Kose’s Tarte Cosmetics, one of the earliest beauty brands to join TikTok shops in 2023, had a similar experience.
“We are now treating TikTok as a bona fide retailer,” said Jenna Manula Linares, vice president of digital marketing at Tarte. “This is a channel that generates huge revenue for us.”
She also emphasized that the potential for virality cannot be ignored. “You can sleep tonight and wake up tomorrow, and [our] Your products could reach customers that would never have been introduced to Tarte,” she said.
As a result, Tarte now sees itself as a “content engine” on TikTok, satisfying the platform’s desire for instant gratification, capitalizing on consumers’ increasingly short attention spans and delivering product value in, in some cases, as little as three seconds.
“We know that consumers are not scrolling when they visit our website. [to learn about a product]Manula Linares said, “If I can get my product into the hands of creators and they get very good before and after results, then I’m sure the product will sell.”
Once creators got their hands on Tarte’s CC Undereye Corrector, the sales continued, even going so far as to color under the eyes with a black Sharpie marker to prove the product’s performance.
“TikTok alone has sold nearly 6,000 units of its color corrector, and Amazon and Ulta Beauty can’t keep it in stock,” Manula Linares said. “This product has been circulating for over 9 months.”
Paksan experienced a similar moment when the content creator with less than 5,000 followers went to a local store and bought the brand’s Casey low-rise baggy jeans. After her post went viral, Paksan sold 11,000 pairs overnight.
“Since that moment, we’ve sold over 100,000 pairs of those jeans,” Cox said.
The halo effect is “real,” he acknowledged. Casey’s momentum led to an overall spike in denim sales across the brand as shoppers flocked to stores specifically for the “viral TikTok jeans.”
This success raises important questions about whether supply chains are prepared to meet unexpected virus demands.
Cox said Pacsun is prepared to move quickly, but the company is also making strategic bets on products that are expected to perform and are leading with those items on TikTok. Meanwhile, Manula Linares said Tarte is “really intentional” about the products it lists in its TikTok shop, keeping the selection small to ensure adequate inventory.
But, as Papich acknowledged, “It kind of turns everything we know about demand planning upside down.”
Crocs does all the analysis it can about what creates a viral moment, and while there’s no way to tell what will make that impact next time, it can glean patterns, pick up on social cues, and gain a deeper understanding of what customers are drawn to.
Of course, the bottom line is still the bottom line for most brands, given how much effort they put into selling to TikTok. For Crocs, that aspect of the platform was “pretty good.”
“Among many marketplaces, this is one that is extremely valuable from a profit standpoint,” Papich said. She pointed out that TikTok Shop requires less investment in advertising space because Crocs can leverage existing creators who are already using the platform and are more likely to engage with the brand.
Papich added that the media mix model plays an important role here.
“We want to be able to talk to everyone on the team about how TikTok will impact each part of the business,” she says. “You really need the discipline to evaluate it that way for everyone to believe it.”
Even if you don’t see hard numbers, Cox said, [consumers] Working with your product. ”
Like many brands, TikTok itself is still experimenting with social commerce offerings. But for those who are already on board, the platform looks like it’s worth the effort.
“They’re experimenting, they’re building airplanes while they’re flying,” Papich said. “The best thing you can do is really lean into them. If TikTok is going to offer you a partnership and offer you an offer, then do that.”
While TikTok may approach brands with new opportunities, Cox’s advice is simple: “Don’t be too methodical. Just try it out,” he says. “And when you release the keys to content creation to your customers, be open-minded.”
This article first appeared on our sister brand P2PI’s site.
