TikTok Advertising: Is It Right for Your Business?

TikTok is a video platform for creating and sharing creative content. From interactive filters to duet and reaction options, this inclusive software allows for incredible content diversity. But is it a fit for your company? Is it a platform where your audience is active? What can it really do for your marketing goals? Those are more complicated questions. So let’s dive in.

@currinator

#louisvuitton #foryoupag #comedy #flychallenge #fly #foryou #fy

♬ Work Iggy Azalea – lab_shenanigans

Who is on TikTok?

With 1.5 billion users, TikTok is a complex platform, it’s mostly made up of Gen X and Gen Z, with 60% of its US users between 16 and 24 years old. The top 50 profiles have more followers than most countries have people. That being said, 56% of all TikTok users are male and 90% of its users open the app at least once a day. 

So what does all that really mean? In short, a lot of people are on TikTok and they’re on it a lot. The vast majority of users are in their late teens to mid-20s and have a considerable amount of buying power whether as a suggestion to a parent or as the buyer of their own, new household.

This means that investments by luxury product categories such as diamonds, real estate, and car dealerships most likely won’t be delivering many returns. However, industries that appeal to this demographic and allow for quick decisions such as other mobile apps, restaurants, and consumer goods can gain a lot of traction on the platform.

@hudaifaayesh

Pt. 2 making #guacamole at #chipotle #foryou #food #restaurant

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TikTok Advertising Options

There are not yet ways to create paid ads on TikTok, however, there are many approaches to both native and sponsored advertising that can help establish your brand while gaining organic views and consumer loyalty. 

Depending on your brand positioning, dueting videos is a great way to get your foot in the door and your videos on the For You Page, which is the suggested video list that is shown to all users upon opening the app. This would allow you to respond to popular creators and even add something special to their videos.

An example of this would be in the beauty industry. Attempting some makeup tutorials as a duet with your own products can build buzz while adding to the creative content of the channel. This type of popularity can also be achieved by participating in trending video formats as they pop-up.

@irisbeilin

? #lip #makeup #LastChristmasMovie

♬ Cuaderno (feat. Sech, Lenny Tavárez, Feid & Rafa Pabön) – Dalex, Nicky Jam & Justin Quiles

As a product provider, there are a lot of options for TikTok Advertising. From reaction videos to creating how-tos, and sponsored content, taking advantage of influencer marketing by sending your products to popular channels is always an option. Remember that reaching out to creators that are known for something that engages your target audience, whether or not it has a direct link to your industry, can be very effective.

For example, an art supply company could easily reach out to a TikTok artist and get them to review products in exchange for a fee and free products. But as a clothing company, your team could simply get in touch with a content creator that carries many followers in your target demographic and ask them to wear it or mention them. The user’s content doesn’t have to relate overtly to your product offering.

Unfortunately, there is no way for marketers to get conclusive user demographics without getting the analytics data of a creator with a TikTok Pro Account. If your business is looking to reach a specific audience, the only way to get that data is from the creators themselves.

How much will it cost you?

Each TikTok advertising strategy has a different buy-in. If you’re looking to spend very little, reaching out to micro-influencers offering free products can be a cost-effective approach. However, this approach comes with risk, the less you spend, the more you must rely on the quality of your product and confidence in its reception. If that influencer doesn’t like your product, they may not say kind things. 

When choosing to make your own content, it has to be considered that a lot of time and energy will go into creating it. While employing a few people to write, create, and post videos may not sound like much, it’s at least a few hours every day from a dedicated team. Even more than that, companies with this strategy have to be ready to build a following slowly. From algorithm considerations to the simple fact that there are a lot of videos being posted all day every day, it can take a while to get noticed on a large scale. The Washington Post has had success in becoming a well-known content creator, but it took time and its translation to sales is hard to track.

@washingtonpost

Hope this helps #newspaper #whatilooklike

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In Conclusion

TikTok advertising is complex and still developing. Closely resembling the early monetization of YouTube, it’s a hit and miss process. Paid advertisements will always get seen but may not produce many conversions. Returns will depend on the time and resources you’re willing to put into it and direct conversion is still difficult to prove and measure. However, the platform has a large audience of young adults with enough buying power to make a huge difference for your company. Native and influencer advertising is currently the most successful route but does require quite a bit of time, research, and effort. TikTok advertising isn’t for every company, but it could be incredibly impactful for yours.

Are you interested in developing a social media marketing & advertising strategy that’s right for your business goals? Get in touch and let us help you on this journey.

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