TikTok Launches Commercial Content Library: A Searchable Database for Ads and Branded Content

TikTok

TikTok has opened its Commercial Content Library to users. This library allows users to search for and view commercial content, including paid media ads and other commercial content tagged with the paid partnership label (e.g., branded content, sponsored content, etc.). Users can search for ads based on region, creative, dates the ad ran, targeting parameters, and more. For other commercial content, users can search by the creator's country, posted date, and the creator's username. It is currently only available for content in Europe but is expected to expand to more regions.

This move is TikTok's way of complying with the forthcoming requirements of the European Union's Digital Services Act (DSA), which include platforms offering a searchable database for ads with information such as who paid for it and the reach of ads. Though the primary use case is transparency, it is a great addition for brands, marketers, creators, and talent managers.

For brands and marketers, this is a great way to see what their competitors are doing, what kind of content they are producing, which regions they are targeting, whether they are running ads at specific times, and how many people they are reaching. With these insights, they can understand what others in their space might be doing and make necessary adjustments to their own advertising efforts on TikTok. For example, if they see a competitor leaning heavily into running ads in a certain region, that may lead them to increase their own share of voice in that same region.

As for creators and talent managers, this data can prove to be invaluable in understanding which brands are collaborating with creators, the types of creators they prefer to work with, and the typical activation periods for campaigns. With this knowledge, creators and talent managers can adopt a more strategic approach when approaching brands for potential partnerships. By knowing who is already working with creators, the type of content they are asking creators to produce, and the initiatives they are supporting with creators, they can tweak their pitches and focus on what might be most important for those brands.