How to Get Sales from TikTok: a Definitive Guide

So you want your brand to sell on TikTok? We're teaching you how to get sales on TikTok - from using influencer marketing, to paid ads and more.
Fanbytes | How to Get Sales on TikTok

In 30 seconds:

  • It’s vital to have a strong social media presence to promote your brand online, and with 1 billion monthly active users (and growing!) TikTok is the platform to watch.
  • Its huge user base of Gen Z consumers makes TikTok the best-placed social network to catapult your brand’s sales – if you nail your marketing strategy.
  • If you want to use TikTok to market your business, it pays to understand how it differs from other social media platforms. Find our guide on how to get sales from TikTok below!


By now, we know TikTok is much more than just lip-syncing and dancing videos. Its popularity and business-friendly interface makes it perfect for brands looking to boost their online sales. 

The social network, which has a majority Gen Z user base, is centred around short-form videos. These range from dances to comedy skits, recipes, makeup tutorials – and yes, ads. All of which have the potential to go viral on the app.

But how does that translate to sales? If you want to leverage the power of TikTok to boost your business, here’s everything you need to know about how to get sales on TikTok.

Why should you sell products on TikTok?

Can TikTok increase sales? Absolutely. 97% of Gen Z use social media as inspiration for purchases, and a third of TikTokers use the app to stay up to date with the latest products. 

TikTok has the potential to be as successful a marketing tool as you’re willing to make it. Any good TikTok marketing agency (hi there!) will tell you that your TikTok strategy should account for both the younger audience, and the fast-pace of the social platform. 

Nail those two things, and you’ll find that TikTok is an incredibly effective way to market your brand.

Here’s an example. Last year, small business Nadaré Co saw their sales skyrocket after going viral on TikTok. The jewellery brand shared a short video promoting the benefits of their waterproof jewellery using a trending TikTok audio. The video picked up 1.6M views, and Nadaré Co saw 700 orders in just one week. 

Ready to get started? The first step is to set up a TikTok business account, so you can start to drive traffic.

How to create an business account on TikTok

Getting a business account on TikTok takes only two steps:

Fanbytes | Download TikTok

1. Download the app

Once you’ve downloaded the TikTok app from either the Apple or Google Play store, tap to launch it. You’ll see an option titled “Me” in the bottom menu bar, from which you can navigate to “Sign Up” to register with your brand’s social media account.

Fanbytes | Switch to business account

2. Switch to business account

The option for this sits under the hamburger menu on the top right of your “Profile” page. If you open it, you’ll be able to tap “Manage account”, and then “Switch to Business Account”. 

Setting up TikTok for business will enable you to access a host of features not offered to regular users. You’ll be able to see detailed analytics, performance tracking, advertising solutions, and you’ll be able to add an ecommerce link to your bio.

Fanbytes | Boohoo

Be sure to utilise that last option, which will allow users to easily locate your shop on the web. If you optimise your small TikTok bio space, you can treat your TikTok profile as an advertisement in itself. Make sure you give a snapshot of what your brand does, and keep it up to date.

How to drive traffic from TikTok

When you’re ready to grow your brand on TikTok, it’s important to understand the platform’s offerings so you can make informed decisions about which are best suited to your business’ marketing strategy. Here we’ve outlined five tips for how to get sales on TikTok:

1. Set up Shopify access

If you want to sell merchandise on TikTok, setting up your Shopify access is vital. 

Having launched beta testing last year, Shopify access allows you to link to products featured in your TikTok videos. This means TikTok users will be able to shop for them without leaving the app. These in-feed shoppable videos represent a more direct path from TikTok advertising to product, meaning more views will convert into sales. 

The platform also offers a host of other benefits, including campaign performance data and a campaign creation tool, so it’s well worth exploring how to sell on TikTok with Shopify.

2. Invest in TikTok ads

Now you’ve set up your sales channel, it’s time to get the word out there on TikTok.

One way to do this is via TikTok ads. We talk you through how to create TikTok ads here. Once you’ve done this, you’ll be able to create campaigns to appear across the TikTok platform. Whether you choose to make your advertisements images, GIFs or videos, always aim to make them high-resolution and visual. 

Remember: your ads will be vying for users’ attention against hundreds of other videos, so keeping your messaging snappy is crucial for a successful marketing campaign.

TikTok offers three different kinds of ads: in-feed ads, brand takeover, and hashtag challenges. Which one is best for your brand will depend on your budget, aims, and messaging. Whichever you choose, remaining aware of your paid ads performance and testing multiple creatives will allow you to scale the optimal content – giving you better sales returns.

3. Partner with TikTok influencers

Influencers are the trusted faces on TikTok – and working with them is one way to guarantee an engaged audience for your business. After all, influencers are simply TikTok creators who have carved out a niche with content that resonates with people.

Working with TikTok influencers is also a strategy that’s likely to go over well with TikTok users. 72% of Gen Z follow several influencers, and almost half of Gen Z have made a purchase based on a recommendation from a social influencer

That’s even more impressive given that nearly 90% of Gen Z distrust traditional advertising.

Connecting with the right TikTok content creator for your brand allows you to target younger demographics on a level that they are more receptive to, and consequently boosts sales. 

When it comes to working with TikTok influencers for the best campaign, you should consider their account’s audience niche and the content of their videos to ensure your campaign reads authentically. For more detail on how to go viral on TikTok with help from influencers, check out our blog here.

4. Take advantage of popular hashtags and trends

The best TikTok campaigns understand that the app centres around collaborative video content. Whether it’s between individual users in “duets” or the platform as a whole via viral trends, collaborating is key to remaining relevant on TikTok

For brands looking to boost their sales on TikTok, consistently posting content that includes popular hashtags, audios,  memes and trends is one of the simplest ways to ensure your videos are seen by a wider audience. It endears your business to Gen Z, 65% of whom report going to the internet primarily for entertainment. 

Joining in and entertaining your audience with your social media marketing is one simple way to drive interest, clicks, and eventually sales.

5. Engage your audience

To get your brand in front of the most eyes possible, you need to get on the right side of the TikTok algorithm. This will encourage TikTok to share your video with more viewers. We go into more detail on how to hack the TikTok algorithm and go viral here

Do your viewers interact with the videos you create with comments, likes and shares? Do they watch until the end? The more you can answer ‘yes’ to those questions, the more your video will get seen – meaning more sales conversions

Gen Z see more online content and ads than any generation before them. That means your video ad has to compete for their attention. Creating an engaging video doesn’t just increase your chances of viral success: it makes you memorable.  

Much like any advertising, the better you understand the platform its on – and the motivations of its audience –  the better your ad will perform. For more insight into creating content Gen Z loves on TikTok, check out our blog here.

How to get sales on TikTok

Using TikTok to market your business means opening yourself up to a whole new, younger demographic of potential consumers – and a whole new way of selling to them. If you want to make the most of the opportunities available to brands on TikTok, you need to remember to approach the platform with that audience in mind. 

Understanding Gen Z’s behaviour is the crucial element that should underpin your TikTok marketing strategy – and that’s where we can help you. At Fanbytes, we have a proven track record of successful campaigns that engage Gen Z

Nailing TikTok boosts your brand awareness and sentiment amongst Gen Z – and it will get the online sales you’re aiming for.  If you want to know more about how we can help your brand grow on TikTokget in touch!


Looking for tips on how to nail your Gen Z marketing on TikTok? Want to find out how we can help? Check out the links below:


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