The secret behind Tik Tok success every student marketer needs to know

“You don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but you do need to think about how your content will work on Tik Tok”

Do you ever find yourself giving Tik Tok one quick look and being totally overwhelmed by the confusing dance routines and ‘Mr Sandman challenges’? Don’t worry, you’re not alone, writes Eleana Davidson, marketing executive at Akero and Natives.

Frantic, fast-moving and creative, Tik Tok is the natural home of Gen Z. But how to include it in your student marketing is a whole other ball game. So what if we told you that there’s a way to access the estimated 200 million+ UK 16-25 year olds currently on Tik Tok and get your brand in front of them in a place where they’re already hyper-engaged and receptive.

In an efficient, simple, clever way, harnessing the know-how of experts 10 years in the student marketing game. All while being cost-efficient and result-guaranteed. Yes, you’d probably say it sounds too good to be true. But it’s not – and it really works.

Let’s take a look at the challenges all student marketers face at one time or another, and give you the secret to overcoming them.

The challenges…

We know millennials have a shorter attention span than goldfish, and Gen Zs even more so. Even the 60-second Instagram story is now considered old news – paving the way for shorter Tik Tok videos to work their magic. Our challenge is to get in front of those Gen Z eyes for the eight seconds (yes, you heard right, four seconds shorter than their millennial predecessors) they are engaged.

And that’s when using a specialist marketing platform like Akero Advertising can give you the edge. Getting your message heard and making your ad authentic on a platform driven by user-generated content is always going to be a challenge. We all know that a banner ad isn’t quite going to cut it.

In a stream of constant scrolling to the next hyper-engaging video clip, Gen Zs need to be wowed – stopped in their tracks – and fast. And we took on that challenge with a project from our friends at Student Hut. They wanted to get in front of those Tik Tok users in an engaging and fun way; a fast paced native video was FTW. And it delivered.

We’re talking millions more impressions while being 60% cheaper than a like-for-like campaign run on Snapchat. A neat way to overcome that goldfish challenge.

“Gen Zs need to be wowed – stopped in their tracks – and fast”

So you don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but you do need to think about how your content will work on Tik Tok; the same way you wouldn’t transfer Facebook ads straight to Twitter, you can’t do the same on Tik Tok.

But there is one catch…

Whilst Tik Tok is undeniably one of the most exciting things to recently emerge in the student digital landscape, it isn’t perfect. If you’re after hyper-localised and targeted campaigns, there are stronger platforms, as currently, Tik Tok can only target UK-wide.

Our advice? Opt for a cross-platform, cross-device strategy, and allow each platform to add value in the areas they perform best. Using Tik Tok for brand awareness works. And using specialist technology such as Akero to create personalised, AI-generated student media plans allows you to incorporate Tik Tok into your student marketing with guaranteed performance, with the bonus of input from our advertising experts and creative wizards should you need it.

So get familiar with TikTok – this app isn’t going anywhere. And it’s your ticket for getting in front of the student audience. If you’re struggling for ideas, why not look to other TikTok videos for inspiration, give your students free-reign on content or get in touch with our specialists for guidance. But above all else, get started today, these students won’t wait around forever… Let’s go.

About the author: Eleana Davidson is marketing executive at Akero and Natives.