TikTok perseveres with its eCommerce integration push with the introduction of new shopping ads, which will provide brands with more ways to promote their products in-stream. As TikTok explains:
“Shopping Ads is a simpler, smarter, and more advanced ad solution that helps brands meet shoppers wherever they are in the purchase journey, sparking demand and boosting sales. It’s a three-in-one solution with new formats to adopt and combine: Video Shopping Ads, Catalog Listing Ads, and LIVE Shopping Ads.”
Still Gunning For It
Based on the samples provided, the new formats will showcase product details overlaid on-screen, better highlighting your items to viewers. It’s anything but new – TikTok has offered the same options for years through Douyin. In-stream commerce has become Douyin’s biggest earner, with love shopping exploding as a trend among Chinese web users.
Live shopping hasn’t seen the same uptake in Western markets yet, but TikTok’s hoping that it can still be a thing, which, if it does, will provide it with another means to help creators generate direct revenue for their TikTok efforts and expand their business ecosystem. However, the chances of live shopping seeing a similar response aren’t great, Meta recently scaled back its eCommerce experiments due to lack of user interest, while TikTok also had to reassess its European eCommerce plans after a poor initial response. That’s not to say that it won’t eventually take hold, but initial indicators suggest that Western users are potentially warier of such options – that and they don’t necessarily see TikTok as more than an entertainment platform.
Still, TikTok remains confident, with its own data showing that users are interested in more in-stream buying options:
- 56% of TikTok users say that ads on TikTok led them to discover new products or brands.
- 48% are interested in making a purchase on or from TikTok in the next 3 months.
- 70% of TikTok users say that it’s easy to purchase through a TikTok shopping-related ad they saw.
In one way or another, you can expect TikTok to explore every opportunity, which also presents new ways for brands to reach consumers, potentially adding another valuable consideration for your holiday marketing push.
The Wrap
While some of these elements are still in limited testing, users can at least get in touch with TikTok’s newest approved shopping partners if ever they have questions and concerns. TikTok’s new shopping ads are also now available in the app. TikTok has even shared an overview of how you can implement Shopping ads, with merchants that are already using approved eCommerce platforms able to skip these first few steps.
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