TikTok’s recent success has made brands interested in the platform. Many have been trying to see whether they could also use the platform to their advantage. While it may not be for everyone, a lot of industries could definitely benefit and are already benefiting from TikTok.

In the recent Elementor #webcreators2021 webinar, when asked what platforms should brands be focusing on right now, social media expert Gary Vaynerchuk was quick to give two answers—LinkedIn and TikTok. He emphasised the need to “create content with value” in order to engage audiences better and saw both platforms, especially TikTok, as vital platforms for doing this. Attendees were a bit divided on his answer, which proves that many in the digital marketing industry are still a bit hesitant about embracing TikTok as a marketing tool. This reaction is understandable, especially if we’d consider that the platform is originally intended for a younger audience. But looking past viral dance covers, we can definitely say that TikTok also offers a lot of benefits for brands.

So if you’re looking to delve into this fast-rising platform, here are some statistics and brand success stories you should know about!

TikTok Statistics in 2021:

1. TikTok is the second most downloaded app in the world, with almost 62 million installs in just January of 2021.
2. TikTok boasts 689 million monthly active users.
3. The average daily view time on the app is 46 minutes.
4. Users spend around a whopping 858 minutes per month on the app.
5. In terms of business relevance, TikTok ranks as the “second-biggest app” in terms of consumption spending.

Here are some success stories of brands on the platform:

Guess. Guess’s most successful TikTok campaign to date leveraged the platform to promote their Fall ’18 Denim Fit Collection. They rolled out the #InMyDenim campaign and called for user engagement, encouraging users to style themselves with denim. The result? Over 5,550 UG videos, over 10.5 M views and 14.3% engagement rate. Pretty impressive for a 6-day campaign period!

Arby’s. Arby’s case is what we may call ‘accidental’. All it took was one ‘funny’ video that wasn’t even produced by Arby’s to catapult them to success on the platform. TikTok creator John Casterline (@h1t1) posted a video late last year of a flat-screen TV he bought for $25—only to find out that the TV could only display Arby’s menu. This was followed by a series of hilarious back and forth between the food chain and Casterline which people closely followed. This culminated with Arby’s getting their TV back and a special menu item.

The Washington Post. It could be difficult to get the younger generation interested in news, but The Washington Post has managed to unlock a new, more tech-savvy audience for them—thanks, in large part, to TikTok. The 143-year-old newspaper brand has achieved 1M TikTok followers just in August of this year and Dave Jorgenson, TWP’s video producer, editor, and writer (who fondly calls himself the ‘Washington Post TikTok Guy’) shares his and his team’s intention to expand into new formats like live videos.

Although generally easy, the features of TikTok could be a bit confusing at first glance. So, here’s a rundown of TikTok information that’d do you well to remember:

1. TikTok videos can be 15 seconds to 3 minutes long and come in a type of short-form content that is easily digestible.
2. There is a variety and diversity of content on the platform; anyone can find a way to leverage it to their benefit.
3. It has easy-to-use video editing tools that many people—including celebrities, influencers, brands and even educators—find appealing.
4. “Content is king” on TikTok, which means even an account with 0 followers could rake in millions of views if they manage to create content that people would find relatable and replicable.
5. While it has a specific TikTok for business option complete with plans you can look into, brands often find success in TikTok with very little investment.
6. TikTok is able to catapult some people into instant stardom, which goes to show that influencer marketing is really effective here.

On TikTok’s page for business, they claimed that “there’s an audience for every voice.” And to be able to find success on the app, your brand would definitely need to know & be familiar with pop culture and the ‘zeitgeist’, as these are referenced by people a lot on the platform.

TikTok is still rolling out many new features for brands, so now’s the best time to do a deep dive into it and reap the rewards for you. It’s not that saturated yet, offering a bigger chance of success to brands who’d embrace it now.