TikTok has launched TikTok For Business, giving retailers a suite of marketing tools to rival the e-commerce efforts of Snapchat and Instagram.

The new platform allows brands to create their own adverts and connect with influencers within the app, including ‘TopView’ ads which appear when the app is first launched, ‘Brand Takeovers’ which are three to five-second-long video or image adverts, and a new augmented reality (AR) ‘Brand Scan’ functionality.

The latter feature enables users to add visual effects from brands into their videos, which will interact with the physical environment around them.

Other options include the ‘In-Feed’ videos, which can last up to 60 seconds and include sound, alongside ‘Hashtag Challenges’, which encourage users to engage with the user community around a hashtag of choice - including a shopping feature called Hashtag Plus, which directs users to purchase items involved in the advertising campaign.

While many of these tools were already available to advertisers, TikTok For Business brings them together in a new dedicated platform where new services will be added over time.

“We’re excited to officially introduce TikTok for Business and continue building products, services and resources for marketers to engage their communities in a new and innovative way, and show them how TikTok is a creative and valuable marketing platform," said Stuart Flint, TikTok’s head of global business solutions.

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