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TikTok Shop: What is it, is it right for me and how do I set one up?

The recent launch of TikTok Shop is something that all eCommerce businesses should take notice of. The platform has a huge, captive audience and a massive impact on buying habits, and TikTok Shop now makes it even easier for retailers to capitalise on this.

James Khoury is CEO of leading fulfilment provider, Zendbox, and an eCommerce Expert. He has released comments to help eCommerce businesses understand more about TikTok Shop and how to best utilise the new social commerce platform…

What is a TikTok Shop?

“With over one billion monthly users worldwide, TikTok offers an incredible opportunity for businesses to reach a huge and highly engaged audience.”

“The recent launch of TikTok Shop now allows eCommerce stores to list their products within a Shopping tab on their profile, so customers can browse and buy items all whilst staying on the app.”

“Essentially, the new social commerce offering is a way for brands, creators and eCommerce businesses alike to sell their products directly to consumers on the growing platform, cutting out a key step in the customer journey. Products can be showcased via regular and engaging stories, live streams or videos.”

“The launch of TikTok Shop is huge news in the eCommerce space. It provides sellers with another avenue to expand their customer base and sell products, and encourages brands to produce fun and engaging content to entice viewers.”

Should I set up a TikTok Shop?

“With social selling now generating billions of pounds in revenue, setting up a TikTok Shop is a no-brainer for any eCommerce store. Whether you want to capitalise on a preexisting buzz around your products on the app or start to create more noise about your brand and thus sales, TikTok Shop could be the answer.”

“Additionally, if you’re looking to pursue influencer marketing, TikTok Shop is a great avenue to explore. The platform allows you to partner with affiliates who will create content for you, making it even easier to set up and utilise content creators.”

“TikTok does have certain stipulations for sellers; for example, if you’re a creator selling your own goods, you need to have over 1,000 followers, have posted and had over 50 video views in the last 28 days and be over 18 (Source: TikTok).”

How do I set up a TikTok Shop?

“If you haven’t got an account already, you will first need to set up a TikTok profile. Ensure that you optimise your profile with a relevant bio and profile picture in line with your other social media branding.”

“TikTok has four main categories you must fall into to set up a TikTok Shop. These are sellers, creators, partners and affiliates.

  • “Sellers” are typically existing brands or eCommerce businesses.

  • “Creators” are people on TikTok who create content for fun but can be paid by brands to sell for them.

  • “Affiliates” allow brands to partner with influencers who actively sell their products and earn a commission.

  • “Partners” are businesses that work with brands to make selling even easier.”

“Decide which category you fall into before setting up your shop. It’s incredibly easy to set up as a seller. Just fill in TikTok’s online form and provide the right paperwork. TikTok will confirm your account has been opened and then you can link your TikTok account to your shop and start selling.”

How can I optimise my TikTok Shop and increase sales?

“To get your products seen, it’s important to make relevant content to get in front of your target audience. TikTok works by showing content to its users that they have historically shown an interest in. This means that if your videos are reaching people, they’re most likely already engaged in the topic that you’re creating content around. To capitalise on this, analyse which of your videos work well and the topics that are performing best, and keep producing content with the same themes.”

“To further optimise your TikTok shop, you can leverage TikTok’s promotional tools such as flash sales, coupons and free shipping. You’ll find these in the seller centre.”

“Make sure you’re using popular hashtags. For instance, #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt has over 18 billion views so far and clearly gets in front of a lot of viewers.”

“You can use the TikTok seller centre to easily keep track of products, adding new ones and checking sales. Linking with creators gives you access to their followers and provides you with new content you don’t have to spend time creating either. Read up on ways to optimise your actual content, including things like trending audio, ideal video lengths and popular filters.”

“You can also use the TikTok Shop partner feature to maximise sales. Using professional companies like 3PL providers to take care of things like packaging, shipping, or warehouse costs gives you more time to create content and chase sales.”

Are there any warnings or considerations I should be aware of when creating a TikTok shop?

“When you first sign up and set up your TikTok Shop, TikTok reduces their commission to 1.8% for the first 90 days. After this, the standard rate of commission is 5%, so be sure to factor this into your accounting.”

“You’ll need to set up a business account to get the most out of your TikTok Shop, which will give you access to metrics, paid ads and user-generated content (UGC). It’s important to note that UGC can cut marketing spend; it is trusted by users and can grow sales, but you will want to make sure any user-generated content aligns with your brand and is positive.”

“TikTok is an incredible platform for growth and is still relatively new so we can definitely expect to see increasing opportunities coming from it. Stay up to date with changes and trends and do your research. Duets, hashtags and giveaways are just some of the things you’ll get familiar with when you set up a TikTok Shop. Be prepared to learn fast and react quickly; if you can do that, the rewards will be well worth it”.

Empowering virtual creativity in marketing

Creatives are losing patience with digital tools. Every client, outsourcer and freelancer seems to rely on a different software solution, leaving creatives struggling to retain control over the ever increasing volume of content. And it is causing problems. How many campaigns have been pulled after the incorrect artwork went to print?

How many agencies already struggling to recruit and retain staff are losing talent due to low employee morale as they wrestle with tedious administrative tasks and struggle with version control? How many are also spending thousands of pounds every month on an ever expanding list of software subscriptions?

Every business needs to work digitally. Yet while project management tools are great at coordinating a dispersed team, they aren’t working for creative tasks. So how can companies achieve end to end visibility of creative projects and free up talented individuals to create, not chase admin tasks?

Jon Simcox, Managing Director and Founder, Oppolis, explains why providing control in a virtual world will empower creative teams to maximise talent while still meeting tight deadlines to achieve the best possible design outcome.

Frustrating Compromise 

Creative agencies and digital marketing experts are in demand. From personalisation and the ever important unboxing experience to innovative technologies such as 3D, creative talent is transforming the way businesses engage with customers. Yet achieving the desired level of creative innovation, even meeting client demands is increasingly tough. A shortage of expertise plus a reliance on multiple outsourced and freelance resources is combining with hybrid working to create an ever more complex, disparate and disrupted creative process. It is unsatisfying for employees, companies and clients.

The individual tools used to support elements of the creative process are great. Digital tools are fabulous at enabling specific creative tasks and activities – from design to proofing, video to artwork. Project management tools do an excellent job at managing specific administrative tasks. Messaging tools are essential, especially for a dispersed team. But the plethora of tools now in use has led to an administrative and creative nightmare.

There is no visibility of creative task status. No single view of the process – or version. No audit trail or way to track content reviews. And no way to confidently share information with clients or other stakeholders. The more distributed the process becomes – and with the addition of innovative technology, businesses want to explore ever more exciting creative options which are unlikely to be in-house – the more complex, expensive and risky it becomes.

Broken Model

Even the standard task of commissioning a new piece of artwork can result in the use of multiple different tools – none of which is linked to the Project Management tool. The result is a time consuming and resource intensive creative process that focuses heavily on administration and management rather than creativity.

With poor version control, errors can slip through – leading to expensive mistakes. The tedium of arduous version control and review processes leads frustrated individuals to accept ‘good enough’ rather than push for perfection, especially under tight time pressure. The result is a compromised creative process that will have an implication for a company’s competitive edge.

With the ever present pressure on staff retention, this environment is morale sapping. When creative individuals can see friends and colleagues in other organisations freed up from the constraints of technology to be truly creative, the danger is clear.

Transparent Control

For an annual project to update packaging or the corporate identity, this convoluted approach is manageable – just. But for any creative business, this process is hugely damaging. This artwork will be used on packaging, social media, videos, websites. The entire business – or client’s business – will depend upon the fast creation of consistent, high quality content.

Clients also demand visibility. They want a say in the entire process. They do not expect to be asked to trawl through old Teams meetings to find the document that was shared. Or to have to repeatedly make the same request for a different colour. When the latest in design technology allows agencies to change the look and feel of product shots in 3D in near real-time, it makes no sense to attempt to share such innovation through email or We Transfer. It’s clunky, inefficient and unprofessional.

Everyone needs to be part of the process and that means using the same, coherent toolset that supports every single step of the creative project. With one tool, project owners can manage the entire content creation exercise, mark every milestone, within the project management system. Campaigns can be archived in one place, providing a full audit trail in one location, ensuring any confusion about content sign off can be immediately reviewed. Rigorous version control eradicates the danger of using the incorrect artwork in a campaign. Plus, of course, by consolidating onto one tool, companies can reduce the number of monthly subscriptions for the extensive digital toolset. Critically, scarce, talented creative individuals are freed up to maximise their creative time.

Creative Explosion

The digital technologies that enabled a virtual creative process served their purpose. They solved an immediate problem and enabled organisations to manage hybrid working, reach out and work with new freelancers, and access talent globally. But these disparate tools are not allowing these virtual teams to work together in a truly effective and creative manner.

By adopting a single tool designed to support every step of any creative process, companies can attract and retain individuals with the promise of achieving their creative best. By eradicating tedious admin tasks and the frustration associated with chasing versions, companies avoid errors and, more critically, enable creative staff to prioritise the activities they love. Plus, at every stage all stakeholders – including clients – have full visibility of the process and everyone will feel confident to add new creative talent, explore new areas of innovation without any fear of losing control.

The expanding digital creative toolset is no longer a boon; it is a business risk and one that needs to be urgently addressed.

Have you secured your place at next month’s Smarter Payments Summit?

The Summit takes place on the 7th September at the Hilton London Canary Wharf and has everything you need in the world of online payments and ecommerce solutions.

Your attendance is entirely free and includes:

  • A personalised itinerary of relaxed 1-2-1 meetings with industry solution providers to help with your upcoming plans and projects
  • A place at our buffet lunch and refreshments throughout
  • Networking with other senior payments and fraud professionals

In addition, you will get the latest insights and trends in the sector via a series of seminar sessions, including:

“How open banking paves the way to open finance” – presented by Jim Wadsworth, Head of Open Banking Europe at Mastercard. Jim will discuss how open banking is progressing, what lessons can be learned, and how Mastercard is contributing.

“Frictionless payments for customer retention” – presented by Maxime Colas, Sales Director at Checkout.com, who has over 10 years of eCommerce payment experience.

“I can steal your sh1t!” – Presented by Paul Newton, Owner of MentalTheft. Paul will steal your information in front of you – then will point you in the right direction to do something about it.

Places are extremely limited – To register yours, click here.

The most sought after freelancers in the UK? Web & graphic designers

Twenty-two per cent of SME owners suggest that web design is the most-likely role to be outsourced, while digital roles hold top three spots for highest average hourly freelance pay.

That’s according to a recent study by small business lender iwoca, which analysed some of the UK’s most popular job sites to identify the top freelance hiring trends across the UK.

The research shows just how reliant small business owners could be on freelancers, with nearly half of respondents at 47% saying they had used a freelancer before, and 65% claiming they are likely to use one to help grow their business.

The top three roles that business owners are most likely to outsource are:

  1. Web Designer- 22%

  2. Accountant- 20%

  3. Social Media Manager- 15%

iwoca’s research on freelance site Upwork identified that the freelance skill costing the most, on an hourly basis, was Search Engine Marketing Specialist (SEM).

SEM Freelancers advertise an average hourly rate of £58.76, the most expensive skill of those studied on Upwork in the UK. If hired as a full-time employee, the hourly rate for an SEM Specialist would be just £15.17 (based on average annual salaries from Glassdoor), only around 25% of what the equivalent freelancer would make.

Rank

Freelance Skill

Average hourly rate to hire on Upwork

Annual earning potential as a freelancer

Average annual salary in full-time employment

1

SEM Specialists

£58.76

£112,826.88

£31,540

2

SEO Specialists

£57.59

£110,566.09

£35,365

3

Copywriter

£53.87

£103,424.64

£28,966

4

Developer

£51.82

£99,488.45

£41,851

5

Programming

£49.65

£95,323.84

£33,223

The three lowest paid freelance roles, all costing less than £20 per hour, were Sales Representatives, Customer Service Representative and Data Entry Execs at £17.03, £18.28 and £19.01 respectively.

Despite the high hourly rate of Search Engine Marketers, it’s not the role with the most freelance job ads. Only 13 SEM roles were advertised on the freelance site Upwork (up to 31 May) compared to the most advertised job, Developer, which had 243 openings, followed closely by Copywriter, with 234 job openings.

Rank

Job Title

Job openings for freelancers

1

Developers

243

2

Copywriter

234

3

Sales Representative

220

4

Branding

200

5

Graphic Designer

197

To view the full research please visit iwoca: here 

UK marketing budgets revised up in Q2, says IPA

Total UK marketing budgets continued to grow at a solid pace in the second quarter of 2022, according to the latest IPA Bellwether Report. Despite this, with strengthening economic headwinds, UK companies’ financial prospects deteriorated sharply, contributing to cuts in adspend forecasts.

The IPA Bellwether Report reveals the marketing spend intentions across the UK’s top industries and in its 22 years of reporting has been one of the first indicators to show both recession and recovery.

According to the Q2 2022 Bellwether data, around a quarter (24.2%) of surveyed companies raised their total marketing expenditure during the second quarter, while 13.4% registered budget cuts. At +10.8%, the resulting net balance remained in solid positive territory, but indicated a slight slowdown in growth when compared to the opening quarter of 2022 (+14.1%).

Events was a key driver of total marketing activity growth, with the latest data signalling another record upward budget revision. At +22.2%, the respective net balance was up from +18.7% previously and the strongest-performing Bellwether category by a considerable margin. The new “living with COVID” normal has given companies the confidence to plan face-to-face events, with many firms reportedly set to use this platform to relaunch their brands. The only other Bellwether category to record growth in Q2 was public relations, which saw its expansion strengthen from the start of the year (net balance of +3.7%, from +0.6%).

Main media – which includes big-ticket advertising campaigns relating to TV – saw marketing budgets stagnate, bringing to an end a year-long sequence of growth. At 0.0%, the net balance was down sharply from +9.4%. Within main media, there were notable differences. While other online (+4.4%, from +18.6%) and video advertising (+0.8%, from +9.0%) growth continued, they both saw steep slowdowns. Audio (-16.4%, from -8.5%) and out of home (-15.9%, from -4.6%) saw downturns deepen, while published brands moved from positive to negative territory (-2.6%, from +1.3%).

Direct marketing was another Bellwether category to stagnate in Q2, also drawing to a close a four-quarter sequence of growth. The remaining monitored marketing activities saw budgets fall in the second quarter. Sales promotions (-0.7% vs. +8.0% previously), market research (-6.5% vs. -3.5% previously) and other marketing activities not already accounted for (-8.3% vs. -0.9% previously) all dragged on total expenditure.

The latest Bellwether survey signalled a broad-based deterioration in financial prospects in the second quarter.

Compared to three months ago, survey respondents became more pessimistic towards their industry-wide financial prospects, with a net balance of -26.7% of companies more downbeat overall. This was the most negative outlook since Q3 2020 and compared with a net balance of -3.6% in the first quarter of the year. While 13.6% of companies were more optimistic, 40.3% expressed gloomier sentiment.

Meanwhile, for the first time since Q3 2020, own-company financial prospects slipped into negative territory. A net balance of -9.5% of companies signalled pessimism regarding their own-company performance, the most downbeat for two years. Underlying data showed that 30.7% of survey respondents were pessimistic towards their own business prospects, compared to 21.2% that were more optimistic.

Since the last Report, the IPA Bellwether author, S&P Global Market Intelligence, has downgraded its assessment for UK economic growth prospects in 2023 through to 2025, which in turn has seen it downgrade its adspend growth forecasts over this period too. It has also cut its adspend growth forecast for 2022 to reflect the strengthening economic headwinds that have built up through the year.

Elevated inflation throughout 2022 points to a bigger hit on consumer confidence and disposable incomes. High costs for businesses will also weigh on the economy, while rising interest rates act to deter investment. The risk of a recession has intensified, and as such, it has cut its adspend forecast for this year to 1.6% (from 3.5% previously).

Much of the economic challenges seen at present are likely to spill over into 2023. With interest rates also set to rise further and households and businesses likely to remain in cost-containment mode until inflation comes down, S&P’s GDP forecast for 2023 has been cut from 1.2% to 0.5%, bringing down its adspend growth forecast from 1.8% to 0.8%.

With the growth path beyond 2023 now looking more uncertain amid the potential for these strong downside risks to persist, 2024, 2025 and 2026 adspend growth forecasts have also been trimmed to 1.4% (from 1.7%), 2.0% (from 2.2%) and 2.3% (from 2.4%) respectively.

Retail sector sees 8% increase in revenue across affiliate network

The retail landscape has seen an 8% increase in revenue year on year (YoY) throughout Q2 of 2022, according to new data from global affiliate marketing platform, Awin.

Despite challenging market conditions, sales were up 4% YoY between April and June, with over £1.2billion in revenue being tracked on the network across 40 different sub-sectors.

Browsing behaviour was an up by 45%, while average order value (AOV) hit £101.27, a £6.52 increase from H1 of 2021. Yet, this increase in spend is likely to be as a result of brands passing extra costs to customers rather than out of choice or to access a better product or service.

Best performing sectors YoY include erotic (+350%), childrenswear (+118%), pharmaceuticals (+37%), pet (+45%), jewellery (+33%) and DIY (+17%).

Retail and travel client partner at Awin, Joelle Hillman, commented: “Many of the sectors that saw growth over the last 24 months and were cited as ‘lockdown trends’, from getting prescriptions online during high street closures to taking on more DIY projects during lockdown.

However, the continued growth in these sectors is a clear indicator that purchase behaviour has moved online, and specifically into the channel, for good.

“We are also seeing the continuation of ‘the lipstick effect’, despite a rise in prices, and decline in disposable income the UK are still keen to treat themselves to life’s little luxuries, with health and beauty up 21% and jewellery up 33%.”

One ‘lockdown trend’ that hasn’t remained however is online alcohol purchases, which are down 39% YoY, as we’re able to enjoy bars and restaurants again, and more recently pub gardens. Computer sales are also down on last year (-22%) as well as office supplies (-23%) now many remote workers are likely to have their home offices fully equipped.

Clothing has also seen strong growth YoY, with menswear sales up by 33%, womenswear up 25%, and childrenswear up 118%.

Do you specialise in Conversion Rate Optimisation? We want to hear from you!

Each month on Digital Marketing Briefing we’re shining the spotlight on different parts of the print and marketing sectors – and in August we’ll be focussing on Conversion Rate Optimisation solutions.

It’s all part of our ‘Recommended’ editorial feature, designed to help marketing industry professionals find the best products and services available today.

So, if you specialise in Conversion Rate Optimisation and would like to be included as part of this exciting new shop window, we’d love to hear from you – for more info, contact Clair Wyld on c.wyld@forumevents.co.uk.

Here’s our features list in full:-

Aug – Conversion Rate Optimisation

Sept – Digital Signage

Oct – Brochure Printing

Nov – Creative & Design

Dec – Online Strategy

Organisations wrestling with staggering levels of unknown, unused ‘dark data’

Data quality has overtaken data security as the top driver of data governance initiatives, with 41% of those surveyed agreeing that their business decision-making relies fundamentally on trustworthy, quality data.

That’s according to a study undertaken by Quest Software, and the Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG), published in their 2022 State of Data Governance and Empowerment Report, which highlights the top challenges and innovations in data governance, data management and DataOps.

At the same time, however, 45% of IT leaders say that data quality is the biggest detractor from ROI in data governance efforts. While they recognise its importance, they’re struggling to improve the quality of their data, and thus the ability to strategically and maximally leverage data in practice.

“Business users at all technical levels have an edge when they have full visibility into, control over and confidence in their data,” said Patrick Nichols, CEO of Quest Software. “Trustworthy data and efficient data operations have never been more influential in determining the success or failure of business goals. When people lack access to high-quality data and the confidence and guidance to use it properly, it’s virtually impossible for them to reach their desired outcomes.”

The report also revealed that business leaders struggle not only to make sense of their data, but to locate it and use it in the first place, with 42% of survey respondents saying at least half of their data was “dark data” – retained by the organization, but unused, unmanageable and unfindable. An influx in dark data and a lack of data visibility often leads to downstream bottlenecks, impeding the accuracy and effectiveness of operational data.

“Businesses can’t utilize data, much less optimize it for the benefit of their organization, if they can’t actually see it,” said Nichols. “IT leaders must make data empowerment their first priority, enabling their organizations to leverage business intelligence, creating a single source of the truth to succeed in today’s data-driven world.”

While the challenges of data visibility and observability differ across industries, DataOps was overwhelmingly recognized as the primary solution to drive forward data empowerment. 9 in 10 people surveyed agreed that strengthening DataOps capabilities improves data quality, visibility and access issues across their businesses. The biggest opportunities to improve DataOps accuracy and efficiency lie in investing in automated technologies and deployment of time-saving tools, such as metadata management. Currently, only 37% of respondents describe their DataOps processes as automated, and a similarly small proportion report having automated data cataloging and mapping today (36% and 35% respectively).

“Today’s businesses are all but forced to be data-driven and evidence-based in their strategies, yet still face significant obstacles that prevent their people from being fully empowered to bring data to every decision,” said Mike Leone, senior analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group. “Organizations that invest in building a data-first culture – fueled by automation in DataOps processes, high-quality data, holistic governance, and enterprise-wide accessibility – to drive business success, will have the advantage.”

Download the full 2022 Quest State of Data Governance and Data Empowerment Report here.

DMA targets ‘micro-upskilling’ to tackle marketing skills shortage

The current skills crisis will only worsen if the marketing and creative industries do not seek a culture change – towards continuous, structured learning.

That’s the view of the Data & Marketing Association (DMA), which says direction, support and structure are the essential building blocks of a learning culture yet are also often the main barriers to professional development.

For that reason, the DMA is advocating for what it calls ‘micro-upskilling’ as part of a new campaign.

It claims that with as little as one hour a week spent per employee to structured online learning and professional development, it’s possible to:-

  • Evolve skillsets and supercharge marketing output
  • Help businesses retain key talent
  • Give marketers the tools to grow what they know, enchancing CVs and allowing for the creation of better work

70% of professionals currently upskill less than an hour a week, according to a recent DMA poll.

DMA MD Rachel Aldighieri explains: “Our community needs to act now to help reduce creative, data and digital skills gaps and talent shortages seen across the UK’s digital economy. We want to futureproof the data-driven marketing industry and fuel economic growth by addressing the current skills crises. Micro-upskilling is one of the key solutions, with potential for short- and long-term benefits.

“A little and often mentality creates a habit that can fit around other responsibilities without damaging productivity – that’s important as technology evolves and professionals increasingly struggle to find the time to upskill.

Recent research found that 32% of UK employees changed jobs in last 12 months because their employer didn’t offer upskilling or training opportunities.

“The DMA is working with our community to introduce micro-upskilling as a key element of membership, to help marketing personnel enhance their skillsets and drive responsible business growth – We believe micro-upskilling will help to expand the digital and data-driven marketing skills of the current workforce,” added Aldigheirii.

However, this crisis isn’t just the responsibility of business leaders, says the DMA.

It is calling for the UK Government to deliver a more joined-up, unified National Data Strategy – to showcase the respected careers in marketing that talent with creative, data or digital skills can thrive in.

Contrary to the UK Government’s recent comments, which allude to a new campaign getting brands to reduce prices by cutting marketing budgets.

Why should businesses invest less time and resource in marketing when there is a skills crisis impacting the UK digital economy?

Aldigheirii said: “We’d like the UK Government, supported by industry bodies like the DMA, to take a more proactive role in upskilling and reskilling the nation with core creative, data and digital skills. Utilising government and industry initiatives such as apprenticeship and retraining schemes. We want to drive responsible growth through the professionalisation of our industry.”

The eTailing Summit is now the eCommerce Forum – Sign up today!

Same great event, different name: Join the industry on February 7th 2023 to meet eCommerce solution providers for scheduled 1-2-1 meetings at the eCommerce Forum.

All we need to know is the time you are available, and how you’d like to attend, along with those you wish to meet.

To confirm your place, use our short online booking form.

LIVE in person @ Hilton London Canary Wharf

February 7th 2023

LIVE attendance – also includes seminars, networking with fellow eCommerce professionals, lunch and refreshments.

Past attending solution providers include:-

• Stripe
• Dotdigital
• TrueLayer
• Attentive Mobile Inc.
• Ometria
• HUMAN
• QueryClick
• RedEye
• Forter Solutions UK Ltd

• Fresh Relevance
• Netcore Cloud Private Limited
• RevLifter
• Products Up GmbH
• Metapack
• Eloquent Agency
• SaleCycle

Click here to register as a delegate today!