TikTok is having a massive impact, and not just with how Gen Z and Millennials are spending their time. It’s also shifting how these generations are spending their money.
This video-first social media platform was designed to allow users to discover, create, and share short-form videos. The personalized algorithm keeps users engaged as they quickly flip from one video to the next. Over time, the app learns more about each user and feeds them content that will resonate most with them and their preferences.
While the social media platform launched in 2016, it was the pandemic that really brought TikTok to new heights. With more time on their hands, people were drawn to the app known for its dancing videos. Users felt connected to a larger community and could be entertained for hours by scrolling through their feeds.
Today, TikTok’s presence is embedded into culture. New musical artists, up-and-coming brands, and modern-day celebrities are taking the spotlight. Brands are taking off thanks to viral-worthy videos and individuals are making full-time careers as TikTok influencers. As a living, breathing marketplace of potential customers, TikTok is radically changing direct-to-consumer business models. Read on to learn more about this app’s influence.
1. Seamless Shopping Experience
Consumers today are looking for seamless experiences. When they decide to buy something, they want to purchase it as easily as possible. TikTok answers consumers’ needs by allowing scrollers to buy products directly through the app. While watching a TikTok video, users can purchase items immediately without going through a separate checkout website. This is known as TikTok Shop.
TikTok Shop is an engaging shopping experience that is great for brands because it increases impulse buying and therefore conversion rates. A viral video can attract new audiences, leading to a wider demographic and targeting pool.
Speaking of targeting, brands are leaning heavily on commerce media to successfully reach potential customers. Commerce media is a strategic marketing approach that pulls data on past purchase behavior. With this intel, brands can target users who will be the most interested in their products or services. By merging entertaining content with a shopping platform, TikTok Shop can lure in audiences and generate increased conversions. This new direct shopping experience is revolutionizing e-commerce and boosting growth for big and small businesses alike.
2. Influencer Marketing
With more than 100,000 influencers on TikTok, it’s safe to say that influencer marketing is prominent on this social media platform. Influencers with millions of followers or a few thousand are tapped into their communities. They know what types of products their audiences are likely to purchase and what brands will resonate most with them. Influencer marketing isn’t a new marketing tactic; however, it is changing TikTok users’ purchasing behaviors.
With its engaging format, TikTok allows creators to authentically showcase products. They can apply makeup from their bathroom, make a recipe using a specific ingredient, and broadcast their redesigned living room. These videos capture attention while highlighting their authenticity and relatability. Followers get a better sense of who their favorite influencers truly are and how they are incorporating certain brands into their everyday lives. This can create a sense of “FOMO,” or fear of missing out, which drives scrollers to make a purchase.
Rihanna’s cosmetic brand Fenty Beauty is successfully using influencers to promote their products. Influencers from different backgrounds with different skin tones are seen applying Fenty Beauty’s products and displaying their technique to the camera. The brand is portrayed as being genuine, intriguing followers to try out the makeup items for themselves.
3. #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt
But the influence doesn’t stop once a product is purchased. Creators and regular consumers are fast to post videos about what they have purchased through TikTok. Called “TikTok made me buy it,” these videos are essentially customer reviews in video form. Scrollers may be swayed to purchase something after viewing one of these videos or it may stop them from making an intended purchase.
Some of the most compelling videos call attention to products that have gone viral. The $600 Dyson Airwrap was an instant hit on the platform as purchasers demonstrated how to use the somewhat complicated hair tool. The Stanley Quencer H2.0 established itself as a must-have item for just about anyone — from busy moms to work-from-home Gen Zers.
Brands featured in #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt posts are essentially gaining free marketing, boosting their product’s visibility to a wider audience. TikTok users who are on the fence about purchasing something may be more inclined after watching a few of these videos. Again, this speaks to the FOMO aspect of the app and creates a sense of “need.”
Conclusion
The power of TikTok is real. A source of shopping inspiration and a real-time marketplace, TikTok is altering how consumers are making purchases. Instead of going directly to the brand site to learn more, many users are searching for brands directly through the app. They’re scrolling through videos to find which lipstick matches their complexion or compare different headphones, for example.
As the social media platform evolves so too will consumers’ shopping preferences and behaviors. But whatever new developments the social media app has up its sleeve, one thing is for sure: Showcase a product and customers will come.
Lynn Martelli is an editor at Readability. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University and has worked as an editor for over 10 years. Lynn has edited a wide variety of books, including fiction, non-fiction, memoirs, and more. In her free time, Lynn enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with her family and friends.
