TikTok influencer marketing lets you access a hyper-engaged audience, go viral on a budget, and connect with ever-elusive Gen-Z shoppers. However, collaborating with creators based solely on their large follower counts is not a sure path to success. In today's market, brands need a sophisticated and well-informed strategy to tap into TikTok's potential for a campaign that builds brand awareness and drives profits.
You're likely already familiar with TikTok. It's a short-form video platform that has redefined social media consumption since its UK launch in 2017. This newer short video platform married Instagram's photo sharing with YouTube's long-form videos.
In the early days, TikTok videos had a maximum length of one minute, which increased to three minutes in 2021. Despite TikTok now allowing videos up to 10 minutes, content averages around 42 seconds.
While that may not seem like enough time to engage viewers, TikTok creators pack information into their videos and lead with authenticity. They often create videos with two points of interest, such as a creator showing their makeup routine while giving tips on how to run a small business.
The platform is so powerful that Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook followed its lead by launching short video features in addition to their typical content.
TikTok has now established itself as a formidable force in the social media world, and it has been embraced by over 15 million people in the UK.
Influencer marketing on TikTok involves partnerships between brands and TikTok creators to publicise products or services. It allows brands to leverage the reach and influence of these content creators to deliver brand messages.
There's a lot of misinformation about TikTok influencer marketing. Some stats suggest an average of 11 times ROI or that 40% of Gen Z use TikTok instead of Google as a search engine.
Simply put, these statistics are flagrantly taken out of context. For example, the latter statistic also includes Instagram and the former is based on one highly successful campaign, not an average.
Nevertheless, even the real data is highly positive. Let's explore it.
Firstly, the TikTok engagement rate is more than three times higher than that of Instagram, which is already twice as engaging as YouTube and Facebook.
Let's break that down.
Social Insider's study investigated various platforms' per-follower engagement rates, which is the percentage of an account's followers who interact with its content. This metric is deeply valuable because it shows how many of an account's followers actually watch and interact with their content.
The per-follower engagement rate on TikTok is 2.67%, and on Instagram, it's 0.70%. That means accounts with 100,000 followers will have 700 people engage with a post on Instagram and 2,670 on TikTok.
This engagement is also reflected in how much time users spend on TikTok. Every month, the average UK TikTok user spends over 49 hours–1.5 hours every day–on the platform, compared to just 19 hours on Instagram. Unsurprisingly, 90% of its users also feel loyal to the brand.
In addition, the platform is also more trusted now, and 52% of weekly TikTok users are interested in shopping through TikTok over the next three months.
Despite all these positives, research shows that these high engagement rates have been trending downward since 2021–once being over 5%. It suggests that as TikTok becomes more established, it loses some trust.
For brands, this is one of the best times to enter the market while engagement rates are still high and more people are on the platform.
Thinking of starting your TikTok influencer marketing campaign right away but unsure of the logistics? Kolsquare's influencer marketing platform can streamline your TikTok campaign end-to-end.
It saves hours of your time and ensures you hit–and exceed–targets with AI-driven influencer search, influencer relationship management tools, and no-hassle reports.
There's no need to commit to a subscription–book a demo for free today.
TikTok can help brands achieve many goals, such as:
But why is this platform so much more engaging than others?
TikTok's sophisticated algorithm quickly adapts to user preferences, creating an engrossing content stream that drives constant engagement. This hyper-personalised experience keeps users returning to the platform, making it an ideal venue for influencer campaigns.
The platform promotes videos that users comment on and like rather than content from accounts with large followings. This means brands can achieve viral status without a hefty budget.
TikTok influencers have highly engaged followers, which positions them as similar to friends rather than strangers. This connection is powerful in influencing consumer behaviour, especially when an influencer shares the user's interests and is considered a credible source within that niche.
Influencers who are selective about their partnerships and promote products genuinely aligned with their lifestyle and values resonate better with their audiences. By creating content that doesn't feel promotional, TikTok influencers can enhance a brand's credibility and authenticity.
Gen Z, nicknamed the "TikTok generation", is a demographic known for being difficult to reach via traditional marketing channels. Most of the platform's users are under 35, with 36% being 18 to 24-year-olds and 32% being 24 to 35-year-olds.
These younger audiences are tech-savvy and often tune out conventional advertising efforts. Instead, they respond to innovative, authentic content on platforms they favour, like TikTok.
For example, lingerie brand Aerie collaborated with TikTok megastar Charli D'Amelio on a body positivity campaign aimed at reaching Gen Z audiences. While the initial collaboration post on Aerie's account received 12,800 likes and 84 comments, the real power was in the user-generated content it inspired.
Aerie launched the campaign with the hashtag #AerieRealPositivity, which snowballed to 377,400 users sharing posts featuring the hashtag and, therefore, Aerie's brand name. Overall, the campaign boosted brand awareness in target demographics, created a strong brand narrative, and resulted in Aerie having over 247,500 TikTok followers.
While TikTok is an authentic, engaging platform, not all creators hold the same power.
Understanding basic data like follower counts is helpful, but it isn't sufficient to identify which influencers can bring value.
Brands must also ensure their audience demographic matches the influencer. In addition, they must collaborate with creators capable of delivering genuine content featuring your brand to an attentive and active audience.
Here's a roadmap to pinpointing the right influencers for collaborations:
Influencer marketing is about genuinely reaching your target audience. To do that, you have to understand who they are. Ask yourself:
These questions lay the groundwork for your campaign and will ensure that its reach is in the right area.
Above all, be specific. Determining a precise niche will prevent your campaign from becoming diluted.
Work with influencers who believe in your brand and products to develop genuine partnerships that feel natural. It will also make it more likely that they are highly committed to campaigns and create fantastic content.
You can find these supporters by tracking your branded hashtags and scanning your social media comments.
Complete a rigorous analysis of the available influencers by searching topics in your niche. A social listening tool can help here. Social listening tunes you into the conversations happening in your industry. It teaches you what competitors are doing, which TikTok channels they are collaborating with, and how you can learn from–or even steal–their successful ideas.
A TikTok influencer marketing hub, like Kolsquare, is a comprehensive platform designed to streamline finding and collaborating with the right influencers for your TikTok campaigns.
These platforms use advanced AI technology to filter through thousands of profiles, helping you identify content creators who align with your brand's values and reach your target audience effectively.
By leveraging a platform like Kolsquare, you can quickly assess influencer metrics such as engagement rates, follower demographics, and content relevance. This makes choosing highly engaging and credible influencers capable of providing a strong ROI easy. Try a demo today for free.
Influencer marketing agencies work like any other agency by connecting you with the right influencers.
In influencer marketing, these services aid brands daunted by the prospect of influencer marketing. Many agencies will take on an entire campaign end-to-end, from creating content ideas to developing reports.
Promoting influencer content on TikTok effectively involves leveraging the strengths and audience insights of key opinion leaders (KOLs) who are creative influencers with deep impact in their niches.
These influencers have a nuanced understanding of their followers, crafting content that genuinely resonates with their audience.
As CEO of the Marketoonist, Tom Fishbourne, said, "The best marketing doesn't feel like marketing."
Instead, it's perceived as entertaining content that belongs on your audience's feeds. Here are a few ways to spark those connections:
TikTok campaigns are complex, but following best practices will help marketers launch effective campaigns.
TikTok influencer marketing campaigns need direction. Knowing precisely what you want to achieve and which key performance indicators (KPIs) you want to hit will help you decide who to work with and how.
Consider all goals, from an increase in followers, brand awareness, website traffic, mentions, or direct sales.
If you don't already have a business account on TikTok, setting one up is a crucial step. A business account enhances your brand's legitimacy and allows you to access TikTok's rich suite of marketing tools and analytics.
For example, TikTok offers a Creator Marketplace to help brands match with influencers.
A successful collaboration will feature an influencer with high engagement yet enough reach for your budget. The following numbers are a guide rather than a set cost, as influencer rates are up for negotiation.
Generally, smaller influencers provide better engagement, while big names will increase prestige.
That said, you must collaborate with creators who believe in your business to ensure the content is authentic. TikTok is all about genuine and highly engaging content.
Budgeting and ROI are critical aspects to consider when planning an influencer marketing campaign due to the variable costs associated with different types of influencers and campaign strategies.
Decide whether you want to work with a range of nano-influencers or a few macro-influencers. The complexity and duration of the campaign also impact the budget. A simple one-off post will cost less than a comprehensive campaign involving multiple posts, stories, or additional content like videos or live sessions.
Measuring the effectiveness of your influencer ads is crucial to determine the success of your campaigns and to identify the most impactful influencers. Tracking Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) allows you to quantify the performance and adjust strategies accordingly. Here's how you can effectively measure your influencer ads using important metrics, such as:
While direct gains like conversions are key, keep in mind that growth in brand awareness and sentiment are also key.
Brands often struggle to launch effective campaigns without becoming bogged down in messages and hashtags.
To avoid grunt work taking over–with endless spreadsheets and emails–brands can onboard these third-party tools.
One option is agencies. Agencies can help you find influencers with whom to collaborate or manage your entire campaign from start to finish.
These companies tend to specialise and focus on influencers on a single platform or industry. This can limit growth, as many specialise in targeting a single niche, demographic, or social media platform.
However, they are still a good choice for brands seeking hands-on assistance with their influencer marketing. However, that does come at higher price tags.
On the other hand, influencer marketing platforms are tools that combine all of a brand's influencer marketing requirements in one hub.
Marketers may not find that a single-influencer collaboration may not become operationally complex, but a multi-influencer campaign will.
Imagine streamlining every stage of your campaign with features that provide:
Above all, platforms strip the operational complexity from campaigns, saving time and money and increasing the likelihood that you'll launch profitable campaigns.
Wondering if this could benefit you? Sample a platform cost-free by booking a Kolsquare demo today.
PrettyLittleThing (PLT), a fast-fashion retailer known for its trendy styles and affordable prices, leveraged the power of TikTok influencer marketing to launch a highly successful "haul" campaign.
Campaign Goals: PLT wanted to Increase brand awareness among Gen Z audiences, drive traffic to the PLT website and app, and boost sales.
Strategy: PLT encouraged user-centric content with the hashtag #PLTHaul. It also partnered with a range of influencers.
The campaign focused on the popular "haul" video format, where influencers unbox, try on, and review a selection of PLT clothing. This format provided viewers with an interactive and relatable shopping experience.
Encouraging User-Generated Content (UGC): PLT used branded hashtags like #PLTHaul and #PrettyLittleThing to enable viewers to create their own haul videos. This strategy increased brand engagement and spread virality.
In addition, PLT hosts events, such as its UK Christmas party, in which it invites UK TikTok influencers, such as Grace Keeling (@gkbarry) with 3.5M followers. Her post about the party resulted in 110,000 likes.
It also launches ads with TikTok accounts like @ab61e, who has 328.3K followers, to show off shopping hauls.
Impact: The campaign generated a significant amount of user-generated content with the branded hashtag #PLTHaul, garnering millions of views. In addition, many of their influencer marketing posts result in hundreds of thousands of views, making them a go-to fashion brand.
Kolsquare is Europe’s leading Influencer Marketing platform, offering a data-driven solution that empowers brands to scale their KOL (Key Opinion Leader) marketing strategies through authentic partnerships with top creators.
Kolsquare’s advanced technology helps marketing professionals seamlessly identify the best content creators by filtering their content and audience, while also enabling them to build, manage, and optimize campaigns from start to finish. This includes measuring results and benchmarking performance against competitors.
With a thriving global community of influencer marketing experts, Kolsquare serves hundreds of customers—including Coca-Cola, Netflix, Sony Music, Publicis, Sézane, Sephora, Lush, and Hermès—by leveraging the latest Big Data, AI, and Machine Learning technologies. Our platform taps into an extensive network of KOLs with more than 5,000 followers across 180 countries on Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and Snapchat.
As a Certified B Corporation, Kolsquare leads the way in promoting Responsible Influence, championing transparency, ethical practices, and meaningful collaborations that inspire positive change.
Since October 2024, Kolsquare has become part of the Team.Blue group, one of the largest private tech companies in Europe, and a leading digital enabler for businesses and entrepreneurs across Europe. Team.Blue brings together over 60 successful brands in web hosting, domains, e-commerce, online compliance, lead generation, application solutions, and social media.
