Looking back at the pandemic era, it makes perfect sense that social media channels saw boosts in user engagement across the board in 2020 and into 2021. Most notably among social platforms during that time was the tremendous growth of what was then a newer channel: TikTok. The platform’s focus on highly engaging user-generated video content proved to be perfectly timed for that period – from viral dance challenges to trending hashtags like #cleantok that could keep viewers scrolling for hours. Since then, TikTok’s advertising capabilities have evolved significantly, and today brands of all sizes leverage its highly engaged audience through sophisticated targeting and creative options that weren’t available in those early days.
Since introducing TikTok for Business they have introduced many new capabilities to further refine targeting. One example is the ability to geotarget at the DMA level within the United States. Previously, advertisers could only advertise as narrow as state-wide. This change allows local businesses to get in front of potential customers who have historically only seen national and international brands advertising on the platform.
Outside of the narrow geotargeting capabilities, a key selling point for TikTok advertising is the ability to target users as young as age 13 in conjunction with interest and / or behavior targeting. Interests range from travel to pets to beauty / personal care, and beyond (not only are these interests great for teens and adolescents, but to reach adult demographics as well). With the change from Facebook limiting advertiser’s options on how they can target users under the age of 18, advertisers needed to turn to different channels in order to get in front of their younger target audience.
Another great tool available within the platform is the ability to create custom audience lists. This includes uploading lists of contacts (current customers or prospect database lists) and remarketing to users already familiar with your brand (website remarketing, those who have downloaded your app, or have previously engaged with your TikTok ads). This allows for very narrow targeting that could keep costs relatively low while seeing high engagement. In addition, there is an ability to create lookalike audiences of these segments to further expand reach and find new potential customers. If the interest targeting available in the platform is just too broad to reach your target audience, uploading a list of contacts and utilizing lookalikes may be a good fit for your brand.
TikTok has proven itself as a relevant social channel in the game that is here to stay. To learn more about the requirements and benefits of advertising on TikTok, please reach out to your client strategist or contact us today.
