February 26, 2021

TikTok Trends in 2021 That are Here to Stay

TikTok has grown exponentially in the past year, with engagement levels up from where they were this time in 2020. In their recent Trend Report, they analyzed the app’s performance from January to November, and identified content categories that are on the rise.

Home & Garden, also referred to as “the therapeutic power of home renovation,” saw a 156% increase in growth, while Camping as a category saw a 115% increase in growth. Other categories that grew included Video Game and Cooking, all of which are here to stay. Moving out of category specific content and looking into how brands will share content, you can expect to see a few new, and old, things start to trend and take shape.

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Influencers Will Start to Use the Platform More

With 35% of influencers using TikTok more frequently this year, brands have started to take notice. Teams that have an influencer marketing strategy in place are planning to take advantage of the app’s ability to reach new users.

Influencer marketing can increase sales, help you gain social proof, get your message in front of your target audience, and make your paid ads feel more natural (and less forced). Influencers aren’t celebrities that are out of reach, they’re relatable people with a large following behind them. If the right influencer endorses your brand, you can expect people to buy.

More Branded Hashtag Challenges

Branded hashtag challenges are nothing new, and we’ve seen quite a bit of this on TikTok already. Because there’s the potential for brands to go viral with a hashtag challenge, brands plan to take advantage of this well into the year. This tactic can boost brand awareness big time. If users do a task with your brand’s hashtag behind it, your branded hashtag has the chance to become popular, which means more visibility to you and your account.

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A Rise in Video Ads

When TikTok for Business launched, brands were given resources to increase awareness through ads. With video marketing becoming more popular, you can expect to see an upswing in video ads on TikTok this year. It will also be more common for ads to easily link to commerce, if you use Shopify that is.

A Focus on Social Commerce

A partnership between TikTok and Shopify, made official in October of 2020, means that commerce is now officially a part of the app, a trend that’s here to stay. As a Shopify store, you can connect your TikTok For Business account to run in-feed shoppable video ads directly from your Shopify account. Stores can also expect to expand their organic reach within the feed with new features planned to roll out over the next few months.

Mimicking TV

With the rise of hashtags, TikTok is beginning to mimic TV. Just like tuning into certain channels for weekly shows, users can tune into certain topics using hashtags. Similar to how TV series are binged, users will continually return back to view new content specifically pertaining to the hashtag they’re searching for. This is a trend that we’ll see grow in 2021. Continuing to use hashtags will allow users to easily find your brand and stay connected to your content.

If your business isn’t already on TikTok, or is just getting started, now is the time to take advantage of its rapid growth and engage with your buyers.