Media Buying Briefing: How influencer agencies are adapting to TikTok’s SEO incentives

TikTok's new monetization program is designed to reward content creators for producing material that aligns with popular searches on the platform. In March, TikTok announced that it would factor in search value as part of its content creators' rewards. This initiative is aimed at encouraging creators to generate optimized content that matches what users are searching for, such as specific keywords like 'denim' or trending topics like BookTok and viral foods. This is a step towards enhancing TikTok's search engine optimization.

TikTok's position as a search engine is growing in influence due to its rising popularity, particularly among Gen Z users. According to an Adobe survey, more than two in five Americans use TikTok as a search engine, and about one in 10 Gen Z users are more likely to use it than Google as a search engine. Agencies expect TikTok’s influence as a search engine to continue growing because of this trend.

The potential risks of TikTok's focus on search content strategies include concerns about brand safety and authenticity. Experts warn that if brands and agencies do not maintain a proper balance, these elements could be tarnished. Jamie Ray, CEO of influencer agency Buttermilk, emphasizes the importance of being diligent with briefing influencers and conceptualizing campaigns to preserve authenticity. There are also questions about how TikTok will handle content moderation and ensure safety measures when rewarding high-value content that may pose dangers to users or promote misinformation.

Agencies are adapting to TikTok's search optimization by using precise keywords to support creators in producing captions, text overlays, and voiceovers in their briefs for each campaign. Desiree Marchetti Russell, director of influencer marketing program strategy at Trade School, mentioned that this meticulous approach is aimed at maximizing search visibility across social platforms. Agencies are also expecting creators to explore new niches and types of content to align with what audiences are searching for, thus ensuring that TikTok has a video for every consumer search.

The Creator Search Insights tool on TikTok is a new feature being tested in certain regions that allows creators to find trending searches based on a popularity score on the app. A creator's search value increases the more their content aligns with in-demand search topics, which drives engagement. This tool is part of TikTok's efforts to incentivize creators to produce content that matches popular searches, but it also presents challenges in terms of guiding content ideas without compromising brand authenticity and safety.