In-feed Ads
In-feed ads on TikTok are ads that you can create yourself using the TikTok Ads Manager interface.
TikTok Video Ads
This is one of the most common forms of TikTok advertising. Video ads are made by brands or creators and posted through a TikTok Ads Manager account.
Video ads look like regular TikToks, but any interaction with a video ad leads to a landing page or an app install—in other words, TikTok video ads link directly to whatever is being advertised.
Top View Ads
This ad is similar to an in-feed ad, with the main difference being it’s the first in-feed video users see. It may not be the first video they see when opening the app, but brands have guaranteed three seconds of attention. Brands have to be really creative in order to make an impact in such little time; luckily, half the hard work is already done since they don’t have to worry about initially capturing interest, unlike in-feed ads, where users can just scroll through. TopView and in-feed ads are the most common ads on TikTok and are the easiest to create. If you’re new to advertising, we recommend starting with these along with other social media advertising — just to note — the cost of TikTok ads varies and they require a minimum budget.
Branded Effects
It’s not a social media platform without the use of filters! Branded effects allow brands to create their own shareable stickers, AR filters, and lenses. This is ideal if you want user-generated content (UGC) or to spread awareness for a campaign, especially one with a good cause or mission. It was only recently that TikTok launched its Effect House, specifically made to produce custom-branded effects.
It would be easier to have a branded effect with a different ad combined with it. A great way to popularize a branded effect is by having a celebrity use it with a branded hashtag in the caption of a TopView ad. Users have several ways to engage with it by using the filter, hashtag or simply capturing their interest for at least a few seconds. This, of course, would require a big budget to implement all these ads on top of creating the filter, stickers, hashtags, and video (even more if a celebrity or influencer is involved).
Spark Ads
Spark ads are essentially in-feed ads, but this type of TikTok ad also allows brands to turn their own TikTok videos or a creator’s video (with their permission) into ads. Spark ads enable users to visit the brand’s TikTok account and use their audio for their own video or visit a music page. This ad is strongly recommended for any advertiser, no matter their marketing goals, since it’s relatively easy to launch and very effective. Spark Ads’ new profile landing page UI delivers a 69% higher conversion rate and 37% lower cost per action (CPA) than ever before.