The TikTok Revolution: How to Grow Your Business on TikTok

We say?revolution, and we mean it.?

The addictive social video platform has seemingly done the impossible: through the latter months of 2021, TikTok overtook Google as the most popular website domain. And since then, its popularity has only continued to skyrocket.

TikTok has over one billion monthly active users (Hootsuite ) and boasts the most engagement of all social media apps – its average user session of?10.85 minutes ?dwarfs that of Instagram (2.95 minutes per session).

Convinced yet? So are we. So now that we’ve established that TikTok is the real deal, let’s dive into how we can use its addictive features and ever-scrolling audience to our advantage.?How can you grow your business on TikTok??Let’s find out.

DITCH THE HEAVILY-EDITED VIDEOS.

Say goodbye-for-now to heavily-edited, highly-curated content and ads. Why? Because now, more than ever, values reign supreme:?customers are 4x more likely to buy from a brand with shared values.

So it’s time to ditch the manufactured feed and show them what you really stand for — and that requires being raw, authentic, and relatable.?

A generational shift has occurred; customers are seeking personal engagement with brands as they continue to seek connection post-pandemic, and this trend isn’t simmering down, it’s continuing to skyrocket. Let this one sink in:?83% of our clients saw better return on ad spend?after we shifted from high-end videos to low-fi, short-form videos.

Okay, just one question:?why?

In every waking moment, customers are flooded with marketing tactics; video ads, sales images, audio promos, even now-digital billboards — the marketing landscape is rising and unrelenting. To be expected, customers’ expectations of brands are rising in tandem, and?authenticity and transparency are no longer optional. Do it right, and you’ll build trust. Do it wrong, and the competitors will gobble up your market.

Clever customers can read between the lines too; it’s no secret when influencers are paid, or when ambassadors are only promoting because of royalties, or when you’ve photoshopped your all-too-beautiful social feed.

In one study,?70% of consumers?said they felt more connected to brands whose CEO was active on social media platforms like TikTok.?

Fascinating, right? Fortunately for us, it’s not a hard concept to master: the secret to building that trust and authenticity is low-fi, low-quality (strategic) short-form videos. In other words, creating TikTok content – and a heck of a lot of it.

By showing off your team, your leaders and your personalities without all the whiz-bang special effects, the brand’s truest self comes to light in a playful, fun, and potentially viral way.

Sure to put an ear-to-ear grin on your accountant’s face too, TikTok-style videos require fewer resources, are more cost-effective (no $15,000 camera setup required!), and drive stronger ROI than any other form of video content.?Did someone say no-brainer?

If you’re still on the fence, try this on for size: not only does short-form video beat out all other video types, but it has the highest ROI of any other social media content type, period (GIFS, static ads, audio, etc.). It’s no wonder that?30% of social media marketers plan to invest more in short-form video than any other trend in 2022.

So scrap the heavily-edited videos and ads, and give the customers want they really want: a chance to connect. Gather REAL user-generated content, jump onto TikTok, and show the world what your brand stands for. Through authentic and genuine content you’ll build trust, and through trust, you’ll build a long-term customer list.

WHY SHOULD YOU BE ON TIKTOK IN THE FIRST PLACE??

As we established, TikTok is now the?#1 fastest growing social media app, with over 1 billion monthly active users, and more engagement than Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat combined. Just let that sink in. Impressive, right?

Compared to Facebook, TikTok only has?about 10% of the active advertisers.?More engagement plus fewer advertisers?(and cheaper sales!) sounds like a rare and incredible marketing opportunity… and that’s exactly what it is.

But why is TikTok the best thing for?your?social media strategy in 2022? The answer is actually oh-so-simple.?Video, video, and a dash of more video.

Video consumption heavily influences buying decisions?— here’s proof:

• Videos contribute to 82% of all online traffic
• The average person watches 100 minutes per day
• Videos offer a 3x higher engagement rate than images

Fusing all the attention-grabbing elements of Vine (how’s that for a throwback) with full-screen video for a more immersive experience, TikTok has blessed us with a chance to push short, sharp, effective messages to potential customers without the need for a fancy production studio.

If short-form video isn’t part of your strategy, then you’ve got some ground to make up. But that doesn’t mean it’s too late — not with the power of TikTok at our disposal.

THE SECRET INGREDIENT TO A GREAT VIDEO??AUTHENTICITY.

Even engaging, short, branded content is still less likely to engage customers to the same extent as?raw and relatable user-generated content ?(UGC). This is the beauty of TikTok — grab those bells and whistles and throw them out the window. The more low-fi your ad is, the more authentic your brand seems. That’s how you?grow your brand on TikTok. ?Why? Because you’re creating genuine, real, fun content, just like everyone else on the app (in other words, you’re part of the?community). Customers love this no-BS approach; it’s your brand, in its truest form.

By combining TikTok’s organic traits (using trending sounds, filters, captions, and a dance routine or two) and your unique selling points (which need to feature in the first 3 seconds), you’ll get your message across to an engaged audience without viewers realising they’re staring an ad right in the face. As they say,?don’t make ads, make TikToks.

Here’s a sneaky tip: if you’ve seen your click-through rate (CTR) or engagement drop on your Facebook ads, test TikTok videos on Facebook itself. Authentic, raw UGC isn’t just powerful, it’s platform-agnostic.?

Since shifting from long-form to TikTok videos, our clients have seen CTR and conversion rate increases of 200% and 50% respectively, on average.

There’s no sugarcoating it — get on TikTok, or risk losing out.

Want to take advantage of TikTok and scale up your business? Let our Digital Strategists work their magic with a?FREE marketing audit ?AND 2022 Digital Strategy worth $1200.

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