Gen Z and Millennials can’t get enough in swiping millions of TikTok content, and advertisers are beginning to follow the trail. TikTok ads are becoming advertisers’ solutions in reaching new markets, considering Facebook ads getting deterred with third-party data.
Last Q3 of 2021, TikTok had 138 million Monthly Active Users in the United States, with 87% of the population being 18 years old and above. The short-form video sharing platform has 631+ Billion Monthly video views and an average of 88 minutes daily time spent on the app.
TikTok’s mission is “Inspire creative and bring joy,” this can be the secret formula in winning the mainstream audience. This new kid on the block is constantly evolving into a platform that attracts young viewers and marketers with diverse and relevant content. TikTok ad units are displayed similar to organic posts, allowing advertisers to provide the same experience but look less traditional video ad.
Tiktok may be the hottest topic on paid social platforms, but how does it compare to the social giant Facebook now known as Meta?
Here’s the real deal about TikTok ads vs. Facebook Ads
Switching some advertising budgets from Facebook ads to TikTok ads comes to mind at agency pitches, client meetings, and marketing strategy sessions. Before pushing the button, here are some things that advertisers should look into.
How much do TikTok ads cost?
TikTok ad costs depend on numerous factors: target audience, bidding method, campaign objective, advertising budget, etc. To understand further, our team gathered actual data of TikTok Ad Campaigns optimized for impression and compared them with Facebook Ads using the same advertising objective.
Based on Campaign Lab, Strike Social proprietary tool, TikTok performed well compared to Facebook. Over the last two quarters, CPM for TikTok ads edged Facebook ad campaigns by 17%.
Another notable observation, during Q4 2021, where bidding is hard-won, TikTok ad campaigns optimized for reach are 22% more cost-effective than Facebook. More than just a new, more expansive set of audiences for reach campaigns, TikToks ads have shown at least 70% higher CTR% than Facebook ads. Users on the platform aren’t hesitant to engage with ads.
Looking into TikTok ad cost, CPM, the platform, has a more manageable price swing than Facebook. TikTok has a gradual cost movement, a 157% increase, from the lowest to the most expensive CPM result. While Facebook might have the lowest CPM output, it has a steep ascend, 1,575% upsurge, to the most costly Facebook ad campaign.
A winning strategy begins with understanding the TikTok Ads Manager
TikTok Ads Manager bidding process looks similar to other paid social platforms. What makes it stand out from the competition is the native organic content that app users produce.
TikTok ads stand out for two things: TikTok offers unique and engaging ad units such as TikTok Hashtag Challenge and creator-focus TikTok Spark ad. At the same time, Tiktok native content sparks curiosity, inspiration and fun, thus creating a more receptive response when seeing an ad. Based on our team’s observation, optimized TikTok ad campaigns perform well on views and clicks.
Related: Marketers’ guide to TikTok ad specs
Take a look at the current bidding methods that advertisers’ can see on TikTok Ads Manager:
- CPM / Thousand Impressions (CPM) – Marketers bid for the most ad exposure and possible reach. Having the right target audience and sets of interests helps attain the most cost-effective ad results. TikTok’s recommended advertising objective for CPM campaigns is Reach.
- Optimized CPM / Thousand Impressions (oCPM) Marketers bid for a thousand impressions for audiences with a high possibility of completing a conversion, becoming a lead, or installing an app. TikTok’s recommended advertising objectives for oCPM campaigns are Conversions, App Install, Lead Generation. Currently, TikTok Ads Manager set oCPM as their default bidding method for campaigns setup for Conversions and App Installs.
- Cost per Thousand Views (CPV) Marketers are bidding for one thousand 2-second or 6-second video views. TikTok will deliver as many video ads to the target audience as possible within specified ad allocation. TikTok’s recommended advertising objective for CPV campaigns is Video Views.
- Cost per Click (CPC) Marketers are bidding for audiences with a high probability of clicking or engaging in an ad. TikTok Ads Manager will attempt to attain target bid cost. TikTok’s recommended advertising objectives for CPC campaigns are Traffic, App Installs, and Conversions.
Comparing the TikTok Ads bidding process with Facebook Ads, Facebook Ads Manager has multiple Key Performance indicators that marketers can align their advertising objectives. Find out all the Facebook Ads metrics here.
TikTok Advertising: Great growth opportunity
TikTok’s unique way to capture the interest is its bite-size, fun, inspirational, and relevant content. Native TikTok content creates a more ad-friendly environment for platform users. TikTok ad’s units are closely similar to the organic content, translating engagement into advertising objectives.
What’s unique with TikTok ads? The example above showed that reach-targeted campaigns had significantly higher CTR than similar campaigns on other paid social platforms. Another reason why TikTok has been capturing advertisers’ eyes and ad money is because of its competitive ad costs.
Contact our team to find out how brands can maximize the potential of TikTok ads.
