TikTok Ads - Are They Relevant?

et’s face it, advertisers! Short-form videos are now our reality, and where better to advertise than on TikTok – the king of short-form videos?

Since advertising tools have been introduced into the social media landscape, we have become used to a specific advertising method. We simply created an eye-catching image or video with a persuasive copy and then distributed it to the right audience. Indeed, it was straightforward, but the truth is, we were just hoping for the best.

Let’s face it - do you even remember how the world used to look before social media, or even before technology? A world where all you could have done was go to the library to get the information needed. Where the only social platform was in real life, and if you wanted to know what your friends were doing, you would have to call and check on them. Imagine the awkward phone calls when you would call the person that you like, and they only had a home line, so one of the parents would have answered.

Regardless, this worked out fine. At least until TikTok came and revolutionized the way we consume content.

Long are the days when the memes or the cute animals content were in the form of photos or even long-form videos. Do you remember watching content creators vlogging about their day? Or do you remember when we were going on YouTube, and we would watch 10-minute videos of a compilation of funny videos? Exactly. This is how we used to get our daily dose of entertainment.

Now, this trend is the same but completely different at the same time. With the emergence of TikTok, we were suddenly hooked on watching a 15 to 60-second video. But it makes sense! After all, it’s much more expressive than a static photo and less time and energy-consuming. And we could do just as many things as possible – whether it was dancing, pranks, just venting in front of our camera, or even small daily vlogs.

But you might be thinking – “Wait, wasn’t Vine the one who came up with this concept?”. Well yes. TikTok isn’t the first platform to introduce videos in a short form. But it was the platform that actually succeeded in staying competitive against other sharks coming at their throats, and they even went above and beyond their competitors’ features. In fact, it was this Adobe and beyond that made users so drawn to this app and created an environment where people would come back for more. Why is that?

It’s easy – TikTok’s unique algorithm! We no longer have to personally look for the content we like – the content finds us!

The shortening of the videos greatly impacted why we embraced TikTok. However, it could understand what type of videos we like, recognize what we might like, and what makes us continue to scroll endlessly. But guess what?

This is advertisers’ mine of gold as it allows them to go directly to the source and let the algorithm do the work for them.

But as advertisers, not only do we have to tailor our ads to specific demographics and interests, but we also must understand what type of content our audience wants to see. It’s not enough to just present our products with pretty colors and catchy headlines. It’s about creating videos and series that are emotionally and personally compelling enough to make a connection with our audience and keep them hooked. Just like storytelling!

But trust me, this will guarantee a lot more traffic on your website rather than a typical ad. Because everyone loves stories. Everyone loves relating to the story of another person. And this can not be done in any other place other than TikTok (and Instagram, as they have implemented Reels as well).

You might be thinking that “TikTok is only for Gen Z and sometimes Millennials, so there’s no point if my audience is above that age”.

Ever since TikTok was released, there has been a stigma as it’s thought to be “an app for Gen Z”. But believe it or not, this is far from the truth. Indeed, this category of people is predominant because, let’s face it – they are the ones with the most access to social media and phones overall.

However, they only account for 41% of the users. So the rest of 59% is composed of users from the rest of the generations. From Millennials to Generation X, and even Baby Boomers! Yes, even my grandfather has a TikTok account that he actually uses religiously. There is content for everyone – even for my grandfather, and we must acknowledge that despite everything, out of all these users, all of them have become drawn to this app as a means of escaping reality.

So, even if it might seem that TikTok might not be a good solution when it comes to older generations, I’m here to tell you otherwise. Regardless of your audience’s age, if you plan on developing a marketing strategy, TikTok could be the platform that saves you.

But what makes TikTok ads so relevant is not necessarily who we are targeting but instead how we present them.

When thinking about social media ads, immediately, we’re thinking about those posts on our in-feed. However, TikTok offers us a lot more possibilities than the traditional means of online advertising.

Indeed, in-feed advertising could be an excellent option for your business. After all, it’s what we’re used to and what has been working for a long time. This will never go away. Be honest – how many times did it ever happen to be scrolling through TikTok and just see an ad? For me, I think it’s every 3 videos, and an ad just pops up.

But you need to be careful with this! Our audience is on TikTok as a source of entertainment, so we only have a couple of seconds to catch our audience’s attention before they scroll through. Unfortunately, it’s considered to be quite challenging to achieve the results that we want, especially if we have a low budget.

However, if you plan on elevating your in-feed ads, introducing influencers into your ads might be your route to success. In fact, CeraVe partnered with various TikTok creators, both international and nationwide to promote their products. I can’t count the number of times Camila Cabello showed up on my FYP talking about her CeraVe skincare routine. And I’m going, to be honest – this really did catch my eye.

You are the only one able to answer the question, “Are TikTok ads relevant?” – but from our experience, this has been one of the most effective and efficient ways of getting to people. Let’s face it – everyone is on TikTok now, and it’s become part of everyone’s routine. So why not give it a try?