TikTok enters search advertising fray as users turn to the platform for product research

Search represents a growing opportunity for TikTok, as users increasingly see social platforms as search engines. 46% of Gen Zers use social media as their primary search engine, according to recent data from Forbes and Talker Research.

And TikTok is an especially popular platform for search. TikTok data from June indicates that 57% of users use the platform’s search function – and 23% search for something within 30 seconds of opening the app.

The offering provides marketers with more refined targeting tools and enables brands to highlight their content within search results, putting them in front of high-intent audiences.

When users click the search icon on their ‘For You’ page and type a query, ads will now appear within the search results, integrated naturally into the user’s in-feed experience. The approach aims to ensure that ads are both contextually relevant and drive high engagement.

TikTok Search Ads Campaign also comes with a suite of planning features, keyword targeting, bidding capabilities and creative tools for advertisers.

“TikTok is a destination for discovery and a place where users come to search,” said David Kaufman, global head of monetization products and solutions at TikTok. “We are excited to offer advertisers a new way to tap into TikTok’s multifaceted search behaviors, where highly motivated users discover content both intentionally and serendipitously.”

Search Ads Campaign builds on the success of TikTok’s Search Ads Toggle feature, rolled out last October, and extends existing in-feed ads to appear in TikTok search results as ‘sponsored’ content, providing an additional ad placement without using traditional keyword-based targeting. Search Ads Campaign, however, offers advertisers more sophisticated targeting and optimization tools, providing greater control over how ads appear on the search results page.

TikTok has tested the effectiveness of combining search ads with in-feed ads and found that brands that leveraged both ad formats saw a 20% increase in conversions, with 18% of users who did not initially convert after seeing an in-feed placement eventually converting after being exposed to a search ad.

Some experts believe that TikTok’s ventures into search advertising reflect an increasingly cutthroat media environment.

“TikTok’s Search Ads Campaign is yet another indication that search advertising is becoming more competitive, and marketers will need to become more adept at testing and evaluating new channels and strategies for media, especially if they’re going after a younger audience,” Andrew Frank, a vice-president distinguished analyst at Gartner, tells The Drum. “The set-it-and-forget-it days of media buying are behind us as brands discover new ways to connect with consumers.”

Among the earliest brands to utilize TikTok’s Search Ads Campaign are cosmetics brand Glossier and jewelry brand Mejuri.

Mejuri, for its part, has already seen “great results” from testing out the program. “Being able to service our ads where user intent is high not only doubled our conversion rate but also allowed us to increase our [return on ad spend] by 11% during the duration of the campaign,” said the company’s senior marketing manager Maddie Gaasenbeek.

TikTok’s entry into search advertising speaks to a broader shift in consumer behavior. As social platforms become an increasingly popular means by which to research products, the platform is capitalizing on the moment to attract more advertiser investment, bringing in brands to promote their products in this initial discovery period.

The platform’s focus on search advertising also aligns with its increasing investment in social commerce. While TikTok Shop was just months ago seen as an experimental part of the app, it’s now become an integral part of the app’s makeup and its monetization strategy. Purchases on TikTok Shop grew 13% from April to May, compared with a previous month-over-month average increase of 7% since the beginning of 2024, according to data from Route.

TikTok’s Kaufman said that the debut of Search Ads Campaign is “just the beginning of [the company’s] journey with ads for search” and emphasized a commitment to evolving the app’s search advertising offerings in response to advertisers’ feedback.

It’s a tenuous moment for TikTok. In April, President Biden enacted a law requiring ByteDance, the app’s Chinese parent company, to sell the platform within a year or risk a nationwide ban in the US. Experts believe that securing a buyer will prove challenging.

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