We’ve all heard the data concerns around TikTok but at the same time we’ve watched its astronomical growth and one thing seems clear – TikTok’s here to stay. In the four years since its inception, the video-sharing social network has enticed a new generation and offered huge early-growth opportunities for brands that were quick to get into the mix. Despite involvement with some of the world’s largest brands, TikTok hasn’t been saturated by promotional content and, as a late comer to the social media scene, launched a well-considered ad structure in early 2019 that offers clear ROI for the right brands.
With more than 500 million active users worldwide, it’s obvious why TikTok is so appealing to advertisers. Brands including Nike and Apple Music have been utilising the platform to great affect and show how, when used correctly, TikTok enables you to tap into one of the lucrative pools of users. That’s not to say every business will benefit from an ad strategy in TikTok though, there are factors to consider. The point is that TikTok offers fantastic opportunities for the brands it does suit.
To understand whether TikTok is right for your business or not, here’s two questions you need to ask.
Who is your target audience for your TikTok Ads?
- If you’re targeting a younger generation, then TikTok’s the platform for you with 41% of its users aged 16-24. Overall, 60% of TikTok’s users are under 30. A significant number of trending videos tend to focus on youthful pastimes like school, and homework. That may not sound very appealing, but it’s a great audience for Nifty to engage for our sports clients. That said, social media platforms are normally conquered by the young before being adopted by the older generations so TikTok’s definitely a platform to watch. If TikTok continues its current growth, your target audience is likely to be using it soon.
Do you have the budget for TikTok Ads?
- While big brands have the budgets to cover vast TikTok spends, smaller organisations may find it less accessible. As ads on TikTok are still fairly new, and rare, they come at a premium. CPMs begin at around $10 and campaigns require a $500 minimum investment. That might not be the best advertising solution for your business if you’re looking for affordable, predictable options.
How do TikTok Ads work?
There are three primary options for TikTok ads – brand takeovers, in-feed ads and hashtag challenges:
- A brand takeover will appear the moment a user opens the app and can be redirected to an internal or external link. Right now this ad type is limited to one advertiser per day and they’re expensive.
- In-feed ads are native ads that sit either at the bottom of organic videos or in the feed as part of the video queue. Again, they can direct to a website or app and on average cost around $10 per CPM, making them the more affordable option.
- Partner with TikTok’s marketing team and you can run a sponsored hashtag challenge. These encourage users to share content on your brand’s behalf and generally last for around six days.
TikTok Ads – Conclusion
With its compelling design and automation tools, TikTok ads offer a comprehensive platform to engage your target audience, if they’re mostly under 24.
There is a lack of guidance on how to utilise the platform for ads but that’s fairly normal for a fairly new feature released on a social media platform. If you need any help navigating the interface, give Nifty a shout. TikTok users may be young but if they’re not your target audience now, they might be in the future, and don’t forget that it won’t take long for the older groups to flock to the fastest-growing social media channel. As any TikTok user knows, the app has a knack of pulling you into watching hours of videos and it’s no wonder how the platform’s grown so quickly. The format is almost perfect for advertisers, with minimal impact on a viewing experience to drop highly-targeted, relevant ad content into a user’s session. That’s why we love TikTok and remember – if your audience isn’t on there today, they will be tomorrow.
If you enjoyed this blog on TikTok Ads then why not have a read of our Twitter takes inspiration from TikTok blog.
