You may be thinking that these companies are incomparable, but you’d be wrong.

Recently, TikTok has been taking a storm as the new place to stock up on your most beloved products.
The popular app, once known for its lip-syncing videos and dancing trends, now offers people the chance to purchase items through video links and live streams without ever leaving the platform.
#TikTokMadeMeBuyIt
This new feature, TikTok Shop, came to life following the trending hashtag #tiktokmademebuyit in 2020. Now at 47.1 billion views, the hashtag stands as a way for people to show their latest purchases which they had also discovered through the app. As a result, impressionable viewers were (and still are) persuaded to buy anything and everything they see accompanied by the hashtag; TikTok then jumped at the chance to create its own e-commerce feature, changing the digital marketing industry for good.

A report by TikTok themselves, with help from research firm Material, shows the impact that they have had in the e-commerce consumer journey on a global scale.

The data is as follows:

• Users are 51% more likely to consider products from an AD compared to when other platforms are involved
• 87% are more likely to consider purchasing whilst watching a live stream
• 61% of users have engaged with their e-commerce platform since its arrival

These stats tremendously prove the opportunity that is taking part in e-commerce on TikTok, and that setting up a TikTok shop for your brand is just the way to do it.

So, what is TikTok shop and how do we use it?
Self-explanatory, really! TikTok Shop is a feature that allows users to buy products in-app in multiple ways, without opening a web browser. It makes purchasing quick, easy and hassle-free.

When a business sets up TikTok shopping on their account, they will be greeted with a dedicated shopping tab on their profile. Customers can then browse through the in-app catalogue and either buy the product within the TikTok app or be directed straight to the business’s online store. TikTok shopping can also be experienced through product links on organic videos and pop-up video ads.

However, purchasing through live-stream events is where it gets interesting. This feature allows brands to showcase their products in real time. As brands showcase each product during the live, a pin related to that product will pop up enabling viewers to tap that pin, add the item to their cart, check out and carry on watching. It creates an environment for brands and users to engage with each other more personably, gains more trust as customers can see products in ‘real life’ and it also propels an increase in views and followers.

So, for all you brands who are wondering what the best next step is: In order to keep up with the ever-changing shopping behaviours of consumers, taking advantage of features such as these is the only way to come out on top. As TikTok themselves say, e-commerce is no longer the future of shopping… it is shopping!

Sources:
https://www.tiktok.com/business/en-US/blog/shoppertainment-tiktok-e-commerce-path-to-purchase

https://influencermarketinghub.com/tiktok-shopping/

https://impact.com/influencer/tiktok-and-commerce-4-reasons-why-brands-succeed-with-shoptainment/

Written by Amelia