A billion users? Wow! Average time spent on TikTok is nearly an hour a day? Great! We love us a trend, but we should be clear with our goals and who we’re trying to reach – looking critically at our marketing channels and deciding if they’re a fit.
This list largely goes for any social media platform by the way…
1. Your target audience isn't there
This is the no-brainer. You’ve maybe got an amazing idea for a coordinated staff dance that you swear will go viral. They’ll look like Diversity, but in uniform, yes? But what’s the point if your target audience is not there to see it?
2. You can't commit to content creation
Is this going to be a new exciting route to market… or yet another channel that you post on a handful of times and then ignore? If there’s just one enthusiast in the team – are they committed to producing all of the content for that channel? What happens if they leave?
3. Sales matters more than brand awareness
TikTok is good for brand awareness – for some markets – but because the platform’s set up for entertaining content, this doesn’t sit well with a big sales push. Trying too hard on the sales front will push away followers and could even turn off existing customers.
4. Your brand guidelines are law
There’s a certain style to a good TikTok video, and you need to understand this before jumping in. Of course you make your channel your own, but to do well, the style of video and music you’ll have to embrace might not sit right with your brand guidelines. We know the word is a bit overdone these days, but TikTok works best when people are being authentic – difficult to do if your staff need to behave in a certain way to be on-brand.
5. You're not that creative
We’re not judging – that’s what we’re here for and you do what you do best. But TikTok requires constant creativity to work – again, in a non-salesy way. TikTok is all about jumping on the trends with agility – thinking quickly and creatively in the context of your brand to make the most of it before it moves on.
6. You post the same content across platforms
What’s good for Facebook is not transferable to TikTok. While we do understand, for example, why some small businesses post directly from Instagram to Facebook without tweaking it, it’s not best practice – and it’s an indication that you don’t have the resources to manage another channel.
7. You're already spreading your efforts too thinly
Rather than adding yet another channel to your marketing mix with a handful of followers and a smattering of likes on your four posts, you should really concentrate on the channel or channels you know convert for you. Make sure you’re measuring this.
8. But my competitor is doing it
So what? You need to confident that this is a channel that is not only somewhere your target audience hangs out and will engage with you, but that you can consistently resource the content provision. We’ll bang this drum until we die – you are not your competitor. Observe what they do, yes, but then put it in the context of your own brand and customers.
9. Their user data and privacy handling isn't the best
Your brand aside, TikTok has been banned in several countries over security concerns. Consider this before investing time and resources into it.
10. Does it align with my business goals?
Ah, well, this is the bottom line. Does it align with your business goals? Well… does it?
And why should you be on TikTok? We recommend it for some B2C clients, if it passes the tests above. It’s the go-to platform for young people, you can potentially reach a bigger audience, and it’s great if you’re a brand who works with influencers. But you won’t find us on there anytime soon.