- TikTok nurtures influencers for sales through TikTok Shop.
- Mirroring Douyin’s success, it aims to rival Amazon by fostering celebrity-like salespeople.
- TikTok may convince major brands, cultivating ‘shopping stars’.
TikTok is cultivating a new type of influencer focused on selling products through its e-commerce tool TikTok Shop. Insider learned the platform’s dedicated “Star Creator” team identifies and trains creators adept at driving sales in various categories.
Hands-on support for Shop Stars
TikTok provides these “Shop Stars” a direct line of communication, strategy tips for earning commissions and matchmaking with brands for promotions.
Some even get exclusive intel on top-selling items. This hands-on support aims to transform influencers into selling machines to boost TikTok Shop.
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The playbook mirrors TikTok’s sister app Douyin in China, where influencers known as “key opinion leaders” have generated billions in sales.
TikTok is now testing and formalizing the e-commerce creator role to growth hack its fledgling Shop feature. While TikTok Shop has drawn small businesses, major brands remain elusive.
Can TikTok Shop succeed?
If influencers evolve into celebrity-like salespeople, it could increase merchant adoption and compete with incumbents like Amazon.
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As one insider noted, “It’s almost as if they’re trying to prove the concept works to the big brands.” Cultivating shopping stars seems the fastest way for TikTok to scale e-commerce and realize its shopping aspirations.