How to use TikTok to promote your business in front of a wide audience

Social Media Network Usage

The latest statistics show that more than half of the global population uses social networks (58.4%).

With over 16.79 million individuals in Romania having internet access, it's no surprise that social media usage is on the rise. Connecting with friends and family, staying abreast of the latest local, national and global news, and documenting various topics of interest are just a few of the reasons for this trend.

Moreover, the convenience and relaxation offered by consuming online content, particularly short videos, is driving the massive growth of social media networks. The most popular social network in Europe, Facebook, is being utilized by 9.9 million active users in Romania.

TikTok is quickly making its mark.

According to figures released by ByteDance's advertising resources, TikTok boasted a staggering 6.37 million users aged 18 and over in Romania at the start of 2022. It's worth noting that this figure may be significantly higher if accounts belonging to users under 18 are taken into consideration.

While the majority of TikTok's user base is comprised of individuals under 35 years of age, the platform has seen a growing presence from the 35+ age group, who are drawn in by the engaging and interactive video content.

When it comes to TikTok, one typically thinks of short-form video content that ranges from original dances, musical covers, lip-syncs, comedy skits, challenges, impersonations, and more. This dynamic and diverse content keeps users coming back for more and has solidified TikTok's position as a go-to destination for online entertainment.

However, as the range of content creators and consumers has expanded, the platform has also begun to be populated with educational and informative videos on a wide variety of topics.

How to use TikTok for your business benefit

Thus, there are plenty of opportunities for brands to connect with their target audience on a personal level through entertainment content. 

TikTok is a combination of fun and creativity. Creating your own content is one of the easiest and least expensive ways to promote your business on TikTok.

To get started, study the platform so you can familiarise yourself with the type of content that works best on TikTok and how to interact with other users.

The last thing you want to do is join a social media platform and look like you don't know what you're doing.

The first step is to create a communication strategy on TikTok.

Identify your target audience

Is your ideal customer's avatar active on TikTok? To what extent does your brand's target market overlap with TikTok users? Or is there a new audience you can reach through this platform?

Decide when and what time you post

One of the most important strategies for any social media platform - not just TikTok - is to pay close attention to your audience's usage behaviour: what time they're online and what days of the week they use TikTok the most.

To find out when your audience is most active on the app, check your company or creator account analytics.

From the profile page, tap the three-dot icon at the top right of the screen. Tap Business Suite, then Analytics.

Set up communication pillars

What do you want to convey through the content you publish on TikTok?

A content calendar provides plenty of time for creative output. Look for opportunities to capitalize on holidays, events, trends, and key information about your business, or develop themes or series that can guide your creativity in creating engaging videos.

Use strategic hashtags

TikTok hashtags will help your content get discovered through search and help the TikTok algorithm identify what kind of topics your account covers.

Create a visual identity in tune with your brand

For your feed to look flawless, it is necessary that all clip covers contain the same colour palette, and the same 2-3 fonts - derived from the underlying brand book. The visual unity on TikTok will help the user to recognize the brand more quickly when watching a clip and identify the brand more easily outside the TikTok channel.

Set the goal of communication on TikTok

Objectives can be derived from business objectives. Think about how TikTok can help you achieve them. Try to apply the SMART framework to ensure that your objectives are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and timely.

Implement TikTok Ads 

There are a few types of ads you can use on TikTok to maximize reach and get conversions:

·      In-stream ads: these are ads that appear as full-screen videos between a user's scrolling activity. In-stream ads can last as little as 60 seconds and can link to the brand page featured in the ad or the app being promoted.

·      Brand Previews: These are ads, which appear as soon as users open the TikTok app. Brand takeover ads can be 3-second photos or 3.5-second videos and are more expensive than in-stream ads. Only one advertiser can run one brand takeover ad per day, taking up the entire share of voice for that category, and it also comes at a high price.

·      TopView ads: These ads are enhanced versions of brand takeover and are naturally more expensive. These videos can be 5-60 seconds long and users can interact with them by liking, commenting and sharing.

Collaborate with influencers

Collaborating with influencers can help you attract new audiences and build a credible brand image by connecting with someone they trust.

Find the right influencers to work with - influencers who are on the same wavelength as what your brand wants to convey.

You also need to consider whether they are well-known or lesser-known influencers. Indeed, known influencers offer more reach, but their price is also commensurate. Lesser influencers are more accessible and, while they offer less reach, have a loyal and highly engaged audience.

Keep your goals clear. Partnering with influencers without clear goals can be a waste of resources for both parties. You need to know exactly what you're hoping to get out of this collaboration and communicate it to the influencer so they know how and what to communicate about your brand.

The second step is to create unique, fun and relevant content

Choose trending sounds and effects

TikTok is all about taking your social videos to the next level and getting noticed with catchy, on-trend music and creative effects.

You can add a sound before or after recording your video and also to previously recorded videos.

As well as adding sounds to your videos, you can also access a host of video editing features from the recording screen.

The length of videos is essential

Although TikTok allows you to upload videos up to 10 minutes long, it is recommended that the average length is under a minute. Since the attention span has dropped to 2-3 seconds, you need to grab attention quickly and not bore your audience with long material. It is advisable to add text on the first 2 frames to inform the user what the clip is about and to grab their attention quickly.

Take advantage of the duet/stitch function

Allows users to use videos posted to your account to create duets or splice videos with their own videos to create unique or responsive content. It's also a good idea to use this tactic to connect with accounts with large audiences for extra visibility.

Share user-generated content on TikTok about your brand  

It's no secret that brands love user-generated content (UGC). For some industries, such as B2C, it's the easiest (and sometimes least expensive) way to share high-performing content.

UGC is content that users create for your brand.

You can share or repost this content on your own social media profiles, in different ways, of course, by asking their permission.

 Create a TikTok challenge

These have extreme viral potential, everyone wants to try them and they are extremely entertaining videos

Before you start a challenge, you need to know why you're doing it in the first place.

·      What are your goals?

·      Do you want to increase brand awareness?

·      Do you want to increase sales for a new product?

·      Do you want to promote an upcoming event?

Instructional videos and tutorials are always popular

Whether it's a fitness video, a cooking demonstration, tips on investing, opening a business, how to create a product from scratch or even curiosities that can only be applied with experience, such as pulling a dick, analysing a law, creating a website, audiences tend to watch this kind of content carefully.

Show your expertise in your field or reveal some relevant behind-the-scenes information about your business to grab attention.

The third step is the analysis of performance indicators to optimise the strategy.

Once you've been playing with TikTok for a while, it's important to take an objective look at how things are going. What are your reach and engagement metrics?

Who is following your account and actually interacting with your content? How many views are you getting from your published content? How many people clicked on the link in your bio?

Analytics takes the guesswork out of content strategy: it shows what works and what doesn't. The analytics tool in TikTok's platform can show you some really interesting metrics to help you strategically plan your next videos.

Keep in mind that authenticity, entertainment, excitement and education are the characteristics of a video with the potential to go viral on TikTok and give your brand visibility.

If you don't have experience managing a social media channel or have no experience creating relevant content for TikTok, the newest trending platform, you can confidently turn to digital marketing specialists to quickly get the results you want.

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Lighthouse PR, based in Bucharest, and its management team sit on the EU SME Development board and the CMO Council. It is also a valued member of the prestigious Crisis Communication Network Europe.  It is the only member in Romania and SEE, with network offices in 14 countries across the EU.