TikTok is a video-sharing app that allows individuals and businesses to create and share short-form videos on any topic.
Since launching in 2016, TikTok has become a social media giant. As the most downloaded mobile entertainment app in the country in 2022, the platform has 7.38 million Australian users. Add TikTok to your social media marketing strategy, and you can gain hundreds of thousands of followers overnight if your videos go viral.
Not sure where to start? Here’s four TikTok ideas to try based on the success stories of Australian businesses using the platform to reach audiences online.
Swim by Elly is a sustainable handmade swimwear brand based in Geelong, Victoria. Founder Ellie Wynhoven started the label to combat fashion waste and champion body positivity. She uses her business TikTok account to showcase her fun, eco-friendly swimwear and to engage with customers online.
Ellie uses a combination of inexpensive techniques to grow her TikTok following. Her TikTok strategy includes:
Some of Swim by Elly’s most popular TikTok videos were created in response to customer questions. A video demonstrating how to get in and out of the businesses most popular style of bathers, for example, generated 1.9 million views alone. This reflects the level of engagement you can potentially achieve when connecting with customers on TikTok.
Customers can contact Swim by Elly on TikTok with their questions before they buy. TikTok also allows the business to share sizing and styling tips, helping to create more of an in-store experience online. The business’s TikTok account also links to its eCommerce webstore.
Sticky is a candy company based in The Rocks, Sydney, that uses traditional techniques transformed for a modern market. Owned by partners David King and Rachel Turner, the family-run business makes lollies for every occasion and uses TikTok to share the candy-making process with their customers online.
Sticky’s passionate, consistent approach to social media marketing continues to help their TikTok following grow. Their TikTok strategy includes:
Some of Sticky's most popular TikTok videos show their staff members competing to see who can cut the candy the fastest. This unique content allows customers to connect with the business in a memorable way. It's paying off too, as one of their candy-cutting videos has received over 58 million views.
The Sticky business TikTok page connects customers to their eCommerce webstore to help launch sales journeys from the platform. Sticky also include links to their Facebook business page and other social media accounts. By providing a platform for Sticky to share their behind-the-scenes candy-making process, TikTok also helps the business build trust and engagement.
The food eCommerce website Dad’s Special Spice Mix sells a versatile spice mix that’s perfect for adding to a range of dishes. And by leveraging the power of TikTok, the business is selling its spice mix like wildfire.
Business founder Priya Sharma invests in high-quality video production and applies a considered, curated approach to her digital marketing to help her attract new customers. Her TikTok strategy includes:
Some of the most successful TikTok videos by Dad’s Special Spice Mix are Priya's step-by-step cooking demonstrations. Priya's guide to making seitan, a simple chilli dough, for example, went viral receiving over 7 million views. The video features a simple product placement and while Priya waits for the dough to rise, she films herself packing an order for Dad’s Special Spice Mix.
TikTok allows Priya to show new and existing customers how to use her products, which empowers her customers to make more informed purchasing decisions. By sharing her love of food via high-quality TikTok content, Priya is also able to position Dad’s Special Spice Mix as a trusted brand.
Alchemy Salon is a sustainable hairdresser that specialises in cutting-edge haircuts and vegan hair colouring. Staffed by a small team of hairdressers who work across two studios in Traralgon and Collingwood, this Victoria-based business uses TikTok to share playful and trending content with their clients.
Alchemy Salon know exactly who their audience is and adjust their TikTok presence to reflect it.
Alchemy Salon posts topical and relatable video content that demonstrates how well they know their clients. Their TikTok strategy includes:
Alchemy Salon’s highest-performing videos show significant hair transformations. Their before-and-after video of a social media influencer dying her hair from bright blue to platinum blonde, for example, received 1.3 million views. This is a great example of how you can use TikTok videos to demonstrate your services to customers online.
The Alchemy Salon business TikTok account links users to the hairdresser’s website, where customers can book appointments and purchase haircare products from their eCommerce webstore. And while followers who live afar won’t be able to visit Alchemy Salon in person, the business can still build its brand reputation by growing a large following online.
When you create a TikTok business account, you can reach a large Australian audience. In fact, according to Forbes, TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social media platforms out there. So, if you want to take your digital marketing strategy to the next level, it’s worth exploring how your business might benefit from joining this social media platform.
More than just a new place to broadcast your message, social media can help you to make direct sales. To learn more, visit Could selling on social media help boost your sales?
Originally published May 2023, updated August 2024.
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