In just a few years, TikTok has taken the world by storm, becoming one of the most popular apps among social media users. There’s no denying the power of this platform, but what does it mean for marketers? Is TikTok marketing just a fleeting craze or something truly worth investing in? I will look at the features of this platform, the characteristics of its audience, as well as the marketing potential it has. Keep reading if you want to know more about TikTok marketing and how you can take advantage of this medium to reach your target audience.
How and when did TikTok appear?
The history of the platform is awe-inspiring. The software was developed in just 200 days and launched on the market in September 2016. Precisely one year was needed to achieve staggering success: in September 2017, users were already 100 million. At this point, the platform received its new name, TikTok, and entered the international market. In early 2019, the new social network first began offering features related to e-commerce. A year later, in mid-2020, there were already 800 million people using it.
How can this overwhelming success be explained? The evolution of content, through which people express themselves, is not a new trend. If in the beginning posts were mostly text, while photos and other visuals were somewhat of an afterthought (if at all present), gradually the focus shifted. Newer social networks, such as Instagram, started prioritizing images, which drove the entire industry to change its priorities, increasingly relegating text to a supporting role.
This development is certainly not surprising. A popular adage states “A picture is worth 1000 words.” Scientific research confirms this belief. It has been demonstrated that 90% of the information we are daily exposed to is visual. Because of this, humans have evolved to process this type of data much faster. This is why the brain can make sense of visual information as much as 60,000 times faster than text!
Gradually, video began to displace static images. Research suggests that image posts get 650% more engagement than text-only posts. Meanwhile, video posts on social networks get 1,200% more shares than text and photo posts combined!
But why is TikTok at the vanguard of this revolution instead of video platforms with a much longer history, such as YouTube?
Part of the answer is connected to its powerful video processing capabilities and the incredibly intuitive interface – key features of the TikTok app. They allow any user to express themselves through video as a medium and create fun, interesting, or informative videos that look good. And it doesn’t require any previous video editing experience – not even basic knowledge of the field.
The second key advantage is the unique combination of creativity, humor, and authenticity. This type of marketing resonates strongly with the teen and GenZ audiences. Because of this, TikTok has the potential to become a game-changer for companies looking to reach new audiences and engage their existing customers in novel ways.
Thus we can conclude that the success of TikTok is rooted in the following:
- the lack of “entry barriers”;
- the exceptional intuitiveness that allows for an easy learning curve;
- the great technical capabilities that it provides;
- and the entertainment and creativity that it encourages in users.
The social platform today
As of the writing of this article, TikTok boasts an impressive 1 billion monthly active users. For comparison: Facebook has 2.9 billion, YouTube – 2.2 billion, and Instagram – 1.4 billion. The platform is undeniably already a serious player in the market and has overtaken competitors such as Snapchat (500 million users) by a wide margin. Android app usage information suggests that the average time spent on TikTok globally is 95 minutes per day.
What kind of users prefer TikTok?
The demographic profile of TikTok users is extremely interesting. The younger generation dominates, with 58.4% of content creators between the ages of 18 and 24. If we look at the overall user base, this age group makes up 38.5%. An additional 32% are between 25 and 34 years old. This makes TikTok not only one of the newest but also one of the “youngest” social networks.
Everything related to this platform is unusual, including its worldwide distribution. While TikTok is available in a total of 154 countries, there are 5 where it is banned nationwide: India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and China. The latter might come as a surprise to many. The reason this software is banned in its country of origin is that China uses the original version called Douyin, which has slightly different features than the international version and is, of course, vetted by the government. Another curious fact is that the country where the network is used the most is Saudi Arabia: as many as 87.9% of its residents over 18 are active TikTok users.
Types of content for TikTok
Another huge part of TikTok’s success is the sheer volume and variety of the content. It provides something for every preference. Some of the most popular topics include motivation and self-help, food, education, fashion, culture, sports, and fitness. If we consider the content type, several major categories stand out: humor, educational videos, trends and challenges, collaborations with influencers, and local content.
Humor
This is the most salient feature of TikTok. The humor is idiosyncratic, often including heavy doses of parody and sarcasm. Entertaining content engages users and, when used by brands skillfully, has the potential to bridge the gap with audiences, tell a company’s story, and effectively communicate its culture.
Educational videos
Many believe that this social platform can only entertain. But this view hugely underestimates its potential. The truth is that TikTok is full of educational videos. Some of the best examples of this are the channels of medical doctors who use social media to educate their followers about important aspects of health care and prevention in their fields of knowledge. Some of the most popular include the gynecologist Dr. Jones (@mamadoctorjones), general practitioner Dr. Mike (@doctormike), and dermatologist Dr. Adel (@dermatology.doctor).
Trends and challenges
Trends and challenges have been used on social media before. One needs to look no further than the 2014 #icebucketchallenge – the campaign that brought the attention of the entire world to the disease ALS and raised 220 million dollars for research. However, the innovative short video platform takes challenges to an entirely new level. Practically every week there is a new TikTok trend on the web. The variety is impressive – dancing, singing, culinary arts, and more.
Collaborations with influencers
As influencer culture evolves, collaborations are becoming more and more popular. Sometimes they are between two online celebrities, and others – between a brand and a celebrity promoting its products. As with other social platforms, such marketing tactics aim to increase trust in a brand’s products, expand its customer base, and help build its reputation.
Local content
TikTok is a global platform. However, various local communities are thriving in it. Tests suggest that content including local elements and hashtags gets much more engagement. That’s why it is a good idea to include such posts as a part of any successful TikTok strategy.
TikTok accounts to keep an eye on
TikTok is a platform that promotes fun, originality, quality, and authenticity. These are also the common characteristics among the most successful accounts on this social network. Brands use the platform to educate, entertain, and inspire their users. The content they create drives audiences to engage and choose them among the vast (and fierce) competition. Here are some great examples of successful TikTok marketing strategies.
@washingtonpost
The hugely popular channel demonstrates that TikTok is suitable for a truly wide range of brands and businesses. The Washington Post is a world-renowned media outlet with a reputation as a reliable source of information. The brand uses the platform’s short video format to present political commentary and current events through TikTok’s signature humor.
@crocs
The brand’s recognizable (and controversial) design is often the butt of jokes. However, Crocs manages to turn this into an advantage. While most of the videos on its channel showcase products and announce new model launches, Crocs manages to use partnerships in a clever and very strategic way.
One such notable example is the #ThousandDollarCrocs, which challenges customers to decorate their Crocs in the most luxurious way possible. The campaign features several celebrities (including singer Post Malone) and has generated over 3 billion views.
@redbull
The energy drink maker has always strived to push the boundaries of original marketing and its TikTok channel is no exception. This is a very interesting example because Red Bull is one of the few brands that does not rely on humor to engage its audience. Instead, it turns to impressive, masterfully edited videos of stunts performed by a wide range of athletes.
What about TikTok advertising?
You may already be wondering whether advertising is possible on TikTok. The answer is yes. Advertising tools and opportunities appeared on the platform in 2019. Today they are available in a large number of countries.
To be effective, advertising on this network must have the “wow effect” and grab the attention of the viewer immediately. Another extremely important element of a successful TikTok ad campaign is to feature a great story. While storytelling has always been an element of marketing, with TikTok it becomes imperative. As I already noted, this social network is significantly different from its competitors – both from the point of view of its audience and from the point of view of the type of content. Therefore, if you plan to use it to advertise your products or services, I advise you to create a dedicated TikTok strategy and content adapted to its particularities.
In terms of interface, the platform is not significantly different from Meta products. Therefore, if you have experience with Facebook and Instagram advertising, you probably won’t have a problem here either. The platform can be connected to your online store, as well as track conversions using a pixel code. One of the interesting differences is that TikTok budgets are pre-paid on your account, unlike Meta ads where you can add a credit card number to be charged periodically. This approach has advantages as it allows full control over budgets and monthly spending.
The platform offers 6 different advertising formats. The first of them are in-feed ads, which you can create using TikTok’s Ad Manager. The second option is image ads. They appear in the TikTok News Feed-related apps: Babe, BuzzVideo, and TopBuzz. They can include an image, text, and an app or brand name.
Carousel ads are similar to the well-known Meta format. They are broadcast on TikTok’s news feed apps. They can include up to ten different images with unique captions for each. Video ads appear in the For You feed and News Feed apps. Their length is between five seconds and 1 minute. Spark ads are similar to Facebook’s “Boost”. They allow you to increase the impressions of organic content on your account or that of another user. TikTok revealed that Spark ads are 142% more engaging than regular in-feed ads.
The last type of ad is called “Pangle” and is a broadcast of the ads through the TikTok Audience Network. Data suggests that this type of ad is currently not very effective.
No matter whether advertising is available in the markets where your company operates, you can use TikTok as a powerful marketing tool. And while ordinary videos, explaining why your products are better than your competitors will not be noticed, intelligent campaigns that make your audience laugh could get you thousands of likes and shares in a matter of hours. The ultimate goal of any brand is to create viral content that consumers are happy to copy and share. More and more digital agencies are offering TikTok marketing services that you can take advantage of.
Is it worth it?
I hope that I was able to convince you of the power of TikTok as a social media that can be used for much more than entertainment. In my opinion, despite the abundance of fads that appear periodically on the platform, TikTok itself is a tool that will continue to evolve and grow for a long time to come. That is why every brand with a vision for the future should make an effort to develop its channel and grow a loyal base of followers.
