Are you a small business or brand looking for effective content marketing strategies to gain prominence in the market? If yes, then you are in the right place. We have the perfect solution for you.
TikTok.
Hopefully, you are acquainted with the Tiktok app, if not let have a brief look at what it is all about. TikTok is a video-sharing social media app that allows its users to share 15-second long videos perked up with special effects, music, animation, and filters. Like all social media apps, TikTok users can also like, follow, and comment on fellow users’ content. Both the iOS and Android operating systems support the TikTok app. From celebrities to teenagers, everyone is going gaga over this app and it is currently raging all over the world.
Is it High Time to Pay Attention to TikTok Marketing?
If you are a small company or brand and wish to gain recognition in your market and beyond, I would suggest you pay attention to TikTok. Fashion, entertainment, and publishing companies have started using TikTok thanks to the huge popularity of the app and the enormous marketing opportunities it offers. As this social media platform grows, more and more industries will likely take advantage of this app to reach out to their audience.
Although the popularity of TikTok has spread like fire all over the world in a short period, many industries and brands are still skeptical about it as earlier it did not present as many marketing opportunities as now. TikTok has only recently introduced hyperlinking capabilities to offers for advertising opportunities for the brands. Regardless, many industries have had already jumped on the bandwagon and have leveraged the platform for brand publicity.
Although TikTok marketing is still developing and growing, it has a great value for small brands and business and can well pave their way to recognition and awareness. Brands are using TikTok to show a more fun side of themselves with jazzy videos and challenges that can only be made in TikTok. So, if your content reaches the right people, you can generate a huge amount of sales from TikTok alone. Let us now delve into detail as to why brands need to consider TikTok as a great marketing opportunity.
Why do Brands Need to Consider TikTok Marketing for Promotion and Publicity?
One of the major advantages of using TikTok is that it is yet to get as saturated as older social media channels like Instagram and Twitter. Furthermore, the cost of advertising in TikTok is much cheaper than other social media channels because it is still new and is yet to become a strong platform for influencer marketing. Also, the number of competitors advertising on this platform is relatively few than Facebook and Instagram.
TikTok marketing shows the more fun and exciting side of the brand and takes a different tone from Facebook and Instagram marketing. It allows the brand managers to entertain their audience and also make money from it. The largest user base of TikTok is Gen-Z and it has been documented that this set of buyers is the most difficult to convince out of all the present in the market.
Many brands find it very difficult to market their products and services to the Gen-Z consumers. TikTok makes it easy to reach them and allows the business to relate to them through activities that the Gen-Z likes to participate in. From a marketing point of view, TikTok enables a brand or business to reach out to current as well as potential customers easily.
If you are a business that is involved with organic food and drinks, feminine products, fashion, and beauty products, then its high time for you to join TikTok and explore the marketing opportunities in the app. However, for brands that associate themselves with investment funds, retirement homes, or car dealerships, it is best to stay away from TikTok marketing. This Gen-Z app is more suited for building up enthusiasm, reach, and audience engagement rather than from direct selling. So, most brands use it for increasing brand awareness rather than going for direct selling.
Effective TikTok Marketing Strategies
The Hashtag Challenge:
Creating your own TikTok challenge is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to bring in engagement and create awareness about your brand. Challenges like the “Pretty Boy Swag”, “Hit or Miss”, or “E-Girl” had seen hundreds and thousands of users participate and generate content.
However, before you create a hashtag competition, it is important to contemplate the difficulty level of the contest. Don’t make it too complicated or difficult as it will discourage the users from giving it a try. However, there is no point in making the challenge too easy. Hitting the middle line is the key to a successful TikTok hashtag challenge. Lastly, do not give out too many rules and regulations and allow people to be creative. It will generate more interest in the competition.
Influencer Marketing:
Influencer marketing is one of the most effective TikTok marketing strategies that brands and businesses can use to their advantage and create awareness. There are many Gen-Z individuals, who are quite popular on TikTok and attract massive followers on the platform. The influencer needs to have an authentic relationship with the fans which TikTok allows. Brands can leverage this association and push more directly for sales.
Content Generated by the Users:
Apart from influencer marketing and hashtag challenges, user-generated content (UGC) is an excellent marketing strategy that you can adopt. In the last few years, digital marketers have increasingly relied on and used UGC to increase engagement to the brand. UGC has also been extensively used for social advertising.
The best way to generate UGC is by encouraging your followers on the app to promote your brand or a social cause your business associates with. They can create and upload content on their timeline for everyone to see.
For example, Haidilao, a Chinese restaurant, started a UGC challenge where they asked users to create and upload videos of themselves cooking, using ingredients from the Haidilao menu. Approximately 15,000 people participated in that challenge and uploaded videos of their culinary experience.
In Feed Advertisements:
TikTok has only recently introduced in-feed advertisements that work the same way ads work on Instagram. Brand marketers can embed website links and “Call to Action” buttons that will navigate the user to the desired page. There are several options that you can use while creating TikTok in-feed ads. For example, you can track these ads to determine the ROI of your marketing campaign.
Authenticity Factor:
Authenticity is one of the e tricks that can work very well in TikTok marketing strategies. Unlike Instagram and Facebook, TikTok content is more about self-expression and authenticity. Anything otherwise can lead to your brand being shunned by the community. For example, instead of pushing aggressively for direct sales through TikTok videos, create unique and fun videos around your brand to encourage conversation and build your community. Keep the channel of communication open between your followers and your business to know more about their views regarding your brand. The suggestions and feedback will help you create authentic content on TikTok.
Get Started and Start Earning:
Now that you are privy to some of the most effective TikTok marketing strategies, all you need to do is to download the app, do some research to see what other companies are doing on the platform and start creating your own content.
It might take some time to get used to the platform and earn some followers but over time it will get easy. Rather than starting a campaign the first day itself, invest some time in building a community. Once you have a stronger base you can start rolling out your TikTok marketing campaign and see the results.
Experiment, create, and play around – that is all you need to do to have with TikTok.
