TikTok announces new shoppable ad formats as it prepares for holiday rush

How TikTok is preparing for the holiday season. 

Lynk Lynk
Aug 17, 2022 - 21:01
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TikTok announces new shoppable ad formats as it prepares for holiday rush

TikTok is rolling out several new shoppable ad formats ahead of the holidays, including video shopping ads, catalog listing ads and live shopping ads.

Video shopping ads will allow advertisers to highlight one or several products in their in-feed video ads; catalog listing ads will let advertisers promote products across the app, similar to Instagram’s shop tab, without the need for video assets; and live shopping ads will link to products being used during a TikTok live.

The new formats are not available to all advertisers. Video shopping ads are available for global testing, according to a TikTok blog post, and catalog ads are available for testing in the U.S. and for advertisers targeting the U.S. Live shopping ads are available for testing where TikTok Shop is available, which includes U.K., Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and with invited accounts in the U.S.

Despite some hiccups, the app isn't giving up on turning itself into a shopping destination. TikTok announced its first round of shopping solutions in September of last year, including product links and dynamic showcase ads. But U.S. customers have been slow to adopt live shopping. TikTok reportedly had to pull back its live shopping pilot in the U.K. after several influencers dropped out of the program. Still, the app has been a huge driver of sales for brands and small businesses, with the hashtag #TikTokMadeMeBuy reaching over 19 billion views. Heading into the holidays, the tech platforms are bulking up their shopping capabilities, despite economic headwinds.

TikTok also announced new shopping ads partners: Smartly.io is now the app’s ads and campaign partner and Productsup is the catalog feed partner. There are several commerce partners, including Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce and Ecwid.