TikTok … if you haven’t heard of it by now, you have likely been living under a rock. The social media video app has well and truly taken the world by storm.
US users’ average amount of time spent on social media climbed from 54 minutes to 65 minutes in 2020, a startling increase that has remained consistent through 2022. The one app propelling this upwards usage most was TikTok. In the United States alone, TikTok’s annual growth rate hit 85.5 percent in 2020, and now, in 2022, it has 1 billion active users who watch a total of 167 million videos per minute. It took Twitter six years to reach this level of success.
If that isn’t proof enough that your B2C company should start sharing their snackable video content on TikTok, then let me take you through a few more reasons that are sure to swing your opinion.
But first, let’s take a look at the very basics…
What actually is TikTok?
In comparison to other social media giants, TikTok is pretty new to the scene. It was launched in 2016 off the back of the failed app Musical.ly. The platform focuses on short-form video sharing, but also has the facilities for live streaming and photographic ‘stories’. The majority of videos shared on TikTok are music-focused, often featuring teens lipsynching to the new trending TikTok tune, but there are plenty more showcasing comedic sketches, educational insights, and even DIY hacks.
On the surface, TikTok may not seem like the best place to advertise your B2C products and services, but with a download rate surpassing Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and even Youtube, it is clear that TikTok, whilst intimidating, is not a marketing opportunity to miss.
Who uses TikTok?
Take a guess! Thinking of Gen Z? you would be mostly right.
Tiktok has been extremely popular among Gen Z users. In June 2020, as much as 64% of active users on the app were between the ages of 10 and 29. In 2022, whilst Gen Z is still the most populous user base, the over-30s could be declared the secret prowlers of the app, a powerful force making up a considerable 37% share of users.
Gen Z tends to love the laid-back humour on the app, which in the past has directly encouraged 72% of them to feel capable of getting through catastrophes like the coronavirus pandemic. Older users are more likely to post and watch content on parenting, money-saving, cooking, and product reviews. All audiences can be effectively targetted by TikTok video marketing, as long as their in-app behaviors are considered.
So, whether your brand is hoping to target younger or older consumers with your snackable video marketing, TikTok is the place to be. An astonishing 97% of Gen Z, for instance, use social medias like TikTok as their main source of shopping inspiration.
Why is TikTok so successful?
TikTok’s growing success as a marketing platform cannot be understated. Whilst it is not quite as loved as Instagram at 70%, a promising 24% of marketers listed TikTok as the most effective platform for reaching their business goals in 2021.
What about TikTok makes it so successful as a platform for B2C marketing?
Snackable video
The attention span of the average person has dropped an alarming 25% in the past 20 years. At just 8 seconds, businesses may as well practice their marketing strategies on goldfish! No, seriously, it’s a bit worrying!
It’s getting harder and harder to promote audience engagement in videos, especially using mid to long-form content. This is why the snackable videos seen on TikTok are perfect. The bitesize, attention-grabbing media teases audiences into engaging with larger pieces of content developed for your brand.
Snackable videos, despite their short nature, can quickly take consumers’ minds off their day-to-day lives whilst encouraging them to begin further engagement with your brand. Giving audiences small hits of dopamine promotes instant gratification, meaning they are more likely to return to your brands content again and again.
Don’t worry if you are keen to display slightly longer form content on TikTok. In February, the app announced that users would now be able to post videos up to 10 minutes long. A TikTok spokesperson said that “it would unleash even more creative possibilities for our creators around the world” and it did just that. TikTok is now an even more appropriate platform to post product demos, educational lessons, and customer testimonials.
Audience engagement and interaction
TikTok has a very active and loyal audience base. This is because the platform constantly serves users with content they are interested in and will likely enjoy. If users are not enjoying some of the content they are being served, then they are presented with the option to not see it, or anything like it again.
For this reason, TikTok has achieved a very high engagement rate (up to 14.7% in the UK). Bear in mind that a high engagement rate on Twitter is anything higher than 0.5%. I think that puts into perspective just how powerful a tool TikTok can be. Brands can further take advantage of TikTok’s irresistible engagement by cooperating with the TikTok community through UGC.
Localisation
Localisation is the process of ensuring content is appropriate for the culture and language of the targetted region. This involves looking into the trends and habits of specific targeted audiences.
TikTok has perfected localisation by catering to users’ behaviours on a global level. For instance, the app will promote Bollywood star content to India and Hollywood star content to America and the UK.
TikTok’s winning ability to localise content doesn’t stop there; it can be more specific. If someone is constantly looking, for instance, at places to eat in Liverpool, their For You Page (FYP) will slowly introduce them to more videos relating to Liverpool. The FYP is a curated feed of videos by creators you may not follow, but TikTok’s algorithm thinks you will like based on your previous interactions on the app. It appears as soon as you open the app and is where the most TikTok content is watched.
How to use TikTok as a base for your video marketing?
User- generated content
User-generated content, known as UGC, is any form of content that has been posted by users to online platforms. Think of it like the modern form of word-of-mouth marketing, where users are encouraged to share their personal brand experiences with their followers. This could, for example, be in the form of unboxing, testimonials, or review videos.
User-generated videos are one of the most effective forms of video marketing available, TikTok makes them so easy, and so entertaining! Up to 90% of people trust what a customer says about a business more than what a business says about itself.
Take a scroll down your FYP, I am almost certain you will come across some form of UGC, whether it be sponsored posts or just independent users keen to talk about a branded product or service.
The video below is one of the most impressive forms of UGC we have ever seen. Since non-sponsored user Sandoval posted the TikTok about her experience using Peter Thomas Roth’s Eye Tightene, it has amassed more than 24 million views. Her viral post resulted in the $98 product selling out almost everywhere.
@trinidad1967
Celebrity endorsements
Celebrity and influencer endorsements and collaborations, especially presented through video drive brand recognition and promote credibility. Around 15% of advertisements that run in America feature a celebrity.
Celebrities, by their very nature, demand attention – utilising celebrities in video marketing content can grab the attention of not only your target audience but potentially even the wider media. This can enrich your marketing strategy, shining a spotlight on your business, product, or service.
When considering celebrity endorsements, it is important to consider the following factors:
Familiarity – Will your audience know them?
Relevance – Are they relevant to your audience and product
Esteem- Will they bring positivity to your business?
Differentiation – Will people think of your business when you see them?
TikTok is the perfect place to promote your celebrity endorsements. This is predominantly because it tends to be more cost-effective than on sites such as Instagram. Social Chain estimates that a TikTok influencer with around two million followers could make £800 for one post, whereas marketers could expect to pay up to £10,000 on Instagram. TikTok for this reason provides a much higher ROI when utilising celebrity and influencer endorsements.
@prettylittlething Holiday wardrobe from PLT ???? with @Britney De Villiers #plthaul #plt
In-feed ads
These are TikTok’s standard advert formats. In-feed ads are embedded videos that auto-play within a users ‘For-You’ feed. They can be anywhere from 15 seconds to a minute long, making in-feed ads the perfect place to showcase your snackable content.
In-feed advert spots can be purchased directly through TikToks Ad Manager, and are perfect for a whole manner of campaign advertisements. They feature clickable CTA links and encourage users to drive traffic towards external sites.
Best of all, you can get crafty with in-feed ads. If correctly optimised using vertical video, low production value, and influencer talent, it is possible to blend your advert in with the organic content on your audience’s FYP. This promotes engagement and increases the authenticity of your brand.
Brand takeovers
Brand takeovers on TikTok are full-screen, high-impact, high-production-value advertisements. They are the first thing users see when they open the app and will be the only thing that users see as a brand takeover for the whole day.
Even shorter than normal TikTok content, brand takeover videos can be as short as 3 seconds. This maximum exposure method comes with an incredibly high price-tag, at a minimum, £30,000 per day. Whilst brand takeovers do come with a guarantee of 6 million impressions, it is only viable for the most successful brands to take this advertisement route. Think Levis, Apple and Guess.
Branded challenges
One of the best ways to take advantage of TikTok’s unique UGC format is to embrace the branded challenge. Creating challenges relating to your product or service encourages not only the co-creation of content but also promotes an increased level of brand awareness across the app. Audience members will begin to see your brand as friendly, approachable, and fun, likely leading to them falling further into your sales funnel.
Branded effects
Branded effects are perfect for when your brand wants to embrace its playful side at the same time as gaining huge publicity across the worldwide TikTok platform.
Effects can include filters, CGI-like filters, and even sharable stickers that users can utilise in their own video content. For a really rounded campaign, why not enrich your branded challenges by encouraging the use of branded filters or stickers alongside them?
Free content marketing
Marketing your video content through TikTok’s paid advertising route can be hugely inaccessible to smaller businesses that rely largely on in-house creation and word-of-mouth marketing. Never fear! TikTok’s user-centered platform and ingenuous FYP algorithm allow marketing content creators the opportunity to go viral, or at the least, establish an online presence.
Luxe Collective is just one of the many small businesses that have found nationwide success through free TikTok marketing routes. Their video shown below managed to gather over 1.2 million views, showcasing the power of TikTok as a ‘free’ digital marketing tool.
@luxecollective Reply to @xo_mckenzie_xo3 is this a little clearer for you? ????
♬ In The End – Mellen Gi Remix – Tommee Profitt & Fleurie & Mellen Gi
What brands have seen success through TikTok video marketing?
Thousands of marketers have used TikTok to promote their brands, products, or services since it provides a wonderful platform for showcasing emerging marketing trends and reaching a larger, often younger audience. TikTok audiences demand content that is authentic, creative, and collaborative. Nike, Skittles, Calvin Klein, and Fifa have all had success through TikTok to engage with their consumers. The site has also aided the success of much smaller firms marketing activities; the hashtag ‘#smallbusiness’ has received over 34 billion views.
What about B2B marketing? Does that work on TikTok? Whilst a relatively new concept, B2B Tiktok marketing really does have the ability to do well. For more information on B2B TikTok marketing, and to find out if it is right for your company, read this article.
But first, let’s take a look at some successful B2C examples:
ASOS:
ASOS marketing videos on TikTok are indistinguishable from the rest of a FYP, many will watch their videos without even realising that it is marketing content. Their videos are creative and authentic, perfectly showcasing Gen Z TikTok marketing techniques.
https://www.tiktok.com/@asos/video/7093185061142531334?_t=8SZjR7zLnVu&_r=1
Ryanair:
(Yes this is the actual real Ryanair TikTok account) Their hilarious content frequently receives millions of views. Most watchers are in disbelief that the official Ryanair account would post such self-mocking content, but hey, it works!
@ryanair Bestie how else will I make bank i’m sorry???? #ryanair #airline #traveleurope #cabincrew
Sparta Candle Co.:
A small family business, Sparta Candle Co, has managed to gain a mass following on TikTok due to its sweet and calming advertising method. After several of their TikToks went viral their store completely sold out for several days until more soap was made. This is a testament to the power of TikTok marketing for small independent businesses.
@spartacandleco Cutting a bar of Little River soap ???? #soap #littleriver #asmr #relax #womenownedbusiness #smallbusiness #handmade #soapbusiness #candlebusiness
Guess:
Influencer video marketing at its finest!
https://www.tiktok.com/@guess/video/7098761316956998955?_t=8SZkN86KE5N&_r=1
Bentley:
Who would have thought British luxury carmaker, Bentley would make such amazing TikTok ads? See, high production value videos can work on TikTok!
@bentleymotors Part-electric. All-exhilarating. The #FlyingSpur #Hybrid | @Chris Locke
Conclusion
If you would like to create your own TikTok content but are unsure where to start, give Kartoffel Films a call. We can help you to create the perfect TikTok video marketing campaign to slot perfectly into your wider digital marketing strategy.
