Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you may have heard about TikTok by now. TikTok is a popular video-sharing app that offers a whole new level of connection with your target audience. Today everyone from influencers to celebrities and household brands is flocking TikTok.
Entrepreneur noted that TikTok is the social media platform that offers the most long-term potential. There are many active users that create and consume content in a way that feels more personal.
So, is TikTok for brands?
The short answer is YES. However, it’s definitely not the right fit for EVERY business but NOT for these reasons:
“My brand already has too many social media platforms.”
Some brands may think they already have enough social media accounts to manage, and they don’t need another one to add to their list. While that may be a valid initial reaction, investing in TikTok this 2022 might be good for brands for the long term. Even if the brand doesn’t immediately create tons of content at the beginning of the year, it would still be a good idea to at least create a TikTok account to reserve the business’ username on the platform and start creating content for the next quarter instead.
“The app is just for GenZ.”
Brands may initially think that TikTok is just for Gen Z and that their target audience is not there. But brands may be pleasantly surprised. Like other social media platforms in their early days, TikTok started as a platform for the youth, with very little value for brands. It’s expected that just like other social platforms, TikTok is poised to grow more this year, with an audience spanning multiple generations for the years to come.
Here are definite signs why your brand should give TikTok a try:
· Your target audience ranges from ages 16 to 30.
· You’re looking to expand brand awareness to a younger audience.
· Your products and services can be showcased easily in a video.
· Your brand is comfortable sharing light and unfiltered brand content.
· Your brand is receptive to trying something new.
· Your brand doesn’t mind spending time experimenting with content on TikTok.
Why is 2022 the right time to use TikTok for brands?
If not now, then when? The first thing that brands need to keep in mind is that TikTok is more than just a fad at this point. It’s not going away anytime soon.
The platform’s meteoric success has led other social media platforms to feel threatened about its ongoing popularity. One of these is Instagram which recently changed its strategy to take a more video-centric approach with the announcement of Reels. The fact that other social media platforms are already admitting that they’re trying to keep up with TikTok should be a testament in itself. Here are other reasons why your brand should be on TikTok by now:
REASON 1: It inspires organic growth.
TikTok’s innovative algorithm allows a brand’s account to reach people based on how much they like the content. The more TikTok users watch a brand’s content, the more likely they will see its content reappear on their feed.
Additionally, video completion is huge on TikTok. Whenever users watch a TikTok video in full, the algorithm will likely suggest the video to other users’ feeds. When more TikTok users finish the brand’s videos, that video will appear on more feeds.
REASON 2: It’s a great platform to build communities.
Social media users nowadays consume content through videos, and community building is the beating heart of the TikTok platform. As such, brands should look at TikTok as an opportunity to be part of a community. Sharing innovative ideas and expert opinions will invoke the interests of like-minded individuals within the TikTok community.
REASON 3: TikTok ads don’t look like ads.
Gen Z doesn’t like hard-sell advertising. That’s the reason why 51% of the younger generation use ad-blockers. It goes without saying that traditional marketing will not work well with the TikTok audience. Brands need to find ways to create less invasive videos and engaging content that will grab the attention of their target audience.
REASON 4: It offers top-tier user-generated content.
The Gen Z and Millennials on TikTok value authenticity more than anything else. They have grown tired of the usual marketing gimmicks. TikTok’s most significant advantage is its user-generated content. TikTok drives video content organically as part of its algorithm design. As a result, it encourages user-generated content through its hashtag challenge concepts whenever possible.
REASON 5: It has a huge growing international audience.
The TikTok platform has daily active users in over 150 countries. Moreover, viral videos on the platform can reach all over the world. With over 2 billion downloads and 800 million active users worldwide, this is an excellent opportunity for brands that are trying to reach the international market – it’s an effective platform to connect with a new audience in other countries.
TikTok Content to Promote the Brand
· Unfiltered videos created by the team.
The top content shared by brands is their own raw and unfiltered video content created by the team. Brands will often make videos with their phones on natural lighting. TikTok users want to watch genuine interactions that they can relate to. Consider creating a few behind-the-scenes videos made by employees of the brand or even some quick product tutorials and expert product tips and hacks for more educational content that add value to users.
· User-generated content
As brands start to share their own videos and gain followers, it’s very likely that some TikTok viewers will interact with the brand. Brands can encourage their audience to recreate their videos, use their products, record reaction videos, or create “duets” with the brand’s videos. These are all excellent opportunities for user-generated content to promote engagement on the platform.
· Influencer-generated content
Influencer marketing has been gaining traction over the past few years, and it’s been thriving on TikTok as well. However, brands also need to be strategic about the influencer they choose to collaborate with. The most effective influencers are those who are active in the brand’s industry and who are trusted to produce engaging content for their audience.
· Make TikTok videos, not ads.
Brands need to remember this mantra from TikTok themselves: “Don’t make ads. Make TikToks.” It’s basically a content directive for brands to be more creative and authentic with their videos by making content that will add value and speak to the needs of their audience. This is why hyper-edited and curated content are not so well received on the platform. The TikTok audience values authenticity more, and brands need to integrate this into their video ads by showcasing their products the TikTok way: genuine and creative.
How Shakr Can Help Brands Succeed on TikTok this 2022
Shakr enables brands to create dynamic video ads campaigns with product catalogs for social media platforms like TikTok. With the help of Shakr’s video creation tool, brands can create hundreds of videos at scale, each unique to their individual product catalog.
In other words, brands are empowered to make hundreds and even thousands of video ads at scale, all of which can be hyper-personalized and localized with their target demographics. Shakr provides scalable video ads for brands with best-in-class tools that will help them succeed on TikTok:
· Creating videos at scale
Winning brands create dozens, hundreds, or thousands of videos based on their campaign goals.
· Adopting specialized video creation tools
To succeed, winning brands need simple and easy-to-learn technologies that can be deployed at scale.
· Producing videos at speed
Traditional video production methods take so much time. Brands need to get their video assets within minutes at scale, not days or weeks,
· Utilizing placement liquidity
With more product placements and video formats for various platforms, brands have the luxury to easily create customizable videos for their feed, stories, and other placements on social media.
· Scaling the best-in-class video creative
Scaling and automating videos at scale wouldn’t help if the quality is not up to standards. With Shakr, brands can produce high-quality videos at scale for their products.
· Doubling down on personalization for 2022
TikTok viewers are more inclined to watch videos that are tailored for them rather than generic ads. With Shakr, brands can create top-quality and personalized videos at scale for their target audience.
This 2022, Shakr will help your brand start creating winning video ad campaigns on TikTok!
We’re here to help you create successful ad campaigns with winning videos on the hottest video-sharing app today. Shakr will help you create engaging video content that will help increase your brand’s visibility on TikTok.
Want to learn more? Schedule a discovery call with us now!
References:
Schwartz, M. (2022). This Is Why Your Brand Should Be Using TikTok Right Now. Retrieved 9 February 2022, from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/377052
Simpson, J. (2022). Council Post: Why Your Business Should Be On TikTok (And Four Types Of Content To Promote Your Brand). Retrieved 9 February 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2020/07/23/why-your-business-should-be-on-tiktok-and-four-types-of-content-to-promote-your-brand/?sh=6f252c7172b9
Why You Should Be Using TikTok for Business in 2022. (2022). Retrieved 9 February 2022, from https://eternitymarketing.com/blog/why-you-should-be-using-tiktok-for-business-in-2022
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