A Beginner's Guide to Using Tik Tok to Promote Your Business

TikTok is very different from other social media platforms. You can use this to your advantage, but it's important to understand exactly how it works.

As a platform, TikTok focuses entirely on video content. However, users cannot post long content as they can with Youtube. Instead, user-generated content is limited to 15 - 60 second video clips.

In this way, TikTok is like a successor to Vine (which featured even shorter videos). In order for your own TikTok vids to go viral, you must come up with creative ways to take advantage of the relatively short format.

Benefits Of TikTok

We've talked about the basics of how TikTok works. But let's get to the real question: why should you be using it?

One of the biggest benefits is that it is cheap. You can create branded content for free. If that content is relevant and engaging, the app's users will do the heavy lifting for you by sharing your work.

You can also get started without any fancy equipment. Most users are just recording via basic cameras or smartphones in their house, so you don't need a 5-star camera to blend in.

Finally, the demographic for TikTok currently skews pretty young. If you're hoping to market towards a youthful demographic, this is arguably the single best form of social media to help you do so.

Now that you know how and why you should use TikTok, let's dive into a few of the proven business marketing strategies for the platform.

Users Love A Challenge

Even more than users of other platforms, people on TikTok love a good challenge. This is why many businesses use a hashtag to create some kind of "challenge" for users. That challenge may be as simple as showing off fresh dance moves or as complex as showing off their individual works of art.

However you design your challenge, the real goal is to encourage user-generated content. Every new video someone creates in response to your challenge will increase engagement and brand awareness while growing your overall TikTok presence.

Create Youth-Friendly Content

We touched on this earlier, but TikTok has historically been a young person's game. Specifically, it has been a platform dominated by Generation Z.

While the platform is now seeing an influx of Millennials, you can still count on many users being under 30. That means you should consider youth-friendly marketing techniques that involve youth stapes like humour and animals.

That may sound simplistic, but we all know nothing gets shared quicker than a cute animal video. If you've got a cute pet of your own, you may already be halfway to viral TikTok fame!

Go For That "Indie" Feel

On platforms like Youtube, the unpolished video stands out in a bad way. And marketing can be intimidating because it often seems without the perfect equipment and lighting, your videos will look like "amateur hour."

With TikTok, though, pretty much everyone is just using smartphones to create content. when creating content it is important for your advertisement to not look overly stiff and corporate as users will scroll past instantly. 

Long story short? Users love TikTok in part because of its strong "indie" vibe. By keeping things simple and visibly low-tech, you can save money while taking advantage of that vibe.

Simple Product Demonstrations

Remember when we said you had to get creative to market your business in 15 seconds? One of the best ways to do this is to show a product demonstration.

With clever editing or simple time-lapsing, you can show users exactly how to use one of your signature products. This approach is solid because it helps users clearly visualize exactly what they can do after making a purchase.

For the best results, you should choose very photogenic products. Think of these videos as your chance to put your best foot forward!

Do Your Homework

Still a little lost as to how you can take advantage of TikTok marketing? In that case, we have some good news and some bad news.

The "bad news" is that what users respond to is constantly shifting on TikTok. Like any other form of social media, what is trendy today will be evolved or replaced by tomorrow.

The "good news" is that this gives you a unique marketing opportunity. By using the app each day, you can get a better idea of the content that users currently love. Then, of course, you create your own content in that same vein.

Believe it or not, a good branded TikTok video will earn you a lot of user respect. That's because it shows potential customers that you have your fingers on the constantly-shifting pulse of the platform.

Advertise Your Business

So far, we have focused on creating your own user-generated content for TikTok. If you'd like to market in the more traditional way, though, you can now purchase advertisements that take full advantage of the app.

For instance, you can pay to turn your existing hashtag challenges into promoted content, thus reaching more people. Or you can create branded lenses that let users play with a whole new look for themselves on video.

You can also go with infeed native content, which is great if you have a lot of info to share. Finally, you can initiate a "brand takeover" that helps put your business front and centre for potentially millions of users.

Using Tik Tok to Promote Your Business: What Comes Next?

Now you know the basics of using Tik Tok to promote your business. But do you know who can take your video content to a more advanced level while keeping that "indie" vibe?

We specialise in all forms of video production across all forms of social media. To see what we can do for your TikTok marketing, request a consultation today!