TikTok for Digital Marketing: What Is It?

TikTok continues to be on the rise as one of the most utilized social media platforms in the market, reaching relatively 700 million users worldwide. There has been a social climb and success of promoting products and services through TikTok. Thus, making it a key tool for business owners and marketers. 

What is TikTok? 

TikTok is a social networking platform for sharing user-generated content. Its users can create and upload videos of lip-synching, singing, dancing, or merely speaking. The creation of these short videos can be up to 15 or 60 seconds long. There is also a live streaming option, similar to Instagram, allowing users to extend their video length and grow their audience further. 

Since the beginning of COVID, TikTok has grown rampantly as marketers begin to look for new ways to connect with their target audience. The platform is also able to lend a hand in showcasing brands through everyday lives. 

I’m a Business Owner, How Will TikTok Help Me? 

Though many believe that TikTok caters only to the younger demographic, it can reach far beyond that. It is estimated that TikTok users spend an average of 52 minutes on the app per day. With these engaging and fast paced videos, it allows its users to stay engaged for long periods of time. 

With TikTok you have the ability to:
Create a channel for your business or brand and upload videos that are relevant to the business
Capture a broader and wider audience with influencer marketing. Influencers on TikTok, otherwise known as “TikTok Celebrities”, businesses are now partnering up with these influencers to increase their reach
Advertising is another route where users can see ads when scrolling through their feeds 

TikTok for business owners and marketers offers low business competition as it presents an enormous opportunity due to the ability to reach a high number of people at a relatively low cost. 

If you’re unsure how to showcase your business think about ways to make your audience feel included and a part of your brand. 

Here are some tips:

• Corporations can display meetings or training session snippets 
• If you’re a retail store or boutique business, consider try-on sessions, before and afters, specific product or service showcases
• Clothing brands can take their audience through product reveals, showcases, the assembly of the product and how they’re made
• Real Estate agents can widely display their listings and capture a larger audience
• If you’re a well known business, expanding your brand through TikTok can also increase reach and implement further marketing efforts

There are many ways to engage an audience and many of TikTok’s users specifically look for their preferred brands on different platforms. 54% of consumers want their favourite brands to create more visual types of content. 

How Do I Leverage TikTok Marketing For My Business? 

Looking for “best practices” in TikTok marketing differs based on the product or service you’re offering, but basic steps can be implemented to ensure that you’re capturing the right target audience and creating the right content for your business. So where do you start?

• Analyze the target audience your business attracts – in doing this, you want to know what they’re consuming, who they’re following, and how to best capture their attention
• Identify how you want to present your brand and be creative with your marketing campaign – this is what will set you apart from your competition
• Find influencers who have followers that falls into your target audience – these influencers can be used to promote your brand through partnerships
• Promotional message – decide what you want your brand to say and how you’re going to grab your audience’s attention
• Branding is essential to any business and any platform – you want to have a set logo, selected music, hashtags etc. as you want your audience to identify your brand easily

What’s Next?

TikTok is a social media platform that has shown incredible promise and success among its competitors for marketing. As 90% of all users access the app on a daily basis, it’s no doubt that TikTok is on its way to becoming a new platform businesses will cling to in order to not only capture their audience, but use it to their advantage against their competitors.