How Food Industry Can Benefit From TikTok Subcultures?

When it comes to generating mass attention for something on the internet, no other platform does it like TikTok. Products go viral and sell out, TV shows and movies get incredible hype, songs hit the top of the charts, books become bestsellers, regular people suddenly become internet-famous, and entire musicals get produced.

TikTok’s reach is astounding and goes beyond the app. And while some people might think the app’s only good for dancing to the newest hit song and lip-syncing to meme-worthy soundbites, it’s actually a very powerful tool that businesses can use to grow.

What are TikTok Subcultures?

With a billion monthly active users worldwide, there’s bound to be a TikTok community for every

niche you can think of. TikTok's superior algorithm knows how to build communities really well. Not only does its algorithm feed users content of the people they follow, but it actually introduces new content that its system assembles to fit the user’s personalized interests in a very seamless way.

Every user’s For You Page is provided with content that fits that user’s specific, granular, micro-subcultures they show interest in. These users interacting with each other soon create these immersive worlds with people passionate about similar interests, aesthetics, and values on the platform. These subcultures then become hotbeds for discourse that can influence just about anything.

How Can the Food Industry Benefit From TikTok Subcultures?

TikTok and its users can make just about anything go viral. While it’s a given that the entertainment industry and beauty industry are seeing big booms in their numbers because of TikTok, their niches aren’t the only communities on the app. The food communities on TikTok are thriving and the food industry can benefit a whole lot from these subcultures. TikTok is a powerful marketing tool in your arsenal and it’s not that difficult to use.

The key element here is the trust built in these communities. Think of the traditional word-of-mouth strategy used by businesses to grow brand awareness. TikTok users talking about their recommendations is similar to that, only this time, they’re reaching an incredibly wider audience.

Since they all interact in the same subculture and have established their like-mindedness, they start recommending the products, services, or experiences they think the community would enjoy too. And because they have some level of trust established in that group, others go ahead and pick up that recommendation. If they also enjoyed it, then they go ahead and talk about it too. It then becomes this feedback loop and since different subcultures overlap each other, it is bound to get picked up by the other subcultures as well. That’s often how products become viral.

You may have a recipe, product, restaurant, café, or service like a delivery app that you want to direct attention to. Gathering a significant amount of traction isn’t as difficult as it would be on other social media platforms.

Start by consistently posting on your TikTok with engaging content ideas. You can film behind the scenes of your business, recipes, and tutorials, storytimes, participate in food trends, and whatever else you can fit in three minutes or less. Use trending sounds in your videos, add hashtags in your video description, and interact with other users in the subculture by replying to their comments on your videos and on others’.

Influencers and other notable users on the platform can help your lead generation as well. You can reach out to them with a deal or you can do this by Dueting or Replying to their existing content, incorporating your business in some way. Get creative with how you do it so it can catch the attention of your target audience.

What’s also great about TikTok is that joining these subcultures is so seamless. Unlike Facebook Groups wherein you have to actively opt-in to be a part of the group, on Tiktok, it’s like you were a part of the community to begin with. This means any content you want to create for a specific subculture can easily be integrated and shown to the thousands upon thousands of users in that subculture.

It is important to note that being aligned with the subcultures you want to target is crucial. TikTok users love authenticity and if a business or brand can tap into a personal and authentic approach that speaks to the natives of that community. Gain credibility from these communities by connecting with their passion points and interests. Join their conversations, provide value-adding insights, and genuinely show interest and build some sort of camaraderie with the people in the community. This can help you gain credibility in these communities and build greater leverage in influencing conversions.

TikTok’s ease of use, fun and dynamic platform, seamless integration into subcultures, and incredibly wide reach is an incredible way for brands to get their names out there. The food industry is equally dynamic and fun and is enjoyed by virtually everyone. Any brand in the food industry can thrive on the platform and what better way to bring the users in these communities together than over food?

Clark Influence, is an agency full of enthusiasts who will be there every step of the way to guide you through your strategies on TikTok.

Do you want to build a successful TikTok presence for your brand but don’t know where to start? Send us a essage. We can help you navigate the ever-changing landscape of social media, craft the best strategy for your brand, and connect you to your target audience the #TeamClark way.