What is TikTok Ads Manager – Complete Guide To Use TikTok Ad Manager

Last Updated on 3 years by Go Review Rite

Never has there been a social media platform that has an audience of age 11 and also attracting the older generation in their 50s.

TikTok is making this happen so fast that a growing mass of business owners are taking advantage of the platform. They’re creating campaigns with the TikTok ads manager.

How did TikTok come about?

TikTok, known in China as Douyin, is a video-sharing social networking service owned by a Chinese company, ByteDance. 

It’s been used to make varieties of videos – short-form dance to comedy to “educationals” with a duration ranging from 15 seconds to three minutes. 

TikTok didn’t start as we know it today. The parent company, ByteDance created Douyin for the Chinese audience.

 After a while, TikTok was created to allow more people, outside the Chinese environment to use the features in the Douyin app. 

Then in 2018, the magic happened. TikTok was merged with Musical.ly, a music platform and that was the beginning of its dominance. 

So TikTok users started creating content like videos or images fused with music. And today, the TikTok app has been downloaded more than 2 billion times.

Beyond the social aspect, there’s the business side of TikTok. And that’s what we’ll get into.

Why You Should Use TikTok For Your Business.

If you’re wondering if you need to use TikTok for your business, then I’ll help you make that decision.

Last year, 2020, TikTok reached 80 million monthly active users making it more visible than other social channels like LinkedIn or Twitter.

It’ll also interest you to know that TikTok users spend at least the same amount of time as Instagram and Facebook users. 

Meaning that customer mindshare is almost the same if not more for businesses on TikTok.

While so many think it’s an app for GenZ, most of which are teenagers, several global brands are utilizing TikTok to connect and build their fan base, made up of adults as well.

One reason for this is that the app is easy and exciting to operate. Individuals with little or no tech skill, can grab an iPhone or Android and create enticing content with huge engagement. And if that engagement is targeted at a product, that’s more money.

Since the app is still gaining traction, it’s not as saturated as other social media platforms. This means that the earlier a brand enters, the easier it is to gain visibility and influence. 

For example, a post on Facebook or Instagram has lower engagement than on TikTok. A time will come when it’ll diminish. But not now.

If this app has such potential reach, then how can a business benefit from TikTok?

The next paragraphs of this post will lead you into that extensively.

Can You Advertise On TikTok? 

Sure, you can. Some people are sceptical about the possibility of running ads on TikTok because it was not available before now. 

Changes have been made to bring that feature in with the TikTok Ads Manager. Apart from the basic kinds of ads available now, which we’ll discuss, ByteDance is testing some ideas with certain brands and influencers to see the effectiveness.

The TikTok ads manager started running in 2018 and are still on. So you can be assured that your business can thrive here.

How Do I Use TikTok Ads Manager To Run Ads?

I’ll take you through the process in a few steps. Just know that it’s as easy as using other social media apps.

So we’ll look at how to:

1. Download the app
2. Sign up
3. Connect with your audience
4. Create your campaign

Download the app

With a good smartphone and internet access, visit Google Play Store or Apple iStore and type TikTok. Instantly, the app will pop up and then you install it on your phone. 

Signup

There are several ways to make a new account on TikTok –  using your phone number, email address, or social media account like Facebook.

Note that you can also create more than one TikTok account with the same method mentioned above but with different information.

So let’s see how it’s done.

How to make a new account on TikTok using your phone number

1. Open the TikTok app on your iPhone or Android. 
2. Tap “Me” at the bottom-right of your screen.
3. Tap your username at the top of the screen.
4. Tap “Add account.”
5. Tap “Use phone or email.”
6. Enter your birthdate.
7. Enter your phone number and then tap “Send code.”
8. You’ll receive a 4-digit code. Enter the code and your new account will be created.

How to make a new account on TikTok using your email address

1. Open TikTok on your phone.
2. Tap “Me” in the bottom right.
3. Tap your username at the top of the screen.
4. Tap “Add account.”
5. Tap “Use phone or email.”
6. Enter your birthdate.
7. Tap “Email” at the top.
8. Enter your email address, then tap “Next.”
9. Enter a password for your TikTok account then tap “Next.”
10. Enter a username for your TikTok account then tap “Sign up” to make your new account.
11. Visit your email address and verify the message sent to you.

How to make a new account on TikTok using a social media account

1. Open the TikTok app.
2. Tap “Me” at the bottom of your screen.
3. Tap your username at the top. 
4. Tap “Add account.”
5. You can create a TikTok account using your Facebook, Google, Instagram, or Twitter account. Tap on your preferred social media.
6. Enter your login details for the social media you chose. 
7. Create a username for your TikTok account and tap “Sign up” to make your new account. 

Connect With Your Audience

It’s important to understand that for you to use any social media platform effectively, you need to know how the platform works. 

For example, Instagram thrives on videos and pictures. Twitter, on text. TikTok, a blend of videos or images with sounds that suit the content.

Because of this and other features, the platform is home to young people. More than half of the users of TikTok users are between the ages of 10 and 29.

For you to connect with them, you need to observe the kind of content that they consume. If this is not in place, running your ads will not be effective.

So learning to connect with your audience is vital. Start creating simple content from now. As you do, you’ll begin to get engagement.

If you got that, let’s get in the main deal which is how to use the TikTok ads Manager to create ads for your business.

Create Your Campaign

On TikTok, you use the TikTok ads Manager to create ads. You begin this by creating a TikTok Ads Manager Account.

So how do you start?

Create an account

Visit the TikTok Ads homepage and click the “Get Started” button.

After that, select your billing country or region and then select whether you’re using the account for a business or individual. Then click on “Next.”

This will lead you to the step where some basic information such as your email address and password. Once you do, you’ll get a verification code in your email or phone if you use mobile. And it’s used to authenticate your account.

The next step is to confirm that you agree to the terms and conditions, then click on “Sign Up.”

After a while, and your brand is approved, you can log into your dashboard to finish the setup. Then you can follow these steps below to create your TikTok Ad.

Create an Ad Campaign

Here, you are required to create an ad campaign under the “Campaigns” tab. So click on the “Create” button.

After that, you’ll be asked to choose the objective of your campaign – to drive traffic, conversions or app installs.

Then you give a name to your campaign and set a campaign-level minimum budget. Note that setting a lifetime budget (which can be changed) will help you quickly reach as many people as possible.

Set up the Ad Group.

At this point, you choose where your TikTok ad will be seen.

If you choose automatic placement, your ads will appear on all the TikTok partner apps. While the “Select Placement” option allows you to manually choose which of the partner apps you want your ads to be seen on.

Other changes can then be made based on demographics which includes location, gender, age group, language, and interest category.

You can also target the audience using engagement, app activity, and website traffic.

Create a New Ad

You’re done with the Ads Group, so it’s time to create your first ad. 

On TikTok ads manager, you have the option to upload an image or a video as your creative. But don’t overlook the recommendations given by TikTok for their ads. It’ll help create more engaging content for you.

When you’ve created the content, you have the option to review the ads to make sure you have created them properly. You can choose to name the ad which will appear as a text above the ad.

One of the major elements most people miss is a call to action button. It’s what you want your audience to do when they see your ad. These can include “Learn More,” “Download Now,” “Book Now,” “Shop Now”… amongst others.

Once done, you can click on “Submit” to finish creating your ad.

Measure your ad performance

The job just started after launching your ad. You should measure your TikTok ad performance to see how the campaign is paying off. There is native analytics that can show you how your ad is doing with regards to impressions, clicks, conversions, and more. 

While you do this, I’ll advise you to take a cue from the TikTok inspiration section (link). Use high-resolution images and videos with catchy titles. Focus on one call to action. Then test different styles and then settle for the best performing. 

Types Of Sponsored Ads 

On TikTok, there are several options to run sponsored ads. I’ll mention them and explain each to you.

The first is the…

Infeed video ads

Users see these types of TikTok ads when they are scrolling through their FYP (FOR YOU PAGE) on the platform. Its duration can be up to 60 seconds long although 9 to 15 seconds is recommended by TikTok for an Infeed ad. 

Users can interact with them by liking, commenting, or sharing. It can also be skipped. It appears as a full-screen display. 

When using Infeed ads, make sure you attach a call-to-action button that links to a landing page if you want to gain from this ads style otherwise your marketing will not yield much result.

Branded Hashtag Challenge

Using this type helps advertisers to get more engagement especially as it inspires users to create their content. You see them as hashtag challenges that are featured at the top of TikTok’s Discover Page.

The process looks like this: users click on the branded hashtag challenge ad… the user is taken to a Brand Challenge page containing a description of the challenge,  brand logo, and a link to the brand’s website. Users create their TikTok content based on your challenge, using your hashtag

I love the way e.l.f cosmetics used this style to create the  #eyeslipsface challenge. TikTok users were meant to show their natural beauty, using the song “Eyes.Lips.Face.”

to get a chance to win $250 worth of e.l.f. Cosmetics makeup and skincare products. That campaign gained 5 million users and 6 billion views. Yes, 6 billion.

Brand Takeover

You can see an example of this where TikTok promoted theirs FOR YOU podcast. Brand takeover ads on Tiktok are full-screen ads that show on the FYP once a user opens the app.

It’s either a 3 to 5-second video or a 3-second image. Just like the previous one mentioned, make sure you use it to direct users to a goal like a Hashtag Challenge or landing page. Because users see just a Branded Takeover ad each day, the competition is less.

TikTok used this ad type to promote its “For You” podcast. Upon clicking on it, users are directed to the pages of the influencers featured in the ad.

Top View Ads

They are video format ads that appear as full screen, with sound and autoplay, 60 seconds long, and appear immediately after the user opens the TikTok app. Never forget to add a call-to-action button to the ad.

Branded Effects

If you’re familiar with Snapchat and Instagram, then this will be easier. Here, you can decide to create sharable stickers, filters, and special effects on TikTok to promote themselves. Sometimes, you see people and brands mix this with other ads.

The effect is strong because it’s popular among TikTok users which means more engagement.

Thanks to PUMA’s #flashoffuture promotion on TikTok. It’s a perfect example.

Influencer Collaboration

You can combine any of the mentioned ads with this category. The power of this is that there is an already existing audience under the influence of the influencer.

All you need to do is to check if their niche aligns with yours. If it does, just go on.

Is TikTok Ads Expensive And Worth It?

If this is a question you have in your mind, I’ll help you understand if TIKTOK is the go-to app for your ads or not?

The bigger brands like Nike and Disney are advertising on TikTok because of the huge engagement there. Somehow, for small businesses, running TikTok Ads may be expensive. The minimum budget to run a campaign on TikTok is $500.

You can reach a diverse audience through TikTok ads – ages 10 and 24… the older generation is also coming in to enjoy the advantage of the app.

TikTok is the hottest spot for influencer marketing far better than Facebook and Instagram.

In few days, your brand can go viral with simple and engaging content. 

TikTok users spend more time on the app and that means more reach for advertisers.

On TikTok, authenticity is celebrated more than any other platform. That authenticity is making it easier to build trust with your audience.

Conclusion 

When you examine social media trends, you’ll see that video is the future. And the users are attracted to a platform that gives them the flexibility to create what they want easily.

This experience is what TikTok is offering to its users. You can join the train too because that number is growing exponentially.