Advertising in TikTok: everything you need to know

How to incorporate one of the most popular social networks into your advertising strategy

If your business hasn't yet taken advantage of the benefits of popular advertising on TikTok, it's about time.

In a world where social media plays a central role in companies' marketing strategies, TikTok is establishing itself as one of the most influential platforms for advertising and brand positioning.

💡 O ver 38% of Bulgarians use TikTok, and the total number of active users worldwide reaches over 1 billion monthly.

TikTok provides unique opportunities for businesses in a variety of niches. In our guide to advertising on TikTok, we'll cover the basic principles, strategies and practices that will help you turn your creativity into real business results.

💡 Speaking of TikTok advertising, it is important to note that it can be of two types:

• organic content;
• paid content.

The difference between the two is not that big, apart from the mechanism by which it is displayed to users.

In the first case, they see videos in their feed of creators and brands they follow.

In the second - the videos are shown in different places on the platform among the organic content, and who will see them and how often depends on the targeting options chosen and the budget.

Why is TikTok advertising useful for businesses?

In addition to the huge user base, TikTok provides other benefits to businesses choosing to advertise there.

✅ Access to active young users

About 60% of TikTok users are Gen Z, and they spend over 1.5 hours a day consuming content on the platform. If your perfect customer is part of this demographic, you shouldn't miss the opportunity to advertise on TikTok.

✅ High commitment

Short video formats and user-generated content encourage active user participation and pique their interest. This increases the visibility, impact and credibility of advertising messages.

✅ Creative possibilities

The platform offers a variety of advertising formats, which will be discussed shortly. Some of these are embedded ads, hashtag challenges, branded effects, filters, and more. These formats give businesses incredible room for creativity and the opportunity to create unique and memorable campaigns.

✅ Targeting and personalization

TikTok offers advanced targeting options that allow businesses to reach specific audiences based on demographics, interests and behaviors. This improves ad performance and increases the chances of conversion.

✅ Real opportunity for 'viral' content

One of TikTok's strongest assets is the potential for your content to reach millions of people. By doing so, you increase your brand visibility and recognition, and this has an impact on gaining an interested audience and converting them into customers.

✅ Building brand identity and trust

As a platform that promotes authentic and entertaining content, TikTok helps businesses build a more personal relationship with consumers. The reason - the platform is an influencer and UGCer's paradise.

And as we already know, the content they create gets attention and works best for increasing new customers, orders and the overall reach of your advertising messages.

But wait a minute... Is there even an ad in Tiktok for Bulgaria?

The short answer is yes.

The long one is that the options are two:

• sponsoring organic content;
• advertising campaigns with partner companies.

In the first case, you give a little extra power to one of your posted videos so that more people see it. Top to bottom, that's how sponsored posts work on Facebook.

In the second case, you create an ad from scratch that can appear in various places on the platform (more on these in a moment). You need an advertising account for this, but the catch here is that in order to target users in Bulgaria, this account needs to be approved by TikTok.

Since it takes time to do it yourself, and the result is uncertain, you can take advantage of a similar service offered by some TikTok partner companies.

And they can be the following...

Main types of advertising in TikTok

✨ In-Feed Ads

These are video ads that appear on users' feeds as they browse content on the platform. These ads can include links to external websites or to the app you want to promote.

Enable an integrated user experience as they appear as part of the organic content. They are suitable for increasing traffic to a website or app.

✨ Brand Takeover

This type of ad is a full-screen image or video that appears immediately when you open the app. Brand Takeover ads can include internal or external links.

They are short (between 3 and 5 seconds) but extremely effective as users see them as soon as they open the app.

✨ TopView Ads

These ads appear as the first video in the users feed. Their maximum duration is up to 60 seconds.

The longer duration makes them excellent for story telling or product launches.

✨ Branded Hashtag Challenge

Businesses create a hashtag and challenge users to record videos of themselves doing something about it. This encourages active participation and engagement from users as they become part of a movement united around the hashtag.

The huge amount of organic content generated increases brand recognition and contributes to building a positive image. It's fun and useful for everyone involved.

✨ Branded Effects

These are specially created filters, stickers or effects that users can use in their videos. It's a unique way to interact with users that encourages creativity and fun.

✨ Video Shopping Ads

They are a representation of products that users can browse and order directly from the ad without leaving the app. They usually consist of a video followed by product images.

How to create a TikTok ad in 7 easy steps?

👉 Step 1: Create an account in TikTok Ads Manager

Click here and enter your email address and password. Following is basic information about your business such as location, time zone, preferred currency, your official company name and the industry in which your business operates.

👉 Step 2: Create and install TikTok Pixel

The TikTok Pixel looks a lot like the Meta Pixel we've talked about before (link). It's code that is placed on your website to collect information about actions taken by users, and then returns it to the platform.

• Open TikTok Ads Manager -> Assets -> Event.
• From "Web Events" select "Manage".
• Select "Set Up Web Events".
• Select "TikTok Pixel" as the connection method.

You need to name your pixel and set the actions to be measured.

To install the pixel on your website, add the code in the header or use a plugin for the appropriate platform.

👉 Step 3: Payment details

Here you enter information about the means of payment, company address, tax information (VAT number). You can choose whether you want the payments to be manual or automatic, but if you opt for the latter, note that you will not be able to go back to the first choice afterwards.

👉 Step 4: Create a campaign

The structure of ads in TikTok is similar to that in Meta Ads Manager - there are three levels.

The first level is a campaign, the second is an ad group, and the third is advertising.

When you create your campaign, you first need to choose its purpose.

The objectives of TikTok advertising can be:

• increase traffic to your website;
• reaching more users;
• more views of your videos;
• downloads of your app;
• generation of leads;
• sales, etc.

👉 Step 5: Choose an audience

TikTok Ads Manager offers various targeting options by location, demographics, interests, behavior and device used.

There is also the option of broad targeting, where you trust the TickTok algorithm to find the most relevant users for your ad.

👉 Step 6: Budget and schedule

Choose whether you'll spend a certain amount per day on your ad, or if you want to set a budget for the entire period it will be active.

Here you can choose from when to when your ad will run and also whether to show it at any time of the day or at certain times.

👉 Step 7: The Moment of Creativity

Upload your pre-prepared materials, preferably in video format, write your call to action, decide where your ad should lead according to the possibilities your chosen format offers. And watch the magic happen.

Good practices for TikTok advertising

⭐️ Use relevant content

For both posts and ads on TikTok, UGC content where you show how a product/service you are advertising is used is honored. These types of videos are effective because they create trust and a sense of authenticity in the user, and they have both informational and educational value.

Use editing techniques such as text over video, voiceovers, emojis and other platform-specific effects.

⭐️ Change the creative of your ads often

To prevent users from getting tired of looking at the same thing, which at some point could lead to lower metrics, TikTok advises changing the creep every seven days.

There is also the option to automate this process with tools like Smart Creative or Smart Video.

⭐️ Don't forget the hook

The first few seconds are the most important to keep the user's attention, which is why the so-called "hook" is a crucial element of any video creation. This is the message that provokes curiosity and makes the user stop right at your content.

Communicate benefits, solutions, surprises and emotions to engage people, but don't issue everything at once so they keep watching.

⭐️ Choose the right time

That means knowing both when your users are online and keeping up with global trends and hot topics.

At the right time, your ad can generate great results if users are engaged in a specific topic or have a problem that you offer a solution to.

⭐️ Use hashtags

They make it easier for users to find you. Check out the popular hashtags on the TikTok discovery page and choose the relevant ones for your business.

⭐️ Partner with influencers

This way you can increase the reach of your ads by reaching their audience. In the TikTok Creator Marketplace, you can find influencers who use your products or are in your target group.

⭐️ Test and optimize

Keep track of important metrics like Reach, Views, CTR, Conversions, ROI to assess how your ad is doing and what steps you need to take.

In time, you'll find the right formula for your business, and if you don't feel like waiting, you can always ask for help from professionals who have online advertising in their blood.

Our ADvantage team is always on hand to do the impossible to increase sales/queries and turnover for your business.

You can get really good results with advertising on TikTok, and the most important tip is to pay close attention to the content you post. The sea of videos on the platform is vast and to stand out you need to be genuine, helpful and entertaining.