With the continuous growth of TikTok, many brands are looking for ways to grow their presence on the platform. As TikTok provides different ways of promoting videos, many users often wonder whether it's worth promoting videos on TikTok. If you are one of them, this article will answer your questions.

What Does Promoting TikTok Videos Entail?

TikTok video promotion refers to the various steps and strategies used to increase a video's visibility, engagement, and reach. There are several methods of promoting TikTok videos. These include:

TikTok Promote

This can be considered the default way of promoting a TikTok video, as it is an inbuilt feature that helps individuals and businesses promote their videos. Simply put, you can choose to promote a video you created on TikTok. The main benefit of this method is that it is usually more affordable than other promotion methods.

To be eligible to use TikTok Promote, you should be:

• At least 18 years.
• Agree to the terms of service and privacy policy of TikTok Promote.
• Have a creator or a business account.

Remember that you can only use the TikTok Promote feature for your public videos with original sounds. You can, however, add sounds from the TikTok commercial music library.

TikTok Ads

On top of the TikTok Promote feature, you can use other ad types to promote your TikTok videos and reach a specific audience on the platform. You can customize the Facebook ads depending on your goals, budget, and audience demographics. 

The ads usually appear between organic user-generated content with a sponsored tag and a call-to-action button. Viewers are taken to the landing page when they click on the ad. Like on Facebook and Instagram, most TikTok ads usually work on an auction model. That means you must specify your campaign's bid and daily spend limit.

There are several types of TikTok ad options to consider, such as:

• In-feed video. These appear on the native user's newsfeed. When you promote a video using this ad type, it will appear on the user's For You page.
• Top-view ads. These are the ads you usually see when opening the TikTok app. They are a good option for capturing the viewer's attention because they appear on the full screen with sound on the video.
• Spark Ads. TikTok started this type of ad in 2021. It enables brands to sponsor content related to their brands.
• Video ads: Full-screen video ads range from 5 to 60 seconds and are often shown on the user's For You page.
• Image ad. Image ads usually feature an app or brand name on the For You page.
• Carousel ad. The ad format comprises up to 10 images and is usually shown in the TikTok newsfeed.
• Branded effects. You can also create ads to appear as branded stickers, filters, and other AR content.
• Video shopping ads often feature product tiles, which allow people to click through to a product gallery on the app.

There are other types of ads, but the above are among the most common.

Cross Promotion

You can also promote your TikTok videos across social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. The best platform for cross-promoting TikTok videos is Instagram, which allows you to post content on Instagram reels. 

However, you should be careful when using videos with the TikTok logo on other social media platforms. When you share your videos to these platforms, include a call-to-action asking people to like the video and follow you on TIkTok. Here are a few tips for cross-promoting TikTok videos:

Set a cross-promotion goal

Consider what you want to achieve with the cross-promotion of your TikTok videos. Is it to get more followers or subscribers, make your TikTok videos go viral, or improve engagement? The goal you set will be your KPI, which should be trackable using TikTok analytics.

Tailor the content for each platform

You don't have to promote your TikTok video exactly as it is. Remember that each platform has its rules for sharing content. A platform like YouTube is geared toward long-form content. However, YouTube shorts are also a great place to share TikTok videos. Making simple changes to your videos can mean the difference between reaching goals. Therefore, make sure you customize the TikTok video for each platform.

Schedule posts ahead of time

After creating great content for each platform, the next step is to consider what you are posting. A good idea is to have posts scheduled well in advance. It is important to:

• Create a social posting calendar and determine what to post and when.
• Create posts before time and schedule them.
• Ensure that you post at the right time.

Reformat the post to each platform needs

Every social media platform has its format and features. On Instagram, there are Stories, while Facebook has Reels. You need to adapt your TikTok videos to the needs of each platform. While the general message will remain the same, the format and messaging may differ. Reformatting content means you may need to adjust your content slightly and even incorporate photos and videos.

Factors to Consider Before Doing a TikTok Video Promotion

To determine if TikTok promotion is worth it, you need to analyze your return on investment. There are several factors you need to consider to do that. These are:

Brand Goals

What are you trying to achieve by promoting your TikTok videos? Some of the goals would be to:

• Increase your brand awareness.
• Increase sales.
• Generate leads.
• Drive traffic to your site.

After determining your goal, you need to align it with certain trackable metrics. These metrics could include views, clickthroughs, shares, conversions, or sales. This will help you determine whether you are meeting the goal or not.  

Audience Alignment

Most of the TikTok user base consists of GenZ and millennials. Using TikTok promotion methods can be worthwhile if you are selling products and services targeting these demographics. However, if you are selling a product or a service that targets the older generation, you might want to reconsider if promoting your TikTok videos is worth it. That said, old age groups are joining TikTok in droves, and you don't have to give up so fast.

Cost/benefit Analysis

In most cases, promoting your TikTok videos will cost you money. In addition to the cost of advertising, you will encounter other costs, such as content production, editing, and more. Therefore, you must evaluate to determine if the benefits are worthwhile. 

Conversion Tracking

One of the best ways to determine if your videos bring in the desired results is by tracking the conversion rate. Some metrics that will provide insights into the conversion rate include visits to your site, sign-ups, and purchases. There are many tools you can use to help you with the tracking.

Comparative Analysis 

Since there are many other advertising options, you need to find out if TikTok is giving you the best return on investment. You can compare TikTok's cost per acquisition and engagement with other platforms.

Pros and Cons of TikTok Video Promotion

If you are wondering if TikTok video promotion is worth it, here are the pros and cons to help you decide.

Pros

• Large user base. TikTok has millions of active users worldwide, which provides a vast potential for your brand to reach and engage with.
• Potential to go viral. The TikTok content discovery and algorithm can make it easier for the content to go viral, improving brand exposure and increasing the reach.
• Influencer partnership. By partnering with the right influencers, you can easily increase your brand's reach and engagement on TikTok.

Cons

• A non-diverse audience. As noted earlier, the TikTok demographic often consists of younger age groups. This means if you are trying to reach an older demographic, TikTok might not be the right space to enable you to do that.
• Lower attention span. TikTok's content usually consists of short videos, so it's only suitable for promoting short and captivating videos. Therefore,if your goal is to deliver longer videos with in-depth details, TikTok might not be the right platform for that.
• Competition and saturation. With the continued growth of TikTok, the platform is becoming increasingly saturated with content. That means it can be hard to create unique content that will help you get noticed.
• Concerns about data privacy. There have been concerns about how TikTok maintains data privacy. Therefore, before deciding to use the platform, you need to review its data privacy law and be sure you are aligned with it.

Is Promoting TikTok Videos Worth It?

In conclusion, TikTok offers opportunities and challenges for brands promoting on the platform. However, they can leverage the large user base and the potential for their content to go viral when promoting on the platform. By reading our guide,they can make an informed decision about whether to promote TikTok videos.