In September, TikTok officially opened up its Shop platform in the U.S. On TikTok Shop, consumers can browse items they’ve seen in videos while also claiming incredible deals on imported goods from China.
TikTok Shop’s U.S. arrival took nearly a year to go from the initial testing phase to the wide rollout. Now that the long-awaited ecommerce hub has made its Stateside debut, vendors and buyers are sharing their first impressions. Reactions have been mixed: Some vendors are seeing sales boosts thanks to the platform, but they’ve also encountered technical glitches and competed with snake oil salespeople who are hawking pseudoscientific products within the TikTok community.
Let’s start with the good. A report in Modern Retail collected TikTok Shop data from several sellers, including cosmetics brand BK Beauty. The Co-Founder of BK Beauty, Paul Jauregui, told Modern Retail that Shop sales have delivered a boost between 10% and 20%. Influencer marketing efforts have made significant contributions to that uptick. Jauregui noted that a creator video from makeup artist Melissa Murdick led to a 30% day-over-day sales bump.
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@itsmakeupbymelissam Replying to @Kyra pick whichever tool you prefer! Both give good results when used correctly #makeupbrushes #makeupreview #makeuptutorial #foundationhack #beautyblender ♬ original sound – Melissa Murdick
Jauregui also expressed frustration with a “buggy” experience on TikTok Shop. “t was painful getting not only our products synced with TikTok Shop, but managing the orders and customer management was [hard],” he told Modern Retail.
Other issues with the platform have less to do with its tech and more to do with the products vendors are choosing to sell. A report in Vox chronicled the rise of “dangerous health trends” on TikTok Shop. Creator Busy Belle has reportedly driven around 33,000 sales for a castor oil product. Belle claims that castor oil can be used to treat various ailments, though those claims are unproven.
The rise of alternative health trends on TikTok could potentially have huge ramifications. Videos about steroid-like drugs have picked up hundreds of millions of views by selling young adults on the uses of the drugs without disclosing the damaging side effects. TikTok Shop provides an easy for influencers to monetize their dubious assertions.
Like with any new platform, TikTok has a lot of kinks to work out before its Shop hits its stride. The early data is encouraging, and TikTok could really use a win with its Stateside ecommerce venture. In other regions, its Shop is getting banned by local governments. But thus far in the United States, the result has been a gold rush.
