How do brands go viral on TikTok?

Almost a billion people from all over the world use TikTok. And when the COVID-19 epidemic was at its height and everyone stayed inside, TikTok users found an abundance of content to enjoy. Suddenly, there was more to TikTok than just dance and lip sync videos.

Although many well-known companies joined TikTok before the epidemic, it's clear that many more local businesses and lesser-known companies are joining the platform now. It's not surprising, though, because TikTok has a very lively community where you can easily find your target audience.

The platform has helped some brands gain cult followings, but this hasn't been the case for all.

Let's examine some of the most popular brands on TikTok to figure out how they achieved such widespread attention.

Fabletics
TikTok is being used by Fabletics, an activewear subscription service co-founded by Kate Hudson, to reach women in their thirties.

TikTok has a lot going for them on Android, as 13.8% of the platform's audience is made up of women between the ages of 30 and 39, according to research by App Ape.

Fabletics posts videos that feature both fashion and practical information, like workout tips and smoothie recipes, to attract the brand's target audience and get their products in front of them.

Additionally, Fabletics has partnered with TikTok to target VIP sign-ups using TikTok Ad Manager. But instead of direct targeting, the brand  works its magic on user registrations or getting fresh leads, optimizing for upper-funnel strategies, and employing TikTok's Lowest Cost (No Bid) feature. This strategy has allowed Fabletics to reduce its VIP costs by 15 times and increase registrations by 100 times. Not bad, right?

Milkbar

Since 2008, Milkbar, a bakery that has won numerous awards, has been reinventing some of our all-time favorite sweets. The bakery has been successful because of its emphasis on establishing connections through the most effective and widely used social media platforms, such as TikTok.

In 2020, for example, when people everywhere suddenly developed a hankering for banana bread, Milkbar capitalized on the trend by offering TikTok followers scrumptious do-it-yourself recipes (some of which even featured its own products):
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Mejuri
TikTok is a great place for jewelry company Mejuri to take advantage of user-generated content's potential. Real customers feature the brand's products in their posts, giving shoppers valuable visual context for how the items can be styled.

Mejuri, however, does not end there. In addition to highlighting real customers, the brand encourages them to share their own anecdotes about the jewelry they purchase from them.

The DTC company has gained tens of thousands of followers by posting entertaining and informative videos on TikTok, giving them exposure to a captive audience of young people (and helps drive sales, too).

Station Cold Brew
Station Cold Brew offers ready-to-drink coffee that doesn't skimp on flavor for convenience, and the company's TikTok videos are an effort to improve the brand's reputation. In order to strengthen its relationships and credibility with its audience, Station pairs each video with innovative strategies and tried-and-true growth tactics, and places special emphasis on community interaction.

Plus, Station creates entertaining TikTok videos to promote its cutting-edge wares, such as:

The video demonstrating the sleek and portable packaging of Station Cold Brew has been viewed nearly 500,000 times despite its simplicity. Only a minority of companies can truly claim to offer customers something of value. In fact, research shows that only 2.2% of businesses actually have one. Among the few available cold brews, Station Cold Brew certainly benefits from a TikTok campaign that does the product justice.

Crumbl
Crumbl Cookies, which specializes in chocolate chip cookies, debuted in Utah in 2017. Four years later, there are more than 220 locations across 30 states. On top of that, they have added over a hundred and fifty new flavors to their ever-changing menu.

Crumbl's goal on TikTok is to get people talking about their cookies. It's not how food items are typically packaged, but it serves Crumbl well. The company rotates only five flavors each week. Customers are thrilled by this extra excitement, and they flock to the store to try these new flavors. The reason for this is that research shows that 60% of people who experience FOMO end up making a purchase within the next 24 hours.

TikTok celebrities were also talking about this feeling of exclusivity. For instance, whenever a new Crumbl flavor is released, Kelsey Flaim reviews it.

This is especially noteworthy given that the brand makes no effort to collaborate with influencers. Because of its ingenious advertising, Crumbl's has amassed a devoted fan base at no cost to the business.

As a result, Crumbl is visited by a legion of TikTok stars every week, all of whom can't wait to try the new flavors and share their thoughts in a video. TikTok's #CrumblReviews has been viewed more than 60.6 million times, and there are even accounts dedicated solely to reviewing Crumbl products.

Five Lessons From TikTok Viral Brands:

1. Don't worry about how big or small your company is. As you can see from the above list, both newer and more established brands are using the platform to reach new audiences and grow their businesses.

2. At the moment, influencer marketing is king. Attracting influencers in an organic way, as Crumbl does, boosts virality and reduces marketing expenses.

3. If you take advantage of TikTok, your astute plans will stand out even more. Take a look at the success Crumbl has had on the platform with its five-cookies-per-week promotion. The packaging for Station Cold Brew, on the other hand, looks fantastic in promotional videos.

4. TikTok is useful for tracking numbers and tendencies. If you keep your finger on the platform's pulse, you'll be in a better position to capitalize on trending topics and hashtags. For example, Milkbar was successful because it heeded the advice of its clientele.

5. The old adage "Make TikTok, not ads" is no longer accurate. This new advertising catchphrase is everywhere these days. The widespread distribution of TikTok videos certainly makes them an effective promotional medium. However, TikTok Ads manager is making great strides; by using Fabletics as an example, we were able to see how quick, simple, and inexpensive the process could be.