Always In: how to adapt your ‘always on’ strategy for a community-first world
Always-on strategies have always been about creating a consistent presence for brands. But with the digital landscape changing how brands and consumers interact, brands need to be actively participating in conversations with consumers, not trying to drive them – they need to be always in communities.
'Always In' is a strategy grounded by one simple truth: people evolve every day. On TikTok, 80% of users find interests they didn't know they were even interested in [1]. 41% of users say they frequently purchase a product they’ve discovered on TikTok [2].
What does this tell us? Brands can't afford to rely on outdated segmentation or annual planning. Agility is key. When brands understand niche cultures, empathise with language codes and serve new interests and behaviours, they thrive. So, how do brands build trust, foster deeper connections and drive conversions with an always-in strategy? Here are three key takeaways.
1. Know where to Stay & Play
A brand's success lies in knowing where conversations start and moments of truth flourish. A clear community strategy not only builds loyalty with existing audiences, but also drives engagement with new growth audiences. But, where do you start?
Enter 'TikTok Stay and Play', our agile framework to simplify and expand how brands can curate the perfect community mix. 'Stay' communities are expected and a natural fit, allowing brands to defend their position or cement association. Whilst 'Play' communities are more unexpected, and through the element of creativity and surprise, they can help brands drive fame. For example, a fashion brand may 'stay' within #FashionTok, but may 'play' within #Foodtok.
For both your stay and play communities, you should explore broad, macro-communities as well as niche, micro-communities. Combining both together provides a holistic approach, delivering against any brand or performance objective.
💡 Top Tip - Start exploring new hashtags and interests to find play communities, through the TikTok Creative Centre.
2. Make every encounter count
Brands are well-versed in how to plan for big campaign spikes. However, relevance is established in the moment or at the most unlikely times. So, when every moment matters, it's important to make every encounter count. But, how can TikTok help brands to fall back in love with the art of execution?
'Always In' mirrors real life. It's the small, serendipitous and serial encounters that matter most. And it doesn't go unnoticed – 68% of TikTok users say it's fine for brands to experiment on TikTok [3]. Dive into comments, respond like a peer, reduce your guardrails, iterate your tone and serialise your content. However you do it, allow yourself to be your whole self and lead with authenticity.
3. Break silos and build bridges
A recent WARC article claimed 'the lines between brand and performance are getting murky, with 62% [of marketers] saying they see convergence between the two on digital commerce platforms'[3]. This shift isn't a challenge, but an opportunity to break silos. But how can TikTok prove this works?
'Always In' is a holistic strategy uniting brand, performance, organic and paid media. We see that brands that have laid strong organic foundations before they implement paid campaigns experience a 25% increase in unaided brand awareness [4]. Similarly, those that activate both branding and web conversion campaigns see a 2-3x higher conversion rate, compared to standalone web conversions [5]. This not only proves the combinative power of priming, but also proves TikTok works.
🏆 Peugeot UK was the first-ever brand to execute TikTok 'Always-In' with exceptional results. Read the full case study here.
Never let them know your next move
'Always In' is a bold new mindset, but it's grounded in the foundations of marketing: put people first, earn attention, be visible and evoke surprise. Actions speak louder than words, with 76% of TikTok users saying the best brands on TikTok are really active and never stand still [1]. Take inspiration from one of TikTok's popular trends #NeverLetThemKnowYourNextMove. Who knows, your next move may not just surprise your community, but you too.
Sources:
TikTok Marketing Science Global Community and Self-Expression Study 2021 conducted by Flamingo
TikTok Marketing Science EUI Ecommerce Vertical Research 2022 conducted by GIM
WARC, The Marketer’s Toolkit 2023: Global Trends Report
TikTok Marketing Science US Organic + Paid Study 2021 conducted by Neurons
TikTok Full Funnel CVR Research on all EUI performance data executed in Sep'21
