TikTok’s New Shopping Feature: Everything You Need To Know

During the entire lockdown period, I am pretty sure that TikTok has become your best source of entertainment. You are browsing endlessly for hours without realizing it.

A wide range of content is there; from dancing to helpful life hacks, TikTok has them! Aside from that, videos are pretty short, so you won’t get bored quickly. It has become almost everyone’s best friend.

Just recently, TikTok added a new feature: TikTok Shopping! I am sure you noticed the yellow baskets and checkouts you would usually see on online shopping platforms.

The social media site has become the most talked about site. In fact, during the fourth quarter of 2021, TikTok’s user spending on Google Play reached $824. Isn’t that crazy?

But on the one hand, it is not so surprising that the social media site’s new feature has boomed so fast. Considering the vast amount of audience they have, that’s around one billion, TikTok’s shopping already has buyers lined up.

In this article, TikTok’s new shopping feature will be discussed. Everything you must know is here; keep reading so you won’t miss the hype!

What Is The TikTok Shopping Feature All About?

TikTok Shopping, according to the social media site, enables businesses to enjoy a comprehensive commerce solution,’ with TikTok handling the commercial industry, from product upload and buying to shipments and fulfillment.

The seller has two choices. TikTok’s Shopping Direct Integration provides an e-commerce experience for creators and sellers who want to manage their e-commerce stores straightforwardly from the TikTok platform. This alternative offers a complete e-commerce experience, with just about everything, including post-payment processes, taking place within the TikTok app.

Additionally, the social media site also offers Partner Integration. With Partner Integration, sellers can add product photos to TikTok Business accounts. Consumers can navigate and buy within the TikTok app.

Post-payment processes, such as returns, take place outside of TikTok. It takes place on the partner’s app or website.

 

Is TikTok Shopping Available Everywhere?

Right now, TikTok is not yet available in every country. Users from various countries: including the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, and Singapore, can set up their TikTok business profiles.

If you have an account from one of the abovementioned TikTok shopping partners, you can make your business profile as well.

How Does TikTok Shopping Work?

If you are a TikTok user who wants to shop via the app, browsing products can be a little complicated. TikTok shops can be found as a tab of the account profile of the seller you are planning to buy from.

After seeing the shop, you browse their products. You can add something to your online shopping cart if you want to buy something. It is not really different from other e-commerce platforms, so you can get the gist of it eventually.

After browsing and maybe absent-mindedly placing random things in your cart, you can now check out the things in your cart through the TikTok app or the seller’s website.

TikTok is collaborating with well-known shopping brands such as Shopify, Ecwid, Square, and Prestashop to make TikTok shopping possible. TikTok also claims that Wix, OpenCart, BASE, and ShopLine will be joining soon.

Is TikTok Shopping Worth It For Businesses?

If you are an owner of a small online business, you probably heard about TikTok’s new feature. You are probably curious. Should I jump into the hype? Will it be beneficial? These are some of the questions you have in mind, for sure.

Before making a decision, take your shoppers into consideration. Are your buyers using the TikTok app? Do they spend most of their time there? Obviously, if they are not on the social media site, joining TikTok Shopping might not be a good idea for your business.

A research group stated that women aged 18-24 account for 24 percent of TikTok’s audience. In comparison, men in the same age range account for 18 percent. Moreover, women aged 25-34 account for 17% of TikTok’s demographic, while men within the same age category account for 14%.

With this, it is sensible to look into the most prevalent TikTok sections. The top categories on the site include fitness and sports, cooking tips and food preparation, fashion, home improvement, and beauty and skincare. You might be an ideal fit if you have an enterprise in one of these market segments.

Furthermore, looking at the strategy that worked for you in the past weeks or months is also good. If it is almost the same as that of TikTok, you can try it. Who knows. It might be advantageous to you and your business.

TikTok shopping has been invaded by a lot of businesses already. What makes yours stand out? Promoting your business correctly might not be easy, but it is necessary. A creative marketing strategy that will make users curious and convinced is the key! Curiosity can lead to sales; convincing tactics can work too.

Keep in mind that TikTok has short videos; think of ways where you can catch the attention of your users/buyers through this short span of time.

Business is about taking risks, isn’t it? An additional sales channel would not hurt you. Make sure that you are not putting your time to waste. You can give it a try. If it works, congratulations, you can keep using the app. If not, I am sure you will have better luck next time.

What Are Inside The TikTok’s Shopping Features?

More details about the new feature will be discussed here further. If you are an aspiring TikTok business owner, reading this will be beneficial to you.

A. Live Selling

Especially if you are a veteran online consumer, live Selling is very familiar to you. Live shopping is a part of your vocabulary. TikTok has it, yay! It is basically a business owner or a group of employees selling products through a live video stream.

TikTok Live Selling can help business owners engage their consumers, build relationships, and increase conversions. That means real-time connections with your audience for you as a brand.

Brands can use this advertising solution to integrate their TikTok products into a live session. TikTok users can then purchase products they see while watching a live selling stream.

TikTok live Selling is growing in popularity, with LIVE Shopping purchases increasing by 76% between March 2020 and July 2021. It is now available to business sellers.

B. Shopping Advertisements for Online Shopping

The social media site offers shopping advertisements on its feed. TikTok provides three different types of in-feed shopping ads. F

• First, Collection Ads. Collection ads enable brands to promote products by including tailored, swipeable merchandise card purchases in their in-feed videos.
• Second, Dynamic Showcase Ads. Dynamic Showcase Ads allows you to promote thousands of your merchandise SKUs with individualized digital advertising.
• Third, Lead Generation. Lead Generation appears within the in-feed video ads, allowing your business to collect TikTok users’ information via online forms.

How To Set Up Your TikTok Business Profile?

After analyzing your consumers, their behavior, and your previous successful strategies, it is now time to learn how to build your business profile on TikTok.

First things first, register to TikTok if you haven’t yet.

Here’s how to register:

1. Log in if you have a TikTok account already. Sign Up if you don’t. The information you need to fill out is self-explanatory, so I am sure you can navigate your way through it.
2. If required, you will have to verify your email address or phone number.
3. Pick out your shop’s name or type in the one you already have.
4. Upload a valid ID.
5. Check your email for confirmation. If there is a need for you to resubmit your ID, do so. The review process can be three days or more.
6. Last, you have to link your bank account, of course. Input the necessary bank details. You know what to do.

Following the said steps, you should be able to set up your business account.

How Can Your Business Thrive Inside Tiktok’s Shopping Feature?

As much as it depends on the number of buyers you will get, the success of your business on TikTok will depend on your strategies. We all know that business includes competition; while it sounds negative, it is vital in every business.

Now, the question here is, how do you make your business thrive inside TikTok Shopping? You might have a strategy in mind; after all, you have been in the business industry for who knows how long. But if, by any chance, you need them, here are some strategies you may add to your list.

A. Consistency is the key!

Assess your TikTok online store just like any other e-commerce site. Use high-quality product photographs and search terms to stay consistent in your advertising. Remember, TikTok is fast-paced. If you fail to constantly make your brand known, you might be pushed under the rug, and your business will go unnoticed. Competition is tough here, but you can do it!

Ensure your product definitions are thorough, inform consumers of all they need to know and keep titles under 34 characters. Putting all the necessary product information can put your consumers at ease. In addition, they can immediately check out your products without having to message you and wait for your response.

B. Enhance your brand’s online presence.

Make a noise, literally. Let the word spread; that is a rule of thumb for every business. Never gatekeep your business; that is the most minor sensible thing you can do as a business owner.

Getting the word out is one of the most crucial phases in any marketing campaign. This includes informing friends and family, sharing the URL on your other social media channels, and regularly posting videos.

If you have the resources, consider collaborating with brand ambassadors and influencers for a more significant impact. People tend to get influenced by famous creators.

C. Add tags.

If you are serious about making your business thrive, adding tags is crucial.

TikTok Shopping enables businesses to tag merchandise in their video content, allowing viewers to learn more about and buy the products they see. Yet another method of locating appropriate tags is to look at what’s trending. You can achieve this by navigating to the Discovery tab and looking at the tags that users frequently add.

This is also a way to get your promotional content on the feeds of as many people as possible. Using tags can help users locate you quickly. Tags are powerful; make the most out of them.

As a business owner, it is your responsibility to keep up with the trend. Consumers are easily bored, so you really have to get their interest.

D. From time to time, offer discounts.

Oh, come on, who would not love discounts? Moreover, discounts are a good marketing strategy. People tend to line up in discount racks.

Since we are talking about online stores, encourage customers to visit your store by providing exclusive discounts or deals.

Make your offered discounts noticeable.

Create a sense of urgency by making discounts time-limited and coming up with amazing deals that customers can’t get anywhere else. Create a cosmetics bundle, for example, if you’re selling cosmetics. For stationaries, offering bundles can also work.

Giving out freebies, no matter how small, can also attract buyers. It could be a sticker; that’s not too hard for you to give out for free, right?

Final Thoughts

TikTok is an online platform that has been the talk of the town for years now. For some reason, people love browsing this social media site.

As a business owner, having as many platforms is advantageous as this will help you reach more people.

TikTok has over a billion users; with that statistics, we can assume that your consumers are using them.

Furthermore, TikTok is a growing platform, which is why it is not shocking that it entered the e-commerce industry. Like most platforms, there are pros and cons. Your business can thrive, or it can go unnoticed. Do what works for you. Do not get discouraged because it is normal.

Your business could be a series of trial and error sometimes, but that is just how it works. Trying out new strategies can lead you to two possibilities: first, it will benefit your business, and second, it will teach you a lesson. It is still a win-win situation, don’t you think?

In conclusion, joining TikTok shopping is a choice you have to make yourself. All of the information you need is here. The task you have to do is to weigh the pros and cons.

You may or may not give it a try; it’s for you to decide.