When a social media platform enters the mainstream, it presents marketers with a whole new market to tap into.
New social media networks provide businesses with an opportunity to innovate, to be on the cutting edge. Finding the right time and way to begin marketing on an emerging platform can be difficult, but it is something every business needs to do. TikTok, the short-form video content app, has taken off in recent years and provides marketers with a unique opportunity to target new consumers.
TikTok entered the mainstream within the past several years, and has risen from a niche app for very young audiences, to a global phenomenon. If your business has yet to join the growing number of marketers targeting consumers on this short-form video content app, fear not. There is no better time to begin marketing on TikTok than now, with a rapidly growing base of consistent users and established methods of reaching them.
Having a diverse marketing strategy is a surefire way to reach as many prospective customers as possible. Facebook Ads are a must-use for brands in today’s digital environment, but adding to those efforts makes a lot of sense. TikTok provides the opportunity to diversify your marketing strategy.
Whether you are a real estate agent or a health brand, there are a vast array of advertising possibilities on this globally popular application. Let’s take a look at why you should market with TikTok and how you can.
Why You Should Develop a TikTok Marketing Strategy
TikTok is an app that was first launched in 2016 and was popular amongst school-aged children. It rapidly gained popularity across Asia, Europe, and North America, and in 2020, it surpassed 2 billion downloads. Still, the demographic that uses TikTok mostly skews on the younger side. While it has over 80 million active monthly users in the United States, 60% are between the ages of 16 and 24, and 26% are between 25 and 44. TikTok allows brands to target a young and trendy demographic quickly aging into significant spenders.
If you look at the cohort that is making the biggest impact in the economy right now, you might be surprised. Millennials (age 25-40) comfortably made up the largest percentage of homebuyers in America in 2018, with 37% of home purchases. That number has likely only increased as they’ve continued to age into higher-powered work positions. Gen Z is similarly aging into a vital group of consumers that need to be targeted.
If you want to appeal to this group of consumers, traditional advertising mediums may not be the ideal format. Rather than using billboards, newspaper, or radio ads, social media advertising appeals to younger audiences natively, on the platforms they are already using. And there is evidence that suggests video marketing is the ideal way to reach them.
Video marketing works, and that is the medium TikTok advertising operates in. Video ads were the #1-way consumers discovered a brand they later purchased from, and 93% of brands got a new customer because of a video on social media. Now that we’ve seen the value of marketing on TikTok let’s dive into how you can market on TikTok.
How to Market on TikTok
There are several different ways to market on TikTok. The app has a built-in advertising infrastructure that brands can take advantage of. The three primary methods for using TikTok for marketing are TikTok ads, influencer marketing, and content creation. Let’s find out what each of these methods can do for you.
TikTok Ads
TikTok ads allow businesses to create targeted advertisements that are trackable and cost-controlled. TikTok runs this advertising hub through their own platform, TikTok For Business. TikTok offers five different kinds of ads businesses can purchase: in-feed ads, branded hashtags, top view ads, branded effects, and brand takeovers. Companies must create video or photo-based content with a call-to-action and push it out almost instantly through TikTok’s platform.
Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing uses trusted and recognized figures on the platform to advertise products or services. Brands can connect with influencers on TikTok and exchange products or money for a post from the influencer. Brands can either give the influencer latitude to create the advertising post on their own or have a post pre-made for them. The price of influencer marketing varies depending on their follower count and personal demands, but this marketing method is an effective one. 89% say their ROI from influencer marketing is comparable to or better than other marketing channels.
To influencer market with TikTok, you can either reach out to one of the many influencer marketing agencies that now operate through the platform or handle the process in-house.
Content Creation
This is the most challenging way of marketing on TikTok, but it can pay off. It requires an understanding of the trends on the app and an ability to create appealing advertisements. Many businesses create their own content and post it on TikTok in the hopes of attracting new customers by making punchy and engaging videos with varying results. Some major corporations such as Red Bull and Starbucks have follower counts in the millions, and some comparatively smaller yet still well-known brands like Flex Seal and Gymshark have carved out a considerable following. The key is staying on top of what is trendy, like the popular “sounds” currently circulating, and making content that appears native but still showcases the product or service.
TikTok is a social media platform that is a viable format for businesses to focus marketing efforts on. With a vast user-base of young people and many different ways to reach desired audiences, every brand should be looking toward expanding their presence on this rising platform.
