Strategy

It’s 2022, and TikTok is no longer just a platform for dancing videos. In 2020, TikTok experienced its massive boom when scrolling on the platform became a favorite pastime for many people during COVID-19 lockdowns. Now, users can find content about almost any topic and participate in an online community of like-minded individuals. 

Clients often ask if they should be on TikTok. The simple answer is yes, eventually. In the near future, every organization and brand should consider being on TikTok, given its growing user base among Gen Z. However, it’s more a matter of “when” rather than “if.” So, how do you know when your organization is ready for TikTok? Here are a few things to consider: 

What types of stories do you want to tell?

When thinking about the stories that fit well on TikTok, we can look at the company’s mission statement: to inspire creativity and bring joy. In the U.S., TikTok users report these top three reasons for using the app: 1) to be entertained; 2) to fill my free time; 3) to lift my spirits. For social change organizations, it may be challenging to fit the “joyful” mold of the platform, but you don’t need to forgo all seriousness. Content that focuses on your organization’s impact, highlighting solutions being developed in your field, and centering hope in your messaging can make for TikTok-ready stories.  

Who do you want to reach?

Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) were the earliest adopters of TikTok, but the platform now engages users of all ages. TikTok’s age demographic breakdown for adult users is as follows: 43.3% of users are 18 to 24; 32.2% are 25 to 34; 13.8% are 35 to 44; 6.9% are 45 to 54; and 4.3% are 55 and above. If your organization wants to reach new, younger audiences, TikTok is worth the investment. 

How quickly you can get your content approved. 

Trends come and go on TikTok faster than any other platform, which adds a unique challenge because trend participation is one of the easiest ways to get eyes on your content. The fast-paced nature of this platform requires a high level of trust in your social media community manager, who will pitch video ideas based on what they see trending. Many prime opportunities for content can be wasted through extensive review processes. 

Your capacity: How frequently you can make content and how much you have to work with.

Consistency is key on all social platforms, but it’s especially important if you are growing an audience on TikTok. TikTok recommends posting 1-4 times per day, which should be the peak cadence that you work up to over time. Posting once per week is a great place to start. As you ease into the platform, think of ways to repurpose existing video content to start a drumbeat of posts. If you don’t have the capacity to consistently create videos, now may not be the right time to begin a TikTok channel.  

 

Once you determine when to launch a TikTok, consider these tips to help make it a success:

• Trends move fast. Here are a few evergreen trends that have been around and will be around:
  • “Stitch this and show me…” (example: Loungefly) 
  • Get ready with me (example: creator Honda Wang) 
  • A day in the life (example: Girls Who Code) 
• Identify your niche to find your audience. Niche topics tend to draw dedicated followings on TikTok because once the algorithm has determined a user is interested in a topic or type of content, it will consistently show it on their For You Page (FYP). Use hashtags that are specific to your topic rather than generic ones to help your audience find you. 
• Establish a community management practice to engage with like-minded channels and creators to build relationships and discover new audiences. 
• Be authentic. Users report that they find TikTok content to be “unique, honest/real, and genuine.” Your audience will want to see the curtain pulled back a bit on this platform. Don’t be afraid to be unfiltered. 
• Once your presence is established, consider an “always-on” campaign that could include a combination of organic content, paid boosts and creator partnerships. This will diversify your content, expand your audience and create an engagement funnel for new supporters of your organization. 

Looking for inspiration? Here are a few organizations doing TikTok well:

• Girls Who Code
• United Way
• Malala Fund
• Black Voters Matter
• Planned Parenthood
• Democratic Governors Association 
• Amnesty International 

And finally, here are some resources that may be helpful:

• Later: How Does The TikTok Algorithm Work? (+10 Hacks to Go Viral)
• TikTok for Business: Always On: How to develop your brand’s TikTok strategy
• TikTok for Business: TikTok Insights
• The Drum: ‘Be more you’: how brands can connect authentically on TikTok

If you think you’re ready to launch a TikTok but don’t know where to start, drop us a line!

Why Advocacy Groups Need to Focus on Contextual Advertising in a Cookieless World

As tech companies propel us towards a cookie-less future, many of us in the progressive advocacy sector are left to wonder if a more open and transparent internet will impact our ability to connect with the communities that shape the grassroots movements that are changing the world for better. Google’s planned 2022 phase-out of third-party cookie tracking for its Chrome browsers will have a huge impact on the future of digital advertising, but especially for the progressive advocacy community. 

To run a successful digital advocacy paid media campaign that reaches underrepresented communities, you have to start by establishing trust with your audience. Across the board, people are frustrated with having their data tracked (and compromised) when they browse social media or their favorite websites. This is especially true of BIPOC, queer, or otherwise marginalized communities who already deal with over-policing and heavy surveillance. Whether advertisers want to acknowledge it or not, cookie-based targeting just adds another layer of personal intrusion. 

So with all of this in mind, how can progressive organizations embrace a more open and transparent internet without seeing a negative impact on their efforts to fundraising, organize, mobilize or persuade? 

 

Contextual Targeting

Contextual advertising will be the best way to prepare for a cookieless future. Contextual ad targeting, unlike interest or affinity based advertising, allows advertisers to insert ads on websites where the content is most relevant to the actual ad, allowing you to better appeal to your audience since they are already engaging with content that is contextually similar to your ad. 

With contextual advertising, subtlety is part of the appeal and success of the tactic. When used in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) space, brands use contextual targeting to serve ads to audiences who are shopping for complementary products, like showing ads for cookware products on recipe websites. 

Advocacy organizations can apply the same strategies to reach new prospects and supporters. For example, an organization that wants to improve health outcomes for Black and Hispanic-Latino communities through public health reform can serve awareness ads across ethnic media and general news sites about racial disparities in maternal care or emergency medical care.  

And contextual targeting is not only for display advertisers. Social media platforms are also getting in on the action, especially as they move away from behavioral based targeting. Meta (previously known as Facebook) has been moving away from interest targeting categories and affinity groups that are based on demographic identity in recent years, making contextual targeting even more important to consider when trying to run paid social direct response campaigns. Likewise, Twitter Ads offers keyword targeting which helps advertisers reach audiences based on the topics they are actively talking about and engaging with. 

When trying to get someone to sign up for your email list or donate, it’s important to think through what they are already seeing on their timelines, Reels or Story feeds, and whether or not your ads will be a natural segue from that content. 

So how can advocacy organizations start to make the pivot? 

📊 Start with Available Data
Whether you get started by auditing your existing list to study your audience’s behaviors or by partnering with a research firm like The Analyst Institute for broad insights and benchmarks, using the data that you already have will serve as the foundation to your contextual marketing strategy.

👥 Build Audience Personas
Building profiles of your target audience will help guide your media planning process and allow you to think through which placements and platforms will offer the best return on your ad spend. There are several types of audience personas so find one that works best for your org and get started ASAP.

📁 Segment Your Content
Once you have your personas in place, segment your content based on each persona so that you can increase the relevance of your ads and build a better experience for your prospects.

🧪 Test, Optimize and Re-Test
Nobody gets it 100% right the first time around which is why testing is so crucial. You should be launching campaigns with testing in mind, and constantly optimizing your media mix, your creative and your messaging based on the insights you gain.

To meet this moment, advertisers in the advocacy space will need to focus on contextual targeting as a way to connect with audiences who have a like minded passion for our issues and causes. This approach, along with investments in advertising on news sites where your audience is most likely to be, will help build stronger relationships with underrepresented communities.