Discover how to get sponsored as a creator on TikTok, as well as how brand sponsorships work on the platform.
Find out not only how brand deals work on TikTok, but also how you can get sponsorship for your channel and generate a significant income from posting TikTok content.
Image located at Pexels – Licence CC0
How do brand deals on TikTok work?
Before we get into the details of securing yourself a brand deal on TikTok it’s a good idea to take a quick look at how they work. Brand deals or sponsorship as they are also known are crucially important on the TikTok platform for creators because, unlike platforms like YouTube, there is no creator ad monetisation.
Even though there is no revenue available from ads on TikTok, there is an incredibly effective and profitable way to generate income from your channel, and this is by securing brand deals.
Indeed, brand deals and sponsorship can work particularly well on the TikTok platform because of the way that it encourages organic growth and reach. This is largely dependent on the TikTok algorithm which is designed to effectively put content in front of each user that they are likely to be interested in. This means that brands can get their content in front of the right people (those who are their target audience and most likely to buy) very easily. It also means that because content is prioritised by relevance to the individual, promotions can still be effective even after a significant time has passed.
Combine this with the fact that the general public tends to trust what influences say about products far more than what the brand alone says, and you have an excellent opportunity for monetisation.
Indeed, brand sponsorship values can reach into the hundreds of thousands and it’s estimated that even way back in 2021 influencers earned over 50 million from their activities on the platform.
However, if you want to secure this type of brand deal you are going to need to make sure you have all the pieces in place that will make your TikTok channel irresistible to brands that are looking to promote on this platform. The good news is that the information you need to do, just that can be found in our detailed post below.
How To Get Brand Deals On TikTok
Make sure you have a strong brand
First of all, to appeal to a brand, and secure a sponsorship deal you need to make sure your TikTok channel also has a strong brand that differentiates you from the million-plus other content creators on the platform.
Your visual brand
There are several ways to do this including making sure you have a consistent visual brand. To achieve this you will need to carefully consider the visual aspect of your content such as the fonts, logos, and layouts you use and make sure that you keep them consistent.
It’s also a good idea to pick a specific filter that you can use on your video, and even devise a colour pallet that you stick to. This will help to make your content instantly recognisable, which is part of establishing a consistent visual brand that will differentiate you from other creators.
Your brand niche
Another aspect of establishing a brand for your TikTok account is, just like you would do for a blog, to make sure you identify a specific niche like fashion, beauty, cooking, crafts, fishing, or books (BookTok is very popular right now!) for your content and stick to it.
This means if you’re posting content on a subject like mental health it’s best not to switch over and post content on cooking too as this can confuse your brand, and make it hard for consumers to know what to expect. In turn, this can put brands offering sponsorship off because they won’t get as wide reach as they might want.
Increase your TikTok subscriber-following
If they are to sponsor your brand they will want to know that your content is reaching enough of the right people that fall directly within their target audience. The best way to reassure a sponsor that your channel can do this is to make sure you grow your TikTok subscriber list. Indeed, many companies will expect you to have a minimum of 10 thousand subs if they are to ask you to produce sponsored content.
Happily, there are plenty of ways you can increase your TikTok subscriber numbers including posting regularly and often (2-3 times a day), using relevant hashtags, choosing the right type of content such as product demos, FAQs, and life hacks, making sure that your content presents a problem and then solves it by the end of the video, and that you cross-promote your content on other social media platforms.
Don’t neglect your other platforms
While we are on the subject of other social media platforms, if you are looking for the answer to the question of how to get sponsored it’s crucial to remember that TikTok does not exist in a bubble. Indeed, it’s quite typical for us to see TikTok content appear on YouTube in the form of shorts, as well as being posted on other platforms like Instagram.
With that in mind, you mustn’t neglect your other platforms including your own blog, as they can direct traffic back to your TikTok account. Additionally, demonstrating you have a strong following on additional social media platforms will help to show potential sponsors that you have significant reach as an influencer.
Sign up for the TikTok Creator Marketplace
Another way that you can secure brand deals on TikTok is to sign up for the TikTok Creator Marketplace. This is a platform that is designed to match up TikTok creators with companies that are looking to use the platform to promote their products.
It is worth noting however that entrance to the TikTok Creator Marketplace is by application only, and only some content creators will meet the criteria. For example, you will need to be 18 plus years old, have 100,000 followers that are verified, hold a TikTok pro account, and have 10,000 in the last 30 days. The good news is that it is pretty easy to see whether you meet the criteria or not as the ‘apply’ button will show as grey if you do not.
Perfect Your TikTok Profile
If you want to secure brand deals on TikTok you will also need to make sure that your profile is top-notch. This is because it is likely one of the first things that any potential company offering a brand deal will look at,
With that in mind, you need to ensure that it is fully completed and includes the following:
- A business contact email (not Hotmail)
- A picture of you the content creator – make sure it’s professional-looking
- Links to your channels on other platforms
- A great tagline
- At least one clickable link
Get A Grip On Your Tiktok Analytics
When you have a website or blog you need to know how many people are visiting it, and which pages are the most popular, and the same goes for your TikTok channel.
Indeed, getting a good grip on the analytics of your channel is crucial if you want to make sure that it’s as attractive to potential sponsors as possible. This is because through analytics you can get an idea of which types of content are most effective at getting the attention of specific demographics. You can also use analytics as evidence to convince potential sponsors of your reach, which can be very important if they are to choose to work with you.
One of the best ways to get analytics for your TikTok channel is to upgrade to a TikTok Pro account. Then you will be able to analyse the performance of all your videos quickly and easily and without having to waste time getting the statistics for each one individually.
Create an effective media kit
If you work with professional brands you will need a media pack that impresses. A media kit or pack is a document that is filled with the information that a business will need when they work with you. You will need to have an updated media kit on hand at all times, in case of both incoming enquiries and for when you cold pitch a subject we will go into more detail on, in the post below.
The information that your media pack should contain includes:
- Engagement analytics – Include the last 10 posts, your follower count, and demographics.
- An about you section – include who you are, where in the world you are from, and what your mission is.
- Your channel and social media links
- The services you offer along with the pricing
- Records from campaigns, merch and affiliate links
Start with cold pitching
While the ideal situation is that brands start to come to you and ask if they can sponsor you, to begin with, you may need to get out there and cold pitch to get your first few gigs. Cold pitching is all about approaching brands with whom you do not yet have a working relationship and pitching your TikTok channel for a possible brand deal.
To cold pitch effectively, you will need to have a portfolio containing the information listed above for your media pack. You’ll also need thick skin as you may not be inundated with yeses at first. However, if you remember that the conversion rate for cold pitches tends to be pretty low, you can avoid becoming discouraged and keep on plugging away until you get your first brand deal.
Final thoughts
In summary, TikTok sponsorship can earn you a lot of money. Brands also see TikTok as an effective way to reach the right target audience. That means there are significant opportunities for your TikTok channel to be sponsored by these brands.
However, to take advantage of this opportunity, you must make use of a wide range of tactics to boost the viability of your channel including having a great profile, increasing your subscriber rate, and making sure you have a media pack on hand.
Remember that above all else the key to securing brand deals on TikTok is demonstrating that your channel can get sponsored content in front of the right people effectively, so any way you can show this will help strengthen your pitch.
