New Report Sets Creative Tone For 2021

Understanding audience trends, knowing what will generate engagement, and harnessing creativity as we move through 2021 is vital for brands and marketers in a post-COVD world.

Luckily for creatives, social media giants TikTok has spilt the beans on the creative campaigns and themes driving interaction on its vast platform.

TikTok's latest trend report highlights what content resonates with users regionally, which should help marketers stay ahead of the curve for longer. Plus, offer untapped cross-promotional opportunities with trends before they pop locally.          

TikTok has grown massively over the past year and now has a much more engaged audience than Instagram. TikTok's time spent per month metrics are through the roof, with usage surging from 12.8 hours per month to 21 hours per month.

TikTok Trend Report

"Based on nearly a year's worth of performance, we've identified the content categories that grew the most and the ones that remained among the most popular ones on TikTok in 2020.

These categories will continue to shape the platform in 2021, but at the same time, we expect the TikTok community to come up with many more new trends and topics. They always do."

What are the global trends for 2021?

TikTok is a treasure trove of content, and it's no surprise to see the top content categories as varied as the contents of Long John Silver's buried wealth.

The most popular content categories include:

1. Diary/vlog
2. Comedy
3. Video games
4. Movie and TV
5. Pets
6. Romance
7. Cartoon and Animation
8. Cooking
9. Sports
10. Outfit

The top growth content categories were:

1. News and events
2. Music
3. Photography
4. Sports news
5. Environment Protection
6. Livestock and Poultry
7. Education
8. Interview and Experiment
9. Home and Garden
10. Camping

TikTok's trend insights are handy not only for marketers looking to unlock TikTok's sizeable organic reach opportunities but also demonstrate that success is probably not that different from other channels, at least at a high level.

Literal TikTok execution is often different to Instagram, but many ideas and concepts are interchangeable across consumer channels.

What are the local trends on TikTok for AU/NZ?

Australian and Kiwi audiences went completely mad for baking videos in 2020 – to the tune of 2 billion views.

While videos in the family and home and garden categories were also incredibly popular. The former gathered around the same number as baking, while home and garden ended up with just under 800 million views.

Recipe videos and trying new things in the kitchen became part of the new normal for those of us in lockdown, and TikTok became the world's go-to source for inspiration and how-tos.

Brands can make the most of this by placing their products in recipe videos or tutorials – but make sure to have fun with it! And when you make those videos, don't forget to use these hashtags:

• #Baking
• #Homemade
• #Dessert
• #Cake
• #Cooking

Can you spark the next TikTok challenge? The family category could be your place to shine! TikTok is the place we've seen families unite more than ever before, even though we've all been spending waaay too much time next to each other.

Kids are pranking parents, parents are pranking kids, and everyone is trying to get one up on each other. It's a brilliant place, and this community really wants to get involved in a fun space that's full of creativity. Maybe even think of doing some TikTok giveaways to boost engagement and reach?

The top hashtags in the family category were:

• #WithMyFamily
• #DadLife
• #Parenting
• #FamilyThings
• #Challenge

Cleaning has become a big thing on TikTok.

Yeah, no, me neither. I didn't expect that.

After the rough year that was 2020, cleaning up has become a sort of meditation. People are embracing the positive mindset a good de-clutter can bring, while cleaning has become a form of entertainment in itself. Consider a spring clean challenge or incorporating your brand with some superb cleaning content.

The top hashtags in this area are:

• #CleanWithMe
• #CleaningMotivation
• #CleanASMR
• #YouGotThis
• #OddlySatisfying

TikTok's audience is staying on the platform for longer than ever, which means that brands and marketers need to take notice of the trends highlighted in the report. As mentioned before, this will allow marketers to understand user interest, tailor creative campaigns and improve relevancy.

You might even go viral.