It’s Time To Talk About Marketing On Tiktok And Twitch
September for marketers is a time to launch new campaigns, catch up on the latest innovations and see some ROI. It’s also a time to evaluate marketing spend and where it’s being allocated. Here at Moondust in Belgium we are turning our attention to two lesser known marketing channels. In this article, we’re putting the spotlight on Tiktok and Twitch and debating whether marketers should be diverting September spend to the channels.
Twitch Essentials
Launched in 2011, Twitch is an online service for watching and streaming digital video. It was initially created to stream video games but has since expanded to stream a broad range of videos. Amazon bought Twitch in 2014 and it now enjoys more than 120 million monthly viewers, with 2.2 million unique streamers each month. And looking more locally, there are 1.2 million Twitch users in Belgium. This, in a population of 11 million inhabitants simply cannot be ignored.
Fact- The average Twitch user spends 106 minutes per day on Twitch – that’s more than the average Twitter user!
More Stats
· Twitch Has Between 2.2 and 3.2 Million Monthly Broadcasters
· NINJA takes the top spot among streamers with 13,976,869 followers.
· 73% of Twitch’s users are aged between 18 and 49
· Riot Games is the most watched channel, with 1,123,980,286 total views
· 81.5% of Twitch users are Male
· 55% of Twitch Users Are Aged Between 18-34
· Twitch users have raised $30+ million for charity
· There are 220,000 Twitch affiliates
· 62% of Twitch interactions are in English
Twitch for Marketing
Over time Twitch has evolved and there are now a variety of ways that Twitch users communicate with each other. The platform has direct messaging capability with each channel having a chatroom, a throwback to its gaming roots. Twitch marketers will also want to explore Pulse. Pulse allows Twitch users to post statuses just as they would with Facebook’s timeline. Here are some more marketing techniques for Twitch:
#1 Community Driven Video
Twitch is streets ahead of other social media channels when it comes to community driven video. A good example was Old Spice’s Nature Adventure. Procter & Gamble unleashed a player into the woods who had to perform actions directed by Twitch chat to promote the Old Spice line of products.
Blair Witch meets Knightmare meets the Twitch community… we love it!
#2 Twitch Influencer Marketing
We’ve talked a lot about influencer marketing this year but how does it work on Twitch? Very nicely actually. Twitch influencer marketing is almost identical to every other type of influencer marketing. Unlike Instagram and Facebook however, Twitch users are more open to advertisements. 80% of Twitch users are open to brands sponsoring a specific gamer or team. The other difference is that promos are live and not a static video or image. Of course, this also means that promos on Twitch will be largely unscripted.
Last year, Gillette teamed up with Guy Beahm, better known as DrDisRespect, on Twitch to promote their range of razors. Often referred to as a WWE character of the gaming space, Beahm is known for his oversized moustache. A very nice match of influencer and brand.
Fun Fact- Even before he announced the Twitch influencer marketing campaign, Guy sang the official Gillette slogan on his stream!
Duracell also rocked Twitch with eight influencers taking part in a 5 hour, multi-camera live broadcast. The broadcast featured 25 challenges powered by one single charge of Duracell’s new batteries. Duracell accrued 187k views from 150k unique viewers with 355k minutes watched and 4.8k chat interactions.
Other leading brands to use Twitch for their influencer marketing campaigns include UberEats, Monster Energy and KFC.
#3 Sponsored Events & Broadcasts
Using Twitch for sponsored events and broadcasts is popular among cool brands. Andrew Pearson, Managing Director of Intelligencia, explained how the company organises eSport competitions with the help of Twitch sponsors. According to Pearson, Red Bull, the Macau Tourism Board, Kaisun Energy, Sephora, and Youku (China’s YouTube) have all sponsored events.
“We use Twitch to market our sponsors' messages. They were interested in both reaching the younger and energized audience that follow Twitch. Twitch audiences are highly engaged as well and there is a stream of comments that follow the actions. Moderators are able to connect with these audience members as well, which allows for strong customer engagement” he explained.
Jack Link’s, a company producing protein rich beef jerky products utilised sponsorship for its “Hangry Moments” campaign.
Jack Link’s sponsored three Twitch broadcasters to broadcast six two-hour gaming marathons. According to Kevin Papacek, director of marketing, these Twitch stars are “notoriously salty,” and were an ideal fit for the brand. They were paid to take a “hangry break” during broadcasts to eat jerky and retell their gaming meltdowns.
Marketing Tips
· Utilise platforms like PowerSpike to contact and hire Twitch streamers at scale. These platforms are a great way to break into Twitch influencer marketing, especially if it’s new to you.
· Follow Twitch streamers on Twitter and be sure to create hashtags for your campaigns.
· Brands that don’t have an established fan base on Twitch can use Twitch’s “Hero Slot.” It’s an always-on video player at the top of the homepage and the first thing Twitch users see.
· Know your audience. Brands who have seen success on Twitch have aligned their demographics and campaigns with the platforms core users.
TikTok Essentials
TikTok is a short-form video app launched in 2017 and its user base is rapidly growing. The original TikTok app hit 500 million monthly active users in mid-2018, thanks mainly to China's social media video craze, but it really hit the big time in 2019. TikTok’s global appeal offers a unique opportunity for brands looking to penetrate new markets.
Fact- UK based Liverpool F.C gained 500,000 fans on TikTok within three months, as part of its strategy to crack the Chinese market.
More stats
TikTok is available in 75 different languages
TikTok is growing significantly quicker than similar social video sharing apps like Snapchat and Vine.
Statistics show that 66% of all TikTok users are under the age of 30
TikTok’s user engagement rate is 29%
TikTok is being used by 2 million more women than men
37% of unique app visitors in the US come from households with a shared income of $100,000 USD+
63% of users will like a video after logging in
50% of users will share someone else’s video on another social network after watching it
TikTok For Marketing
TikTok videos are around 15-seconds long but users can string clips together to make stories of up to 60 seconds long. Accounts with 1,000+ followers will be given access to publish longer videos. More and more brands are turning to Tiktok to market their products and are reporting great results with lower costs than other mainstream platforms like Instagram. For example:
· Brand takeover ads cost anywhere between $50,000 – $100,000
· Hashtag Challenges start at $150,000
· TikTok influencers with 2.5 million followers or more charge around $500-800 per post compared to $100 for every 10,000 followers on Instagram
Essentially, marketers need to remember that people use TikTok to share fun, meme-related videos. This Twitter thread by Sally Kuchar is a great overview!
So, should marketers be diverting their September budget to TikTok and what are the available options?
#1 Biddable Ads
The main ad option on TikTok is the standard in-feed video ad. With these ads, marketers can choose CPC, CPM or CPV (cost per view). TikTok allows marketer to target users on age, gender, and state-level geo-targeting, and the company has also promised interest and behavioural based targeting over time. Marketers can also create custom audiences, white or blacklist the audiences and create lists. This is how an in-app video ad looks on TikTok:
#2 Brand Takeover
Just like on Instagram, brand takeovers are also huge on TikTok and we have to say, we love them! On TikTok though, the format is different from Insta because a brand takeover ad appears instantly when a user opens the app, bringing the advertiser’s message front and center. One of the first to try it was food delivery company Grubhub who tried this during the initial testing phase.
#3 Hashtag Challenge
Challenges form a key part of TikTok’s community and are one of the reasons advertisers are getting so excited about the platform. At any time, there will be challenges running and users can participate by creating their own videos and sharing. A great hashtag challenge was comedian Jimmy Fallon who launched the #tumbleweedchallenge on TikTok. The challenge encouraged users to drop and roll around like a tumbleweed when western music played in the background.
Sounds like madness? Yes, but more than 8,000 #tumbleweedchallenge videos got shared on TikTok. Given that this requires users to create a video, it shows a lot more commitment than simply hitting share.
“Young people believe the app belongs to them; that’s why millions take part in hashtag challenges by posting user-generated content. On TikTok, the college kid from L.A. and the street kid from Delhi have an equal shot of going viral. That’s what’s unique about the app and Gen-Z. They’re not just passive consumers anymore” said Stefan Heinrich, TikTok’s head of marketing.
Marketing Tips
· Don’t dismiss TikTok as being just for kids. A quick browse of the app reveals a growing number of adults adopting the platform. This shift is reminiscent of Facebook, which started as the network for college students and Snapchat, which was the platform of choice for teenagers.
· Funny, scary and shocking wins the day on TikTok. That opens possibilities for all brand genres to get creative. A closer look at the most viewed videos shows a strong correlation between being funny and going viral.
· TikTok’s suite of video editing tools eliminates the need to be a pro unlike YouTube, which requires actual video editing software and skills.