Digital · Marketing · Social Media · Strategy
What is TikTok and can you use it for business?
Just when you thought you’d got the hang of Instagram and Facebook, there’s a new kid on the block. TikTok may seem like a lip-syncing/karaoke video app for teens, but with over 500 million users worldwide, it’s much more than that. But is it right for your business?
Well firstly, it’s not actually all that new – TikTok arrived on the social media scene in 2014 (initially as Musical.ly) and according to GlobalWebIndex, is used primarily by people between the ages of 16 and 24. So, if that’s your target audience then this could be the right market place for you and if you happen a be a creative business, then it’s definitely worth a look.
A bit like the now defunct Vine, the short-form video app allows users to upload a creative video within a specific time limit – in this case 15-seconds long, although users can string clips together to make stories of up to 60 seconds long. There is also an option to upload longer videos not recorded within the app.
One of the biggest benefits of TikTok is that you don’t need to create highly-polished videos. TikTok is all about grabbing the moment (professionally of course), taking out your smartphone and filming.
This means the platform lends itself to keeping things simple – think light hearted and authentic. It’s also easy on this platform to harness the power of User Generated Content by challenging other users to post their own TikTok video showcasing one of your products.
One of the biggest aspects of TikTok is the #Challenge. At any given time, you can peruse at least five different challenges that are trending on the app, such as the #unmakeupchallenge and #dontjudgemechallenge
You can also advertise on TikTok, through four different avenues: Infeed Native Content, Brand Takeovers, Hashtag Challenges and Branded Lenses, as well as targeted ads so you can reach the audiences most likely to be interested in your brand.
It’s also an app that seems to be bucking the trend. While Instagram is awash with celebs and influencers, TikTok is very much about the everyday user and many videos focus on the socially conscious; videos of children praising rather than berating their parents and encouraging people to litter pick.
So, if you want to try something new then TikTok might be for you. Or if you’re feeling tentative, sit back a while and see how it plays out but, you never know, it could be the next big thing.
Need help figuring out which social media platform is right four your business? Air Social Digital Marketing Agency can help. We’re based in Guildford so drop in and say hi or give us a call on 01483 789434.
Written by the team at Air Social
Article courtesy of Air Social
Original article
