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Creating Customer Value and Engagement

Name

Unit Code

Professor

Date
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Current Events Evaluation

The New York Times article, “Will Tik Tok Make You Buy It?” is the piece that I

chose to evaluate. In the feature, we learn how Tik Tok, the now three-year-old social medial

app, has evolved from people sharing videos to an all-purpose cultural powerhouse and a

place where people buy and sell things[ CITATION Joh21 \l 1033 ]. Like its predecessors, like

YouTube and Facebook, Tic Tok has overgrown its initial structure and now focuses on

keeping people browsing and purchasing. The app promotes engagement-juicing features that

are loaded with adverts and crawling in brands to keep people involved. One such feature is

the recently weekly event held by Tik Tok to promote Tik Tok shopping. The article

describes the event as a suite of solutions, features, and tools that allowed businesses to tap

into the power of commerce found in Tik Tok. Additionally, Tik Tok carries live shopping

events, tagged products, and storefronts.

Tik Tok depends on the uncanny ability of its users to produce consumer manias

which enables the movement of products across disparate categories. As illustrated in the

article, products like clothing, tech accessories, cleaning supplies, cosmetics, and household

appliances have experienced skyrocketing sales after being featured and becoming a Tik Tok

sensation. During the Covid pandemic, Tik Tok experienced a massive surge in its user base.

The tide continued to be felt, with the platform boasting a billion monthly users last

September, which means a whole new economy of shoppers to reach. The article highlights

an excellent example of a successful product thanks to Tik Tok, Bissell’s portable carpet

cleaner. The appliance, also known as the Little Green Machine, has been available since

1997, has seen its sales double as many videos featuring its trends on Tik Tok. As the article

explains, one user, who saw the video on her For You page, a Tik Tok personalized video

recommendation feature, went ahead to do her video, which has seen over a million views

and is earning from the videos.

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Like the other social media platforms, Tik Tok strives to thrive and remain relevant

using its ever-changing aesthetics, conventions, and business strategies. It is clear from the

article that the app depends on influencers who make products popular through viral videos

and, in exchange, gain more followers[ CITATION ARX21 \l 1033 ].

The Proposal

For any organization to thrive and succeed, it is imperative to formulate marketing

strategies that aid in identifying and getting acquainted with new customers, satisfy customer

needs, and retain and grow the customer base[ CITATION Ozu16 \l 1033 ]. A customer-driven

marketing strategy is imperative in the current digital times as customers now have more

power and control. Technology has empowered customers to interact with companies as well

as other customers[ CITATION Nat172 \l 1033 ]. Therefore, it is imperative for business

organizations to partner with other companies to bring more excellent value to customers

jointly. Tik Tok, one of the fastest-growing social media platforms, is one company that an

organization could partner with to bring customer value and engagement.

I agree with the New York Times article, “Will Tik Tok Make You Buy It?”

statement that brands enjoy more success after being featured in the app. For a brand to

succeed, the company needs to connect with the customers by building a solid relationship.

Tik Tok’s unique delivery algorithm allows companies to get higher engagement on their

videos[ CITATION Mal20 \l 1033 ]. The attention is assured as 90% of the users visit the app

multiple times in a day. The social media platform continues to gain popularity, which the

article says could add up to a billion monthly users; consequently, it offers companies a vast

audience base that companies could use to market their products or services. Additionally,

Tik Tok allows companies to build relationships with audiences, especially the younger ones.

As mentioned in the article, Tik Tok holds events such as give-away, competitions, and
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updates which are more likely to attract users’ interests, therefore, solidifying investment in

the brand[ CITATION Sch20 \l 1033 ].

I believe that every organization should make an effort to have a presence in social

media, especially Tik Tok, as this will increase their brand identity, raise brand awareness,

and benefit them with user-generated content[ CITATION Joh19 \l 1033 ].

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References

Croft, M. (2020). TikTok Famous: The Ultimate Fan Book. Welbeck Publishing Group

Limited.

Herrman, J. (2021, October 2). The New York Times. Retrieved from The New York Time:

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/02/style/tiktok-shopping-viral-products.html

Lincoln, J. (2019). The Forecaster Method: The Modern System to Accurately Evaluate,

Forecast, and Scale Your Digital Marketing. Amazon Digital Services LLC - KDP

Print US.

National Academies of Sciences, E. a. (2017). Information Technology and the U.S.

Workforce: Where Are We and Where Do We Go from Here? National Academies

Press.

Ozuem, W. (2016). Competitive Social Media Marketing Strategies. IGI Global.

Reads, A. (2021). TikTok Marketing: How to Use TikTok Marketing to Make Your Business

Go Viral. ARX Brand International LLC.

Scholastic. (2020). The Ultimate Guide to TikTok (100% Unofficial). Scholastic UK.