What is TikTok, exactly
With over two billion downloads and more than one billion monthly active users, TikTok has climbed to the very top of the world’s largest social media platforms in just a few years.
The TikTok app allows users to create and share short videos, which they can edit in various ways or enhance with different filters and music. They are often recorded on a mobile phone, with entertaining topics at the forefront that help viewers relax and laugh. The platform was launched under the name Douyin in China in 2016, and just a year later, due to its popularity, it expanded to other countries under the name TikTok.
TikTok’s organic reach is incomparable to other social media platforms. Add to that the fact that 50% of the top brands are not present on TikTok, which means it is an excellent opportunity for your business and brand, as the competition is not fierce.
Even if you are skeptical about the age of TikTok users – the app’s user base consists primarily of younger age groups, with approximately 50% of TikTok users being under 34 years old – it would be unwise to assume that none of your target audience uses TikTok.
A significant statistic is that by March 2020, the average user in the US spent approximately 14.3 hours per month on the app. We are confident that this number has increased since then.
TikTok’s algorithm encourages creativity and unconventional thinking, as you never know which of your videos could go viral. This idea, created by TikTok, is something that loyal users welcome, as they report a more favorable attitude toward advertising on TikTok, seeing it as more authentic, entertaining, and trustworthy compared to other social networks.
Boost your creativity
The great thing about TikTok is that it is not just a social media platform where you can share content with your followers, but it actually enables users to create their own content with the app, which is an investment for your brand. When you create a video that sparks conversation, educates, or evokes emotions in users, you will likely be pleasantly surprised and rewarded with user-generated content and engagement.
Exposure
Many businesses have achieved success on TikTok not only because of the creativity and authenticity the app offers, but also because of its incredible algorithm and the exposure it provides. TikTok will give your business access to an audience that other platforms do not have, and if you invest time in creating content for your audience, it will undoubtedly pay off for your business.
For business owners, exposure is of paramount importance – the greater the exposure, the more opportunities you will have to retain existing customers, attract new ones, and strengthen overall brand awareness.
TikTok is one of the best ways to do this in 2022, as by using a video-focused approach, you can tell your story in a different and original way.
For businesses looking to advertise their brands, they have created the “TikTok For Business” platform, which they describe as follows:
“TikTok For Business is the place where you can unleash the creative sides of your brand. A world without judgment to immerse yourself in, a world where every voice reaches an audience. No matter how big or small your business is, no matter what you make or sell, we believe your brand deserves to be discovered here.”
How to present your brand on TikTok
TikTok represents a new, interactive way to reach a highly responsive audience. Publishing and engaging with audiences differs greatly from the traditional approaches that businesses and advertising agencies are used to. Videos can go viral without large financial investments. What matters more than the production quality of the content is keeping up with trends that change on a weekly basis. Content must be created on the fly, encourage interaction through captions that prompt users to respond in the comments, and offer added value to the viewer. TikTok For Business encourages advertisers not to create traditional ads, but rather to produce engaging content, set trends, and build connections with users.
TikTok For Business enables companies to advertise in a unique way – with customized advertising formats:
- TopView (an ad that appears when the TikTok app is first launched)
Put your brand in the spotlight. TopView ads capture users’ attention by appearing at the top when TikTok is first opened. In this format, the video can be up to 60 seconds long and offers an exceptional viewing experience without any competing content. TopView is perfectly suited for your brand awareness goals, as it ensures an exceptionally wide reach and a high number of impressions.
- Brand Takeovers (3- to 5-second ads with an image or video)
These are full-screen, high-impact ads that are the first thing a user sees when they open TikTok. This format, created for mass awareness, will also ensure an exceptionally high reach. The ads are short and fast, either a 3-second image or a 3- to 5-second video. This ad space comes at a premium price and is suitable for large brands seeking maximum exposure.
- In-Feed Videos (up to 60 seconds with sound)
The standard ad format allows you to create a video ad that plays automatically. Ads are up to 60 seconds long and play with sound on. They are available for purchase directly through TikTok’s Ad Manager. You can use the ads for various campaign objectives. Each ad has a CTA (call to action) button that can be tapped and also used to drive traffic outside of TikTok, to your website.
- Hashtag Challenges (you encourage users to create content tied to a specific hashtag)
Creating a hashtag challenge is simple – combine an appealing hashtag with a video showcasing a specific action, dance, or other feat, and challenge others to imitate you.
- Branded Effects
Effects allow a brand or product to add a video in 2D, 3D, or AR format in the foreground or background of a video.
Tips for getting started with posting content on TikTok
- Define your goals
The first tip for getting started with TikTok for Business is to know what you want your brand to gain from this platform. You don’t need to find a concrete answer to this right away. However, it’s good to have an idea of which direction you’re leaning.
Here are some goal ideas that will help you lay the foundation for your business TikTok account:
- increasing your brand awareness;
- educating your target audience;
- targeting future employees (finding new talent);
- targeting potential customers (finding new buyers for your products or services);
- increasing sales;
- increasing the number of clicks to your website;
- expanding the reach of your true audience.
2. Share valuable information with your followers and potential customers
Once you’ve set your goals, it’s important to create quality content that serves the purpose of those goals. Think of your goal as a flower you’re growing – every TikTok post you share waters that flower. The higher the quality of the content, the more water your flower receives.
It’s therefore important that when creating your content, you keep your followers in mind and show them what you know they’re looking for through your videos. If the content you post isn’t valuable to your target audience, the algorithm will likely cause your posts to drop in visibility, and they will either become less visible or be shown to someone who isn’t interested in your content at all.
3. Be consistent
Consistency is key to success on TikTok. Post your videos regularly whenever possible. When you first start posting, you may feel that your content isn’t getting the attention it deserves, which can discourage you from continuing to post – you might even start thinking about giving up entirely. Take my advice and persevere. Pay attention to your content, improve it, and develop your TikTok marketing strategy accordingly. With consistent posting, repeated trial and error that you will inevitably make, you will soon be rewarded.
Top 10 TikTok statistics you need to pay attention to in 2022:
- The most successful brands on TikTok post an average of 3 times per week.
- 80% of top videos include music.
- Brands in technology, food, and gaming have the highest average number of views per video.
- 90% of videos feature promotional product placement, while 30% of videos used humor.
- Approximately 25% of videos featured celebrities or influencers.
- Videos promoting brands attracted nearly 20 million views.
- Creative videos with animations and graphic overlay elements typically attract more than 11 million views per post.
- Video descriptions averaged 87 characters in length (TikTok sets a limit of 150 characters).
- Video descriptions contained an average of 3 hashtags.
- 87% of videos contained at least one hashtag.
TikTok marketing strategy
The number of followers a brand has is of course strongly correlated with the average views generated by posts. The larger your audience, the more likely you are to receive more likes and comments on your videos. In short, going viral is easier with a larger following, and building a large and dedicated follower base should be one of the main priorities of your TikTok profile.
What type of content works best on TikTok
Many brands have the misconception that TikTok is merely an app for frivolous teenage content. In reality, there are thousands of communities on TikTok, and users post everything from entertaining content to storytelling, sharing guides for various business segments, and much more.
You might expect that the vast majority of posts from companies advertising on TikTok would showcase one or more of their products. In fact, more than 90% of videos feature some form of brand placement.
Celebrity and influencer endorsements are also relatively popular among brands advertising on TikTok, with approximately a quarter of videos either featuring an endorsement or offering a long-term partnership with companies.
Dance videos are among the top 5 most popular types of content, accounting for 15% of videos on TikTok.
Only 4% of videos include a call to action, which in my opinion represents a significant missed opportunity. Asking your followers to follow your profile or even follow you on other social networks can work wonders, and this should always be considered when planning the videos you publish.
What feelings and moods top brands on TikTok try to evoke in their audiences through their videos
If you want your audience to associate positive emotions with following your brand, encourage them to take action in that direction: to purchase your product, participate in an event you are organizing, or follow you on other social networks where you are present. Offer them added value in which they will see a benefit for following you.
Music also plays an important role in the videos you post on TikTok. Music helps create the mood you want to achieve. What music you choose depends, of course, on the industry you operate in and the products or services you sell. Red Bull likely wants to evoke a sense of adventure and excitement, while the airline Turkish Airlines probably wants you to associate their brand with a feeling of calm and safety.
Given that laughter is the best medicine, don’t forget about entertaining videos in which you can include funny moments from your business or perhaps poke fun at yourself. Funny videos dominate TikTok and generate the most views. They are also used for almost all brands and are always a good idea when you can’t decide what to post in your next video.
Which video design styles are the most successful
An important element to consider when planning your posts is how they are visually designed. TikTok of course offers a wide range of filters, graphic overlays, and many other types of special effects to enhance your video. There are actually too many to examine all of them, so below are some basic design styles used by TikTok content creators that work well in practice.
It’s no surprise that most videos include on-screen text. Not only is it a great way to add side notes and comments to a video, but it’s also an excellent mechanism to add a call to action (CTA) or other minor details to your post, such as promotional codes or an offer, without having to explicitly say everything out loud.
Animations are used in approximately 16% of videos, while emojis are surprisingly not very popular.
Graphic overlay elements are the least popular style, used in only 4% of videos, yet they attracted the highest number of views compared to other styles.
Animated videos also have a high number of views, further proving that TikTok rewards creativity and free expression.
So why choose TikTok to promote your business
YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram were also once said to be unsuitable for the “serious scene.” The only question for your business is whether you are ready to be among the first to enter this social network or not. New stars are being made on TikTok. If you have a young target audience, you need to be on TikTok. The sooner you realize this as a company, the less you will pay for each loyal follower. Young people will grow up and sooner or later become independent consumers. And when young users become loyal to a brand, that loyalty often lasts for most of their lives.
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