What is TikTok and how is it used in advertising campaigns?

From a modest app born in China in 2016 for recording, editing, and sharing short videos, TikTok has become one of the most popular apps worldwide, with more than 1.690 billion active users. With such a large audience, the platform has become one of the most attractive channels for brands to run marketing and advertising campaigns. The key insights? Here they are!

The latest statistics on TikTok and its global penetration are striking: around 1.690 billion active users, 3.5 billion app downloads on mobile devices, and more than 11 million videos uploaded daily, attracting an average of 340 million people per year. Considering these figures, this social network has become a major focus for countless brands and professionals seeking to leverage its audience. And all of this in less than a decade.

What is the origin of TikTok?

Once upon a time, a Chinese company called ByteDance decided to launch a new project: a platform where users could record videos, edit them within the same app, and share them with others. It was 2016, and these were the beginnings of TikTok, now the fourth most used social network in terms of registered users, after Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

It was initially launched as Douyin and operated exclusively in China. After its success in this market, the company decided to expand. In 2018, after acquiring musical.ly and merging it with its platform, it began its international expansion under the name TikTok. The results proved ByteDance right: in just a few months, TikTok became the most downloaded app in the United States.

How does TikTok work? Key aspects of its algorithm

The platform’s dynamics are simple and intuitive, and it has successfully connected with a particularly young audience. This is how TikTok works:

• Users can record videos directly within the platform.
• They can then edit and share them, with a maximum duration of one minute.
• The app allows users to add music, filters, sounds, and other effects.
• Videos can be made public or shared only with approved followers, similar to Instagram.

The success of TikTok, according to online marketing experts, is based on three key factors:

• Anyone can create audiovisual content without prior knowledge.
• The app has continuously evolved: improvements in private messaging, voting features, friend lists, etc.
• Artificial intelligence in action: while this is now common in digital projects, TikTok is at the forefront of integrating AI, augmented reality, and other technological innovations.

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TikTok in advertising campaigns

Thanks to its huge user base, this platform has become essential for launching advertising campaigns. To make the most of TikTok in marketing and communication, it is crucial to understand the target audience on the platform. Brands that align with these profiles are achieving strong returns on their investments.

What kind of users are on the platform?

• 69% of TikTok users are under 40. Within this group, 20% are under 18, 32% are between 19 and 25, and 27% are between 30 and 40 years old.
• Women make up the majority, although the gap is gradually narrowing.
• The platform’s content is often characterized by informality and humor. Informational and testimonial content about products and services is also common, especially in tourism, beauty, and fashion.

These characteristics make TikTok advertising campaigns an increasingly important part of marketing strategies across all types of companies. The advantages are numerous:

• Connecting with a young audience that is often highly engaged and valuable.
• A powerful tool for building brand image.
• The ability to create an online community and achieve strong engagement with audiences.
• Direct communication with users.
• Working with today’s and tomorrow’s leading format: video and audiovisual content.

What is TikTok Ads and how does it work?

TikTok Ads is the advertising platform of this social network. Its operation is similar to other social networks and includes different formats of sponsored content.

This is how TikTok Ads works:

• Companies/brands create an advertising campaign.
• They define the objectives of the actions to be carried out.
• They segment the audience based on demographics, interests, and consumer behavior.
• They create ads designed to connect with the target audience.

TikTok offers different advertising formats adapted to each objective:

• Brand Takeover: full-screen videos lasting 3 to 5 seconds. It is an intrusive format, so it is more expensive.
• In-Feed: ads that appear when opening the app or among organic videos related to user interests. They last up to 15 seconds and include a call to action with an external link.
• Hashtag challenge: allows brands to launch challenges that increase visibility and promote organic engagement. This format is especially valuable for encouraging interaction with users.
• Branded filters and visual effects: featuring the brand logo or slogan. If they are attractive and widely used, they generate strong brand visibility.

These are just some examples of what TikTok can offer companies and their marketing campaigns. To explore these and other tools in the field of digital marketing, professionals can access updated content in programs such as the Master in Marketing and Commercial Management, the Master in Digital Marketing & Growth Hacking, or the Master in Consumer Behavior & Market Research at EAE Barcelona.

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