Will the Rise of TikTok Shop Affect Traditional Brand Deals?
With the rise of TikTok in recent years proving to be one of the biggest steps in social media development, brands are finding new ways to connect with consumers and influencers.
One of the most recent developments is TikTok Shop, a platform where users can discover, buy, and sell products directly within the app. With the potential to completely redesign e-commerce, TikTok Shop has sparked a debate: will this rise in social commerce impact traditional brand deals?
Let’s take a closer look at the history of brand partnerships, how TikTok Shop fits into the picture, and whether it will change our existing marketing strategies.
A Brief History of Brand Deals
Influencer marketing has evolved quickly since the early days of social media, when platforms such as YouTube first gained traction.
As these platforms developed, and creators became minor celebrities, brands began to recognise the power of working with influencers to reach new, engaged, and niche audiences.
Around this time, many brand deals were fairly straightforward: companies would send products to popular creators, and in return, they would get shoutouts or reviews. As social media developed into a lucrative business opportunity, brands began to invest in larger campaigns, offering influencers financial compensation and working with agencies. Influencers, in turn, provided brands with unique access to niche audiences and authentic content that felt more relatable than traditional ads.
Today, affiliate partnerships have become critical components of many brands' digital marketing strategies, and the influencer marketplace continues to grow.
The Rise of TikTok Shop
TikTok Shop is TikTok's latest major update, enabling creators to tag products in their videos, allowing users to purchase directly without leaving the platform. It’s a seamless integration of content and commerce.
The idea is simple: instead of just watching a product review or tutorial, users can immediately click to purchase the featured product. It can influence you to watch a video of a creator using a product and make you buy it without thinking, increasing the chance of impulse buying. Impulse buying an 18-pack of toilet roll is the new impulse buying a chocolate bar at the checkout.
For brands, this opens up a new and easy way to drive sales, blurring the lines between content and commerce. Sometimes, you can watch a video without realising it's an advert, only to see the link at the bottom. One tap and it's in your cart. It’s a clear evolution of influencer marketing, where creators not only promote a product but also offer a direct path to purchase.
This also offers multiple benefits for creators. No longer does a TikTok creator have to focus on their analytics, boost their followers enough to get traditional brand deals, or worry about whether all their posts are doing well to make some extra money. A TikTok Shop creator only has to worry about one thing in order to get commission, and that’s how well that specific piece of content will perform. Even with just a few thousand views, they may get compensated for any purchases. Anyone can do it, though the commission is typically much less than in a traditional, negotiated campaign.
Given this new tool for influencers to sell products directly, the question arises: will TikTok Shop replace traditional brand deals?
While TikTok Shop presents a unique opportunity for influencers and brands, it’s important to consider that it functions differently from traditional brand deals. Traditional deals have always been about creating connections between brands and audiences through authentic, personalised content.
TikTok Shop, on the other hand, is heavily focused on driving conversions and sales. It’s a powerful addition to the influencer toolkit, but its goals are more transactional. Where traditional brand deals focus on storytelling and building long-term relationships, TikTok Shop is more focused on moving products quickly.
The ‘anyone can do it’ theory may not always work in favour of the brand. Audiences are more loyal to creators they already know and trust, typically larger creators with niche audience statistics. Traditional brand deals are shared from a trusted point of view, seamlessly integrated into the creator’s content. It’s a very different viewing experience compared to seeing a stranger telling you to buy the latest snack on the market.
Why TikTok Shop Might Not Replace Traditional Brand Deals
Successful brands understand that storytelling is at the heart of marketing, and seamless integration into a creator’s unique style of video content matters. A comedy creator can script the product into their sketch, while a beauty creator can use the product in their 'look of the day' video. This creates a more organic feel.
Long-term partnerships with influencers provide a level of consistency that TikTok Shop simply can’t replicate. Influencers who become the "face" of a brand can create a deeper, more lasting connection with their followers—something that’s harder to achieve through one-off sales pushes.
Not all products fit the TikTok Shop format. While TikTok Shop works well for products that thrive on viral trends—such as beauty tools, gadgets, or affordable fashion—it’s not as effective for high-end, luxury, or more complex products that require a more thoughtful and considered buying decision. You might buy a makeup brush from TikTok Shop, but you’re less likely to buy a vacuum cleaner.
TikTok Shop’s focus on selling could risk oversaturation if every creator's content becomes a constant sales pitch. Influencer marketing thrives on trust and authenticity, and audiences can tell when creators are genuinely enthusiastic about a product versus when they are simply trying to sell.
Smart brands know that relying on one marketing channel is a risky strategy. TikTok Shop is an exciting addition to the influencer marketing mix, but it’s unlikely to replace other forms of content creation, such as long-form videos, blog posts, and Instagram Stories, which all offer unique opportunities for engagement and awareness.
TikTok Shop is undoubtedly a huge step in the world of social commerce, offering influencers a new way to monetise their content and driving immediate product sales for brands. However, it’s not a replacement for traditional brand deals—it’s an evolution that adds another layer to the current world of influencer marketing.
Traditional brand deals, with their focus on storytelling, long-term partnerships, and authentic connections, will likely continue to play an important role in a brand’s overall marketing strategy. Rather than replacing these methods, TikTok Shop will likely complement them, providing a great new tool to engage consumers in a different way.
