There’s no denying the newcomer on the social media scene is taking off. TikTok’s mission is to allow people to capture and share their creativity, knowledge and memories with the world, all through their mobile phone.

TikTok has business marketing potential, and we are starting to see more brands play in the space.

With 800 million active users and growing, it’s become quite clear that TikTok has business marketing potential. Best of all, the new kid on the block is lax with entry requirements. New users don’t need an existing following to create a viral video – the algorithm differs greatly to Instagram and Facebook.

We have profiled some top performing brands making the most of TikTok’s marketing opportunities. Take note.

Sabra enlisted TikTok sensation Charli D’amelio and various other celebrities to spruik their hummus varieties during one of the year’s biggest advertising stages, the American Super Bowl. With 12.8 million views on D’amelio’s TikTok page, coupled with the fact the star already has 23 million followers, it’s safe to say TikTok is serving up some super reach capacity.

PepsiCo Beverages North America CMO Greg Lyons says, “We just started. We just got approval to be a part of it, quite frankly, because we needed to know it was safe. And I’m excited to see where the platform goes. It’s so incredibly engaging from a consumer standpoint. I find myself having a really hard time putting it down after 15 minutes, and before you know it you’re 20 minutes in” (Forbes, 2020).

Washington Post

@washingtonpost – 1.7M followers

Washington Post is injecting some young blood into a 140-year-old newspaper with the assistance of TikTok, and it’s creative TikTok producer Dave Jorgenson. Their content on TikTok clearly speaks to a young crowd. This is most apparent in the video ‘Shout-out to our fellow Olds downloading TikTok” which provides an explanation of the app intended for the ‘parents’ (TikTok, 2020). There is also a tongue-in-cheek video explaining what the traditional form of the newspaper looks like.  Jorgenson says, “…It’s a whole new generation. {TikTok is} basically Gen Z’s biggest platform. Not all Gen Z likes TikTok, but a lot of them love it passionately” (Masse, 2019).

Gymshark

@gymshark – 5.3M followers
The TikTok stars in Gymshark’s motivational workout videos are all clad in Gymshark attire. Some of their videos also showcase already established influencers on Instagram and YouTube. The brand also keeps abreast of current trends and affairs. Due to the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, one of the trending hashtags currently on TikTok is #goforgold. Gymshark’s motivational workout video entitled, “Let’s get it! 2020 here we go,” was one of the top videos under #goforgold (TikToK, 2020).  Evidently it has greatly encouraged audience engagement as it currently has 71.3K likes, 742 comments, and 1331 shares!

Australian Reptile Park

@australianreptilepark – 1.6M followers
This homegrown example uses TikTok as both an entertainment and education tool. Within 15 seconds, the Australian Reptile Park provides fun facts about the animals from the zookeepers and gives the viewer insight into the daily life of the animals. For instance, a clip of the resident tortoise munching on a sweet potato proved to be a hit with 2 million views. The park’s Marketing Coordinator, Rebecca Plumbridge, recently said in an interview with Business Insider Australia – “We are also hearing from guests that they found out about us from TikTok, and they make a point to tell one of the keepers they have seen them in one of our TikTok videos” (Business Insider, 2019).

Crocs

@crocs – 2.1M followers
TikTok’s quirky and authentic nature is well suited to the Crocs brand. Since starting up the #ThousandDollarCrocs hashtag, TikTokers were inspired. Within the first 36 hours of the challenge being launched, the hashtag was viewed 95 million times. (Bradley, 2019) Such ‘goofy’ viral challenges are popular on TikTok, and this one inspired by Post Malone’s song was no exception.

Time will tell if TikTok will be as lucrative as Instagram, but if the current stats are anything to go by it appears as if it is heading in the right direction. It can be argued that TikTok is the ultimate social media platform as it mixes a variety of facets into one. Dancing, singing, video, music and comedy are addictive elements that make the platform so entertaining.

If you have been wondering about the app for a while, we recommend hitting download in the app store and seeing what TikTok marketing can do for your business. There’s no harm in testing the waters, especially if your target audience is Gen Z. Even if it isn’t, the audience is likely to widen in the near future. In TikTok’s recent Super Bowl advertisement, the app is trying to appeal to an older demographic. The commercial features noticeably more mature people enjoying TikTok.

It may be relatively new, however it’s becoming increasingly clear that TikTok has business marketing potential. Are you looking to boost your businesses reach, engagement or conversions through social media? Get in touch.