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Influencer Marketing Tactics

Influencer Marketing on TikTok: Best Practices

By October 3, 2024No Comments9 min read

TikTok has quickly emerged as one of the most influential platforms for social media marketing, particularly for brands aiming to reach younger audiences like Gen Z and Millennials. With its short-form, highly engaging video content and powerful algorithm, TikTok offers brands an opportunity to go viral and reach millions of users quickly. Influencer marketing on TikTok is especially effective because influencers create relatable, authentic content that resonates deeply with their followers.

In this guide, we’ll explore the best practices for influencer marketing on TikTok, including how to select influencers, create compelling content, and maximize campaign performance.

Why TikTok is an Ideal Platform for Influencer Marketing

TikTok’s unique format and algorithm make it a prime platform for influencer marketing. Here’s why TikTok stands out:

  • Viral Potential: TikTok’s “For You Page (FYP)” is designed to surface content based on user preferences, allowing videos to reach audiences far beyond the influencer’s followers. This means even brands with smaller budgets can achieve massive reach through viral videos.
  • Authenticity: TikTok thrives on authenticity. Influencers often create spontaneous, fun, and relatable content, which makes the platform ideal for brands seeking organic engagement and a human touch.
  • Younger Audience: TikTok is especially popular with younger audiences, particularly Gen Z and Millennials. Brands looking to target these demographics can tap into influencer partnerships to reach this active and engaged user base.
  • Creative Flexibility: TikTok’s format encourages creativity. Whether through trending challenges, dances, or comedy sketches, influencers can showcase products in a way that feels natural and entertaining to their audience.

By leveraging TikTok’s strengths, brands can build connections with their target audience in an authentic and engaging way.

1. Choose the Right TikTok Influencers

One of the most important factors in successful influencer marketing on TikTok is selecting the right influencers. Not all influencers will be a good fit for your brand, so it’s essential to choose those who align with your product, values, and target audience.

Here’s how to find the right TikTok influencers for your campaign:

  • Niche Alignment: Look for influencers who create content related to your brand’s niche. For example, if you’re a beauty brand, work with influencers who regularly post makeup tutorials, skincare routines, or beauty product reviews.
  • Audience Demographics: Make sure the influencer’s audience aligns with your target demographics, such as age, gender, and location. Tools like Upfluence and TikTok Creator Marketplace can help you analyze audience insights to ensure a good match.
  • Engagement Over Followers: While follower count is important, prioritize engagement metrics like likes, comments, and shares. High engagement indicates that the influencer’s audience is actively engaging with their content and trusting their recommendations.
  • Authenticity: Choose influencers who create authentic, relatable content. TikTok users are drawn to creators who seem genuine rather than overly polished or scripted. Authenticity builds trust and increases the likelihood of followers engaging with the content.

By focusing on influencers who align with your brand and have an engaged following, you can ensure your campaign reaches the right audience.

2. Leverage TikTok Trends and Challenges

TikTok thrives on trending challenges, sounds, and hashtags, which create opportunities for your brand to participate in viral content. Collaborating with influencers to tap into popular trends can help amplify your message and boost your campaign’s visibility.

Here’s how to leverage TikTok trends in your influencer campaigns:

  • Hashtag Challenges: Partner with influencers to create or participate in branded hashtag challenges, where users are encouraged to post videos using your product and a specific hashtag. For example, a fitness brand might launch a challenge where users show their workout routines using branded gym equipment.
  • Trending Sounds: Encourage influencers to use popular sounds or music in their videos while showcasing your product. TikTok’s algorithm tends to favor videos that incorporate trending sounds, increasing the chances of the video appearing on more users’ FYPs.
  • Duets and Stitches: Collaborate with influencers to create content that invites user interaction through duets or stitches. Duets allow users to film side-by-side with the influencer’s original video, while stitches let users incorporate clips from the influencer’s video into their own content. This creates a ripple effect, encouraging user-generated content and amplifying your brand’s reach.

Participating in trends and challenges allows your brand to feel relevant and fun, helping to generate organic engagement and increase the likelihood of your campaign going viral.

3. Encourage Creative Freedom and Authenticity

On TikTok, authenticity and creativity are key to successful content. Influencers know their audience best, so it’s important to give them the freedom to showcase your product in a way that feels natural to their style and personality.

Here’s how to encourage creative freedom while maintaining brand alignment:

  • Set Clear Goals: Provide influencers with a clear understanding of your campaign goals (e.g., brand awareness, engagement, conversions) and any key messaging you want to convey. However, avoid micromanaging the content creation process.
  • Respect Their Style: Allow influencers to maintain their unique voice and style. Overly scripted or brand-centric content can feel forced and out of place on TikTok. Let the influencer integrate your product into their content in a way that resonates with their audience.
  • Focus on Storytelling: Instead of hard-selling your product, encourage influencers to tell a story or share an experience that involves your product. Whether it’s a makeup routine, a fitness journey, or a DIY project, storytelling makes the content more engaging and relatable.

By giving influencers creative freedom, you’ll create more authentic, engaging content that feels genuine to their followers and is more likely to drive meaningful engagement.

4. Utilize TikTok Ads to Amplify Influencer Content

In addition to organic influencer content, brands can use TikTok Ads to amplify influencer-created videos and reach a larger audience. TikTok offers several ad formats that can help increase the visibility of your campaign.

Here are the key TikTok ad formats to consider:

  • In-Feed Ads: These ads appear in users’ feeds and function similarly to regular TikTok videos. You can boost influencer content as in-feed ads to reach more users outside of the influencer’s follower base.
  • Branded Hashtag Challenges: Create a branded hashtag challenge, where TikTok users are encouraged to participate by creating their own videos using your hashtag. TikTok promotes these challenges on the Discover page, helping to drive massive participation.
  • TopView Ads: These full-screen ads appear when users first open the TikTok app, offering maximum visibility for your influencer campaign. TopView ads are great for product launches or time-sensitive promotions.
  • Branded Effects: TikTok allows brands to create custom stickers, filters, or effects that users and influencers can add to their videos. Branded effects encourage user interaction and can help make your campaign more memorable.

By combining organic influencer content with TikTok’s paid ad options, you can scale your campaign and increase the chances of reaching your target audience.

5. Track Key Metrics to Measure Success

To evaluate the effectiveness of your TikTok influencer marketing campaign, it’s important to track key performance metrics and analyze how well your content resonated with the audience.

Here are the metrics to monitor:

  • Engagement: Measure likes, comments, shares, and video views to assess how well the content resonated with the influencer’s audience.
  • Reach and Impressions: Track how many unique users saw the influencer’s video and how many total impressions the video received. These metrics provide insight into the visibility of your campaign.
  • Click-Through Rate (CTR): If your campaign includes a link (e.g., a link in the influencer’s bio or a swipe-up link in Stories), monitor the CTR to see how many users clicked through to your website or product page.
  • Conversions: Use affiliate links or discount codes to track how many purchases or sign-ups were made as a result of the influencer’s content. This is one of the most direct ways to measure ROI.
  • Hashtag Performance: If you’re running a branded hashtag challenge, track how many users participated, how many videos were created, and how many views the hashtag received. This helps you assess the overall reach and engagement of the campaign.

By analyzing these metrics, you can determine the success of your influencer campaign and identify areas for improvement in future efforts.

Conclusion

TikTok influencer marketing offers brands an exciting opportunity to reach new, highly engaged audiences through authentic, creative content. By selecting the right influencers, leveraging TikTok trends and challenges, and giving influencers the freedom to create genuine content, brands can drive significant engagement and brand awareness. Combining influencer campaigns with TikTok’s paid ad options can further amplify reach, helping your campaign achieve even greater impact. By tracking key performance metrics, you can assess the success of your campaign and continue refining your strategy for future efforts.