TikTok makes bigger bet on publishers with ads tied to buzzy content, events

Dive Brief:

TikTok is introducing new tools and publisher partners to its Pulse suite of products focused on contextual advertising, the company announced ahead of its NewFronts showcase Thursday.
Pulse Premiere, which aligns ads with premium publisher content, is welcoming Paramount Global and the NHL. A new Pulse Custom Lineups tool leverages generative artificial intelligence (AI) to curate trending, brand-safe content that meets a marketer’s goals while Pulse Premiere IP Lineups lets brands buy ads against specific pieces of intellectual property (IP) or networks.
Pulse Premiere Tentpole Moments, another new offering, applies a similar approach to buzzy events. The video-sharing app is also expanding its measurement solutions with Nielson One Ads and iSpot.tv to track how TikTok campaigns add incremental value and reach to efforts running on TV.

Dive Insight:

TikTok’s NewFronts pitch this year focuses on building out a Pulse Premiere platform that leans on premium publishers to help brands connect with consumers around high-profile IP and cultural moments, such as Paramount’s “The Daily Show,” NBCUniversal’s upcoming Olympics Games coverage and the Met Gala from Vogue. Paramount Global and the NHL are joining a roster that already includes Buzzfeed, Conde Nast, DotDash Meredith, Hearst Magazines, NBCUniversal and sports leagues like the NFL, MLS, UFC and MLB, among others.

The Pulse program focuses on cream-of-the-crop TikTok content that is driving discussions in categories like lifestyle, education and entertainment. Pulse Premiere, which launched at last year’s NewFronts, is positioned as giving advertisers greater control as to where their ads appear in a digital landscape where brand safety and waste stand top of mind. TikTok, which boasts over 1 billion monthly active users, cited in the announcement Kantar research that found 73% of surveyed consumers develop deeper connections to brands they interact with on the app.

TikTok returning to the NewFronts, an annual media-buying bonanza where brands and agencies lock in major deals, comes as social media spending is on the upswing and could receive a further boost from cyclical events like the Summer Olympics and the election season. WARC forecasts that global social ad spending will increase 14.3% this year to $247.3 billion, and social media is now the top media channel worldwide, according a report the researcher shared with Marketing Dive.

The elephant in the room is that TikTok, which is owned by Chinese tech firm ByteDance, is facing a ban unless it sells itself to a U.S. buyer within a year. While the deadline for a decision is still a while away, creators, publishers and advertisers are already mulling their future on the app that is mega-popular with teens. That hasn’t seemed to stem excitement at the NewFronts: TikTok’s in-person showcase Thursday evening is at capacity.