TikTok has introduced Smart+, an AI-powered ad-buying tool designed to simplify campaign management and attract more advertisers. Smart+ automates various stages of the ad-buying process, including creative development, targeting, and optimization. Marketers can allow TikTok’s AI to handle these tasks to drive conversions, lead generation, or app downloads.
For those who prefer more control, Smart+ offers the flexibility to manage campaigns at key stages. Despite concerns about relying heavily on AI and giving up control, many marketers seem willing to trade oversight for quicker results and improved ad performance. TikTok is banking on this by pitching Smart+ as a tool that eliminates guesswork and reduces the need for extensive A/B testing.
According to Adolfo Fernandez, TikTok’s global head of product strategy and operations, the AI has been trained on what drives successful campaigns on the platform, promising quick and efficient results. Smart+ also integrates with TikTok’s other AI tool, Symphony, which helps generate and refine ad concepts. According to Fernandez, advertisers using Smart+ for web campaigns have seen a 53% improvement in return on ad spend.
Streamlining ad performance with AI
For example, a beta campaign by Ray-Ban demonstrated significant gains, including a 50% reduction in cost per acquisition and a 47% increase in conversion rates. Smart+ aims to attract a specific type of marketer—those who have previously hesitated to invest in TikTok.
Blake Chandlee, TikTok’s president of global business solutions, believes that Smart+ can close the gap with Meta. “Historically, we’ve excelled in branding, but with Smart+, our performance products can reach parity with Meta’s Advantage+,” said Chandlee. To further bolster its advertising offerings, TikTok has introduced another AI tool called GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) Max, aimed at boosting merchant sales by optimizing creative assets and reaching shoppers across TikTok’s various platforms.
TikTok’s head of measurement product solutions and operations, Ann Nguyen, emphasized the need for new measurement tools to capture the platform’s true impact on sales. TikTok’s conversion lift studies show that the platform drives significant demand, with an average conversion lift of at least 25%. As TikTok aims to reposition itself as a serious player in advertising, it’s also focusing on privacy-enhancing technologies to protect marketers’ data.
The platform’s success in these endeavors will be crucial in proving it can deliver where it matters most: the bottom line.
