Jake Rheude February 13, 2021 If all you’ve heard about TikTok is that it has a bunch of teenagers dancing, it’s time to get up to speed on the fastest growing social media platform and darling of the Gen Z population. There are hundreds of genres of videos on the app, from educational content about lakes to paint mixing to, yes, teenagers dancing. Embracing TikTok has been one of the major emerging trends in the mobile app industry in 2020.
As with every new social media platform, brands are wondering if they have a place on the app. While it’s true that not every social media platform will be right for every brand, it’s worth checking out who is doing well and thinking about how you could emulate their success. So without further ado, let’s take a look at these six brands that are killing it on TikTok.
The Washington Post
Far from being a relic of the past, The Washington Post’s TikTok account is clever, on-trend, and run by basically one guy in his apartment. Their videos cover a mix of current events, social commentary, and just random silliness that suits the app perfectly. And they are brilliant to be approaching it this way – no other newspaper is having this much success courting Gen Z, and they’re potentially building readers for life.
Here’s a great example of a video inspired by Alaska leading the nation in vaccinating their residents – and on the day they posted the video, they had the article linked in their profile.
@washingtonpost Alaska, the state with the largest land mass in the nation, is leading the country in a critical coronavirus measure: per capita vaccinations.
Tinder
It makes sense to have an active online platform when you’re an online dating service, right? Tinder has had pretty good success with their channel and videos, with 230 thousand followers and 1.5 million likes. Their videos range from dating advice, POVs (point of view videos, similar to skits), and even fun dating-themed games with celebrities, as seen in the video below:
@tinder Name a more iconic tiktok trio than @noahbeck, @larrayeeee, and @bellapoarch Go check out the full video at @flighthouse ‘s YouTube!
However, where their TikTok strategy really shines is that they actively spend time watching videos from other accounts about Tinder, and show up in their comments all the time. In this video, the creator made a skit about how awful stereotypical dating profiles are from men, and Tinder showed up in the comments to commiserate – and suggest another entry for part 2.
Chipotle
Chipotle is well-known for excelling on every social media platform they grace with their presence, so it’s no surprise they’re already killing it on TikTok. Their channel bio quips “Less Tok, More Guac,” and their 1.4 million followers seem to be eating up all their content. Not only do they do sponsored content where they pay creators to make content about Chipotle, smaller creators on the app know that if they mention Chipotle in their video and it does well, Chipotle will likely pick it up and repost it to their channel, boosting the creator (and getting free content, win-win). Here is one of the videos they reposted from another channel:
@chipotle so we all just live the same lives huh(via @jayjones804) #chipotle #relatable #funny #trending #viral #fyp
Kaja Beauty
This brand is proof that you don’t need a big budget or fancy equipment to really excel on TikTok. They’re an indie makeup brand with a cute, clean, modern aesthetic, and many of their videos focus on product shots and applying the products. However, they specifically emphasize the satisfying noises – commonly referred to as ASMR – that their products make when opened, closed, and used in general. The internet loves satisfying things, what more can we say?
@kajabeauty Sound on! Playing with your makeup never sounded better or looked cuter See us at @sephora #kajabeauty #kbeauty #sephora #satisfying
Lush
Lush is fairly new to TikTok but already showing that they understand the platform better than a lot of legacy brands. They’re choosing the strategy of putting a face to the brand, and the team seems to really be enjoying themselves. They take on trends in creative ways and also just post funny videos, like this one:
@lush @lushmakeupteam out here making the content we need right now #lush #bubble #bath #makeup #lushcommunity #colaandmentoschallenge #lushcosmetics
For a new brand with only 34 videos posted, having 144 thousand followers already is very impressive!
Netflix
Finally, we’ve got another heavy hitter. Netflix is spoiled for choice when it comes to resources for their videos, and they take full advantage of it. They post frequently and the videos range from behind the scenes info about popular movies, clips from shows, and even illustrating trending topics through clips from a popular franchise.
And sometimes, they’re just fun clips of actors having a good time:
@netflix the crossover event of the century #derrygirls #queereye
Conclusion
There are so many ways that businesses can make TikTok work for their brand. As with every social media platform, the advice is to make your content personalized and relevant to the norms and trends on that platform. Instead of posting the same content to all your various channels, practice repurposing your video content so that it works for each platform. Get creative with how you can capture a new audience and have fun.
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