TikTok shop has recently launched in the US, so there is understandably substantial buzz around it - and for good reason!
TikTok’s constantly looking for new ways to engage with viewers as well as adapt their platform to suit consumer wants and needs, so they’ve set up their own marketplace aptly called: TikTok shop.
What is TikTok Shop?
Over here in the UK, we've while to get used to TikTok shop. Here's what we've learned.
TikTok describes their digital shop as
“an innovative new shopping feature which enables merchants, brands and creators to showcase and sell products directly on TikTok through in-feed videos, LIVEs, and product showcase tab.”
It provides 3 native ways to shop
Live shopping: Shop directly from a LIVE by tapping the pinned products or browsing the shopping basket icon
Shoppable videos: Shop directly from a shoppable in-feed video by tapping the product link & basket icon
Product showcase: Shop directly from a brand or creator account and get access to products within the app
So this begs the question…
Why should you be using TikTok shop as an e-commerce brand?
Well, where to start…
Enhanced popularity
As time goes on and people get used to the concept TikTok Shop is becoming trusted among app users. This means the audience is exponentially expanding with the potential for more demographics and products.
If you sell a product within a niche that hasn’t yet taken advantage of TikTok Shop, you have the unique benefit of being a first mover on the platform. Helping you corner a n unsaturated market and gain strong brand recognition within your niche category.
Increased emphasis on shopping in app
TikTok is trying to change shopping behaviours. With the introduction of the Shopping feed, it’s clear that the platform is putting increasing emphasis on shopping. It’s important to keep up to date with trends and be mindful of evolving shopping behaviours to maximise the potential reach of your campaigns.
Less friction
Having more of a streamlined process which doesn’t take users away from the app improves click-rate and reduces the amount of friction or bottlenecks which may be caused onsite. This often results in lower CPAs.
Now let’s have a look at some common questions around TikTok shop
As with any new service, people might have a lot of questions or maybe even be a little cautious of trying it. Let’s look at a few common questions and the answers to them.
Is your product right for TikTok shop?
The short answer is yes (probably).
The trending products are constantly shifting and updating. The TikTok Shop storefront shows a huge range of products, from cosmetics to clothes to chocolate - even Prime! Typically lower ticket items work best on TikTok Shop as well as non-impulse purchases, but this is bound to change as the platform continues to gain trust.
Have a strong organic strategy
Unlike regular ads, TikTok Shop relies on strong organic content with ads, purely spark ads. Regular, varied posting gives more potential for organic reach as well as the possibility for testing ad concepts.
Encourage community engagement
More engagement = more reach. Simple.
Responding to comments and encouraging community engagement (paid or organic) will bring you more exposure as well as social proof.
Utilise influencer relationships
Now, this isn’t vital, but having affiliates and influencer partnerships also gives that added social proof that can be needed to build that extra layer of trust when shopping through a medium that feels slightly new. Influencer partnerships can also be utilised through ads with whitelisting.
Check out more on TikTok for E-commerce brands in our previous blogs
What content works best on TikTok shop?
Because we use spark ads for TikTok shop, content should work from both an organic and paid perspective. It should feel ‘salesy’ but also fit naturally in feed.
Strong Content Ideas include:
Listicle concepts: 3 reasons why, 3 ways to use etc.
This is an incredibly effective way of highlighting your key benefits and USPs quickly and concisely as well as showing direct use cases.
Comment responses responding to comments or questions about the product
Use this to combat any key objections or answer and frequently asked questions from your audience.
Tutorials
A great way to highlight ease of use and show your product in action. This is an easy way to frame your product as a solution to an issue that people might not have known they had.
Reactions to the product
Social proof drives sales. Fact. Use real reactions from real customers as authenticity is key on TikTok.
Unboxings / Hauls
Use this creative style to generate intrigue highlight the range of products that you have on offer. Also lets face it, everyone loves an unboxing.
ASMR / Satisfying Shots
This is an effective way to grab attention and stop the scroll in feed. Why are people drawn to ASMR type content? Some argue that it’s because of ASMRs link with Oxytocin (AKA the ‘love hormone’. A study highlighted that “specific areas of the brain are active when someone is experiencing ASMR. Some of these regions highlight the likely involvement of dopamine and oxytocin”.
There you have it, science.
Product / offer specific
Shout about what your product and offer is? If you’re running an offer, it’s going to be one of the most attractive part of your ad. So make sure it’s an offer that your audience simply can’t refuse.
Here are 5 other creative examples to check out
TikTok shop video ad best practice
- Pick the most product-focused content to use on the ads.
- Keep targeting broad generally, but there is room for broad MOF targeting as well (ad clicks, video views etc).
- Generally, a CBO structure works best for TikTok Shop ads (multiple ads per ad set)
- Experiment with a variety of different content styles advertising as many products as possible.
- Experiment with spending strategies - CC walkdowns work well as well as optimising for LC.
Who’s doing TikTok shop well?
Very strong TikTok Shop ad results. They consistently announce bestseller restocks and produce a strong variety of content. They also have some strong affiliate relationships for added social proof.
Try-ons and styling inspo bring a strong sense of social proof by showing the product authentically. They highlight the quality and fit on a variety of body types to address common pain points in online shopping.
They utilise organic content styles such as trends to market their TikTok Shop, as well as more ad-specific content. Check out this blog on Scrub Daddy’s viral success on TikTok.
Their bundle is one of their bestselling TikTok Shop products. They have a very proven content strategy in marketing these bundles, creating specific ones in response to comments which encourages customer interaction and overall reach.
There you have it, more or less everything you need to know to get a foot in the door and start selling on TikTok Shop.
If you run a brand are looking to scale past 100k a month and more, get in touch and let’s talk about how we can help you crush it on TikTok shop. Book a call with the team to learn more.
Written by Andrew Boardman - Marketing Content Manager at Soar With Us
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