Last year, there were a lot of videos showing people biting into fruit gummies’ plastic cases and squirting artificially colored jelly out of their mouths. It’Sugar candy store staff urged the chain to stock up on the gummies, and TikTok was incorporated into the company’s sales strategy. In stores, there are signs with the logo of TikTok. Products from TikTok account for 5% to 10% each week.
Chris Lindstedt (assistant vice president of merchandise at It’Sugar), said that it’s an incredible number. The company has around 100 locations.
TikTok is a popular app that allows users to create and share dancing videos. It has 1 billion users around the world. In an effort to attract TikTok’s young users, national chains have set up TikTok sections in their stores. These are similar to “As Seen On TV”, which sold infomercials and products.
Tables at Barnes & Noble are marked with #BookTok on signs. This hashtag is a recommendation hashtag from TikTok and has helped push paperbacks higher up the bestseller list. Amazon also has an “Internet Famous” section on its website that lists products that any TikTok user would recognize.
The hashtag #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt received more than 5 million views on TikTok. A grab-bag of products has been a surprising hit with the app: leggings and purses, cleaners, feta cheese, and even leggings. Video of a baked feta pasta recipe sent the white cheese flying from supermarket shelves earlier this year.
It is difficult to figure out what will become the next TikTok sensation. It remains to be seen how TikTok decides who sees what. Companies often get caught unaware and rush to buy up advertising on TikTok or give creators free stuff.
“It was a little bit a head scratcher initially,” Jenny Campbell, chief marketing officer at Kate Spade, said. She recalls when searches for “heart”, spiked on Kate Spade’s website earlier in the year.
It turned out that the culprit was a TikTok clip of 60 seconds posted by Nathalie Covarrubias, 22. In a parked vehicle, she gushed about the pink-colored purse she just purchased. Other people copied her video and posted TikToks showing them buying the bag and wearing it with different outfits. The purse, which was $300 in the heart shape, sold quickly.
Covarrubias, a makeup artist based in Salinas, California said, “I couldn’t believe it because i wasn’t trying to promote the bag.” “I was so happy and excited about the purse and its uniqueness.