TikTok claims its search ads can double purchase lift, positioning it to compete with Google for ad dollars.
Campaigns with a search component saw a 2.0x higher purchase lift, especially benefiting enterprise advertisers.
Nearly 90% of Gen Z users search on TikTok weekly, using it as a tool for trusted brand discovery.
TikTok is hiring over 120 roles to expand its search advertising business and challenge established players.
Despite promising internal data, some ad agencies find TikTok's real-world campaign results inconsistent.
TikTok is escalating its push into the search advertising market, releasing new data from an internal analysis that claims its search ads can double the purchase lift for brands. The move positions the social video giant to more directly compete with Google for ad dollars by capitalizing on the platform's growing use as a discovery engine.
By the numbers: According to TikTok’s meta-analysis, campaigns that included a search component saw a 2.0x higher purchase lift compared to those without. The company also reports that the uplift was even more pronounced for its enterprise advertisers, signaling that bigger brands may see even greater returns.
Trust over answers: The strategy leans heavily into how younger audiences use the platform. A supporting WARC study notes that nearly 90% of Gen Z users now search on TikTok weekly. TikTok argues this behavior is different from traditional search, framing it as a quest for trusted perspectives, not just facts—an approach that appears to resonate with users who see the platform as a primary tool for brand discovery.
Gearing up for a fight: To support its growing ambitions, TikTok is actively hiring for over 120 roles related to its search products. The investment in talent makes its strategic priority clear: build out its search advertising business and prepare to challenge established players for a larger slice of the market.
By packaging compelling performance data with a narrative about evolving user behavior, TikTok is making a deliberate and aggressive case to advertisers that its platform isn’t just a social channel, but a core part of the modern search landscape where intent-driven conversions happen.
Also on our radar: TikTok's intense focus on search comes as its broader e-commerce ambitions have reportedly hit some headwinds, making the ad-tech side of the business even more critical. While the company's internal data is promising, some ad agencies report that real-world campaign results can still be a "mixed bag," suggesting the platform is still proving its value to some advertisers.
