TikTok for B2B Marketing

TikTok has earned a reputation as a powerful B2C marketing tool. But for most B2B companies, TikTok is likely at the bottom of their priorities for social media marketing. However, more and more B2B companies are recognising that TikTok can offer more than dance challenges and cute animal content.

TikTok is unique among social media platforms for its authenticity and videos tend to be less professionally edited and curated than the likes of Instagram Reels and YouTube, appearing more pedestrian and down-to-earth.

Research from LinkedIn’s B2B Institute recently proved that marketing strategies that appeal to an audience’s emotions are much more effective than those that take a rational approach. Of course, both sides of the coin are important. Rational marketing asks an individual to take action and tells them exactly why they should. Emotional marketing, on the other hand, builds brand awareness.

Individuals are more likely to purchase from a brand they know and have a connection to – which is exactly why TikTok is a valuable channel to add to the top of your sales funnel.

Benefits of TikTok for B2B Marketing

Networking

Networking is a core tactic in B2B marketing, with LinkedIn being designed around forming online connections with other business professionals. But just because TikTok isn’t designed for professionals doesn’t mean it can’t be used to network effectively. Locally specific hashtags can be used to connect with other local professionals and potential leads.

Evoking Emotions

When thinking of B2B marketing, the word “emotive” likely isn’t the first to spring to mind. An informal platform like TikTok may seem too alien compared to the tone of your company’s blog or your Twitter and LinkedIn posts.

But as is the rule of thumb with marketing, the best ideas can come from throwing rules out of the window — by doing the creative and unexpected. Potential clients aren’t all that different from B2C consumers. They are still looking for trust and authenticity in a product or service.

Fast Results

You don’t need a large following to achieve high engagement on TikTok, as your follower count and previous engagement do not factor into TikTok’s algorithm. Instead, videos are ranked individually, independent of your profile.

Despite only being on the platform for two months and having just 21 followers, Search Engine Journal generated over £600 of sales through TikTok marketing. So, if you’re keen to test the waters with TikTok but are reluctant to invest a lot of time in it, you can rest assured that with the right strategy, you can achieve results fairly quickly.

Not Just for Young People

A common misconception is that TikTok is only useful for marketing to young people. And while 41% of users are aged 16 to 24, this leaves 59% across other demographics. When you consider that TikTok has over 1.1 billion active users worldwide, this gives you a sizable audience to target.

How to Do B2B Marketing With TikTok
Interact

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Social media is all about bringing people together. Use TikTok to bring your target audience together, and form connections with them. Beginning a campaign like this can help to increase brand awareness by getting your name out there, and encouraging viewers to find out more about you.

Business solutions company Sage created the #SageTellMe challenge, at once promoting their brand name while connecting with potential clients.

Show Your Fun Side‍

Embracing your company’s fun and relatable side can improve your public image, and help you to stand out from your competitors. Successful TikToks capitalize on humor and relatability. The ability to reuse audio tracks to participate in trends can provide baseline inspiration. When viewing these videos, users will likely recognise the format of the audio trend, evoking curiosity in your take on it.

US law firm Morgan & Morgan is a great example of successful humorous B2B marketing, as TikTok is their second most successful social media platform, right behind Facebook. Their most popular content includes their founder John Morgan sharing humorous tidbits on various topics (like this one on Oprah, Harry & Meghan), humanizing the face behind the brand.

Reuse, Recycle‍

Informative, educational videos are a great way to indirectly sell to potential leads. Likely, producing informative blog content is already an integral part of your B2B marketing strategy. Recycling this content on TikTok comes with a host of benefits. For one, you have already researched and created content that you know is of value to your audience. Secondly, this method can add an extra source of potential leads into your sales funnel.

By condensing advice or guidance into bitesize tips, you demonstrate your business’ expertise and thought leadership, indirectly selling your services. Recycling this content on TikTok comes with a host of benefits. For one, you have already researched and created content that you know is of value to your audience. Secondly, this method can add an extra source of potential leads into your sales funnel.

Takeaways‍

TikTok has the potential to bridge the emotional gap that’s often left by traditional B2B marketing and can provide a valuable creative avenue for those looking to shake up their strategy and stand out from their competitors.

Ideally, B2B TikTok content should indirectly sell by showing off your company’s character and expertise, increasing brand awareness and encouraging viewers to move down your sales funnel.

Like any other aspect of your marketing strategy, TikTok is about showing customers what makes you unique. If you don’t like what you’ve seen from your competitors on TikTok, why not come up with a new take and show them how it’s done?

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Source: Search Engine Journal