There are nearly 100 million people in the United States who are active on TikTok every month.
The meteoric growth of the trendy video-sharing app was further bolstered by the pandemic; when everyone was shut indoors, they turned to user-generated content like funny videos for entertainment.
It’s no surprise then that businesses have taken note of that captive TikTok audience, with many brands eager to capitalize on a channel that’s generating so much buzz.
But TikTok and strategic marketing aren’t a natural pairing. Tying your wagon to a trend is risky — your content could be here today and gone tomorrow. There’s a reason professional video marketing is the gold standard, and you won’t even need to sacrifice your TikTok-inspired storyboard to score a big win.
The unlimited potential of video marketing
Marketing experts have been tracking the growing influence of visual content for years. Mobile video consumption has logged a 17x increase since 2012, and one HubSpot survey found that more than half of consumers are eager to see video content from brands they already support.
Even more exciting is the potential video marketing has to educate, influence, and boost conversion rates:
- Approximately 65% of people are classified as visual learners who learn and retain information best when it’s shared in a visual format
- Tweets that include video content get 10 times more engagement
- More than half of consumers say they watch product videos before deciding on a purchase
- 58% of consumers surveyed say they were more interested in a brand or product after seeing it featured on Instagram Stories
Incorporating both live and pre-taped video content into your marketing strategy is a smart way to amplify your reach and your ROI.
But is using TikTok enough?
Why is TikTok so appealing?
People love TikTok. The ability to “go viral” by creating content that connects with consumers enough for them to share it with their friends is beyond exciting.
What brand doesn’t want to see a video clip of their product hit millions of views?
The sheer number of people on the platform is enticing, too. Then there’s the fact that it’s free. Few things are kinder to a marketing budget than using the phone you already have to shoot a video you can then share with the masses without spending a single penny.
TikTok is to today’s social media savvy consumers and content creators what Vine was in the early 2010s. And that’s kind of the problem.
The problem with video marketing on TikTok
Platforms like Vine and TikTok are tempting because they’re cheap and offer immediate gratification.
You can DIY a video, upload it moments later, and your newest “campaign” is already live. There are two major issues, though:
- longevity and
- versatility.
At its peak in December 2015, Vine boasted more than 200 million active users. Less than a year later, Vine announced that Twitter, which acquired the video platform in 2012, had decided to discontinue the service. Videos were archived for a while, then deleted altogether. All that content was suddenly obsolete.
Even if content created for video platforms like TikTok remains active, it has limited utility. Original TikTok guidelines restrict video length to just 15 seconds, but in late 2020 the app began offering limited access to a program allowing users to create videos up to three minutes in length.
That’s good news for marketers, but TikTok videos still have limited functionality. The filters, music snippets, looping and other features that make TikTok so popular are great for making millennials giggle but not so professional or appropriate when you’re looking to use the same snippet to advertise your product on Amazon.
In other words, if you create a video on TikTok, that’s pretty much the only place you’re going to use it.
Why professional video marketing wins
Professional video marketing can have the same humor and entertainment value as a TikTok video, but with a wide range of added benefits:
- Better quality videos
- Access to additional video formats
- Videos can be as short or as long as you want
- You can use the content on any platform or for any purpose you choose
- Videos are tailored to brand authenticity rather than changing your brand to chase a trend or take advantage of viral meme culture
- Professional videos are evergreen, meaning they stay relevant and hold their value for longer
Video marketing is one of the most powerful tools marketers have in their arsenal, but how you create and share visual content will ultimately determine your reach and your ROI see how in marketing strategy planning.
With professional video marketing, you can create engaging, multipurpose videos that have the same staying power as your business — and in the end, that’s way more exciting than 15 seconds of TikTok fame.
