This archive report was first published on 24 June 2020.
Why Savvy Entrepreneurs Are on TikTok ¶
Launched in 2016, TikTok has become a platform for businesses to create brand awareness and reach a younger audience. With 800 million monthly active users, it's an opportunity for entrepreneurs to showcase their products and services in a fun and creative way.
According to a 2020 Digital Trends report, out of every 11 minutes spent on a mobile phone, 10 are on an app. This means that the opportunity to create brand awareness on TikTok is vast.
One of the key benefits of TikTok is that it's a platform where users don't need to create highly-polished videos. In fact, it largely rejects them. Just pull out your smartphone and start filming.
5 Tips for Including TikTok in Your Influencer Marketing Strategy ¶
- Is your audience on TikTok? The largest demographic of TikTok users is between the ages of 16 and 24.
- Creating approachable, fun content is key. A good example is Azziad Nasenya, a 19-year-old Kenyan who became famous on the platform after posting a video of herself dancing in the 'Utawezana' challenge.
- Make video demonstrations of how to use your products or how not to. You can also use third-party apps like Boosted for more options for filters, text, and effects.
- Go behind the scenes and showcase your business in a less formal and more relaxed way.
- Follow a trend and join in the fun. You can also introduce a pet as your business mascot.
Another way to create engaging content on TikTok is to create a hashtag challenge. Hashtag challenges encourage users to create videos within a certain theme and add your branded hashtag to it. You can offer prizes as an incentive to join.
Don't fight it, influencers are important for any social media campaign. In Kenya, influencer collaboration is fairly new but slowly taking up. Brands that are serious about making it on TikTok need to consider reaching out for a collaboration with someone that the 16 to 24 year olds like on social media.
TikTok has finally introduced ads to their platform. A global survey by Global WebIndex found that 52 per cent of TikTok users globally would buy a product just to be part of a community. Further, 61 per cent tend to buy products advertised.
