Digital Marketing

TikTok Marketing: How To Market Your Business With TikTok

By Just Digital Team
TikTok Marketing

Are you thinking of using TikTok marketing to advertise and promote your business or organization? You should be…

Tiktok is at an all time-high with over 100 million monthly active users within the US alone! But even with millions of users, the app is still very new to the marketing and advertising world.

TikTok has practically emerged out of nowhere to become one of the world’s most famous applications. It started out as a moderately popular video-sharing application in China called Douyin, and known as TikTok to the rest of us. However, In 2018, it absorbed Musical.ly, a more well-known service, and migrated all of its non-Chinese subscribers to a new TikTok network. It’s no wonder that marketers have begun to notice the platform’s potential.

First, we’ll go into how and why you can use TikTok as a marketing platform to help you develop and grow your business.

TikTok Marketing: What’s TikTok?

TikTok Logo

In 2014, TikTok debuted as Musical.ly, a website for users to develop and post short lip-sync videos. Bytedance, a Chinese software firm, introduced a Chinese version of Musical.ly named Douyin in 2016, before bringing it to the rest of the world as TikTok in 2017.

Bytedance then purchased and incorporated Musical.ly, after seeing the platform’s potential (especially among young digital natives), which became the version of TikTok we know today. In the Chinese industry, Bytedance also runs Douyin separately.

Today, TikTok bills itself as the “go-to app for short-form mobile videos.”

Users can make and upload a video that is up to 15 seconds long, but four different videos can be strung together to make a 60-second piece, which includes audio, filters, and editing effects, which shows the user lip-syncing or dancing to a song.

TikTok Marketing Influecer Bella Poarch

Its rapid video style isn’t just for dance challenges and lip-syncing, though those are two of its most well-known uses. TikTok founders are also using the site to speak about controversial issues, advocate for change, and educate their audiences on topics ranging from healthcare to accounting.

Most of the content on the web is satirical, similar to Vine (may it rest in peace), Twitter’s late-night video network. Skits, lip-syncing, cringe-worthy videos, and culinary how-tos are among the most common genres. To make their content more discoverable to non-followers, content developers use hashtags to determine the common group they belong to.

One trend that has changed as the app has grown in popularity is that the diversity of the videos. They aren’t all music anymore. Up-and-coming comedians, people displaying their talents, pranksters, musicians, fashionistas, aspiring beauticians, and art enthusiasts all take advantage of the opportunity to post videos showing their creativity. People are also now posting videos of themselves using their favorite brands on social media.

TikTok Marketing Influencer Charli D'Amelio

Of course, not everyone on TikTok has the confidence, bandwidth, or expertise to make videos. Many TikTokers, like many YouTube users, are only searching for fun videos to watch.

In fact, TikTokers don’t even necessarily have to follow anyone on TikTok. They can easily open the app, navigate the Discover page, and begin viewing videos that seem to be fascinating or amusing. They can also use hashtags to find videos on subjects they’re interested in.

Most TikTok users, on the other hand, can develop preferences for those types of videos over time. They are most likely to subscribe to platforms that post “their” types of videos on a daily basis. Every TikToker has a profile page that showcases the videos they’ve posted.

TikTok Marketing: The Demographic

TikTok Marketing the Demographic

People between the ages of 16 and 24 are the most active users on TikTok, accounting for 41% of the overall user base. Unfortunately, the social network hasn’t provided any more information than this, but it’s fair to say that people in their twenties and thirties make up a sizable portion of the user base.

Despite the fact that TikTok appeals mainly to younger people, it seems to be maintaining its following as they get older.

Additionally, aside from age, the other figures show that popularity is spread reasonably equally around the board.

As long as you’re in the right age bracket, you should be able to attract buyers fairly easily.

As a consequence, we only consider using TikTok for ads if you have a young target audience. Although older people will undoubtedly begin to use the service in the near future, the marketing resources will be best used elsewhere if it’s not your target demographic.

Is this to say that if you sell to older millennials and beyond, all hope is lost? Certainly not.

Reposting TikTok videos on other social media sites including Instagram and Twitter is a regular activity. If your other accounts have a wide following, you can use TikTok’s editing software to create video content for them.

TikTok has been a crucial tool for global brands to connect with young people, promote user-generated content, and collaborate with relevant influencers. Nike, Skittles, Fenty Beauty, Pepsi, Calvin Klein, Sony, and FIFA, to name a few, have all run paid and influencer campaigns on TikTok.

TikTok Marketing: Your Business Needs it!

TikTok Marketing Benefits

Most business owners have yet to work out how to use TikTok as a marketing tool. Perhaps this is because they feel the platform’s user base is predominantly composed of “young” people.

TikTok, on the other hand, is now welcoming a diverse group of users. In fact, nearly 38% of TikTok users in the United States are over 30.

Since you can meet a large number of customers at a comparatively low expense, the low business competition offers a huge opportunity for us all.

Other benefits of TikTok Marketing include:

Targeting a Large Audience

TikTok has grown in popularity in a brief amount of time, rapidly becoming one of the most successful social media apps. It has 1.1 billion active users. This is a massive marketplace that companies will tap into to sell their goods and services.

Excellent User Engagement

It’s simple to get higher engagement on your videos with lesser work thanks to TikTok’s distinctive discovery algorithms. Even if your account is new and you have no followers, your TikTok videos have the potential to go viral. 90% of TikTok users use the app several times a day, which improves user interaction even more. You must take advantage of this opportunity by using TikTok to promote your business.

Advantages of Localization

Another benefit of TikTok is Localization! With TikTok, you have the ability to locate multiple creators from specific places that make community videos. Although TikTok is a global app that runs in over 150 countries, businesses with multiple locations can conveniently create regional marketing campaigns in various languages to advertise their products.

Local Creatives

Many influential creators on TikTok come from small cities and have over 10,000 followers; we can refer to them as TikTok micro-influencers. These creators are well-known in their communities and by their fans. Small companies that wish to run marketing campaigns for particular places can identify and work with local creators in this way.

Use as a distribution channel for your own products

Businesses should make their own branded marketing channel on TikTok, just as they can on YouTube. You may get it verified by TikTok and use it to make useful branded videos, just make sure the content is of high quality. You can use TikTok brand relationships to advertise your business by posting short marketing videos.

TikTok Ads: Get a Head Start

Businesses can now advertise on TikTok Ads in the same manner as they can on other social media apps. Since TikTok Ads are recent, there are few advertisers using them right now, and you have less competition. It allows you to increase the visibility and engagement of your ads.

This is how beneficial TikTok can be for your company’s marketing efforts. The number of users has gradually grown, and several companies have begun to use TikTok for marketing purposes. It’s a perfect time to start using TikTok marketing for your business and reap the rewards right away.

TikTok Marketing: How Does TikTok Work?

TikTok Marketing Buisness Page Ads

Let’s take a brief look at how TikTok works before we get into how you can use it.

The platform is built on 15-second videos that can be combined for a total of 60 seconds, and users engage with videos by scrolling through their feeds.

One of the coolest features of TikTok is that users can apply different editing effects and background music to their videos. As a result, several dance videos have gone viral on the platform, as people can film themselves dancing to a certain song.

To engage with other users and their videos, TikTokers can like, comment, and share videos through direct messages and with other apps.

On TikTok, the degree of engagement is incredibly high. According to a report by Influencer Marketing Hub, TikTok outperforms all other apps in terms of account engagement.

TikTok is also great at keeping people on the service, with users spending an average of 45 minutes a day on it.

People will follow your TikTok profile and set up alerts to be notified anytime you upload a video if you have one.

Another thing to note is the use of hashtags on TikTok. Hashtags allow users to find and discover videos. Hashtags can be attached to the caption of any video posted to TikTok, and this is how users can browse via videos.

When a user logs into the program, the For You tab displays a personally curated home feed. This is the perfect place to go if you’re searching for new posts or people to watch.

TikTok Algorithm

Based on signals picked up by its algorithm, TikTok places material here that it finds interesting for each individual person. The algorithm takes into account things like:

  • Your personal preferences; country, language, and device
  • Video Info: hashtags, captions, songs, and genre
  • User engagement; include the kinds of videos you watch, the users you follow, and the people you interact with.

This social media platform chooses content that it finds both fascinating and highly entertaining for each individual user and positions it inside the For You tab, where it has a strong chance of going viral.

TikTok Marketing: What Kind Of Content To Post?

TikTok Discover PageUnlike other social media platforms, TikTok has a thriving trend community.

So, while original, innovative video ideas may be effective, the best-performing TikToks are often those that are simple to recreate by the masses or are a spin-off of a popular trend.

The most famous TikTok dance trends have become part of popular culture, and for musicians, securing a viral trend on the site can be enough to send their track downloads skyrocketing.

However, TikTok patterns aren’t solely for dance routines. Animal videos, lip syncs, fashion, beauty, and makeup transformations, workout routines, tips, funny moments, hacks, pranks, and challenges are all viral phenomena.

On TikTok, the most simple and enjoyable videos are often the most popular. Simple but hugely popular trends include cats leaping over toilet paper walls, impersonations, and people tossing assorted items into a cup.

If you’re not sure where to begin on TikTok, take a look at the Discovery Page for ideas. Here you’ll find a list of all the trending hashtags in your region, as well as a breakdown of the most famous videos by genre.

Adding your own special and unique twist on a current theme works well. Videos with popular sounds and hashtags are more likely to be found in the TikTok app and have a higher risk of trending.

On TikTok, you’ll be able to find a creative opportunity no matter what your brand’s USP is. And don’t get frustrated if your first TikTok video doesn’t go viral right away. Even the most popular TikTok accounts have highs and lows, so keep trying until you find what works best for your brand and audience.

TikTok Marketing: How to create an account on TikTok

TikTok Signup pageLast summer, TikTok launched a TikTok for Business hub. They also launched pro accounts for businesses and creators in October. You can broaden your profile with a business account and gain access to real-time analytics and consumer insights.

To create a business profile, follow these steps:

  1. Get the TikTok app and open it.
  2. Use Google, Twitter, or Facebook to log in. Choose login credentials that you feel comfortable exchanging if many individuals would need access to the account.
  3. Build your profile. To add a profile picture and bio, tap ‘Me’ in the lower right corner, then press Edit Profile. You can also provide links to your Instagram and YouTube pages.
  4. Select Manage Account after tapping the three dots in the upper right corner.
  5. Tap on Business or Creator after switching to a pro account.
  6. Tap Next after selecting the category that best suits the business.
  7. You can also link your website and an email address to your profile.

Set up your TikTok Ad account!

If you want to run advertisements on TikTok, you’ll need to build a TikTok Ads Manager account. Go to tiktok.com/business, click Get started, and fill out the form.

TikTok ads are likely to become more commonly available in the near future, particularly now that they’ve partnered with Shopify to produce shoppable ads.

TikTok Marketing Strategy Plan

You may use TikTok to market your business in three ways.

  • Make your own channel and use it to post related videos.
  • Collaborate with influencers to reach a larger audience.
  • Pay to advertise on TikTok! TikTok advertising is only in its early beginnings – there isn’t yet competition for it as there is for YouTube. However, there’s still time for TikTok to grow in popularity and recognition in the near future.

Brands use a mix of their own platforms and influencers to reach a larger audience with their content. Additionally, you could implement any of the suggestions below on your own sites. Or, you could also recommend that your influencers build and post content like this.

TikTok is definitely not a social media platform you can easily create a marketing plan for.

With TikTok being so fresh, most marketers are still trying to grasp how to make marketing work on the platform. However, there are a few things you can do to start your TikTok marketing campaign. Here’s how to get started with a TikTok marketing campaign and adapt it as you go.

Learn how to use TikTok

Approaching TikTok marketing in the same manner you treat Instagram or Facebook marketing will be a big mistake. TikTok is a completely new social media platform with its own set of patterns, features, and behaviors.

Allow yourself to take some time exploring the different TikTok videos on the app.
First examine the app’s various features and keep track of the trending filters, effects, and songs. Keep an eye out for Hashtag Challenges, which consist of songs, dance steps, or a mission that participants must recreate. TikTok’s duets feature is also worth noting.

Don’t forget to also learn about the TikTok algorithm. Understanding how TikTok ranks and presents videos in the For You tab will definitely help you create better content, hashtags, and engagement strategies. Courses in the TikTok Business Learning Center will also help you brush up on all aspects of TikTok.

Influencer marketing on TikTok is another crucial component of the app’s ecosystem. Charli D’Amelio, Addison Rae, and Zach King are some of TikTok’s biggest stars. The best thing you can do is to look for rising stars or influencers in your industry.

Know your audience

Start by asking yourself this question, who do I want to reach on TikTok? Refer to the TikTok demographics section above and learn who among the demographic could possibly be interested in your brand before you start making content.

While teens are the primary users of TikTok, dismissing it as a teen app would be a mistake. In the United States, the 20-29-year-old group trails closely behind teens, and in China, “glam-mas” are demonstrating how style improves with age.

Investigate your audience on other channels to see if there is any crossover on TikTok. However, don’t rule out the possibility of reaching out to new or unexpected markets. Your target audience may not be on TikTok, but there may be subgroups on the app with similar or slightly different interests.

Once you’ve established a target audience, figure out what sorts of material they like and usually engage with. After that, you can start coming up with content ideas for your business.

Identify the competition

Is TikTok saturated by your competition? You may be losing out on the game if they are. If they aren’t, TikTok might be a way to get a leg up on the competition.

Select at least three or five similar brands or companies and see what they’re up to on the app, regardless of whether or not the competitors are on it. What you want from this is to benefit from their successes and failures.

Don’t rule out including TikTok stars and influencers in this activity because TikTok is a creator-led network. Find people who are experts in your field, whether it’s cosmetics, healthcare, education.

Focus on creating content that align with your business objectives

You may want to make TikTok videos just for fun, and you can, but it’s better to strategically create content that can contribute to achieving your business goals.

It’s important to provide a reason behind your efforts, whether you’re trying to target a new demographic, boost your brand reputation, increase product value, or reinforce consumer relationships through engagement. Set targets that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely using the S.M.A.R.T. framework.

TikTok, like other social media sites, offers analytics for pro accounts. Click the three dots in the upper right corner of your profile page. After that, go to Business and then Analytics. Look at the dashboard to see what metrics you can use to chart your success toward your objectives.

TikTok Ads

TikTok Marketing Buisness Page AdsTikTok is one of the most promising digital advertising sites because it has the reach of other platforms like Instagram but is also relatively untapped by advertisers. This means that generating views and clicks can be more cost-effective.

Marketers will use the app’s homepage to run in-feed advertisements, funded hashtag competitions, and banner ads. Advertisers will target people who have seen similar content to theirs in addition to age, location, and demographics. TikTok for Business allows advertisers to manage self-serve promotional campaigns.

TikTok Content Marketing Tips

A TikTok video’s main success is determined by four factors:

An attention-getting video:

The most entertaining is one that features an individual on your feed and material that engages your audience, such as responses, partnerships, duets, and competitions, performs better on TikTok.

The music:

Using a recent, trending, or famous song on TikTok will help promote your video further in the algorithm and help trend.

Captions:

Use a concise caption that contains easily digestible and complementary information. Users aren’t interested in reading a bunch of text.

Hashtags:

Hashtags should be related to the content of your video and should help to categorize it, making it easy to find. Another thing you can do is to start a hashtag challenge. A perfect way for marketers to launch a cultural movement or meme is to create a challenge for users to join. Millions of fans are drawn to the trending challenges and love creating content for it. E.l.f cosmetics’ #eyeslipsface marketing campaign, which received over 4 billion views and 5 million video entries and was named Adweek’s most popular TikTok campaign.

Create a branded channel:

Make a branded page and play with different content styles. Content can be produced easily even on a shoestring budget. The easiest thing to do is to keep up with trending hashtags and memes, and then add them to your brand. Create and post authentic material using the app’s built-in filters, effects, soundbites, and editing software. While TikTok has a broad organic scope, successful interaction can only be accomplished if the content actually resonates with your audience and follows the platform’s guidelines. It’s not going to work to bring the company’s brand advertising here.

Partner with TikTok Influencers:

Taking advantage of influencer communities is a good way to use TikTok. Influencers who live and breathe TikTok have developed broad, engaged followings by posting high-quality, meaningful content. They understand TikTok and how to take advantage of its resources, functionality, and patterns. Brands should engage these influencers and work on strategies that leverage their talents and expertise. TikTok has its own Creator Marketplace, which was created to bring brands and creators together.

Don’t be afraid to experiment:

On TikTok, there is no such thing as a recipe for going viral. Allow yourself to be adventurous, have fun, and go with the flow in your TikTok marketing strategy. If an experiment fails, learn from it and move on to the next one. Making the most of it if your company, like Home Depot, Ocean Spray, or others, finds itself trending by mistake. Be a part of the prank. On TikTok, don’t presume to be taken seriously.

It’s assumed that videos with a high completion rate do best in the TikTok algorithm, so keeping the video under 15 seconds will help you get more views so viewers are more likely to see it all the way through or even several times.

TikTok Marketing: Brands on TikTok

Many advertisers are starting to tap into TikTok’s potential by launching influencer marketing strategies. There are many examples of fashion and cosmetics brands enlisting the assistance of influencers to market and review products, along with participating in brand-specific challenges.

Chipotle

Chipotle is still relatively new to TikTok, but it has performed admirably so far. “Less Tok, More Guac” is one of the greatest TikTok bios we’ve ever seen. They’re consistent, which is essential on TikTok. They ran a #boorito promotion during Halloween that earned over 4 billion views on the website. Here’s a peek at their profile.

Chipotle TikTok
E.L.F Cosmetics

Elf Cosmetics has done an Excellent job with TikTok so far. Take note, brands. Elf also had a song written especially for this TikTok campaign. The song is claimed to be the first original song for a TikTok ad, and is based on Kash Doll’s “Ice Me Out.” It is titled “Eyes Lips Face” after the brand’s acronym. The company then collaborated with a few influencers to get things started, and the results have been incredible. So many videos used the #eyeslipsface hashtag. The latest count is over 3.8 BILLION at the time of this posting!

ELF Cosmetics TikTok
NBA

One of TikTok’s early brand users was the NBA. They reliably provide high-quality, timely content on the web. The NBA already has 5.5 million followers on the app, which is by far the most of any brand we’ve seen. They leave it lighthearted, which helps a lot. This is a brilliant idea. Are you hunting for NBA highlights? Visit Instagram. Are you looking for NBA news? Visit Twitter. If you’re looking for NBA humor, memes, or inspiration, you’ve come to the right place. Visit TikTok.

NBA TikTok Marketing
Gymshark

So far, Gymshark is another brand that’s done an excellent job on TikTok. They have 1.2 million followers and have been regularly uploading high-quality videos for quite some time. They have a decent mix of fitness videos, workout memes, and motivation on their page.

Gymshark TikTok
Crocs

Crocs has had a lot of success on TikTok. They do it all, from challenges to viral videos to advertisements. They also recently collaborated with Post Malone on the #ThousandDollarCrocs challenge, which has 2.8 billion views.

Crocs TikTok Marketing

Conclusion

There you have it! Today we looked at how to use TikTok as a marketing tool.

TikTok differs from the other social media sites available, even if you’re used to them, it may take some time to figure out how TikTok operates.

TikTok, on the other hand, can be a very useful marketing technique once you find it out. At a low cost, you might be able to reach a significant number of people. This could certainly give you an edge over your competitors, particularly if they haven’t spent time learning how TikTok works.

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