5 WINNING TIKTOK INSIGHTS TO LEARN FROM TODAY
Did you know we have created over 1,000 branded TikToks!? 🤯 It’s safe to say we’ve learned a thing or two about what it takes to make a successful branded TikTok video.
As subject matter experts, we’re not ones to gatekeep. So, without further ado, here are five of the most insightful things that we’ve learned from creating more than 1,000 TikToks for our clients over the past three years.
1. Entertainment comes first, the product comes second.
People open TikTok when they’re looking for an entertaining escape. You must acknowledge that intention to make your branded TikTok compelling and impactful.
A great example of this is when we partnered with Nerf to celebrate the launch of their new Hyper blasters. Instead of a traditional influencer campaign, we did things a little differently by putting entertainment at the forefront. Enter, #NerfHyperTourney.
#NerfHyperTourney was TikTok’s first-ever interactive Nerf battle. By bringing on a handful of influencers as “team captains” and engaging Nerf super fans to participate in a series of challenges over the course of three months, we showed all the incredible product specs in action. This allowed us to champion entertainment over just your average product haul.
And the results spoke for themselves! Nerf saw a 348% increase in followers on the @nerf TikTok handle due to the tourney.
2. Don’t just participate in a trend for the sake of participating. Participate in trends that make sense for your brand and your brand’s story.
Participating in trends can be an amazing way to get exposure for your brand, and a lot of brands take this approach! That being said, when creating content, look for trends that your brand can put its own unique spin on. When you create pieces of content that are personal, memorable, and ownable for the brand, they'll resonate with your audience.
Not every trend will be a perfect fit for your brand, and that’s okay. For instance, dance trends are probably not the best choice for a skincare brand to hop on, fashion-focused trends wouldn’t likely work for a food/beverage brand, and so on. Trends that focus on TikTok smiles (like this one) would be a great choice for an oral care brand and not so great for a footwear brand.
TikTokers are smart and they can easily tell when brands are trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. If your brand can find an easy and authentic way in for a current trend, go for it, but if your brand can’t, then all good. Skip it this time and wait for the next hot trend. Trends come and go every day, and you’ll be able to participate in relevant trends more often than you may think.
3. Place key information or a strong hook in the first 3 seconds of your video.
Sharing key information at the beginning of your video is the secret to getting people to watch your TikTok in full. Think about those TikToks you see that start with something along the lines of “ALL of my breakouts disappeared after using this one product.” Makes you want to keep watching to learn about which product they’re talking about, right?
When your brand kicks off your videos with a fun hook to draw viewers in, users will immediately understand what the purpose of the video is, encouraging them to stick around until the end (or at least long enough for you to communicate your message) . A good hook goes a long way!
The attention span of TikTok users is shrinking day-by-day. When a brand only has mere seconds to catch someone’s attention while they’re scrolling on their For You Page, it’s pivotal that the key information is right at the top of the video.
4. Throw your TV-editing style out the window.
Fancy and polished editing may work well for your TV spots, but we’ve seen far less engagement on posts that lean into a production style that is too crisp. Raw and unpolished editing techniques run the show on TikTok.
And we get it, this can be a scary territory to venture into if you’re a brand that isn’t used to this new wave of content production. You might need to write a new chapter of your brand book to keep up with the speed of internet culture!
Here are some of our favorite examples of TikToks we’ve made that illustrate the Lo-Fi editing style:
5. If it’s safe, it won’t be cool.
Content that is safe typically doesn’t stand out to viewers. It’s seen for a moment before being lost in the endless scroll. The challenge is to create content that isn’t safe (we’re talking riskier and edgier, not dangerous!) but is still relevant to your brand and engaging to your target audience.
For example, unbeknownst to the brand team (and Movers+Shakers!), e.l.f. Cosmetics was running simple, cut & paste spark ads on TikTok that users quickly took note of as it was so out of character for e.l.f. The comment section went wild. And of course, e.l.f. had to jump in on the joke and made a few videos making fun of themselves as well, and the people loved it. By being SO self-aware and making their tone & voice widely known across the TikTok platform, it made sense for them to take the risk, be a little self-deprecating and in turn, they actually made their fans love them even more!
Having this sense of self-awareness and poking fun at your own ad and/or brand can be scary, but it humanizes your brand in a way that resonates strongly with Gen Z.
The future of TikTok
Modern TikTok marketing is here to stay, so be sure to check out our other blog posts and upcoming webinars to learn more! We’ll be sure to share our findings from the next 1,000 branded TikToks we create!
