Dive Brief:
- Shoppers in the U.S. under 60 spent an average $708 on TikTok Shop last year, according to a February consumer survey by PartnerCentric. These shoppers are spending an average $59 per TikTok Shop purchase.
- Across categories, the most popular TikTok Shop purchase for survey respondents is personal accessories, followed closely by household items.
- Gen Z has embraced TikTok the most among generations, followed by millennials then Gen X, according to PartnerCentric, a finding that other data frequently shows.
Dive Insight:
Most consumers already use TikTok for entertainment and almost all of those PartnerCentric surveyed, 9 in 10, report using TikTok with over half using it daily. But TikTok has now become a shopping destination, too.
For many shoppers, the purchases are not well thought out and TikTok Shop still comes with its pain points, according to the survey.
Nearly one-quarter of shoppers in the survey reported making an impulse purchase on TikTok Shop. Almost one-quarter of respondents say they regret at least one TikTok Shop purchase. The top regret amongst these shoppers was that the item was of cheaper quality.
However, more shoppers are trusting influencers with their money when it comes to deciding their purchases. Survey respondents report they would spend an average $95 on items recommended by their most-trusted influencer.
Influencers have a vast reach as nearly two-thirds of U.S. shoppers under 60 take purchase suggestions from influencers. These shoppers report that nearly half of their TikTok Shop purchases came from influencer posts.
Brands like E.l.f. Cosmetics have leveraged TikTok Shop’s Super Brand Day sales events. For one day, a brand is featured on TikTok Shop, typically with sales and freebies. The beauty brand capitalized on a mini version of its Power Grip Primer, which garnered attention from the social platform, as a free item for purchases over $15.
TikTok Shop as a business has grown by significantly. During the most recent Black Friday TikTok Shop sales surpassed $100M, triple the amount spent during the previous year.
The fate of TikTok remains undecided, as the law enacting a ban of the platform was delayed until April 5. Consumers still frequent TikTok Shop despite its ever-changing status. Factoring in the app’s ban period, the customer experience for users has varied. Though the ban was delayed, since January, over 2 in 5 shoppers say the app has changed, PartnerCentric found.