Are you a small business owner wondering whether TikTok would be good for your small business? Well, I’m here to tell you that YES TikTok can be incredibly good for small businesses, and in this post, I’ll run through some of the reasons why this is the case.

Why is TikTok good for small businesses?

1. Broad audience reach

TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social media platforms and has almost 2 billion users worldwide, providing small businesses with a large and diverse audience.

2. Great brand awareness

With its high engagement rate, TikTok offers businesses a chance to boost their brand visibility and reach potential customers faster. 82 % of TikTok users say they have discovered a small or medium business on TikTok before seeing them elsewhere. (TikTok, 2022)

3. Engagement with young audiences

As a platform popular among Gen Z and younger millennials, TikTok is a powerful tool for targeting and engaging younger demographics. However, whilst TikTok has high adoption among Gen Z and younger audiences, other older demographics are also using the platform more and more as people adopt the app.

With an average engagement rate of 4.25%, TikTok is by far the most engaging social media platform. In second place is Instagram with an average engagement rate of just 0.60%.

4. Viral Potential

Unique, creative content on TikTok can quickly go viral, significantly boosting a small business's online presence at little to no cost. And the good news for small businesses who are new to TikTok, is that neither follower count nor whether the account has had previous high-performing videos are direct factors in the recommendation system.

So, if you create great content that speaks directly to your target audience, you have as much chance to land on your audiences’ ‘For You’ page as an account that has had previous viral videos. Unlike other social media apps, anyone can potentially go viral/reach a large audience, offering a more level playing field.

5. Showcase your brand personality

TikTok provides a space for small businesses to showcase their personality and values more informally and in a fun creative way, which can help to foster brand loyalty and develop that customer relationship. Features like live shopping and TikTok lives can help small business owners to develop close relationships and build a community.

6. Drive sales of your products

Features like TikTok shop and having the ability to link to your website or store in your bio, allows small businesses to drive sales directly from their TikTok videos. And TikTok users are shopping. 52 % of TikTok users that have come across small or medium business content on TikTok have gone on to make a purchase (TikTik, 2022).

7. Affordable Advertising

TikTok's self-service ad platform is more affordable compared to other social media platforms, making it great for small businesses with smaller budgets. Additionally, the organic reach on TikTok is so good that small businesses may not even need to spend on advertising.

My suggestion for small businesses, would be to focus on growing organically first on TikTok, then you can learn what works and look to boost or recreate your best performing videos as ads if needed.

Now you know why TikTok can be a good choice for small businesses - is TikTok right for your business?

If you are unsure, you can take my TikTok marketing strategy course on Skillshare, where I go into more depth about how to create a TikTok marketing strategy and succeed in TikTok marketing.

You can take my course for free here - TikTok Marketing Strategy: Grow Your Small Business on TikTok.

Happy learning!

Louise

P.s sign up to my newsletter for regular marketing tips and tricks, and follow me on Instagram.

Is TikTok good for small businesses?