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TikTok has enormous power, and no one can dispute that. The app is designed to hook its users, whether they use it for business or leisure. It’s a top-rated platform, with the company recently announcing that they have over one billion monthly users. TikTok plays an essential role in organizational and business growth for thousands of businesses worldwide, so don’t undervalue this app during your next digital marketing campaign.
TikTok has been highly successful for many different businesses, including Chipotle and Duolingo. Your business’ location or industry doesn’t matter; if you play your cards right, you will be able to find a successful presence on the platform.
What is TikTok marketing?
TikTok marketing is any marketing practice that uses the TikTok application to promote a particular brand, product, or service. If you are looking to capture the attention of Gen Z or Millennials, this is a great tool, but you can also target a variety of other demographics. There are different ways of achieving success on the short-form content app, including influencer marketing, advertising, and organic viral content creation.
TikTok marketing can help businesses:
- Enhance brand awareness
- Build community engagement
- Promote products and services
- Deliver customer service
Three steps to using TikTok as a business:
- Use hashtags to increase engagement!
The content that appears on the TikTok For You Page (FYP) is largely determined by hashtags. For example, a largely popular hashtag on TikTok is #FYP, which caters to all TikTok users. TikTok’s Discover page will also feature trending hashtags, so it’s important to look out for them when launching a marketing campaign on the platform.
The tendency for users to include any trending hashtag in their TikTok video captions may appeal to them in the short-term, but it does not always work in the long-term, especially when promoting a brand. Instead, you should select hashtags carefully. Finding these hashtags is as easy as finding a successful competitor, and then looking at what they use in their most popular posts.
Fine-tuning your hashtags so they fit explicitly with your company or organization is the main goal here. In doing so, you can…
2. Build community!
On TikTok, you need to be authentic. By showing authenticity while standing out with unique, refreshing content, you will build a community. The users of TikTok do not come to the platform to be advertised to. They go to the platform to be entertained. Therefore, advertising and sales pitches should be avoided.
So what should you do? You should show your product naturally, while participating in trends. For example, Duolingo will intertwine their mascot into regular trends, or will make satirical ‘Day In The Life’ content. This is entertaining, while being strictly content that no other account but Duolingo could make.
3. Film content!
As an interactive platform, TikTok was developed to feel like a community of individuals sharing meaningful, authentic content. Make sure to film videos vertically, not horizontally, and keep videos less than a minute. A lack of invigorating content will draw users out of the regular experience, and if it isn’t engaging, they will swipe away and not give you another chance.
Because most content is captured, edited, and uploaded on mobile devices, you shouldn’t be surprised if your TikTok channel is less consistent than your other social media channels. Wendy’s is a good example of a brand that sometimes alters its finely tuned corporate message in order to create a more intimate connection with its followers.
4. Find influencers to promote your products and services!
Among TikTok’s marketing options, influencer marketing is the most effective. Videos from influencers don’t carry the same negative implications as organic videos on your company account or require building the right audience as native videos do.
Your influencers need to develop an exciting creative strategy to engage their audience and build interest in your company and product. If they’re working with you, they’re passionate about your service. Let them know what you want from the video, but don’t give them a script. Influencers need to write in their own voice, or else it will come off as controlled and awkward.
To find TikTok influencers, you should look into the niche interests that match your target market. If, for example, your company sells food, then it would be unlikely that a dance account would be effective! Consider finding a foodie influencer that finds and makes recipes or reviews different products. If the sponsorship blends in perfectly with your product, you’re doing something right!
If you need help finding relevant influencers, you might consider working with an influencer platform. Check out Currant, the leading influencer marketing platform that helps match brands with influencers on TikTok - it’s influencer marketing, simplified. For more on how to get influencers on board with your product and further connect with Gen Z, click here -> currant.social.
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