How can brands sell through TikTok Shop?
Posted: Mon Jan 20, 2025 4:38 am
hile the expansion is exciting news for brands and users, ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok, has implemented stricter usage criteria for the millions of sellers who want to participate. For example, in Mexico, retailers must have a legally registered entity in the country and, at first, they will not be able to sell certain products, such as food and jewelry.
By being clear about the usage policies and regulations, you can take advantage of the various possibilities offered by TikTok Shopping to display the most relevant products you want to market and generate a greater connection with your potential customers through strategies such as:
Showcase: TikTok offers a feature called Showcase, which allows customers to shop directly from your profile. When you enable this feature, users will see a shopping bag icon on your account, making it easier to find and purchase products.
Tagging products in videos: Brands can tag their products in videos they upload to the platform. This will allow users to click on the products and be directed to their respective stores to make a direct purchase.
Make sales live: TikTok Shopping also allows brands to sell products during live streams. This is known as Live Shopping, where you can interact with your followers and promote your products in real-time during a live session.
Collaborate with content creators: As we have already mentioned, brands can partner with influencers to promote their products. Creators, who have established communities on the social network but also understand the platform's own language, creating content with high viral potential, can mention and tag products in their videos, which helps increase visibility and sales.
Ads and promotions: TikTok offers advertising tools that allow brands to create campaigns and ads to promote their products. This includes the ability to use TikTok Ads Manager to manage advertising campaigns.
Speaking of TikTok Ads, read also: How to create efficient campaigns on TikTok Ads
Can TikTok Shopping become Amazon's new competitor?
Many of the features offered by TikTok Shopping have the potential to make it a competitor to Amazon, especially in sectors such as fashion and beauty that tend to attract younger audiences, where TikTok is strongly positioned.
On the one hand, direct interaction through comments, messages and live broadcasts make the shopping experience on TikTok Shopping more complete. The Live Shopping feature, in which brands can offer and sell their products during a live broadcast, allows users to resolve their doubts about certain products. This option surpasses traditional Amazon product pages, offering a much higher level of engagement.
Another factor that gives TikTok Shopping an advantage over Amazon is the content created by users themselves. People often share videos of themselves trying out products or sharing their experiences with them. In fact, it is estimated that 2 out of 5 people today use TikTok as a search engine to find out more about certain products or topics. This "word of mouth" w vp r&d email database orks as a powerful source of validation for those users who are undecided when it comes to making their purchases. In contrast, Amazon also has its review system, in which customers leave their written reviews and photos of products, which tends to have less visual and emotional impact.
Finally, TikTok Shop capitalizes on the close relationship between influencers and their followers, which can translate into a higher conversion rate. Collaborations, as marketing strategies, allow brands to reach audiences more authentically, something that Amazon does not exploit to the same extent.
Recommended reading: How Amazon is planning to reach the top of influencer marketing
Despite all these advantages, TikTok Shop still faces significant challenges in competing with Amazon. Amazon remains unbeatable in terms of logistics, product variety, and consumer trust. Its ability to offer fast delivery and an extensive product catalog across multiple categories is a significant barrier.
If TikTok Shop manages to expand its logistics infrastructure, improve the user experience and expand its product catalogue, it could capture a greater market share. However, it will have to adapt to the needs of the Spanish market and compete with the reliable and efficient shopping experience that Amazon has already managed to consolidate.
Rather than being a direct threat to Amazon across all categories, TikTok Shop may find success by focusing on specific niche markets where the content-driven shopping experience carries more weight, such as fashion and viral products.
By being clear about the usage policies and regulations, you can take advantage of the various possibilities offered by TikTok Shopping to display the most relevant products you want to market and generate a greater connection with your potential customers through strategies such as:
Showcase: TikTok offers a feature called Showcase, which allows customers to shop directly from your profile. When you enable this feature, users will see a shopping bag icon on your account, making it easier to find and purchase products.
Tagging products in videos: Brands can tag their products in videos they upload to the platform. This will allow users to click on the products and be directed to their respective stores to make a direct purchase.
Make sales live: TikTok Shopping also allows brands to sell products during live streams. This is known as Live Shopping, where you can interact with your followers and promote your products in real-time during a live session.
Collaborate with content creators: As we have already mentioned, brands can partner with influencers to promote their products. Creators, who have established communities on the social network but also understand the platform's own language, creating content with high viral potential, can mention and tag products in their videos, which helps increase visibility and sales.
Ads and promotions: TikTok offers advertising tools that allow brands to create campaigns and ads to promote their products. This includes the ability to use TikTok Ads Manager to manage advertising campaigns.
Speaking of TikTok Ads, read also: How to create efficient campaigns on TikTok Ads
Can TikTok Shopping become Amazon's new competitor?
Many of the features offered by TikTok Shopping have the potential to make it a competitor to Amazon, especially in sectors such as fashion and beauty that tend to attract younger audiences, where TikTok is strongly positioned.
On the one hand, direct interaction through comments, messages and live broadcasts make the shopping experience on TikTok Shopping more complete. The Live Shopping feature, in which brands can offer and sell their products during a live broadcast, allows users to resolve their doubts about certain products. This option surpasses traditional Amazon product pages, offering a much higher level of engagement.
Another factor that gives TikTok Shopping an advantage over Amazon is the content created by users themselves. People often share videos of themselves trying out products or sharing their experiences with them. In fact, it is estimated that 2 out of 5 people today use TikTok as a search engine to find out more about certain products or topics. This "word of mouth" w vp r&d email database orks as a powerful source of validation for those users who are undecided when it comes to making their purchases. In contrast, Amazon also has its review system, in which customers leave their written reviews and photos of products, which tends to have less visual and emotional impact.
Finally, TikTok Shop capitalizes on the close relationship between influencers and their followers, which can translate into a higher conversion rate. Collaborations, as marketing strategies, allow brands to reach audiences more authentically, something that Amazon does not exploit to the same extent.
Recommended reading: How Amazon is planning to reach the top of influencer marketing
Despite all these advantages, TikTok Shop still faces significant challenges in competing with Amazon. Amazon remains unbeatable in terms of logistics, product variety, and consumer trust. Its ability to offer fast delivery and an extensive product catalog across multiple categories is a significant barrier.
If TikTok Shop manages to expand its logistics infrastructure, improve the user experience and expand its product catalogue, it could capture a greater market share. However, it will have to adapt to the needs of the Spanish market and compete with the reliable and efficient shopping experience that Amazon has already managed to consolidate.
Rather than being a direct threat to Amazon across all categories, TikTok Shop may find success by focusing on specific niche markets where the content-driven shopping experience carries more weight, such as fashion and viral products.