4 Ways for Brands to Win on TikTok
While there isn’t a single right way to approach TikTok, here are the four primary ways for brands to enter the platform.
Let’s go through each of these strategies one by one and share how to generate results on TikTok.
Start Your Own Brand Channel
By 2021 it won’t be a question of “Do we have a TikTok channel?” but rather “How good is your TikTok channel?”
Creating content for TikTok may seem intimidating at first, since the raw and unpolished nature of the platform is so different from the curated and highly polished content brands post on on Facebook and Instagram.
One way to “get into the flow” of TikTok (and grow your brand channel quickly) is to get involved in what is trending on the platform each week. You’ll see different trends pop up every week, with most of them being related to music, jokes, and skits.
Participating in these trends will help to boost the visibility of your posts and get you more views, while increasing your brand’s cool factor.
Collaborate with Influencers
Running an influencer campaign on TikTok can be very similar to running influencer campaigns on other platforms.
That said, we often see brands make the mistake of using their existing Instagram or YouTube influencers, who also have a TikTok presence. These creators (generally speaking) are not as strong at TikTok content. It’s a challenge leap for influencers too!
We almost always work with TikTok-native creators. Not only is their engagement much stronger, their pricing is lower! While TikTok influencer rates are rising steadily, they still are much lower than what influencers are used to getting on more established platforms.
Take Advantage of TikTok Ads
In-feed ads, which are very similar to Snapchat ads and Instagram story ads, are another great way to build your brand’s visibility on the platform
TikTok ads are the best way to get started on the platform if you’re performance-driven and focused on lower-funnel marketing, since they allow you to drive users to landing pages.
High-performing TikTok ads look and feel like organic TikTok content. Great ads abide by popular TikTok storytelling styles, take advantage of popular trends and include relevant music and sounds. TikTokers like advertisers who “get” the platform, and will happily click through when engaged in this way.
Start a Hashtag Challenge (HTC)
The hashtag challenge is what made TikTok famous.
TikTok hashtag challenges create the opportunity for unprecedented virality, allowing brands to create a true cultural moment. Top-performing challenges attract millions of users to create videos for the campaign!
That’s what happened with the #eyeslipsface TikTok challenge that we created with e.l.f. Cosmetics. The challenge became the most-viral campaign ever created on TikTok US. It generated 5 million video contributions from TikTok users. Even celebrities such as Ellen, Lizzo, and Reese Witherspoon organically joined in and created videos for the challenge.
Apart from generating massive engagement and exposure on TikTok, e.l.f. Cosmetics earned 1.5 billion media impressions from outlets like Vogue, Rolling Stone, BuzzFeed, AdWeek and Forbes.
As powerful as they are, hashtag challenges can be tricky to organize and manage. The structure is so different from any other campaign … when have you relied on the general public to craft your ads? You’ll want to design a challenge concept that tees up virality, and music that perfectly coordinates (second-by-second).
