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If you work in the B2B marketing world, you may initially think TikTok is the last place your business should be.Aren’t the users primarily kids? How can you make money if the core audience is middle schoolers, college students, and recent grads who are still figuring out how to put money on the table?We hear you, and we have a perspective that may make you rethink yours.We would argue that B2B businesses don’t just have a place on TikTok but a massive opportunity that many of your competitors probably haven’t tapped into yet. Even if your target demographic isn’t currently Gen Z, it likely will be in the future.And with nearly 700 million active monthly users already, the most downloaded app is worth paying attention to. Don’t you think?
You came here to learn if TikTok is worth investing time and resources in. Will it pay off in the long run? Can you monetize the channel for your specific business and niche? Let’s get right to it.
We’ll start with the basics – who’s using the app today.While it’s true that a large percentage of TikTok users are still in elementary, middle, and high school (ages 10-19), a considerable portion of that 700 million we previously mentioned is old enough to make their own purchasing decisions.Some are even old enough to be business owners or key decision-makers in their businesses. That creates an opportunity for B2B marketing. 29.5% of TikTok users are between ages 20-29, and 30.3% are aged 30-49. 58.4% overall are female.
Source: Business of Apps
Even if your target demographic doesn’t fall neatly into any significant user groups, don’t discount TikTok’s usefulness entirely.Indeed, you may not see instant gratification for your efforts if your core demographic is 55-year-old businessmen. But if you’re willing to think longer-term, Millennials and Gen Z will someday become your target market.
Did you know the average TikTok user spends 52 minutes every single day on the app? In Europe, British users are plentiful, but Norwegians use the app most frequently – opening it 17 times on average and spending 74 minutes total throughout the day. French users watch for about an hour each day.Users are all over the world, too – in at least 141 countries, speaking 75 different languages in 150 different markets.
If you’re not super familiar with TikTok, you may be curious about whether your business would fit into the culture the app has created and continues to facilitate.There are many ways to describe TikTok – chaotic, fast-moving, noisy, raw, authentic, personal, trendy, and addicting. But it’s more than all that. It’s a place for creativity, experimentation, and tapping into existing communities to build a loyal niche of followers.It’s essential to understand the TikTok culture so you have the proper perspective going in. It’s first and foremost an entertainment app. To be successful, you (as in your business presence) should be willing to be real, get creative, have fun, and not take yourself too seriously.
Entertainment is the biggest category on TikTok. Other industries that fare well include:
You may be thinking, most of those categories are more B2C than B2B! And you’d be right. But there’s a place for B2B marketing, too. You just need to be willing to share stories, get to the heart of an issue, teach authentically, keep things simple, and engage with real people online.Tutorials and educational content can perform exceptionally well on TikTok. Answering FAQs people send in, highlighting your company culture, and offering crash courses could be effective B2B tactics to stand out and fit into TikTok culture.Here are a couple of examples.
Ben Pryor (@benpryor_) focuses on teaching viewers the ins and outs of the stock market. He uses a conversational tone, interjecting humour whenever possible. He currently has over 274,000 followers and millions of likes.This content model could easily correlate to B2B businesses. For example, you could offer small business tips, marketing advice, or financial advice for other companies.
Source: Ben Pryor
Adobe (@adobe) is another B2B example we love to highlight. They’ve successfully grown a loyal following on TikTok by sharing insider design tips and real stories from creators. They currently have nearly 180,000 followers. But here’s the kicker: they just launched their account in April 2021.
Source: Adobe
So you’ve decided to give TikTok a try (or are still toying with the idea). It’s time to start formulating strategies that will cater to your B2B audience. Follow these tips to reach other businesses on TikTok and capture their attention enough to gain their loyalty.
Consider creating short educational videos that answer FAQs your target audience has. You can even open a Q&A to boost engagement. People can submit questions to your profile, and you can answer them directly with simple TikToks. Offering advice for your niche community is another idea.
Hank Green is a perfect example of offering educational content that connects with users (5 million, in fact). He answers questions we’ve all asked at some point, along with those we’ve never even considered asking.
As a B2B marketer, you may feel more reserved when it comes to sharing your thoughts and wearing your heart on your sleeve. What will your clients think?But contrary to popular belief in the corporate world, B2B marketers “need to get in touch with their feelings,” according to a recent LinkedIn study. They go on to say that ignoring your emotional side can hurt you in the long run. That means emotions should be an essential piece of your B2B marketing strategy.B2B strategies that appeal to an audience’s emotions can drive 7x more “very large business effects” than those that appeal on a rational level.So don’t be afraid to get to the heart of the matter. With TikTok, you can create short videos that elicit any feeling you want to portray to your audience. You can make authentic human connections with people through creative content.
Are you trying to recruit new employees? You’ve probably never considered TikTok a professional networking platform before now. But by highlighting your company culture on your page, you might just attract the type of workers you’re seeking.The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) does a great job of this. While they’re certainly a shrewd and prestigious company, they use TikTok to make their brand more relatable, fun, and attractive for potential recruits.
TikTok is a place to let loose and perhaps try some things you wouldn’t try elsewhere. It’s an experimental platform full of creativity and fun.Create content that’s inspirational, humorous, or follows a trend. Maybe you can remake a video that’s already gone viral or use a popular sound. Remember that you don’t always have to reinvent the wheel. Following the trends is a smart way to gain new exposure.Keep in mind that with TikTok, you may not always see an immediate return on investment. It can take time to find your niche and production style.
“It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in or how big your business is or what you’re trying to accomplish. We really think every brand today becomes successful through the quality of entertainment that surrounds the brand.” – TikTokIf nothing else, TikTok is entertaining. So every video you post should be too. Serve up short bursts of distraction, AKA micro-entertainment, and you’ll hit the mark. Your videos should be fun and often trendy if you want to grow your audience fast and have a chance at going viral.
To engage people, you need to grab their attention within the first second of your video and hold it through to the end. Use a hook to capture your audience, and then quickly but effectively tell your story in an exciting way.Remember that people have short attention spans. In your TikToks, you should talk quickly, move quickly, and edit quickly. Transitions should be fast. And posting should be frequent.
Let’s talk! We’d love to know a little about your business to help you decide how to get the most return on your investment.Kubbco is a full-service social media agency in Denmark and the USA. We’ll take care of everything from strategy to running campaigns and tracking progress along the way. We’re also epic content creators with big, bold ideas, and we’re not afraid to innovate. By combining marketing expertise with well-tuned processes, we can help you achieve speed-to-market success.Contact us today!
Check out these great articles to dig deeper.
TikTok and social media expert helping clients leverage the power of viral concepts to grow their businesses.
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