TikTok for Business: How to Get Started and Make the Most of It

TikTok is a social media platform founded in 2016 and has exploded in popularity recently, particularly among younger audiences. Owned by ByteDance (a Chinese tech company), TikTok allows users to create and share short videos, often set to popular music, that can be entertaining, informative, or both.

Despite concerns about ByteDance’s close ties to the Chinese government, TikTok has become a cultural phenomenon, with 206 million daily active users creating videos ranging from silly and playful to highly creative and artistic. Its increasing appeal to audiences of all ages has made it an attractive option for businesses looking to reach a broad range of consumers.

Examples of businesses in the travel and lifestyle industry using TikTok successfully in their marketing efforts include Airbnb, Booking.com, RyanAir, Delta Air Lines, Intrepid Travel, Disney Parks, and Visit Singapore. These companies have used the platform to showcase their products and services, often incorporating popular trends and songs into their videos. Their success on TikTok demonstrates the potential for other businesses to reach and engage with customers on the platform.

TikTok for Business: Ad Metrics.TikTok for business: Put your brand on TikTok.

Setting up a business account on TikTok

Setting up a TikTok for business account is easy and can be done in just a few steps. Here’s how to set up a business account on TikTok:

1. Download the TikTok app and create a personal account if you don’t already have one.
2. Open the app and tap on the “+” icon in the bottom-right corner to create a new video.
3. Before you start filming, tap on the “Profile” icon in the bottom-right corner and then tap on the three dots in the top-right corner to access your account settings.
4. In the settings menu, tap on “Switch to Professional Account” and then select “Business” as the account type.
5. Enter your business name and contact information, and tap “Next” to continue.
6. If you already have an Instagram or YouTube page for your business, you can link them to your TikTok account. If not, you can skip this step and enter your information manually.
7. Review the terms and conditions and tap “Submit” to complete the setup process.

Once your business account is set up, you can start creating and sharing videos on TikTok to engage with your audience and promote your business. Adhere to TikTok’s community guidelines and best practices to ensure your marketing efforts are successful.

Tiktok Commercial Audio Library

In addition to setting up a business account, there are a few other things to keep in mind if you want to use TikTok for your business. One important consideration is the use of music in your videos. TikTok is known for its use of popular and viral music, but not all of this music is available for commercial use. This means that if you use copyrighted music in your TikTok videos without permission, you could face legal consequences.

To avoid this issue, you can access TikTok’s Commercial Audio Library when creating your videos. This library includes a selection of songs and audio clips that are licensed for business use, so you can use them in your TikTok videos without worrying about copyright infringement. To access the Commercial Audio Library, follow these steps:

1. Open the TikTok app and tap on the “+” icon in the bottom-right corner to create a new video.
2. Before you start filming, tap on the “Music” icon at the bottom of the screen to access the music library.
3. In the music library, tap on the “Commercial” tab to view the available songs and audio clips licensed for business use.
4. Select the song or audio clip you want to use, and then start filming your video.
5. When you are finished, edit and share your video as usual.

By using the Commercial Audio Library, you can ensure that your TikTok videos are in compliance with copyright laws and avoid any potential legal issues. This will help to ensure the success of your TikTok marketing efforts and allow you to focus on creating engaging content for your audience.

TikTok Commercial Audio Library

Tips for creating engaging content on TikTok

One of the keys to success on TikTok is creating engaging content that resonates with your audience. There are a few ways to do this.

First, try incorporating popular trends and songs into your videos. TikTok is known for its rapidly-evolving trends and memes, and users often create videos that are set to popular songs or incorporate popular dance moves and challenges. However, as mentioned above, not all popular songs will be available to businesses in TikTok’s Commercial Audio Library, so it’s important to choose popular and licensed tracks. By incorporating these trends and songs into your videos, you can make your content more relevant and engaging to viewers.

Another way to create engaging content is by partnering with influencers. TikTok has a large and active community of influencers who have built up a following on the platform. By partnering with these influencers, you can tap into their audience and reach a wider group of potential customers. This can be a particularly effective strategy for businesses in the travel and lifestyle industries, as influencers can help promote your products and experiences to their followers.

Finally, you can utilize TikTok’s unique features to make your content stand out. For example, the “For You” page is a curated feed of videos that are personalized for each user based on their interests and activity on the platform.

By creating interesting and engaging content, you can increase the chances that your videos will be shown on the “For You” page, which can help you reach a wider audience. Additionally, using hashtags can help make your content more discoverable on the platform, as users can search for and find videos using specific hashtags. By utilizing these features, you can help your content stand out and reach a larger audience on TikTok.

Utilizing TikTok’s e-commerce capabilities for businesses

TikTok has several e-commerce capabilities that can help businesses sell their products and services directly on the platform.

One of TikTok’s e-commerce capabilities is the use of shoppable stickers. These stickers, which are attached to videos, can be clicked on to reveal more information about a product or service and can even be used to directly purchase the item. This can be particularly useful for businesses in the travel and lifestyle industries, as it allows them to showcase their products and experiences in a visual and engaging way.

Another e-commerce capability offered by TikTok is the TikTok For Business platform. This platform allows businesses to create and manage e-commerce campaigns on the platform. It provides access to analytics and other tools to help companies track their campaigns’ success. This can be particularly useful for businesses in the travel and lifestyle industries, as it allows them to target their campaigns to specific audiences and track their performance in real time.

Examples of successful businesses using these e-commerce capabilities on TikTok include Airbnb and Intrepid Travel. These companies have used shoppable stickers and the TikTok For Business platform to showcase their products and experiences and have seen success in driving sales and engagement on the platform. By utilizing these e-commerce capabilities, businesses in the travel and lifestyle industries can increase their visibility and sales on TikTok.

Measuring the success of your TikTok marketing efforts

Measuring the success of your TikTok marketing efforts is essential for determining what is working and what isn’t and for making adjustments as needed. There are a few key metrics that you should track to measure the success of your TikTok marketing efforts.

Firstly, you should track the number of views your videos receive. This will give you an indication of how many people are seeing your content and can help you understand which types of videos are the most popular with your audience.

Secondly, you should track the number of likes and comments your videos receive. This can provide insight into how engaged your audience is with your content and help you understand what they like and don’t like.

Thirdly, you should track the number of followers you have on TikTok. This will give you an indication of how quickly your audience is growing and can help you understand the effectiveness of your content and engagement strategy.

In addition to these metrics, if you are utilizing TikTok’s e-commerce capabilities, you should also track the success of your e-commerce activities. This can include metrics such as the number of clicks on shoppable stickers, the number of purchases made through the TikTok For Business platform, and the overall revenue generated through e-commerce on the platform.

By regularly reviewing and tracking these metrics, you can gain a better understanding of how your TikTok marketing efforts are performing and make adjustments as needed. This can help you improve the effectiveness of your TikTok marketing and drive more success for your business, including through e-commerce activities on the platform.

TikTok for Business: Ad Metrics.

Takeaways

TikTok is a popular and effective marketing tool for businesses of all sizes. By setting up a business account, creating engaging content, and utilizing TikTok’s unique features, including e-commerce capabilities, companies can connect with their audience and promote their products or services. Additionally, by tracking metrics and making adjustments as needed, companies can optimize their TikTok marketing strategy and achieve their goals.