The industry needs to take Tik Tok influencer marketing seriously
Tik Tok might be all the rage for content creators right now, explains David Krupp, but it’s also an under-rated platform for brands looking to build strong influencer relationships and achieve true cut-through.
Tik Tok is the newest kid on the social media block and is hurtling towards us faster than many would realise. It’s the fastest growing social media platform in the world today, and a platform Gen Z is obsessing over. And while it may still be new to most marketers’ repertoires, it’s already becoming a platform that deserves our attention as a way to leverage influencers for promotion.
For the unversed, Tik Tok is an app which allows users to upload short 15 to 30-second videos for others to watch. Like Instagram and Facebook, it’s presented as a long scrolling stream of content, and, like Instagram, users follow their friends and other influencers. But a major difference is that Tik Tok has a large audio library which forms the backdrop of most videos, such as those showcasing lip synching and dancing.
Another major function of Tik Tok is ‘challenges’, where users replicate content created by others. A good example of this is the bottle-cap challenge, which started on Tik Tok and has since generated an incredible 1.5bn views. All of which points to why we need to be taking influencer marketing on the platform seriously.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrFxIa2svJI
Does anyone remember Muscially? It’s the same app rebranded and currently under investigation by the U.S. government’s Committee on Foreign Investment
I’m mixed on this one.
The numbers are impressivley big for the bottle-cap challenge.
But I am tossing up as to whether it is facile or puerile – neither being good attributes for a brand irrespective of how many views have been accumulated (remembering that a gazillion different ads would have been shown so no brand will get anywhere near that number).
This is all well and good, but the lack of information surrounding where these influencers followers are from makes it hard for brands or even regional global brand offices who want localised results. While Instagram/Facebook is not perfect, but we do know from insights where followers are based and informed decisions can be based on follower numbers in each country and even city.
Hi BW – TikTok do actually provide data on audience location. Analytics are still a far, far cry compared to what is available on Facebook / Instagram but apparently the evolution of local analytics is in the pipeline
Tik Tok will eventually be as valuable as any other platform, but for now it has the same underlying problem with Douyin (the original version of Tik Tok, an app in China), it’s got an issue of spending power. It’s too populated with a younger audience that do not have the spending power that brands (particularly luxury brands) need.
“As it turns out, most of the Douyin users cannot afford luxury goods,” said Ashley Galina Dudarenok (author and marketing expert).
Jason Yu, General Manager of Kantar Worldpanel China says: “…In other words, there will be more people viewing the content but [far fewer] people purchasing products.”
So Mark, you are absolutely right in that Douyin/Tik Tok’s usage rate is incredible. It’s a wonderful tool that amasses influence and exposure as well as any other platform we have. But the issue is that at the end of the day, while 30,000 people may post a video of themselves doing a catwalk for say Michael Kors — only a fraction of that figure can even afford to pay for a single product.
So the question isn’t whether brands should jump onto Tik Tok no questions asked, but moreso, what reason do brands have to jump on Tik Tok — are they happy with just exposure and online engagements, or are they looking for conversions and increased sales, because unless the brand has a namesake like Michael Kors or Louis Vuitton, the monetary value gained from investing in Tik Tok will unfortunately be negligible for now.
David, not Mark* Sorry mate.
Great point George. You are right that it is not the right platform for luxury brands at the moment because the user base of TikTok do not have adequate spending power. But what about brands that have a more reasonable price point for this audience.. There are a number of Australian retail brands in particular that are affordable and an ideal cultural fit for this audience. With such great alignment and great amounts of white space for local brands now, I think they are the brands that should be going hard on TikTok. Thanks for the comment.
I’m old. Can someone tell me how Tik tok is different to vine?