Product research is a crucial part of creating your online business.
TikTok has been around since 2016, but it only recently started getting more attention from marketers.
The app allows users to create short videos with music or audio clips, which they can share with their friends on the platform.
In this article, we'll share our top tips for finding the best product ideas on TikTok so you can get ahead of the competition.
Let's get started!
7 Tips to help you find winning products on TikTok
TikTok can be a goldmine in terms of getting ideas for products to sell. Follow these eight tips, and you will see them for yourself!
1. Look at what other brands are doing
The best way to learn about what's trending on TikTok is by watching what other brands are doing.
For example, look up some of the most successful influencers on TikTok and see what types of products they post.
You might notice that certain brands tend to use similar hashtags when posting their videos. This means that these hashtags may be popular among their followers. Therefore, you should consider using them as well.
2. TikTok Ads Creative Center
Another great place to find ideas is the TikTok Ads Creative Center. This tool allows you to search for specific keywords and phrases related to your brand.
For example, if you sell shoes, you can type 'shoes' into the keyword box. Then, you can choose whether you want to search for videos that include the word 'shoes.'
But the golden nugget is on the filters, where you can select the location, industry, objective, like, and duration.
By filtering the results based on these criteria, you can narrow down the number of videos that appear.
This tool helps you determine what products are currently trending across different countries.
Tip: Select 'Conversion' as the objective. Otherwise, you may see random videos that aren't used to promote products.
3. Use Minea
Minea is a platform that allows you to spy on your competitors' TikTok ads. This is a great way to see what products they're promoting and how they're doing it.
To use the tool, simply type the keyword you want to track. Minea will show you all the matching ads that competitors have posted on TikTok:
Also, ensure to use the filters in order to sort the results according to the country, date, likes, ecommerce platform, and time.
Discount code: Looking for a Minea discount code? You can use DoDropshipping to get 20% off for your first 6 months!
4. Find TiKTok influencers
Finding influencers who promote your brand is another great way to gather data about your target audience.
Simply type the '@' symbol followed by the name of the product you're interested in finding. For example, if you wanted to find influencers who talk about fashion, you would type '@fashion,' '@style,' etc.
Another method is by using the alphabet initials. Simply type the first letter of the product you're thinking of finding and hit enter. The app will display a list of influencers with names starting with that letter.
Verify TikTok influencers
Looking for the right influencers to help you find new products can seem daunting. After all, countless people out there claim to be experts in their field and have large fanbases. But how do you know which influencers to trust?
One approach is using the influencer's name to get data about their popularity.
To do this, go to SocialBlade, ensure to select the platform you want to get the data from and insert the name of the influencer in the search bar. It will pull up the social media stats of the person.
SocialBlade provides detailed insights into an individual's social media presence, including follower count, engagement rate, and more.
With just a few clicks, you can verify the authenticity of the influencer's account. If the numbers don't add up, then it could mean that the influencer is fake or not real.
Additionally, many TikTok influencers already have solid followings on YouTube or other platforms, so partnering with them can effectively reach a wider audience.
Since this is a crucial step in finding the right influencer, you'll need to look at the influencer's follower growth over time.
If they're consistently growing their following, it's likely that their content is performing well. On the contrary, if their followers are declining, then it could mean that their content isn't engaging enough, and therefore, you should skip this influencer.
5. Know the characteristics of a winning product on TikTok
Whether it is a video advertisement or an image post, the product needs to have some key features to grab people's attention quickly.
In fact, the product must be high quality and well-made. It needs to look professional and polished to reflect the brand positively.
In short, to grab people's attention on TikTok, it needs to have mainly these qualities:
- The product you want to sell should attract attention with its unique features.
- An evergreen product that would appeal to broader potential clients.
- Suggest a solution to the problem.
That said, it is also important to keep an eye on the user engagement metrics, such as the number of likes and comments, since they indicate the amount of attention the video has received.
6. Hashtag product research
TikTok keyword allows you to find different products that have gone or are currently going viral on TikTok. Using #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt, you can find out what products are trending.
This is a great way to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and see what products resonate with users.
Another great one to use is #amazonfinds, showing products that TikTok users bought on Amazon:
7. Spiral effect method
When it comes to hashtags, there's a lot of potential for marketers to get lost in the woods. The spiral effect method can help simplify the process and ensure that you find hashtags with high views.
Essentially, this method consists of digging deeper by finding relevant hashtags within the initial search hashtag.
For example, as shown in the image, we found this post using #amazonfinds, but then #flexispot is another great hashtag that will give you even more product ideas related to people working remotely.
3 Other considerations for product research on TikTok
When doing your product research, you should always consider the existing demand for the product. If there is already a lot of competition, it becomes harder to make sales. As such, you should focus on products that have low competition.
That said, let's discuss how you can implement this knowledge into your product research.
Expand the age range
Despite the prejudiced assumption that TikTok is used only by people between the ages of 16 and 34, the platform expanded its age range to include people of all ages.
TikTok has something for everyone, with a wide variety of content that can be customized to each user's interests.
Therefore you should focus on expanding your audience reach in order to increase the likelihood of getting more product ideas.
Already trending on other platforms
If you're interested in starting a business, you should follow the patterns of the product that is currently trending on other social media platforms. In fact, this is a good indicator that you can use to understand better how the product is performing.
However, you should avoid copying someone else's idea altogether. Instead, you should take inspiration from the trends on other platforms while creating your own unique version of the product.
By knowing which platforms are currently popular, you can decide whether creating a product or service would be worthwhile to beat the competition.
Tip: Learn how to do product research on Pinterest here and product research on Instagram here!
What do the competitors offer?
Competitors play an important role in your product research. They provide valuable information about the market and give you insight into why consumers choose one brand over another.
For example, you might find out that some users prefer a particular brand because it offers a wider selection of products. On the other hand, others might prefer a different brand because it provides a lower price.
You can also learn about the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors' products. For instance, you could discover that some brands have a high customer satisfaction rate but lack in terms of quality.
You can also determine whether your competitors are offering similar products as yours. If so, you should consider how to differentiate yourself from them.
This is especially true if you want to enter a competitive industry. By understanding what your competitors offer, you can ensure that your product stands out from the crowd.
Summary
Before we go to the final verdict, we've created a quick summary of this article for you, so you can easily remember it:
- Search #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt to find products already bought by TikTok users.
- Use the TikTok Creative Center to find the ads of your competitors.
- Don't stop just on the first hashtag. Use the spiral effect method to keep digging deeper.
- Ensure the product you want to sell appeals to a broad audience and suggests a solution to a problem.
- Verify the influencer engagement metrics using SocialBlade to get an estimation of their performance.
Conclusion
Product research is important for businesses of all sizes. By understanding the needs of your target audience and what your competitors are offering, you can make sure that your product stands out from the crowd.
There are a number of different methods that you can use to gather data, including surveys, polls, and Google Trends.
By using a combination of these methods, you can get a well-rounded view of the market and what people are looking for.
If you want to learn more about using TikTok for marketing, check out our complete beginner's guide here!
Want to learn more about doing product research?
Ready to move your product research skills to the next level? Check out the articles below:
- The 9 Best Product Research Chrome Extensions in 2024
- How to Spot Trends for Product Research: 6 Great Tips (2024)
- How to Choose What to Dropship: Finding the Right Products
And don't forget to check out our list of the best product research tools!
