_cursor'] = resp.get('max_cursor', 0)
return following[:limit]Step 2: Build the network graph
Create edges between creators.
Python
import networkx as nx
def build_network(seeds):
G = nx.DiGraph()
for username in seeds:
profile = get_profile(username)
G.add_node(username, followers=profile['followers'])
following = get_following(profile['sec_uid'])
for f in following: G.add_edge(username, f)
print(f' @{username}: {len(following)} following')
mutual = [(u, v) for u, v in G.edges() if G.has_edge(v, u)]
print(f'Network: {G.number_of_nodes()} nodes, {len(mutual)} mutual follows')
return G
G = build_network(['creator1', 'creator2', 'creator3'])Step 3: Find bridge creators
Identify connectors with high betweenness centrality.
Python
def find_bridges(G):
undirected = G.to_undirected()
centrality = nx.betweenness_centrality(undirected)
top = sorted(centrality.items(), key=lambda x: x[1], reverse=True)[:5]
print('Bridge creators:')
for user, score in top:
print(f' @{user}: centrality={score:.3f}, followers={G.nodes[user].get("followers", "?")}')
find_bridges(G)Step 4: Estimate cost
Calculate API cost for network mapping.
Python
def estimate_cost(seed_count, pages_per=2):
calls = seed_count + seed_count * pages_per # profile + following pages
cost = calls * 0.005
print(f'{seed_count} seeds: {calls} calls, ${cost:.2f}')
estimate_cost(5)
estimate_cost(20)Python Example
Python
import os, requests
API_KEY = os.environ['SCAVIO_API_KEY']
H = {'Authorization': f'Bearer {API_KEY}', 'Content-Type': 'application/json'}
def get_following(username):
user = requests.post('https://api.scavio.dev/api/v1/tiktok/profile',
headers=H, json={'username': username}).json()['data']['user']
resp = requests.post('https://api.scavio.dev/api/v1/tiktok/user/followings',
headers=H, json={'sec_user_id': user['sec_uid'], 'count': 20}).json()
return [u['unique_id'] for u in resp['data'].get('users', [])]
for c in ['creator1']: print(f'@{c} follows: {", ".join(get_following(c)[:5])}')JavaScript Example
JavaScript
const API_KEY = process.env.SCAVIO_API_KEY;
const H = { Authorization: `Bearer ${API_KEY}`, 'Content-Type': 'application/json' };
async function getFollowing(username) {
const p = await fetch('https://api.scavio.dev/api/v1/tiktok/profile', {
method: 'POST', headers: H, body: JSON.stringify({ username })
}).then(r => r.json());
const r = await fetch('https://api.scavio.dev/api/v1/tiktok/user/followings', {
method: 'POST', headers: H,
body: JSON.stringify({ sec_user_id: p.data.user.sec_uid, count: 20 })
}).then(r => r.json());
return (r.data.users || []).map(u => u.unique_id);
}
getFollowing('creator1').then(f => console.log(f.slice(0, 5))).catch(console.error);Expected Output
JSON
@creator1: 28 following
@creator2: 35 following
@creator3: 22 following
Network: 45 nodes, 12 mutual follows
Bridge creators:
@creator2: centrality=0.340, followers=85000