New Study Outlines Key Considerations for TikTok Promotions and Ad Campaigns

With TikTok looking set to remain available in the US, and reach more than a billion users in 2021, based on analyst projections, it’s also likely to become an increasingly relevant marketing consideration for more and more brands over time.

That means that if you’ve been avoiding it till now, you may soon need to reconsider where it might fit into your promotional plan. It’ll never be for everyone, but if TikTok does indeed become the next billion-user platform, it will be difficult to deny as a potential option for your outreach.

And if you are considering TikTok within your 2021 planning, this new analysis report may help. To help businesses tap into the platform, and understand what works best in order to maximize their results, VidMob recently conducted an analysis of over 1,400 TikTok video ads, from 34 US brand accounts, that ran on the platform between January and September 2020. 

These ads saw a combined 5.4 billion impressions, so they clearly resonated with the TikTok audience. Based on this, VidMob has provided 12 key tips on how to maximize your TikTok campaigns.

You can via VidMob’s original presentation of its findings here, but here’s a quick overview of VidMob’s key tips:

1. Highlight exaggerated expressions 

VidMob says that Opening a spot with powerful emotions, such as surprise, led to a 1.7x higher 6-second view rate, compared to more neutral facial expressions.

2. Increase text speed

VidMob says that displaying 5-10 words per second led to higher view rates, compared to when the text was presented more slowly. 

3. Choose music-only audio

Music is important on TikTok, and VidMob says that music-only audio on ads led to a 51% lift in 6-second view rate, by comparison to voiceover plus music or voiceover-only. 

4. Use original tracks

It may be a little more work, but VidMob’s analysis shows that TikTok ads featuring custom audio led to a 52% lift in 6-second View Rate, compared to when the content featured a registered track.

5. Limit the close-ups

The data also showed that having the subject’s face fill less than 20% of the frame led to a 31% lift in CTR, compared to when their face took up more than 20% of the frame.

6. Break the direct gaze

Having people stare at the camera might also freak TikTok users out – the research also showed a 1.7x increase in CTR when talent looked directly into the camera for less than half of the full duration of the clip, compared to over half of the duration. 

7. Keep the audio simple

In line with the previous note on music, the data also shows that when TikTok videos include either music-only or voiceover-only audio tracks, the CTR is 1.6x greater than when both music and a voice are used in conjunction.

8. Harness the power of voice effects

Interestingly, adding voice effects led to a 1.7x increase in CTR than when someone’s natural voice was used.

“Not only did voice effects increase engagement, they also created a more native feel for TikTok users who love using the filter effects.” 

9. Expand emotional range

More emotion is better – the research showed a 3.3x greater conversion rate when the on-screen talent showed 4 or more emotions in the creative, versus when they showed 3 or fewer. 

10. Open with your call to action 

As with all video content, including your CTA early works best – VidMob found that featuring a CTA in the opening frame led to a 44% lift in conversion rate compared to when it was displayed later.

11. Mix the audio

Interestingly, VidMob’s data showed that including both music and narration led to a 2x greater conversion rate than when the audio featured only one of these elements.

“[This differs] from the Brand Awareness and Consideration strategies mentioned earlier.”

It’s important to note which of these approaches works best for your goal/s, and to experiment with each for best results.

12. Increase voiceover speed

VidMod also found that when creative featured audio with 4 or more words per second, there was a 19% lift in Conversion Rate, in comparison to when talk tracks featured 2-3 words per second. 

These are some interesting considerations, and while the mixed results on audio cues point to some significant variances, the key motes on how to frame your shots, and how to highlight your CTA, could help to improve your TikTok efforts, and maximize your campaigns.

There’s more insight in VidMob’s full webinar recording on the study, which you can view here.