Reach Younger Audiences With TikTok Search Ads
TikTok has recently expanded its ad offerings with search ads, allowing marketers to target audiences with content that appears in the app’s organic search results. According to the company, brands using this new advertising placement have seen impressive results.
Are you ready to give TikTok search ads a try? Here are some key considerations to keep in mind.
Reaching a New Audience
TikTok’s user base is rapidly expanding. The platform’s latest ad offering is an effective way to reach this new audience, with search ads leveraging existing In-Feed ad creative to serve ads alongside organic search results for relevant user queries. Advertisers can enable this feature during campaign creation, or turn it on mid-flight.
TikTok search ads
Digital media buyers report that enabling search ads increases brand visibility and engagement, while increasing clicks and conversion rates. Search ads are positioned as a "Sponsored" result within the search results page, and their position varies based on relevance to the user’s query and intent.
Taking advantage of this new advertising opportunity also allows marketers to reach a younger audience that is often difficult to reach on other platforms. This demographic no longer relies on traditional search engines for content and is more likely to discover videos through the For You feed or TikTok’s robust search capabilities.
When searching on TikTok, users can find videos, creators, and topics that align with their interests, making the platform an ideal place for content discovery. Using search ads enables brands to capitalize on this behavior, reaching the right audience with engaging video content that is relevant and timely.
For example, beauty brand Clinique UK saw a 441% increase in purchase conversions and a 7.4% increase in ad recall after switching on search ads for its Black Friday/Cyber Monday campaign in 2022. The company reports that the cost per conversion was also significantly lower with search ads than in-feed ads.
By tracking the performance of their paid campaigns and analyzing search terms, brands can learn more about what their audiences are looking for on TikTok. This information can then be used to inform both paid and organic content.
By using the platform’s Trends dashboard, marketers can see what search terms are most popular and identify themes that are emerging among their target audience. This information can be utilized for both paid and organic content strategies, including leveraging influencers as part of a marketing campaign to expand reach.
Boosting Conversions
TikTok search ads provide new opportunities to reach and engage with a younger audience on a platform where they’re looking for specific content. The new advertising tool combines user intent (as understood from their search query) and broader learnings from other user behavior to create personalized ads that are highly relevant to each viewer’s needs.
While the search ad feature is still in its early stages, marketers are already finding success with it. According to TikTok, skincare brand Clinique saw a 441% boost in conversion rates, a 51% increase in click-through rates, and a 7.4% lift in ad recall when search ads were enabled for their campaign. Beauty brand DIBS also had a successful Black Friday/Cyber Monday campaign with search ads enabled, resulting in an 8% increase in conversion volume, six-times the conversion rate, and a 22% drop in CPA compared to nonsearch ads.
To take advantage of the benefits of search ads, marketers need to optimize their campaigns by creating a search ad group and defining their optimization goals. Then, advertisers can add third-party tracking links to measure performance and track key metrics like cost per action, conversion rate, and reach.
In addition to optimizing bids and the targeting of keywords, TikTok search ads also allow brands to add "negative keywords" to their ad groups to ensure their ad isn’t shown against searches that don’t align with their brand image or product offerings. This enhances brand safety and increases the likelihood that users will interact with an ad when they’re genuinely interested in its subject matter.
Lastly, to boost performance and drive conversions with TikTok search ads, marketers should focus on creative content that captures the attention of this younger audience. By using eye-catching visuals and storytelling techniques, marketers can make the most of this opportunity to engage with a unique and engaging generation.
Increasing Engagement
TikTok’s search ads launch presents a new opportunity for businesses to reach younger audiences who may not be easily accessible through traditional advertising methods. Considering that Gen Z is increasingly using TikTok as their primary search engine, the platform’s move to offer advertisers the option of appearing in searches can have significant impact on brand recognition and performance.
Using a Search Ads Toggle activated during campaign creation, brands can automatically appear in search results for relevant user queries on the TikTok platform. Ads displayed in search results are labeled "Sponsored" and placed above organic search results based on relevancy. Currently, the Search Ads Toggle is turned on by default for all new in-feed campaigns. However, brands can opt out of search ads by turning the toggle off during campaign setup or mid-flight.
To maximize the potential of TikTok search ads, marketers should use creative that is authentic and aligned with the query they are promoting. In addition, the content should be highly engaging to ensure that the ad is viewed and the audience takes action. Influencers and creators can be a great asset to this type of campaign, as they are able to provide authentic and engaging content that will attract the attention of users.
Aside from leveraging the power of influencers and creators, it is also important to conduct thorough keyword research to understand what your target audience is searching for on TikTok. This information can then be used to create highly targeted and effective ad campaigns.
In addition, the search ad format can be an excellent complement to other TikTok ad formats. Combined with in-feed ads, search ads can help brands reach more people on the platform while also creating an integrated and cohesive marketing strategy.
Whether or not businesses are ready to take advantage of tiktok search ads is yet to be seen, but it is clear that the ByteDance app is taking steps to become the premier destination for digital discovery. With a vast and engaged audience, tiktok is poised to be a leader in social media and the future of search.
Increasing Revenue
TikTok search ads offer a new opportunity to reach and engage users on the platform, but marketers will face a learning curve when it comes to creating effective search ads. They’ll need to balance ad content that captures attention and aligns with the distinct video format of TikTok. In addition, advertisers will have to ensure that search ad content does not disrupt the user experience by appearing too repetitive or irrelevant to users’ query.
The new search ad feature allows brands to leverage existing in-feed ad creative for placements on the TikTok search results page, which are labeled as Sponsored. The feature also offers additional audience targeting options beyond keywords to allow brands to target specific audiences based on their interests, demographics and behaviors on the platform. Brands like Clinique UK and DIBS Beauty have already seen a lift in performance when they activated the search ad toggle, with Clinique experiencing a 441% increase in conversions and DIBS seeing a 5.1% boost in click-through rates and 7.4% improvement in ad recall.
Tiktok search ads are a new way to tap into the platform’s massive audience base and offer an important opportunity for businesses to reach younger, more engaged audiences that may be difficult to engage through traditional paid advertising channels. As the first ad placement based on user searches, Tiktok search ads can offer an effective and cost-effective way to drive conversions, engagement, and brand awareness across platforms.
With a global user base that spans over 120 countries, TikTok is the third most-downloaded app worldwide and is home to a wide variety of niche communities, including music, dance, fitness, art, sports, fashion, food, and comedy. With an average of 68 million daily active users, the platform is also a key source for new product discovery, with 58% of users discovering products on Tiktok through search. As a result, the launch of search ads represents an opportunity for Tiktok to capture market share from established players in the paid advertising space by offering new opportunities to increase brand visibility and drive ROI.