In marketing, one of the most important rules is that you have to be where your target audience is. As social media usage has moved and shifted over the years, and as social media platforms have come and gone, small business owners have had to become not only comfortable—but intimately familiar—with how social media can become an integral part of your digital marketing efforts.
The hottest talk in town these days is about TikTok, and for good reason. As of 2021, TikTok reported that they had reached more than one billion monthly active users. And the growth of the platform has gone far beyond popular dance compilations and competitions.
All TikTok users—including the coveted Gen Z demographic—have made the platform the sixth most used social media platform in the world. In addition, TikTok videos are frequently shared on other social media sites, meaning that the reach of TikTok content is continually growing and bringing in audiences from across the web.
So what does all of this mean for small business owners? For starters, it means that you need to make TikTok a part of your digital marketing plan if it’s not already. It also means that now is a terrific time to look over the current state of TikTok usage among small businesses.
We surveyed and worked closely with many of our experts and partners here at UpCity to get their insights on TikTok’s usage, reach, applicability, and advantages for small business owners and entrepreneurs.
The combined results of our survey here not only give you a great look at how TikTok is currently being utilized by small businesses and marketing experts, but will also provide you with a better picture of where your usage stands and how TikTok can (and should) become a part of your marketing strategy.
The Basics of TikTok for Small Businesses
As a starting point, we wanted to get a clear sense of where our expert panelists stand in their knowledge and usage of TikTok. Of the small businesses we surveyed, more than 86% are actively utilizing social media as part of their digital marketing approach.
This likely includes everything from product launches to brand awareness campaigns—essentially everything you are already doing in your marketing to reach new audiences and engage with customers.
Interestingly, 13% of those experts that we surveyed responded that they are not currently utilizing social media as one of their marketing outlets, which speaks to the potential for further growth as small businesses begin to make social sites like TikTok part of their approach.
In marketing, one of the most important rules is that you have to be where your target audience is. As social media usage has moved and shifted over the years, and as social media platforms have come and gone, small business owners have had to become not only comfortable—but intimately familiar—with how social media can become an integral part of your digital marketing efforts.
The hottest talk in town these days is about TikTok, and for good reason. As of 2021, TikTok reported that they had reached more than one billion monthly active users. And the growth of the platform has gone far beyond popular dance compilations and competitions.
All TikTok users—including the coveted Gen Z demographic—have made the platform the sixth most used social media platform in the world. In addition, TikTok videos are frequently shared on other social media sites, meaning that the reach of TikTok content is continually growing and bringing in audiences from across the web.
So what does all of this mean for small business owners? For starters, it means that you need to make TikTok a part of your digital marketing plan if it’s not already. It also means that now is a terrific time to look over the current state of TikTok usage among small businesses.
We surveyed and worked closely with many of our experts and partners here at UpCity to get their insights on TikTok’s usage, reach, applicability, and advantages for small business owners and entrepreneurs.
The combined results of our survey here not only give you a great look at how TikTok is currently being utilized by small businesses and marketing experts, but will also provide you with a better picture of where your usage stands and how TikTok can (and should) become a part of your marketing strategy.
The Basics of TikTok for Small Businesses
As a starting point, we wanted to get a clear sense of where our expert panelists stand in their knowledge and usage of TikTok. Of the small businesses we surveyed, more than 86% are actively utilizing social media as part of their digital marketing approach.
This likely includes everything from product launches to brand awareness campaigns—essentially everything you are already doing in your marketing to reach new audiences and engage with customers.
Interestingly, 13% of those experts that we surveyed responded that they are not currently utilizing social media as one of their marketing outlets, which speaks to the potential for further growth as small businesses begin to make social sites like TikTok part of their approach.
Of those 86% who are actively engaged on social media for their brand, over 55% of small businesses have a TikTok account for their business.
Among the top uses of TikTok for business that they listed, 71% of small businesses use TikTok to post content about their business. Nearly two thirds of small businesses use TikTok to follow other businesses for content and ideas, and 59% use it to search for trends and topics that may be relevant to their business.
33% – Follow other businesses to see their content
30% – Search for trends and topics of interest
36% – Post content about my business
1% – Other
On the other side of the coin are those who are not currently using TikTok for their small business needs.
Of the approximately 45% of respondents who do not currently have a TikTok account for their businesses, the majority shared that the number one reason is that they are unsure of how it would benefit their company or their marketing efforts.
Some were not interested in the platform as part of their digital marketing strategy, while still others were unsure of how the platform could be used to benefit their business.
28% – No interest
15% – Too time consuming
20% – Unsure how to use the platform
31% – Unsure how it would benefit my business
6% – Other
Finally, 55% of small businesses are definitely planning to utilize TikTok in one way or another in 2023. Nearly 27% of respondents were undecided on their plans for using TikTok in the coming year, though they were open to the idea.
The Value of TikTok and Short Videos for Small Businesses
Next, we dove into understanding how valuable small business owners find TikTok to be for various marketing goals and functions. Whether through the use of influencers and TikTok creators or TikTok ads, our panel of small business owners and marketing experts offered their thoughts on TikTok as a marketing tool and social platform that could effectively reach different customer bases.
First, we wanted to understand how valuable businesses consider TikTok to be for gaining exposure among new customers including millennials and Gen Z users. The majority of our respondents believe that TikTok will be somewhat valuable for the express purpose of gaining exposure for your business.
Just over 40% of SMB owners and marketers believe that TikTok would be highly valuable for businesses looking to gain exposure and awareness.
10% – Not valuable
50% – Somewhat valuable
40% – Highly valuable
Next, we asked about how valuable small business owners consider TikTok to be for bringing in new customers or clients. In this case, 90% of small business owners and marketers believe TikTok to be somewhat valuable or highly valuable for converting new customers to their business.
10% – Not valuable
48% – Somewhat valuable
42% – Highly valuable
In addition, nearly 55% of SMBs believe that dedicating time and resources to creating TikTok content is worth it for their businesses. Still another 33% were unsure if that effort was worth it, but would be open to learning more about the platform’s uses for business and brand growth.
55% – Yes
33% – Unsure
12% – No
Finally, more than one-third of SMBs report that they have found success in using TikTok, and in a variety of ways. We did not dive into specifics, but that 37%+ who have found success have likely done so in ways directly related to their digital marketing objectives and established metrics (brand awareness, site traffic, lead generation, and so on).
37% – Yes
25% – Unsure
12% – No
26% – We haven’t used TikTok
Video Content, Social Media, and TikTok
Finally, we wanted to gain a better understanding of how our panelists and small business owners are engaging with video marketing as part of their social media marketing efforts, including on TikTok.
While TikTok marketing is subject to the unique TikTok algorithm and the unique requirements of the social media app, the short-form video format is a powerful tool utilized on social networks including LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and others.
Our panel of expert marketers, small business owners, and business consultants were asked about all of the outlets where they created content for video marketing. While TikTok was among the results and quickly climbing through the ranks, YouTube is still the number one platform.
However, according to data from our SMB Video Marketing Survey, 55% of those SMBs who engage in video marketing are currently utilizing TikTok in addition to the other platforms.
In addition, 39% of small businesses that use paid video advertising as part of their digital marketing efforts are choosing to advertise on TikTok.
As for the types of video content overall that our small business panelists and marketers are creating, 61% use video marketing to advertise their products or services. But there are many other uses that were revealed in the survey results, including reviews, “how to” videos, and demos or tutorials.
Finally, when it came to our experts’ plans for 2023, more than half of small businesses plan to use TikTok as part of their video marketing efforts throughout the year.
This is nearly as many respondents as those who plan to use Facebook for video marketing this year, helping to demonstrate both the value and the growth in popularity of TikTok as a key component in digital marketing efforts.
Making TikTok a Part of Your Digital Marketing Initiatives
While the choice to add TikTok to your digital marketing efforts is a unique one for each type of business and industry, TikTok advertising has shown that it has clear advantages for many of the small businesses we surveyed. And the growth of the platform from last year to this year shows no indication of slowing down.
In order to put your company in front of the largest possible user base, consider making TikTok one of the components of your marketing plan. For best results, reach out to social media experts who are well-versed in making TikTok work best for your business needs.
UpCity’s Survey Method
UpCity used Pollfish to survey 600 U.S. small business owners and employees.
Fifty-one percent of the respondents are male and forty-nine percent are female. A majority of male respondents are 35-44 years old (34%) and a majority of female respondents are also 35-44 years old (31%).