TikTok Joins Hands With Shopify for In-App Shopping

TikTok is moving into e-commerce. It’s not surprising that a social media app is jumping into e-commerce and in-app shopping. Facebook and Instagram have also successfully integrated in-app shopping features into their platforms. E-commerce has been on the rise for the past decade, with COVID-19 and its aftermath greatly igniting the e-commerce trend. Consequently, businesses were forced to adapt to the lockdown situations.

Having said that, TikTok and Shopify (the e-commerce platform), announced that they were working together to add the option for consumers to shop directly in the TikTok app for the first time. TikTok and Shopify first revealed their partnership to US merchants last October with advertising on the app. In order to develop social commerce and e-commerce strategy, the collaboration first allowed merchants to create and manage TikTok campaigns.

The extended partnership will enable Shopify merchants participating in the pilot program to add a ‘shopping tab’ to their profiles. Moreover, they can also link the products within TikTok posts. Shopify has said it expects to expand the feature to all of its merchants this fall.

E-Commerce Stats and Growth

Ecommerce has been growing fast pre COVID-19 years. The pandemic then pushed even more U.S. consumers online, contributing an additional $105 billion to online revenue in 2020. This trend accelerated e-commerce by two years, as estimated by Digital Commerce 360.

Online sales reached $791.70 billion in 2020, with a 32.4% rise from $598.02 billion in the previous year. Ecommerce thrived in 2020 due to store closures, lockdown restrictions, and shoppers’ fear of contracting the coronavirus in public. Figures from Q1 2021 reveal that the COVID-19 is still making an impact on retail spending. Online sales increased 39% year-on-year in Q1 2021. Nearly triple the 14% increase in Q1 2020, and faster than Q3 and Q4, 2020.

Salesforce’s Q2 Shopping Index reveals digital commerce growth began to stabilize in the second quarter of 2021. In the three months prior to June 30th, global e-commerce revenue growth slowed to low single digits (3%) year-on-year after seeing a 63% uplift in the first quarter of 2021.

On the contrary, the UK appears to have retained some of its momentum from the start of the pandemic. Results from Q2 2021 show the region has experienced a 17% growth in the same metric compared to year before. That is well ahead of the US which saw a 2% drop over the same period.

Despite a global slowdown in growth, consumers ‘remained online and continued to grow revenue for retailers’, said Salesforce. This can be proved by an increase in Average Order Value, up 17% year-on-year to $90.64. Although, the number of products purchased online declined by 1%.

Understanding Social Commerce?

Social commerce uses social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter as purpose-built vehicles for the promotion and selling of products and services. Social commerce professionals utilize interactive features of social platforms that promote online sales and other e-commerce initiatives. Some of the marketing tactics social commerce engages include:

Engaging users through voting on product style or choices
Offering personalized buying experience
Using celebrity endorsements of the product line
Applying striking graphics to attract online traffic
Using videos to provide a real-time perspective of the products
Encouraging user-submitted photos and feedback
Linking the posts directly to the checkout or shopping cart
Offering promotions or giveaways to users.

Some of the creative social commerce examples are:

Nordstrom pins a “popular on Pinterest” label on store items that are trending online.
Coca-Cola personalized its labels on bottles in stores and then invited social media users to post photos of their name-branded bottles with the hashtag #ShareACoke.
Lolly Wolly Doodle, a fashion brand, allows followers to design and order their clothes right on its Facebook page.
Starbucks awards bonus points to customers who unlock Mayor Badges on Foursquare.

In-App Shopping Feature by TikTok

TikTok boasts a huge number of user database and its influence on modern retail is global. Its community has made shopping an interactive, entertaining experience that can ignite unparalleled engagement. Part of TikTok’s magic is the element of discovery. Without any discrimination, anyone and anything has the potential to be discovered on TikTok and reach a large audience, and brands are no exception. From feta cheese to drugstore skincare, we’ve seen time and time again how a single TikTok has the power to drive new shopping trends and must-have purchases.

TikTok aims to empower businesses of all sizes to reach new customers through its app. Businesses have been exploring innovative ways to help build their presence on the platform and market directly through their TikTok accounts.

Realizing the potential, TikTok decided to go one step further, and recently unveiled an expanded partnership with Shopify. The social media platform will roll out pilot testing of its in-app shopping among a select group of Shopify merchants in the US, UK, and Canada in the coming weeks. TikTok Shopping will offer new features that help Shopify merchants create engaging, organic content that leads consumers directly to their online store for checkout, making it easy for people to explore and buy the products they discover on TikTok.

How TikTok’s In-App Shopping Feature Will Work

The new TikTok Shopping feature lets Shopify merchants with a ‘TikTok for Business’ account incorporate a shopping tab to their TikTok profiles, link their respective product catalogs to the app and create a direct link to their store.

Sellers can also directly link their products in the videos by tagging them just like the Facebook and Instagram shop features. It will allow TikTok users to shop directly from videos, as explained by Shopify:

“Shopify merchants with a TikTok for Business account will soon be able to add a shopping tab to their TikTok profiles and sync their product catalogues to create a mini-storefront that links directly to their online store for checkout.”

Kylie Cosmetics, a beauty brand owned by Kylie Jenner, is among the first adopters of this new feature.

“I built my business on social media; it’s where my fans go first to look for what’s new from Kylie Cosmetics,” Kylie Jenner announced in a statement released by Shopify. “I have so much fun creating TikTok videos, and I love sharing posts of my fans using the products. That’s why I’m excited for Kylie Cosmetics to be one of the first to let customers shop directly on our TikTok!”

TikTok has taken a big leap in social commerce and e-commerce strategy by giving users a new way to shop in hopes to attract new customers.

Blake Chandlee, president of global business solutions at TikTok, said in a statement:

“TikTok is uniquely placed at the center of content and commerce, and these new solutions make it even easier for businesses of all sizes to create engaging content that drives consumers directly to the digital point of purchase,”

She further added:

“We’re thrilled to be expanding our partnership with Shopify and making TikTok more accessible than ever for their merchants.”

How Tiktok’s In-App Shop Feature Is Indifferent to Facebook and Instagram In-App Shoppin

TikTok’s ultimate goal with the in-app shopping feature could be a challenge to Facebook and Instagram in the longer run. Facebook and Instagram have also been investing heavily in the online shopping experience in recent years with things like Facebook and Instagram Shops, a dedicated Shop tab in Instagram, shopping in Reels, etc.

However, the difference is, in TikTok Shopping the checkout takes place through Shopify; by clicking the product link or storefront within TikTok, the user is redirected to the merchant website to purchase by completing the transaction powered by Shopify. On the contrary, on Instagram Shop, checkout takes place inside the app natively, and transactions are processed through Facebook Pay, which can feel more seamless to the end-user.

The Real Winners of TikTok and Shopify Collaboration

Unlike direct, in-stream shopping, with users referred back to the merchant’s Shopify store for purchase, the in-app shopping feature is another big step in TikTok’s broader e-commerce push, facilitating direct product promotion and buying within a dedicated storefront space, just like Instagram’s in-app Shops option.

The in-app shopping feature of TikTok is also integrated with Shopify. Previously, Shopify has also established direct collaboration with TikTok for product promotions. So the real winners, overall, are Shopify merchants, who now have another way to directly promote and sell their products within another social app. As far as TikTok is concerned, it’s another advancement that will help maximize its business potential, and provide more ways for users to directly monetize their TikTok presence.

The Final Word

Countless brands have found a creative outlet to drive sales & marketing and make real connections with new audiences through TikTok, and this new in-app shopping feature is just the beginning. TikTok aims to continue experimenting with new e-commerce opportunities that enable users to discover and engage with what they love. It is also an exciting feature for businesses to benefit from the huge database of TikTok users by effectively adopting the new features of the app. In short; the users, the businesses, and the Shopify merchants would all be in a win-win situation with this TikTok in-app shopping.

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