As we approach the holidays, companies are facing shrinking budgets and an increasingly grim economic landscape, leaving many marketers wondering how to do more with less.
Social media, especially short-form video, will play an increasingly significant role this quarter and beyond. A survey from Statista shows that 7 in 10 consumers are now using social media as their source of inspiration for holiday shopping. Leveraging short-form videos as a core content marketing strategy this year will be a powerful way to captivate audiences in an entertaining and creative way.
When it comes to short-form video, it’s no secret that TikTok has become the leading platform for both brands and audiences — but does it hold the power to boost the bottom line? According to Dash Hudson and NielsenIQ, creating content that genuinely entertains audiences drives sales growth 34% faster than those approaching the app with a traditional marketing mindset.
Here are a few key findings from Dash Hudson’s insights team to help brands drive success through short-form video:
- To find ultimate success on TikTok, brands can take a page out of the media and publishing industry’s playbook by focusing more on telling stories that will entertain their audiences and less on directly selling products. In fact, media and publishing now outperforms almost all other industries on TikTok, leading metrics such as followers, engagement, shares and comments.
- New data has overturned the long-held belief that micro-influencers and creators drive more engagement on social media than those with larger followings. While growing brands (10k-100k) have an engagement rate that is nearly 50% higher than larger brands (500k+) on Instagram, larger brands have an engagement rate that is 20% higher than smaller brands on TikTok. This statistic underscores that TikTok is an entertainment-first channel, where brands that invest more effort into their creative strategy will reap the highest results.
- When it comes to driving engagement – which often translates into higher sales – TikTok has officially surpassed Instagram as the leader in engagement by 10x. This statistic proves that TikTok has become a crucial platform in the e-commerce ecosystem, where brands can make a lasting impression with current and prospective customers that will influence their path to purchase. While the notion of increased video creation can feel daunting for brands, it’s important to remember that TikTok audiences prefer to be spoken to like friends, rather than customers. In this environment, production value of content matters less than simply being funny, relatable and timely.
