TikTok has become a powerful channel for small businesses to build and engage with an audience. This afternoon at L23, TikTok’s Melanie Rhodes offered a primer on TikTok’s growing role in the SMB marketing mix, as well as some TikTok best practices for SMBs.
TikTok on stage at #L23 pic.twitter.com/bwdHe6oDIH
— Charles Laughlin (@claughlin2) April 18, 2023
Key Takeaways
Here are some of the top insights that we gleaned from this session.
- TikTok has accumulated 36 billion views and counting. And it is the No. 1 search engine for young people (according to Rhodes).
- Engagement on TikTok is off the charts, and authenticity is everything. Rhodes made a point often made about TikTok, which applies to small businesses as much as any creator. Make native content, do not repurpose content from other platforms.
- 58% of business owners (using TikTok) believe it has positively affected their business. And among SMBs using TikTok paid advertising, 79% found it as valuable as other ad platforms, if not more so.
- And finally, one-third of SMBs credit TikTok with helping them raise capital.
Growing with TikTok
TikTok has emerged as one of the best places to build a large audience quickly. This is as true for quirky creators as it is for brands and small businesses. We will hear from a TikTok representative plus a few local SMBs using TikTok to build a following and grow their businesses.
Melanie Rhoads, TikTok