Media Buying Briefing: How TikTok agencies work — and why they don’t fear a U.S. ban of the app | International Association of Digital Marketing Professionals (IADMP)

By Antoinette Siu

New agencies blurring the lines between media and creative, as well as brand and performance, are increasingly specialized in the art of TikTok advertising. But there isn’t a one-size fits all approach to advertising on the short-form video app, according to five agencies that spoke to Digiday.

There’s a science to creating content for TikTok, from using the right kind of influencers to producing authentic ads that don’t feel overly scripted. But what makes these small agencies different is their culture, fast-paced business and particular expertise in TikTok strategies and commerce.

For the most part, these agencies working in TikTok’s world seem unconcerned about a possible ban — even if it were to happen, and that seems unlikely for now, they generally feel their learnings apply to other social platforms.

Dean Rojas and Michael Woolsey, the co-founders of TikTok specialist shop Gassed, said what separates them from traditional media agencies is the speed and volume at which they produce content on the surging but endangered platform.

Rojas and Woolsey founded Gassed in 2022 after working in media and creative teams at Dr. Squatch. Their goal was to bring together specialties in media and creative to serve the needs of clients in a fast-paced environment on TikTok.

“Rather than one brand working with a creative agency, then you’re working with a media agency — you just bundle it all in one,” said Woolsey, CEO of Gassed. “It’s very fast-paced out there. So that way, you’re able to keep up with the speed and really pull levers quickly in order to hit these core KPIs for these clients.”

“The whole goal with our content is for people not to realize that they’re watching an ad until they’re already 10 seconds into the ad and they’re already interested in the product,” Rojas added.

Ad business still on the rise

Despite growing security concerns and repeated calls for a ban in the U.S., there is no question that TikTok remains the top social network in growth. In 2021, TikTok reported surpassing 1 billion monthly users globally, and in 2023 it said the U.S. has reached 150 million monthly active users — up from 100 million in 2020.

In October 2022, research firm Insider Intelligence estimated TikTok’s global ad revenue to reach $14.5 billion in 2023. This month, it was downgraded to $13.16 billion for 2023, due to broader economic challenges in digital advertising overall, but also more risk-averse advertisers during this time, said Jasmine Enberg, social media analyst at Insider Intelligence. She added the change isn’t too concerning for its overall ad business.

“TikTok is the fastest-growing social network in terms of ad revenue, both in the U.S. and worldwide, significantly more than any other social platform,” Enberg told Digiday.

Indeed, Insider Intelligence this month forecasted a 30.7% increase to $17.2 billion in 2024 in TikTok’s net ad revenues globally. The ad revenue is expected to grow 28% to some $22 billion in 2025.