TikTok Ads
TikTok advertising — campaigns, creative, targeting, Spark Ads, Shop integration, and measurement.
Install
git clone https://github.com/thatrebeccarae/claude-marketing.git && cp -r claude-marketing/skills/tiktok-ads ~/.claude/skills/
Campaign Objectives
| Objective |
Optimization Goal |
Best For |
| Reach |
Maximum impressions |
Brand awareness, launches |
| Traffic |
Link clicks |
Blog, landing page visits |
| Video Views |
6s or 2s views |
Content promotion, retargeting pools |
| Community Interaction |
Followers, profile visits |
Account growth |
| Lead Generation |
In-app form submissions |
B2C lead capture |
| App Promotion |
Installs, in-app events |
Mobile app growth |
| Website Conversions |
Purchase, signup, add-to-cart |
E-commerce, SaaS |
| Product Sales (Shop) |
TikTok Shop purchases |
Social commerce |
Ad Formats
| Format |
Specs |
Best For |
| In-Feed Ads |
9:16 vertical, 5-60s, sound on |
Standard performance ads |
| Spark Ads |
Boost organic posts (yours or creators) |
Authenticity, social proof |
| TopView |
Full-screen on app open, up to 60s |
Maximum reach, launches |
| Branded Hashtag Challenge |
Custom hashtag + landing page |
UGC, viral campaigns |
| Branded Effects |
Custom AR filters/stickers |
Interactive engagement |
| Collection Ads |
Product cards below video |
E-commerce browsing |
| Dynamic Showcase Ads (DSA) |
Auto-generated from catalog |
Retargeting, catalog scale |
| TikTok Shop Ads |
Video Shopping Ads, Live Shopping |
Direct social commerce |
Creative Best Practices
The TikTok Creative Formula
Hook (0-3s) → Value/Story (3-15s) → CTA (last 3s)
- Hook in first 3 seconds — the scroll-stopping moment. Use text overlay, unexpected visual, or direct address ("Stop scrolling if you...")
- Native aesthetic — look like a TikTok, not an ad. Phone-shot, real people, trending sounds
- Sound on — 93% of TikTok is consumed with sound. Music and voiceover are critical
- Vertical video — 9:16 only. Never letterboxed horizontal
- Text overlays — 73% of top-performing ads use on-screen text
- Fast pacing — Cut every 2-3 seconds. Static shots die
- Creator-led > brand-polished — UGC-style consistently outperforms studio creative
Creative Fatigue
- Refresh every 7-14 days (TikTok audiences fatigue 2-3x faster than Meta)
- Maintain 3-5 active creatives per ad group
- Test new hooks on proven body/CTA structures
- Monitor frequency: >3 weekly = fatigue risk
Targeting
Interest & Behavior
- Interest categories (broader, for prospecting)
- Video interaction (liked, commented, shared similar content)
- Creator interaction (followed similar creators)
- Hashtag interaction (engaged with relevant hashtags)
Custom Audiences
- Website traffic (Pixel)
- App activity
- Customer file (email/phone upload)
- Engagement (video views, ad interaction, profile visits)
- TikTok Shop (shoppers, cart abandoners)
Lookalike Audiences
- Based on any custom audience source
- Broad/Narrow/Balanced options
- Minimum source: 1,000 users
Smart Targeting
- Automatic audience expansion when optimization allows
- Works well for conversion campaigns with sufficient data
- Requires 50+ conversions per week for optimal learning
Benchmarks
| Metric |
Good |
Average |
Poor |
| CTR (In-Feed) |
>1.5% |
0.8-1.5% |
<0.8% |
| CPC |
<$0.80 |
$0.80-1.50 |
>$1.50 |
| CPM |
<$8 |
$8-15 |
>$15 |
| Video view rate (6s) |
>15% |
8-15% |
<8% |
| CVR (e-commerce) |
>2% |
1-2% |
<1% |
| ROAS (e-commerce) |
>3x |
1.5-3x |
<1.5x |
| Cost per lead |
<$15 |
$15-40 |
>$40 |
Pixel & Events API
TikTok Pixel Setup
- Base pixel on all pages
- Standard events: ViewContent, AddToCart, InitiateCheckout, CompletePayment
- Custom events for specific actions (signup, demo request)
- Enhanced matching (email, phone) for better attribution
Events API (Server-Side)
- Complements pixel for iOS 14.5+ signal loss
- Deduplicate with pixel via event_id parameter
- Recommended for all advertisers running conversion campaigns
Audit Checklist
- Campaign structure: no more than 3-5 ad groups per campaign
- Each ad group has 3-5 active creatives
- Pixel firing correctly on all conversion events
- Events API configured alongside pixel
- Budget allows 50+ conversions per week per ad group (for learning phase)
- Creative refreshed within last 14 days
- No audience overlap between ad groups
- Exclusions applied (purchasers, existing customers)
- Attribution window set appropriately (7-day click, 1-day view standard)
- Catalog connected (if e-commerce)
Integration with Other Skills
- facebook-ads — Cross-platform creative and audience strategy
- google-ads — Full-funnel paid media coverage
- account-structure-review — Multi-platform structural audit
- wasted-spend-finder — Identify wasted TikTok spend
- copywriting-frameworks — Script ad hooks and CTAs
