TikTok is a short-form video creating and sharing app, popular across the world. Since its inception, TikTok has become the highest grossing non-game app, the most downloaded app and the most engaging app around. Whilst it is arguably one of the most fascinating concepts in marketing at the moment, whether it will stay this popular is difficult to predict.
The popularity, user-friendliness and potential for success has made TikTok a valid marketing tool for businesses. Interestingly only 18% of marketers use TikTok, which when compared to 90% who use Facebook for promoting their business, is shockingly low. Although this seems like a negative thing, it means the space isn’t cluttered with adverts like Facebook is. Brands don’t get lost in the noise. From big brands to small businesses, there is a space for everyone on TikTok at the moment, including you.
In this article we’re going to go into detail about how it works and how to use it for business. Included are some statistics and links to example TikToks to help with your understanding.
Yes, but what actually is TikTok?
TikTok is a social media app that hosts user submitted, short (aka short-form) videos. In some ways it is similar to other social media apps like Instagram as it has in-app messaging. In other ways, it’s like YouTube, as it is a video-only sharing platform. At the same time, it’s totally different to all the apps before it, which is one of the reasons it’s so popular.
TikTok was released in 2017 as an international version of a Chinese app called Douyin, a short-form video sharing app. The two versions are similar, but their content is kept separate. In 2018, TikTok’s parent company ByteDance purchased the start-up behind the app Musical.ly, which was mostly centred around short and funny lip-sync videos. Musical.ly was already popular, with 200 million users that were mostly teens and pre-teens. When it was consolidated into TikTok, the new version thrived.
In Q4 of 2022, TikTok was the most downloaded app in the world; the only app in the top five most downloaded that isn’t owned by Meta.
How does it work?
Users create a video by filming and editing in the app, including adding sounds from a library. Users have access to a host of features including filters, recording themselves alongside videos, and going live. You can also upload a video you have previously made. Videos should be portrait and can be no longer than 10 minutes.
Watching videos is done simply by scrolling up to watch the next one. You can like and comment on videos and send messages, gifts or pay for products all from the same app.
As a user, you don’t need to have followers in order to view content, you will be shown content and then depending on how you react to it, the algorithm will adjust what it shows you. A combination of your activity will determine what you see. This might be because you follow a certain creator, something is popular in your geographical location, or you have engaged with similar content before.
What makes TikTok so popular?
To put it simply, TikTok is popular because it’s entertaining, easy to use, authentic and caters to everyone.
Short-form videos were becoming more popular as Generation Z came of phone-using age and the sheer amount of content being created makes it hard to get bored.
The niche communities (more about them later) bring real people together based on mutual hobbies, beliefs or experiences. There is pretty much something for everyone on TikTok, which also contributes to its popularity amongst other generations.
Younger Millennials and Generation Z kickstarted a preference for authenticity in the marketing messages that come from their brands. More than any other demographic, Generation Z want brands they can trust. This need for trust was one of the driving factors for influencer marketing as “real people” became spokespeople for brands based on unbiased experience. Although influencer marketing has warped, the ideals and values behind it haven’t.
What are the benefits of marketing on TikTok?
There are countless case studies explaining the benefits of marketing on TikTok. The image below gives some quantitative evidence TikTok share on the subject of how the UK audience see brands on TikTok.
On top of these statistics, there are three main benefits that come with advertising on TikTok.
Because of the predominately younger audience that are not on other social media platforms, TikTok reaches an audience that can’t be reached any other way.
TikTok marketing can be budget friendly which is why it’s great for small businesses. Even if you’re a one-person company, you can produce acceptable TikTok videos that are liked. As long as you have a good quality camera on your phone, that’s the only equipment you need. Unless you are paying for ads, the platform is free to upload content to.
Even if you don’t get a huge number of followers and your videos only reach a small number of people, if they are your target market, that will enhance your brand identity and affinity with those people. This also works if they aren’t your target market but your followers recommend you to people they know who are.
What’s the best marketing strategy for TikTok?
The advice in this blog is really aimed at small and medium-sized businesses because your strategy will be different to a large corporation with a huge marketing budget. There will even be differences between the TikTok strategies from companies with 5 or 50 employees and if you’re a solo businessperson, the strategy will also be different.
If you don’t know TikTok well, or at all, start by getting a creator account (different to a business account) and start watching. Get to know it from your personal perspective, as a user. Follow brands you already know and watch what other brands in your industry do. Once you understand TikTok as a user, we believe that makes it easier to understand it as a business.
There is a slight disadvantage for B2B marketing as TikTok is mostly geared towards B2C. The TikTok shop has enabled e-commerce to thrive on the platform. There is even a hashtag #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt. Small and large businesses have made money through selling items on TikTok. There isn’t an outlet for buying services though, which is why service-based companies, from restaurants to accountants, have had to think outside the box in order to grow their presence.
Find a community that suits your brand and industry. It could be as far-reaching as health and beauty or as niche as miniature ceramic frogs. Don’t be put off trying because you think your business might be too tedious; financial advice, estate agencies and legal services all have their place on TikTok. Being vulnerable is too scary for some companies which is why such a small number of companies are on TikTok.
Be true to your brand and showcase your authenticity, remember, a TikTok can be really simple but if it resonates with the audience as authentic and real, it can go viral.
Collaborate with influencers and users when you can, to reach more people and broaden your content.
Collaborating for business marketing on TikTok
Influencers have a bad reputation but on TikTok they can be very helpful to collaborate with.
Influencers are there to drive conversations and engage with people about your brand – they also must appear authentic and give the impression they actually like the product or service. They could be attending events or just reposting your content. Yes, some of them apparently make $70,000 per post but they aren’t all like that.
For smaller businesses, you don’t need to have millions of pounds to partner with influencers – you can choose micro influencers. These are smaller creators who have influence over a not insignificant number of followers but are more attainable for smaller brands to work with.
Influencers work because they rate and review your product or experience and comment. This is watched by their followers and interested ones will also start following the business. Someone with a decent amount of followers on TikTok who is respected by the type of audience you want for your business can be an influencer.
Asking a user to produce their own testimonial or open some of your products can go a long way. It’s acceptable to send a little PR package of your goodies or inviting someone to come and take part in your business, providing they will put their positive thoughts on TikTok to reach more people.
Sponsored Advertising on TikTok
Advertising with sponsored ads on TikTok, is similar to using Instagram and Facebook advertising systems. The way they work is similar is regarding set-up, and how the ads work. But the content needs to be more like a TikTok and not like a traditional advert.
The same as normal videos, ads also need to be authentic and entertaining. The best way to think about this is by making a TikTok first and then turning that into an ad, rather than the other way round.
Getting started on TikTok for Business
- Choose a goal that you can measure as success,
- Find a niche or community that suits your brand,
- Get colleagues on board with being in the videos,
- Make sure you update any social media, employee or privacy policies that you need to,
- Set up a business account and make sure you complete the registration,
- Get used to making videos and saving them to drafts,
- Start making videos at least twice a week consistently,
- Don’t add URLs into your captions; like on Instagram, no one can click on them,
- Watch lots of videos for inspiration and to get a better understanding of the platform.
What does success for businesses on TikTok look like?
Success stories on TikTok are full of the same traits. The businesses and creators authentically engage, stay in their niche, keep on top of trends, make original content, and share regularly. This is how you get your business noticed on TikTok.
Let’s look at some examples, starting with a couple of big companies that will have several people working on their TikToks.
The Washington Post have 1.6 million followers and are know for their serious news delivery, but they use TikTok to reach a younger audience who usually ignore the news. The Washington post team make TikToks about what’s in the news in a way that breaks down those complex subjects in an unbiased way.
Grammarly have 108.4K followers and their videos are all about the use of correct grammar. Some of the videos are targeted towards specific groups like university students and jobseekers. Some of their videos are behind the scenes and others are funny trends they’ve twisted to be slightly more specific towards their brand.
Here are a couple examples of good TikTokers that have a much smaller business.
Tanya Baker is a SE London and Kent Estate Agent with 49.8K followers. That seems like a much lower number, but she has used TikTok to grow her own business mostly alone and the TikTok videos are key to her strategy. By being upfront and honest about the homes she’s selling, making good quality videos, and talking to the viewers as if she is taking them on the house tour, her success has grown.
Accountant Explains has 11.3k followers and appears to be a solo Accountant using TikTok to create short, but education videos on accounting topics.
TikTok is a fascinating platform that is constantly evolving and defining popular culture for more than just the younger generations. Using it for business marketing has been proven, for many, to be a successful venture and it can also be fun to work with.
Using TikTok for business means reimagining what your customers want to see about your brand. It’s not traditional marketing and that can make it quite intimidating to someone who isn’t used to the platform. With the background information you now have from this blog, plus our free webinar on 29th June (Getting your business noticed on TikTok), you have all you need to get started except for a willing colleague to be your TikTok star!
