Technological advances are affecting digital marketing, and are causing changes in the way companies approach their digital marketing strategy . To understand these changes and guide their digital strategy properly, the managers of this department must constantly keep abreast of new trends.

Influencer marketing and micro-content are at the heart of the latter and enjoy a strong popularity with the public. The social media TikTok brings these parameters together. The platform has been a phenomenal success since 2020 with Internet users, especially Generation Z.

What is TikTok?

TikTok is a social media launched by the Chinese group ByteDance in September 2017. It consists of editing and sharing videos that last between 3 and 60 seconds. Two months after the launch of this application, ByteDance acquired its competitor Musical.ly. Their merger, which was effective in 2018, was an immediate success.

TikTok has more than 800 million active users in 2020. More downloaded than Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram, TikTok is the most popular social network of the beginning of this decade.

To what extent is TikTok an effective digital communication tool?

The numbers speak for themselves: 1.65 billion downloads, $50 million in quarterly revenue, 5 billion videos viewed each month. TikTok is a real opportunity for brands to increase their visibility among young audiences. TikTok users are actually more than 69% of Gen Z, that is, between 13 and 24 years old. These users are hyperactive, and are divided into two categories: active producers, who produce and distribute content on a daily basis, and passive users who view and relay this content. Brands can thus rely on an original and well-established system where everyone finds their place. In addition, the number of leads is gigantic, because in addition to being popular with young users, TikTok is also available in 39 different languages and in nearly 154 countries. In addition, the authentic, subtle and playful aspect of the mode of communication via short videos is particularly effective in capturing the audience.

How to sell on TikTok?

A company’s communication can be done on TikTok through the TikTokAds feature. The goal is to get conversions, drive traffic or increase your audience. You have to use in-feed ads that generate feed on a landing page or expand a community. These include Campaignheater, which links to a landing page, and Fanbase Booster, which helps recruit followers for the Tiktok account. In addition, there is Splah Page, which allows advertisers to broadcast a video for 5 seconds when opening TikTok, with the option to include a call-to-action (CTA). There are also other TikTok-specific format options such as Duet Video (duel video) and React Video (reaction video to another video).

How to use TikTok in a marketing strategy?

To succeed in your digital strategy on TikTok, you must first make sure that your targets can be reached via this platform and that its operation corresponds to the style of your business. It is necessary to adopt the codes and languages of this lever to be able to take advantage of its network.

Launching hashtag challenges

This is one of the most popular trends on TikTok. Brands do not hesitate to use the hashtag challenge to promote their products or images. The system involves launching a specific challenge and then promoting it using a hashtag. On the one hand, it makes it possible to reach users; And on the other hand, it is so that they can take up the challenge and use the same hashtag. The goal is to make the video viral to gain maximum visibility.

The hashtag challenge is therefore a system that encourages users to create content indicating the hashtag of your brand. It’s an authentic and fun way to interact with prospects and foster their engagements.

It is also possible to take advantage of an already established challenge hashtag, and make videos in response to the challenge. This approach, which combines commercial action and content production , is effective in increasing your visibility and getting closer to the TikTok community.

Production of original content

The contents must be funny and crazy to captivate the attention of the main users of this application, considering their average age. Quality is therefore not an essential criterion in TikTok videos, compared to the messages to be transmitted.

It is therefore essential to understand the types of content that work and that most influence users, to encourage them to interact. The challenge is to find an original and impactful video, but that is not too far from what works. These videos can take many forms: informative, educational, Do It Yourself, etc. The most important thing is that this content is entertaining.

Collaboration with TikTok influencers

By developing partnerships with influencers that match your brand’s target audience, you are setting yourself up for an effective way to make yourself known. Indeed, this type of social media marketing strategy allows you to expand your community quickly.

Its young audience, its many subscribers with considerable engagement and its originality make TikTok a promising platform for brands in terms of marketing strategy. However, you should know that TikTok frees itself from the usual modes of communication, much more than other social networks. And this is where the difficulty lies for companies to adopt it as a communication channel. To stand out and attract communities, you have to know how to convey emotions with humor and relevance. So the question is whether it’s in your company’s best interest to land on TikTok.