With TikTok boasting over 1.59 billion active users worldwide, it has evolved from a short-form video platform into an effective advertising channel.
In this guide, we’ll walk through everything from understanding ad formats and targeting options to setting budgets and creating content that actually converts.
Why Advertise on TikTok?
For businesses and marketers deciding which platforms to spend their money on, TikTok offers a compelling case:
- Tiktok’s platform prioritises content relevance over follower count
- TikTok’s demographic has matured, meaning that 25-34 year olds make up the largest share of the global user base
Unlike traditional social media advertising, TikTok’s algorithm gives every piece of content a genuine chance to reach the right people, regardless of follower count, making it a level playing field for all brands.
Types of TikTok Ads
TikTok offers several ad formats, each suited to different campaign goals and budgets.
In-feed Ads – The most accessible ad format for most businesses. They appear in users’ feeds as they scroll, and can be up to 60 seconds long. This format supports call-to-action, and links directly to a website or app.
TopView Ads – Premium ads that appear as the first thing a user sees when they open the app, playing automatically for up to 60 seconds. They offer maximum visibility and are suited for large scale awareness campaigns.
Spark Ads – Allows brands to boost existing organic TikTok content, either their own posts or those of creators, as paid ads. Spark Ads are particularly effective for businesses doing influencer collaborations or working with user-generated-content, as the ad retains the authenticity and engagement of the original post.
How do TikTok Ads work?
TikTok’s advertising system uses an auction model, meaning that businesses compete with each other to show their ad to a given audience.
Businesses can set their budget and bid, while TikTok will determine when and to whom the ad is shown based on bid amount, ad quality, and estimated engagement rate.
Campaign Structure
TikTok Ads are organised into three levels: campaigns, ad groups, and ads.
At the campaign level businesses can choose their overall objective, for example: traffic, conversion, or brand awareness.
At the ad group level, businesses can define audience, placement, budget, and schedule.
The individual ad section is where the ad creative lives.
This structure makes it simple to control how budget is allocated and easy to test how different audiences or creatives engage with the material.
How to Set up a TikTok Ad Campaign
Getting started with TikTok Ads is straightforward and relatively simple:
- Create a TikTok Business Account – before getting started you need to have a TikTok business account.
- Choose a Campaign Objective – TikTok organises campaign objectives into three categories aligned with the marketing funnel: awareness (reach), consideration (traffic, video views, app installs, lead generation), and conversion (website conversion, catalogue sales).
- Define Ad Group – Here you can set your target audience, ad placements, budget, and schedule.
- Create your Ad – Upload your video creative, add a headline, choose a call-to-action (CTA), and set the destination URL. TikTok has certain recommendations for video ads, such as vertical videos with 9:16 aspect ratio, a resolution of at least 720p and a duration of 21-30 seconds. We recommend that your message lands in the first few seconds as TikTok users tend to scroll quickly.
- Submit and Monitor – Once submitted, your ad will be reviewed within 24 hours before being approved. It’s always a good idea to pay attention to metrics like click-through rate, cost per result, and video completion rate to gauge whether your content and targeting are working.
Are you ready to start advertising your brand on TikTok? Get in touch with us and we’ll walk you through everything from setting up campaigns to driving conversions.
