TikTok is kicking off its annual product event with a set of announcements, including a feature aimed at studio movie marketers called Showtimes on TikTok.
In a blog post timed to the start of the TikTok World event, the division of China-based form ByteDance said Showtimes is designed to strengthen the link between movie communication happening on the platform and actual ticket sales. By TikTok’s estimate, 52% of people find a new movie, show or actor through its platform, and one in four viewers of movie ads there went on to buy a ticket. Trailers, showtimes and theater information based on users’ location are part of the offering.
Hollywood has long recognized the power of TikTok, which has surged and destabilized more established social players like Snapchat, Twitter and Instagram, forcing studio marketers to refine their approaches. A report several months ago by TikTok and Sony Pictures looked at the platform’s role in the breakout success of Spider-Man: No Way Home. Findings from the report shared with Deadline earlier this year indicate the “secret sauce” was harnessing TikTok users’ drive to create content tied to the film, which then spurred additional fan interest as it was shared online.
Other new initiatives announced today include updates to the TikTok Creator Marketplace, a hub for more than 800,000 creators. Improvements include enhanced search capability and new recommendation, comment and campaign reporting functions.
On the advertising front, the company has introduced Focused View, a new iteration of the Video View part of the platform’s ad management suite. Brands using Focus View only pay for their ads when users have voluntarily watched it for at least six seconds or when they interacted with the ad within the first six seconds, whichever comes first. The feature is designed to emphasize the high level of engagement of ads on TikTok.
“In an ever-changing digital marketing world where returns on ad spend are increasingly valued,” the company wrote in the blog post, “Focused View offers a way for brands to engage with their audiences more effectively and cost-efficiently.”