TikTok and Snapchat have one goal in common: to connect. Content on the platform isn’t shiny; there’s no camera crew behind it all and no fancy lighting – it’s just raw content. That’s what users want to see, so what’s the secret to mastering their potential? 

Our Paid Media Analysts Ben and Gemma directed a bite-size learning session to show you which steps-to-strut to get your brand out there on TikTok and Snapchat and how to maximise your advertising strategy; so you don’t waste a penny. If you’re interested in watching the entire session, click here to catch up. For now, let’s delve into the details from the session.

Why should TikTok and Snapchat be on your advertising radar? 

This year, TikTok hit one billion active monthly users; that’s pretty big for a platform only arriving five years ago. People aren’t just mindlessly scrolling on Tiktok – they are actively engaged. In fact, the average user opens the app eight times per day and spends 48 minutes on the app. Plus, 67% of users have been inspired to shop, making it a top platform for e-commerce. Step aside ASOS, hello TikTok. 

What about Snapchat? Snapchat has fewer users (still a hefty 306 million), but they’re also highly engaged, opening the app an average of 30 times per day. What’s more, Snapchat users are 60% more likely to make impulse purchases than those not on the platform. Not only are they buying, but they’re also chatting about purchases to their friends on the platform; 35% of snaps sent through the app are about products they’re considering purchasing.

If that isn’t enough to convince you that TikTok and Snapchat are two lucrative platforms, let’s look at the stats. TikTok’s CPC (cost per click) is one of the lowest of all social media at just £0.15. Snapchat is not far off at £0.52. Low CPC allows you to maximise your ad budget whilst also attaining the right results. Both platforms also score well in CTR (click-through rate), with TikTok achieving 0.74% and Snapchat 0.58%. That means more website visits and contact forms filled in. 

Conclusion? TikTok and Snapchat aren’t to be overlooked in your advertising strategy. Is anyone feeling peckish? Let’s move on to the takeaways!

1. Maximise your budget with goal-based bidding 

Once you have defined your objectives, what can you do to ensure that you place your budget in the sweet spot and have the best impact? The answer is goal-based bidding. This is a way of moving your ad budget around to optimise your goal, showing your ad only to those most likely to follow your call to action. This will help you achieve your goal faster.  

2. Use interest-based and lookalike audiences. 

By targeting a specific audience and layering their key characteristics, you can increase the likelihood that they’ll convert. By using interest-based targeting around products and targeting users by their online and real-world interests, you’ll be able to build up a bigger picture of who your audience really is. After that, once you’ve defined your audience, use simple retargeting to drive them to convert.

3. Delight with multiple ad types

The attention span on social media is not the strongest. If something doesn’t capture the user’s attention within the first few seconds, they’re likely to scroll past your ad and onto the next. For that reason, we recommend combining ad formats. Use in feed adverts whilst combining other ad types as in-feed ads. These achieve the lowest CPC, and different ad formats will keep users on their toes. So, what are your options when it comes to ad types?

On TikTok:

• Single image and single video ads. These allow you to create deep links – links that direct them to your latest offer in-app, rather than taking them to your store. This improves the user experience by keeping them on the app.
• Hashtag ads. Brands can create custom challenges under a hashtag which displays on the discover page.
• Top view ads. These take over the screen for the first three seconds upon opening the app, helping to cut through the noise and give your ad the spotlight it deserves.
• In-feed ads. This is the most disruptive form of advertising as they appear when users are swiping between posts. Consider whether this approach would work for your audience.
• Branded lenses. These are branded AR lenses that users can engage with and share on the platform.

And what about Snapchat?

• Collection ads. These help you showcase multiple products and allow users to buy them directly through the app.
• Story ads. These ads are delivered between content through the branded tile in the ‘Discover’ section of the app.
• AR experiences. These allow you to create interactive moments and let people try out your products.
• Commercials. These are non-skippable adverts that appear within Snap’s curated content, helping you to drive brand awareness. 
• Filters. These are artistic overlays that appear after a user takes a snap and swipes left or right, helping you participate in the community’s conversations. 

5. Don’t limit your tracking to Google Analytics

There are some usual metrics that you should keep your eye out for. These metrics include click-through rate, the number of views, the cost per click and the amount of website engagement. Though these metrics are useful, you shouldn’t solely rely on them, nor should you be manually checking them. Instead, make your life simple. The following tools will make it easy for you to understand the overall performance of your campaigns at a single glance and give you the option to delve into individual metrics. 

For TikTok:

• Google Analytics
• TikTok Pixel. A pixel is a piece of code that sits on your site and collects user data from website visitors.
• TikTok’s Business Manager

For Snapchat:

• Snap Pixel 
• Snap Business Manager
• Apple’s SKAdNetwork. This is a privacy-friendly way to attribute impressions and clicks to app installs on iOS apps. It helps advertisers measure the success of ad campaigns whilst maintaining user privacy.

4. Look to the future

It’s never too early to prepare for the future. With social media evolving daily, staying on top of the latest developments will help you make the most of the added features.

What’s in store for TikTok?

The future of TikTok will see the ‘TikTok seller’ app come into play, allowing you to run aspects of the TikTok shop from mobile devices. This will help you manage your campaigns and promotions and access seller materials via mobile.

Business registration is another soon to be released feature that will enable brands to list their business category on their profile. But what’s the benefit? You’ll gain early access to business features, and TikTok will showcase appropriate businesses to potential customers.

TikTok also plans to enhance its targeting options, meaning you can narrow your audience more to maximise your ad spend and boost your ROI.

What’s in store for Snapchat?

The future of Snapchat is all about AR – it’ll be an alternative reality sphere. Developers will have the tools to transform local landscapes or buildings into interactive AR images when seen through a phone. This will present a myriad of advertising options regarding targeting, ad types and creative, so watch this space!

So there you have it – our key advertising tips and tricks on TikTok and Snapchat. We also hosted another bite-size learning session on Facebook and Instagram, which you can watch here right now. Or, if you’re short on time, take a look at the key takeaways here.

In the meantime, if you need help with your advertising strategy on social media or need assistance in supercharging your results and reducing your ad spend, get in touch with our advertising experts.