How TikTok Changed Advertising Forever
Niche and extreme
Not all brands have taken such an offbeat approach to TikTok. But across the board, the most successful brands on the platform are those that take cues from creators, mimicking their personal tones and narrative styles, said Jimmy George, strategy director at Mischief @ No Fixed Address.
TikTok “changed storytelling to be more kinetic, extreme, and hyperbolic,” and savvy brands followed suit, he observed. For example, in 2021, skincare brand Eos, a Mischief client, named a new shaving cream “Bless Your F*ing Cooch,” after a viral TikTok tutorial about grooming with Eos’ product.
@killljoyy ♬ original sound – killjoy
Unfiltered and lo-fi content thrives on TikTok, in contrast to the polished aesthetic of Instagram or big-budget advertising. As a result, brands that were used to big studios or teams crafting their creative have struggled to break through on the platform.
“That type of content is being drowned out by all this other content that feels personal. If you’re not making that, suddenly you look like the other,” George said.
Because TikTok’s algorithm emphasizes engagement over follower count, it’s allowed niche voices to break through. That’s enabled smaller brands like Scrub Daddy, which built a character around its signature yellow sponge, to build large audiences “if the content is good,” said Rahul Titus, global head of influence at Ogilvy.
TikTok has also forced brands to shift their influencer marketing strategies away from major celebrity influencers and toward creators with smaller, engaged followings. For example, Jools Lebron, the TikTok creator who went from obscurity to viral fame after spawning last year’s “demure” trend, inked deals with brands including Verizon, Lyft, and Netflix.
