What an interesting time to be alive! Just when we thought Google had won the dominance race hands down, TikTok proved us wrong and surpassed "almighty" Google as the world's most popular search engine. Interestingly, it only took TikTok 6 years to end what seemed like an enduring dominance.
According to Cloudflare's 2021 ranking, TikTok dethroned Google in February, March, and June and has held the top spot since August 2021. The truth is that this groundbreaking achievement comes as no surprise. TikTok's rise has been consistent since it was launched.
Why B2B organisations should take advantage of the TikTok's Rise
In 2017, a year after its launch, TikTok had only 130 million downloads. This figure rose to 750 million (2018), 1.5 billion (2019), 2.6 billion (2020) and 3 billion (2021). Of the 3 billion downloads, 1 billion people are active users, which means TikTok penetrates almost a third of all social media users worldwide. Which means chances are, your audience is on the app.
It’s probably a good idea for organisations that are yet to join the TikTok train to find a way to blend TikTok into their overall brand-building strategy.
Given that TikTok is the most engaging social media app right now, with an average session length of 10.85 minutes, there's no reason to disregard TikTok anymore. Also, with the rate at which it is overtaking competition and its massive market penetration, you'd be leaving money on the table by not promoting your brand with it.
Let's look at how brands can leverage TikTok for business growth.
This vs That: Three ways to approach TikTok as a Brand
TikTok represents different things to different people. What you see is determined by how you use it. The results may also differ based on the intent and approach. Still, everyone has a fair chance to succeed with it, including Business-to-Business (B2B) brands and Not-For-Profit (NFP) organisations.
Here are three ways your organisation can approach TikTok.
1. Campaign vs Always On
- Campaign
TikTok has established itself as one of the leading social ad channels in the last six years, allowing brands to connect with its large, engaged, and passionate audience. This amazing app allows you to connect to a large community by creating your own campaigns or connecting with other people's campaigns. People often set up hashtag challenges, allowing them to get found easily.
- Always on
To keep your audiences engaged, you must maintain a constant presence, an "always-on" strategy where you combine paid promotions, organic content, and creator partnerships. The advantage of this strategy is that it is comprehensive; it allows you to grow and connect with the larger TikTok community while also driving business results.
2. Paid vs Organic
- Paid
One way to quickly penetrate your audience base is through the use of paid advertising. This method helps you reach your target audience faster and more effectively because you can choose your objective, define your audience, and select your ad placement. With this strategy, your ad budget is almost directly proportional to your results, so you should ensure top-notch ad content for a better outcome.
- Organic
Building your audience organically may be slow, but it definitely has its own advantages. It helps you connect better with your audience through educational and entertaining content. With organic content creation, you could form a brand community of your own and show your creative side while speaking directly to your audience.
3. Channel-first vs Content-first
- Channel-first
The channel-first approach is when your channel determines or inspires the type of content you will create. You don't need to already have a content idea; your channel is the starting point in planning your content strategy. This strategy gives you some flexibility, as you can create content on the go using the parameters you built for your channel..
- Content-first
A content-first approach entails creating excellent content then deciding how to best deliver it to your target audience. This will assist you in tailoring your content appropriately by ensuring that you are focused on creating effective content that will better engage your audience.
Wrapping up
TikTok has seen consistent growth, and there are no signs of it stopping any time soon. No doubt, the rise of TikTok has been a blessing to businesses that are leveraging the cult-like followership of the platform's users.
It also gives room for B2B brands that are dynamic enough to carve a niche for themselves, likewise non-profit organisations. People are more interested in seeing what you do physically to connect with you, so it's a good avenue to showcase your offerings.
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