TikTok has become a real phenomenon in recent months. It boasts over a billion users, including celebrities and serious brands. Even on other social media platforms, users often share various videos from TikTok. Many channels now offer similar features to TikTok, e.g. Instagram reels, Youtube shorts. What is the TikTok phenomenon? Why is it worth joining?
What is TikTok?
Founded in 2016, the Musical.ly application was bought in 2017 by the Chinese company ByteDance. It was already promoted under the name TikTok.
Users of this platform can share short videos with background music. The videos can be 15 seconds, 60 seconds, or 3 minutes long.
What will you find on TikTok?
- dance trends: viral dance routines repeated by users to the music
- lip-sync: user mimics the lyrics of a song or other sound
- stand-ups: short comedy appearances
- tutorials: all kinds of tutorials
- streams: live broadcasts by one user or several people
What reach does TikTok have?
According to the statistics set out on the Virtual Media portal, in 2021 TikTok had a billion users worldwide. That includes 100 million users in Europe alone.
Remember that TikTok was only created in 2017! This shows how incredibly fast the app is developing. In 2021, a five-fold increase in business was recordéd in Poland. Monthly, that amounts to approx. 16% increase. During a press conference, TikTok representatives presented the interesting results of research conducted by Kantar in Poland. They show that 63% of users browse the platform to improve their mood. 62% use it to discover something new [1].
According to the predictions of App Annie, the number of users for 2022 will amount to 1.5 billion. This is very possible because the company’s earlier forecasts have come true.
According to estimates, the TikTok platform was expected to exceed the barrier of 1 billion users in 2021. This happened in September 2021 [2].
source: (graph made on the basis of the graph App Annie)
TikTok – a chance to increase brand popularity
Accounts of well-known brands are appearing on TikTok more and more. With varying results, these compete for the attention of the target group using the channel.
The materials are different – advertising, showing the work “behind the scenes”, creating relationships with users. With active, regular operation (and a bit of luck, when our video gets to the main board several times), there is a chance to reach a wider audience and increase the brand’s popularity.
Research shows that 56% of TikTok users have more positive feelings for a brand after seeing its ad on TikTok, especially if the material is authentic, genuine, and honest [3]. Moreover, according to the gemiusAdReal [4] study from April 2021, TikTok has the greatest advertising potential among the 15-24 age group.
For all advertising creations implemented on the platform in April, it was in this age group that the advertising reach gained the highest level – 55%.
source: (graph made on the basis of the graph Gemius)
Interesting brand campaigns on TikTok
Social Press has prepared an interesting list of the best brand campaigns on TikTok. Among those mentioned were, among others, Samsung, Pandora, AliExpress [5].
Samsung carried out a campaign on the platform on Mother’s Day. The brand encouraged users to take a photo of their mother. Of course, everything #withGalaxy. Then, users were to publish the photos on their profiles in the application, under the hashtag #MakeMomEpic. The idea was met with a very positive response from users.
The Pandora jewelry brand focused on young people in the #PandoraME campaign. They also invited famous influencers to collaborate. The videos on the brand’s profile are distinguished by elegance and dynamics. At the same time, they present the assortment in an attractive way.
The popular AliExpress sales platform created a special game to coincide with their November sale. They invited users and influencers to join the event. The players’ job was to show their commitment to the game in a fun way. The campaign gained enormous publicity, and the number of views exceeded 4 billion.
The above examples show that there is a place for brands from every industry on TikTok.
TikTok – want to start? Follow these instructions
- Take care of the visual appearance of the brand profile – profile picture; bio; if you have a website, Instagram, and Facebook, it is worth linking them.
- Write down ideas and create a publication schedule – review and write down hashtags that may be related to the topic of your brand, note what music is trending (this increases your appearance on the mainboard, the so-called “dc”).
- Avoid making video themes that are difficult to read – TikTok is an entertainment app.
- CapCut, or help in assembling a movie – the TikTok application does not have many tools for creating materials, so it’s worth using other tools.
- Accessories such as a tripod and ring lamps can also be helpful.
- Use the appropriate hashtags such as #dc, #fyp, #foryourpage – they increase your chance of appearing on the main page of the application.
- Keep active on your profile and interact with users – publish regularly, reply to comments.
Summary
TikTok has enormous communication and marketing potential. It is worth taking an interest in this platform as soon as possible. That way, you can build your reach while there are still only a few brands using it. By taking the proposed steps, ensuring regularity, and using materials that engage recipients, you have a chance to achieve satisfactory results.
sources:
[1] www.wirtualnemedia.pl/artykul/tiktok-100-mln-uzytkownikow-w-europie
[3] Marketing Science EU Understanding Authenticity, Happiness and Joy research 2021 conducted by Flamingo Group
www.nowymarketing.pl/a/35671,podsumowanie-2021-roku-na-tiktoku-najpopularniejsze-marki
[5] www.socialpress.pl/2021/12/najlepsze-kampanie-marek-na-tiktoku-w-2021-roku