TikTok Launches Search Ads Beta For Selected Partners

There’s a new way for advertisers to reach customers on TikTok.

Although not yet announced or confirmed, TikTok appears to be quietly populating ads within its search results page.

In this post, we’ll show you why we think search ads are coming to TikTok, and what this means for your social media marketing strategy.

Examples are found in the wild

This discovery was first reported on Twitter by David Hermanone of the digital media buyers in the industry.

Herrmann posted a screenshot of the TikTok search results page; A sponsored ad was shown in the first four results.

To make sure this wasn’t just a coincidence, we explored the TikTok search results page with a few different, unrelated queries:

• makeup lessons
• House cleaning tips

Both resulted in an ad appearing in the first four results.

Image credit: screenshot by the author, March 2022

Image credit: Screenshot taken by the author, March 2022

What does this mean for advertisers

If your search ads are launched to the general public, you’ll be able to expand your campaign targeting to specific queries. Advantages of this type of targeting include:

• Better control of campaigns
• More “bottom of the funnel” options
• Determine user intent and interest

When search ads are available to you, you will also receive reports in the TikTok Ads Manager interface that include:

• Search term click data
• Transform data from search terms

Benefits that go beyond paid advertising

Targeting search ads opens up a new level of benefits for marketers. On top of being able to flag search term data, it allows you to take actionable steps in your TikTok marketing. Not just for your paid campaigns, but for SEO and general content creation.

For example, Hermann later recommend In his Twitter thread:

• “…Make a list of these search terms and start putting them as titles in your top performing TikToks to get new life out of them.”

This strategy can help you rank higher and gain additional reach without the extra boost from paid ads.

The search terms report is also useful from an SEO point of view. You’ll be able to analyze data on the top searched phrases, which can then help guide your TikTok marketing approach.

If you see a lot of users searching for a “how-to” regarding your product or service, Herrmann suggests creating TikTok content that solves users’ problems. It’s a great way to introduce and engage your audience before they buy.

The other benefit of reporting is within conversion data. You can create new audiences from converted users to expand or exclude from your targeting in future campaigns. It’s a great remarketing game and you can then tailor the content directly to that audience; Perhaps with the strongest call to action.

summary

It looks like TikTok is just getting started with its advertising capabilities. While the search ads beta isn’t for everyone, the best way to get started is by reaching out to a TikTok ads representative.

We’d love to hear from you. Are you part of the TikTok search beta? What have been your results so far?

Featured image: Daniel Constanti/Shutterstock