Building on its latest AI “Symphony” advances, announced in May at TikTok World 2024, TikTok is now offering businesses the ability to create digital avatars who will act as their virtual brand ambassadors, fronting up their video content and engaging with customers 24/7.

TikTok Newsroom, June 2024

“To help creators and brands captivate global audiences and deliver impactful messages in an immersive and authentic way, we are excited to announce Symphony Digital Avatars.

Digital Avatars help breathe life into branded content with generative AI avatars of real people, which will enable new ways to scale creative strategies on TikTok.

With 58% of TikTok users saying they are more likely to trust brands after learning about them from TikTok creators, avatars help scale and globalize branded content with a personalized, human feel and wide variety of gestures, expressions, nationalities, ages and languages.”

What Are Symphony Digital Avatars?

Symphony Digital Avatars are AI-generated representations of real people designed to enhance and scale branded content on TikTok.

These avatars can be used to deliver messages in a way that feels personal and relatable, mimicking human expressions and gestures. There are two main types of Symphony Digital Avatars:

• Stock Avatars: These pre-built avatars are created using paid actors and are licensed for commercial use. They provide a diverse range of options for businesses, covering various nationalities and speaking over 30 languages. Stock Avatars are a quick and cost-effective solution for brands looking to add a human element to their content without the need for custom creation.
• Custom Avatars: These are tailored to represent a specific creator or brand spokesperson, allowing for multi-language capabilities. Custom Avatars offer brands the flexibility to create a digital representation of their own brand ambassador or a popular influencer. This option gives marketers greater control over the avatar’s appearance and behaviour, ensuring it aligns perfectly with the brand’s identity.

How Businesses Can Maximise Symphony Digital Avatars

Businesses can leverage Symphony Digital Avatars in several effective ways to enhance their TikTok marketing strategies:

1. Personalised Marketing Campaigns: By using avatars that closely resemble real people, businesses can create more relatable and engaging content. This personal touch can increase trust and connection with the audience, making marketing campaigns more effective.
2. Global Reach: With the ability to speak multiple languages, Digital Avatars can help brands overcome language barriers and connect with a global audience. This is particularly useful for international campaigns where the same content needs to be localised for different regions.
3. Cost-Effective Content Production: Creating high-quality video content with human actors can be expensive and time-consuming. Digital Avatars provide a cost-effective alternative, allowing businesses to produce engaging content quickly and efficiently.
4. 24/7 Engagement: Digital Avatars can operate around the clock, engaging with audiences through live streams and interactive content. This continuous presence helps maintain audience interest and can drive higher levels of engagement.
5. Brand Consistency: Custom Avatars allow brands to maintain a consistent visual identity across all their content. By using the same avatar for various campaigns, businesses can strengthen brand recognition and loyalty.
6. Innovative Interactions: Avatars can interact with users in real-time, responding to comments and questions during live streams. This interactive capability enhances the user experience and can lead to more meaningful engagement with the audience.

Understanding TikTok Symphony

TikTok Symphony aims to streamline the creative process by providing AI assistance in writing scripts, producing videos, brainstorming ideas, and optimising assets. This tool essentially consolidates TikTok’s existing AI capabilities into one platform, making it more convenient for brands to leverage these tools in one place.

While many of these functions have been available separately, Symphony’s integration promises a more efficient and cohesive experience. This suite will enable brands to generate video promotions based on their existing assets, significantly enhancing productivity and creativity.

However, despite its potential, there remains a need for human oversight to ensure the quality and relevance of AI-generated content, as with all AI tools.